Old Bugs

by H.P. Lovecraft

With the onset of Prohibition, the Sheehan Billiard Room in Chicago became a sordid haunt for hard drinkers. A certain Old Bugs, a mature man corroded by vices but capable of showing, at long intervals, the typical sensitivity of educated people works as a kitchen cleaner. When the young Alfred Trever, initiated by his friend Pete Schultz on the way of drinking, arrives at the Sheehan's tavern, Old Bugs will try to convince him not to make the same mistake as he did.

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Lovecraftian, Fiction, Classics, Fantasy, Science Fiction

Nook

First published July 1, 1919

About the author

Howard Phillips Lovecraft, of Providence, Rhode Island, was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction.

Lovecraft's major inspiration and invention was cosmic horror: life is incomprehensible to human minds and the universe is fundamentally alien. Those who genuinely reason, like his protagonists, gamble with sanity. Lovecraft has developed a cult following for his Cthulhu Mythos, a series of loosely interconnected fictions featuring a pantheon of human-nullifying entities, as well as the Necronomicon, a fictional grimoire of magical rites and forbidden lore. His works were deeply pessimistic and cynical, challenging the values of the Enlightenment, Romanticism and Christianity. Lovecraft's protagonists usually achieve the mirror-opposite of traditional gnosis and mysticism by momentarily glimpsing the horror of ultimate reality.

Although Lovecraft's readership was limited during his life, his reputation has grown over the decades. He is now commonly regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th Century, exerting widespread and indirect influence, and frequently compared to Edgar Allan Poe.
See also Howard Phillips Lovecraft.

— Wikipedia

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story set in times of the prohibition in the USA. A young man enters a pool hall in Chicago named Sheenan's and want to study life with whiskey. Old Bugs, an old cleaner with a secret part tries to prevent him from drinking. Who is 'Old Bugs' and who is the beautiful woman on the photo he has with him? Old Bugs has seen better days and this is a story about lost love and the impact of drinking. Nice atmosphere (I liked the pool hall setting) and good twist at the end. There is no Cthulhu here but nevertheless it's a well told story! Recommended!

[ᴥ Irena ᴥ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't know Lovecraft was a teetotaller. Old Bugs is sort of a cautionary tale with a very predictable twist.

[Ankh-Morporkiano · Rating 3 out of 5]

[Reseña del 25/10/2023]:
Bastante predecible, pero no por ello me ha disgustado.

[Andrew “The Weirdling” Glos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even the Old Gentleman from Providence wasn’t always top form genius. This story proves it. Written in 1919, it is one of his earlier works, and also one of his weakest. It did not find publication until the 1950s. It is a relatively puerile endorsement of the primary rationales behind Prohibition, which had taken effect the year this story was penned. It is clearly written by a young teetotaler who clearly had limited experience with bars, drinkers, or their accompanying culture. That said, it is written with HP Lovecraft’s usually beauty, grace, and faux antiquity.

[Nicolás Ortenzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una faceta distinta de nuestro querido Lovecraft: como el vicio te puede llevar a un mundo de perdición, pero al mismo tiempo conservar algo de humanidad. El final me gustó, pero es muy triste. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[Alyssa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Old Bugs is a cautionary tale against drinking written for a young friend of Lovecraft's. And it is just as preachy as you might think. The twist at the end was very predictable and I could see it coming from at least halfway through the story. It is a story that should have been left for Lovecraft's friend alone rather than being for the public in general. It doesn't even work well as an anti-drinking story because it doesn't present any real evidence but only functions as a scare tactic like the kind used on high school students. Not to mention it is incredibly dull.

[Sean Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another Lovecraft short tale as the marathon extends onward and this one started slowly and then at some point escalated quickly as they say. That was an OK one.
Fifteen tales read - but according to the big e-book file of Lovecraft stories I have I am about 4.25% of the way through it - so I've barely scratched the surface!!

[Baal Of · Rating 1 out of 5]

Preachy, moralistic drivel, with a lame and obvious twist at the end.

[John Yelverton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not your typical H.P. Lovecraft story, because the only demons in this work are the inner demons of an alcoholic, and how he redeems himself in the end.

[Ernie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't care for it, only interesting thing is it being a cautionary tale about drinking with no cosmic horror. He should've wrote a cautionary tale about not being a racist ass.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4 Stars.

[Tihana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5
I wouldn't have expected something like this from him. No cosmic monsters here, this is more of a cautionary tale. I have some gripes with it, mostly the usual - I dislike how he describes certain people. But, surprisingly it struck a chord in me and left me feeling quite melancholy by the end. It seems to show a slightly different side to him.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

H.P. Lovecraft writes a short story from the perspective of an omniscient narrator who follows a daring young man who plans to try alcohol (for the first time) while visiting pre Prohibition Era Chicago, and the man's life is changed by what happens next. A surprise ending complicates the plot's conclusion, and its usage invites multiple readings to understand the story. While some readers might be overwhelmed by the story's century-old vocabulary, other readers seeking a cautionary tale about the dangers of alcoholism or the innocence-lost-in-Chicago trope should be entertained.

[Mika (Hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decay isn't really creepy to me and since I'm not an alcoholic I couldn't emphasise well with these characters. I liked the psychological aspect a bit, like about the consequences of addiction and the regrets, but it wasn't that strongly represented.

[William Becker · Rating 3 out of 5]

HP Lovecraft. D.A.R.E. More coherent than his other comic piece I’ve read.

[nursé · Rating 5 out of 5]

the plot twist tho i love it

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not published in his life time, this is teetotaler Lovecraft's note to a friend who wished to tie one on before Prohibition clamped down. It is un-Lovecraftian in many ways, a morality tale of sorts, set in the then-future date of 1950 in a seedy bar where whiskey in available, but outlawed.

