Final Blackout
Encyclopedia
Final Blackout is a dystopic
science fiction
novel by author L. Ron Hubbard
. The novel is set in the future and follows a man known as "the Lieutenant" as he restores order to England
after a world war. First published in serialized format in 1940 in the science fiction magazine Astounding Science Fiction, Final Blackout was published in book form in 1948 by The Hadley Publishing Co.. Author Services Inc.
published a hardcover edition of the book in 1988, and in 1989 the Church of Scientology
-affiliated organization Bridge Publications
said that a film director
named Christopher Cain had signed a contract to write and direct a movie version based on the book.
The novel was generally well received by literature critics, and is seen as an early classic of the Golden Age of Science Fiction
. It has received positive mention in the Chicago Sun-Times
and the Daily News of Los Angeles, and has been used in a science-fiction writing class at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
.
subsidiary company Author Services Inc.
In 1989, Young Guns
film director
Christopher Cain
optioned the rights to Final Blackout and developed a script for a possible film-version of the book. The film was not made. According to the Church of Scientology
company Bridge Publications
, Cain signed a contract to write a screenplay based on the book and to direct the film. "The book is massive in scope and transcends time. It's a powerful look at the idiocy and futility of war. I look forward to making 'Final Blackout' into a major movie," said Cain in a press release put out by Bridge Publications. An audiobook was released by Bridge Publications in 1991 and read by Planet of the Apes
actor Roddy McDowall
, who also voiced audiobook versions of Hubbard's novels Battlefield Earth
and Fear
.
(known in the book only as "The Lieutenant") as he becomes dictator of England
after a world war. The Lieutenant leads a ragtag army fighting for survival in a Europe
ravaged by 30 years of atomic, biological and conventional warfare. As a result of the most recent war, a form of biological warfare
called soldier’s sickness has ravaged England, and America was devastated by nuclear war. At the start of the novel, a quarantine
placed on England due to the soldier’s sickness prevents The Lieutenant from returning to England from his encampment in France
. The Lieutenant commands the Fourth Brigade, which is composed of one hundred and sixty-eight soldiers from multiple nations, leading them throughout France in search of food, supplies, arms and ammunition. Soon, Captain Malcolm informs The Lieutenant that all field officers are being recalled to General Headquarters (G.H.Q.) with their brigades to report to General Victor, the commanding officer at G.H.Q.
Upon the brigade's arrival at G.H.Q., The Lieutenant is informed by General Victor and his adjutant
Colonel Smythe that he is to be reassigned and will be stripped of his command. He is confined to his quarters and is told his entire brigade will be broken apart and assimilated into another brigade. Meanwhile, in the barracks
at G.H.Q., the Fourth Brigade learns of crucial news through back channels: a vaccine exists for the soldier's sickness, and General Victor’s plans for their brigade. The men decide to rebel, and break through the defenses of the barracks, free The Lieutenant and kill Captain Malcolm. The Fourth Brigade successfully escapes G.H.Q. in France and begins to make their way to London, along with other soldiers who are dissatisfied with General Victor's command. A battle ensues between General Victor's men and The Lieutenant's troops. The Lieutenant and his expanded Fourth Brigade eventually successfully take control of London and subsequently all of England and Wales.
The Lieutenant's government runs smoothly for years, until the battleship
U.S.S. New York arrives from the U.S. carrying two United States Senators and Captain Johnson, captain of the New York and commander of the U.S. fleet. Under threat from the U.S. battleship, The Lieutenant negotiates terms to transfer power to the Senators' associates – General Victor and Colonel Smythe. If anything happens to General Victor and Colonel Smythe, the country would be controlled by its officer corps. chaired by the Lieutenants confidant Swinburne. In addition, The Lieutenant requests that immigration of Americans to England be kept to no more than 100,000 per month, and demands that a favorable price be set for the purchase of land from their English owners. After these terms are established, The Lieutenant opens fire on General Victor and his men and a battle ensues. General Victor, Colonel Smythe and The Lieutenant and several of his men are killed. Years later The Lieutenant’s men still control England, and a flag flies honoring his memory. A memorial plaque at Byward Gate on Tower Hill
reads: "When that command remains, no matter what happens to its officer, he has not failed."
. In his book The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Donald H. Tuck
described the book as "Hubbard's masterpiece". Thomas D. Clareson writes in Understanding Contemporary American Science Fiction that prior to formalizing Dianetics
and Scientology
, Hubbard was "perhaps best known for Final Blackout". In his book Scientology: The Now Religion
, George Malko writes that Hubbard's works including Slaves of Sleep, Kingslayer, Typewriter in the Sky, Fear, Death's Deputy, and Final Blackout "were eagerly welcomed by devoted fans". In his 1967 book Seekers of Tomorrow: Masters of Modern Science Fiction, Sam Moskowitz writes that the book "... was a stunning achievement, certainly the most powerful and readable 'warning' story that had appeared in science fiction to that date." Moskowitz comments: "The progress of today's events has made much of Final Blackout prophetic". Astounding reviewer P. Schuyler Miller
described the book as one of the most "memorable" serials the magazine had published, saying it would be a "lasting volume."
Roland J. Green of the Chicago Sun-Times
called the book "One of the highwater marks of his [Hubbard's] literary career", and "perhaps the best single novel yet of what the Pentagon once so charmingly christened 'the broken-backed war' after a nuclear exchange". Jon Stone of NewsNet5.com described Final Blackout and Fear as "pulp in composition and not great in length, they are straight stories with few or no elements of Hubbard's other career", and compared the "pages of battles and tactics" in Final Blackout to Hubbard's later work Battlefield Earth.
Final Blackout and Fear are often cited by critics as the best examples of Hubbard's pulp fiction
works. Chuck Moss of Daily News of Los Angeles called the book "extremely good science fiction". The book has been included in the curriculum of a science-fiction writing class at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
. Cal Poly Pomona professor Steve Whaley told The Press-Enterprise that he thinks Hubbard was a "damn good storyteller". Karl Edward Wagner
cited Final Blackout as one of the thirteen best science-fiction horror novels.
Dystopia
A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian, as characterized in books like Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel by author L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
. The novel is set in the future and follows a man known as "the Lieutenant" as he restores order to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
after a world war. First published in serialized format in 1940 in the science fiction magazine Astounding Science Fiction, Final Blackout was published in book form in 1948 by The Hadley Publishing Co.. Author Services Inc.
Author Services Inc.
Author Services Inc. represents the literary, theatrical and musical works of the late Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Church of Spiritual Technology....
published a hardcover edition of the book in 1988, and in 1989 the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
-affiliated organization Bridge Publications
Bridge Publications (Scientology)
Bridge Publications, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. It is based in Los Angeles, California, and is the Church of Scientology's North American publishing corporation. It publishes the Scientology and nonfiction works of L. Ron Hubbard...
said that a film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
named Christopher Cain had signed a contract to write and direct a movie version based on the book.
The novel was generally well received by literature critics, and is seen as an early classic of the Golden Age of Science Fiction
Golden Age of Science Fiction
The first Golden Age of Science Fiction — often recognized as the period from the late 1930s through the 1950s — was an era during which the science fiction genre gained wide public attention and many classic science fiction stories were published...
. It has received positive mention in the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
and the Daily News of Los Angeles, and has been used in a science-fiction writing class at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, or Cal Poly Pomona, is a public university located in Pomona, California, United States...
.
Publication history
The story appeared in print in a 3-part serialized format, beginning with the April 1940 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. Final Blackout was first published in book form in 1948 by The Hadley Publishing Co. in an edition of 1,000 copies and with a new preface by Hubbard. The book was re-released in a hardcover format in 1988 by the Church of Spiritual TechnologyChurch of Spiritual Technology
The Church of Spiritual Technology, also known as CST, is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation, incorporated in 1982, which owns all the copyrights of the estate of L. Ron Hubbard. The CST is doing business as L. Ron Hubbard Library...
subsidiary company Author Services Inc.
Author Services Inc.
Author Services Inc. represents the literary, theatrical and musical works of the late Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Church of Spiritual Technology....
In 1989, Young Guns
Young Guns
Young Guns is a 1988 action/western film, directed by Christopher Cain and written by John Fusco. The film was the first to be produced by Morgan Creek Productions...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Christopher Cain
Christopher Cain
Christopher Cain is an American screenwriter, actor, director, and singer. He married Sharon Thomas in 1969 and adopted her two sons, Roger and Dean Cain. The couple's daughter Krisinda Cain Schafer was born in 1973....
optioned the rights to Final Blackout and developed a script for a possible film-version of the book. The film was not made. According to the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
company Bridge Publications
Bridge Publications (Scientology)
Bridge Publications, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. It is based in Los Angeles, California, and is the Church of Scientology's North American publishing corporation. It publishes the Scientology and nonfiction works of L. Ron Hubbard...
, Cain signed a contract to write a screenplay based on the book and to direct the film. "The book is massive in scope and transcends time. It's a powerful look at the idiocy and futility of war. I look forward to making 'Final Blackout' into a major movie," said Cain in a press release put out by Bridge Publications. An audiobook was released by Bridge Publications in 1991 and read by Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (1968 film)
Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly and Linda Harrison...
actor Roddy McDowall
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude "Roddy" McDowall was an English actor and photographer. His film roles included Cornelius and Caesar in the Planet of the Apes film series...
, who also voiced audiobook versions of Hubbard's novels Battlefield Earth
Battlefield Earth (novel)
Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000 is a 1982 science fiction novel written by the Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. He composed a soundtrack to the book called Space Jazz....
and Fear
Fear (novel)
Fear is a psychological thriller-horror novella by L. Ron Hubbard first appearing in Unknown Fantasy Fiction in July 1940. While previous editions followed the magazine text, the 1991 Bridge edition reportedly restores the author's original manuscript text...
.
Plot
Set in the future, the novel follows the rise of a LieutenantLieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
(known in the book only as "The Lieutenant") as he becomes dictator of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
after a world war. The Lieutenant leads a ragtag army fighting for survival in a Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ravaged by 30 years of atomic, biological and conventional warfare. As a result of the most recent war, a form of biological warfare
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...
called soldier’s sickness has ravaged England, and America was devastated by nuclear war. At the start of the novel, a quarantine
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
placed on England due to the soldier’s sickness prevents The Lieutenant from returning to England from his encampment in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The Lieutenant commands the Fourth Brigade, which is composed of one hundred and sixty-eight soldiers from multiple nations, leading them throughout France in search of food, supplies, arms and ammunition. Soon, Captain Malcolm informs The Lieutenant that all field officers are being recalled to General Headquarters (G.H.Q.) with their brigades to report to General Victor, the commanding officer at G.H.Q.
Upon the brigade's arrival at G.H.Q., The Lieutenant is informed by General Victor and his adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
Colonel Smythe that he is to be reassigned and will be stripped of his command. He is confined to his quarters and is told his entire brigade will be broken apart and assimilated into another brigade. Meanwhile, in the barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
at G.H.Q., the Fourth Brigade learns of crucial news through back channels: a vaccine exists for the soldier's sickness, and General Victor’s plans for their brigade. The men decide to rebel, and break through the defenses of the barracks, free The Lieutenant and kill Captain Malcolm. The Fourth Brigade successfully escapes G.H.Q. in France and begins to make their way to London, along with other soldiers who are dissatisfied with General Victor's command. A battle ensues between General Victor's men and The Lieutenant's troops. The Lieutenant and his expanded Fourth Brigade eventually successfully take control of London and subsequently all of England and Wales.
The Lieutenant's government runs smoothly for years, until the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
U.S.S. New York arrives from the U.S. carrying two United States Senators and Captain Johnson, captain of the New York and commander of the U.S. fleet. Under threat from the U.S. battleship, The Lieutenant negotiates terms to transfer power to the Senators' associates – General Victor and Colonel Smythe. If anything happens to General Victor and Colonel Smythe, the country would be controlled by its officer corps. chaired by the Lieutenants confidant Swinburne. In addition, The Lieutenant requests that immigration of Americans to England be kept to no more than 100,000 per month, and demands that a favorable price be set for the purchase of land from their English owners. After these terms are established, The Lieutenant opens fire on General Victor and his men and a battle ensues. General Victor, Colonel Smythe and The Lieutenant and several of his men are killed. Years later The Lieutenant’s men still control England, and a flag flies honoring his memory. A memorial plaque at Byward Gate on Tower Hill
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is an elevated spot northwest of the Tower of London, just outside the limits of the City of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Formerly it was part of the Tower Liberty under the direct administrative control of Tower...
reads: "When that command remains, no matter what happens to its officer, he has not failed."
Reception
Final Blackout is seen as an early classic of the Golden Age of Science FictionGolden Age of Science Fiction
The first Golden Age of Science Fiction — often recognized as the period from the late 1930s through the 1950s — was an era during which the science fiction genre gained wide public attention and many classic science fiction stories were published...
. In his book The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Donald H. Tuck
Donald H. Tuck
Donald Henry Tuck was a bibliographer of science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction. His works were "among the most extensive produced since the pioneering work of Everett F...
described the book as "Hubbard's masterpiece". Thomas D. Clareson writes in Understanding Contemporary American Science Fiction that prior to formalizing Dianetics
Dianetics
Dianetics is a set of ideas and practices regarding the metaphysical relationship between the mind and body that was invented by the science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard and is practiced by followers of Scientology...
and Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
, Hubbard was "perhaps best known for Final Blackout". In his book Scientology: The Now Religion
Scientology: The Now Religion
Scientology: The Now Religion is a non-fiction book on Scientology, written by George Malko. The book was the first full length analysis of the history surrounding the founding of the Church of Scientology, and L. Ron Hubbard. The author conducted interviews with members, and provides analysis...
, George Malko writes that Hubbard's works including Slaves of Sleep, Kingslayer, Typewriter in the Sky, Fear, Death's Deputy, and Final Blackout "were eagerly welcomed by devoted fans". In his 1967 book Seekers of Tomorrow: Masters of Modern Science Fiction, Sam Moskowitz writes that the book "... was a stunning achievement, certainly the most powerful and readable 'warning' story that had appeared in science fiction to that date." Moskowitz comments: "The progress of today's events has made much of Final Blackout prophetic". Astounding reviewer P. Schuyler Miller
P. Schuyler Miller
Peter Schuyler Miller was an American science fiction writer and critic.-Life:Miller was raised in New York's Mohawk Valley, which led to a life-long interest in the Iroquois Indians. He pursued this as an amateur archaeologist and a member of the New York State Archaeological Association.He...
described the book as one of the most "memorable" serials the magazine had published, saying it would be a "lasting volume."
Roland J. Green of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
called the book "One of the highwater marks of his [Hubbard's] literary career", and "perhaps the best single novel yet of what the Pentagon once so charmingly christened 'the broken-backed war' after a nuclear exchange". Jon Stone of NewsNet5.com described Final Blackout and Fear as "pulp in composition and not great in length, they are straight stories with few or no elements of Hubbard's other career", and compared the "pages of battles and tactics" in Final Blackout to Hubbard's later work Battlefield Earth.
Final Blackout and Fear are often cited by critics as the best examples of Hubbard's pulp fiction
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
works. Chuck Moss of Daily News of Los Angeles called the book "extremely good science fiction". The book has been included in the curriculum of a science-fiction writing class at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, or Cal Poly Pomona, is a public university located in Pomona, California, United States...
. Cal Poly Pomona professor Steve Whaley told The Press-Enterprise that he thinks Hubbard was a "damn good storyteller". Karl Edward Wagner
Karl Edward Wagner
Karl Edward Wagner was an American writer, editor and publisher of horror, science fiction, and heroic fantasy, who was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and originally trained as a psychiatrist. His disillusionment with the medical profession can be seen in the stories "The Fourth Seal" and "Into...
cited Final Blackout as one of the thirteen best science-fiction horror novels.