Please see the rest of the review here.

[Amy (Other Amy) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not an uncanny tale, but a cautionary story on demon drink. Lovecraft was in favor of Prohibition, it seems. Interesting in that it is set in a future 1950 still under Prohibition. (I am reminded of the future 1920s portrayed in "Repairer of Reputations" here.) 1*

(Moved 2015 review to the individual work Sept. 2017 to make room to review the collection under its own entry.)

[Keenan Crone · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a worthless tale not deserving to be included in Lovecraft compendiums as it does not contain any element besides superfluous language which would signify it as coming from the bibliography of the author.

[J.L. Perish · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm re-reading and rating every Lovecraft story individually.

Pro-prohibition propaganda trash. It's relatively well-written. That's about all there is to it.

[Matthew Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alcohol bad init

[Susie Q · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dramatic parental reveal that would make Darth Vader cringe

[Graeme Rodaughan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A real story in stark contrast to 'Memory,' - a cautionary tale against the demon drink.

4 'Down-and-Out,' stars

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Old Bugs himself seemed also to belong to the past, for his nondescript clothing bore every hallmark of antiquity. He was a man of immense height, probably more than six feet, though his stooping shoulders sometimes belied this fact. His hair, a dirty white and falling out in patches, was never combed; and over his lean face grew a mangy stubble of coarse beard which seemed always to remain at the bristling stage—never shaven—yet never long enough to form a respectable set of whiskers. His features had perhaps been noble once, but were now seamed with the ghastly effects of terrible dissipation. At one time—probably in middle life—he had evidently been grossly fat; but now he was horribly lean, the purple flesh hanging in loose pouches under his bleary eyes and upon his cheeks. Altogether, Old Bugs was not pleasing to look upon.”



“Old Bugs” is probably the 15th oldest surviving story by H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) and provides another example of his comic side. There are no supernatural or even horrific elements, although you could argue that there is a science-fiction element in the fact that the tale is set in the then-future of 1950. The story is essentially a morality tale cautioning the reader against even trying alcohol, since it will, of course, turn you into a miserable drunkard. While the message is obviously preachy, I found “Old Bugs” to be highly amusing. Lovecraft seems to have his tongue firmly planted in cheek throughout, providing vivid and overwrought descriptions of the seedy bar room and the degenerate title character.

According to Joshi & Schultz (2004), HPL was inspired to write “Old Bugs” after his close friend and frequent correspondent Alfred Galpin informed him of his desire to try drinking alcohol. This was in the summer of 1919, not long before the United States government banned alcohol manufacturing and distribution. This experiment lasted from 1920 to 1933 and the teetotaller Lovecraft was strongly in favor of it. Even so, Lovecraft appears to be mocking his own anti-alcohol sentiments with the exaggerations to be found in “Old Bugs.” Joshi & Schultz (2004) describe the story as “a little masterpiece of comic deflation and self-parody.” It is my favorite of HPL’s early stories so far in my project to read all of his stories in chronological order.

Title: “Old Bugs
Author: H.P. Lovecraft
Date: circa July 1919 (written), 1959 (published)
Genre: Fiction - Short story, humor
Word count: 2,982 words
Date(s) read: 2/13/22
Reading journal entry #44 in 2022

Sources:
The story: https://hplovecraft.com/writings/fict...
The Shuttered Room and Other Pieces. Sauk City, WI: Arkham House, 1959. [76]–84.
Joshi, S.T.; Schultz, David E. (2004). An H. P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia. Hippocampus Press.

The illustration is called The Drunkards Progress: From the First Glass to the Grave (1846) by Nathaniel Currier. You can find it here: https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/into...

[Scott Doherty · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I do not think that many of Sheehan’s regular patrons will ever forget the day that young Alfred Trever came.”
The nomadic alcoholic Known only as Old Bugs earns his poison through carrying out odd jobs around a particularly disreputable underground tavern known as Sheenans. Nothing is known of the old drunkard other than he is prone to screaming for whisky and hashish and that of a old faded photograph that he carries around with him.
"Old Bugs" is a delightfully comic short story by H. P. Lovecraft specifically for his young friend Alfred Galpin. Lovecraft after hearing of his friends interest to experience alcohol before Prohibition wrote this morality tale about the dangers of drink and booze with him in mind. Galpin notes that the following note was added to the end of the story “Now will you be good?!”. I have nevr been disappointed in H.P Lovecraft’s stories, and this one was more surprising because of the content. I was expecting a dark story about supernatural creepy crawlies and instead got this wonderful tale told in full Lovecraftian Gusto!

[Amelia Bujar · Rating 3 out of 5]

FULL REVIEW ON MY WEBSITE
https://thebookcornerchronicles.com/2...

The beginning of this short story was slow as it could get, it had 0 action and nothing interesting with it. But after couple of pages the action have rose up and it finally began to be interesting.

This short story doesn’t have any monsters chasing the main character nor it is a story which you will expect from H.P Lovecraft.

The descriptions in this short story were up and down. There were moments where the descriptions were very good but there have also been moments where the descriptions were super bad. These swings in descriptions for me at least ruined the short story.

The beginning as I’ve said before was bad and middle part was good enough and by the end it felt quite melancholy.

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite a predictable twist, Lovecraft tells a compelling cautionary tale of life set in the Prohibition era of Chicago. As always Lovecraft brings out unique wording and excels in setting the atmosphere through his descriptions. The story of Old Bugs tells the story of life’s many paths. Consumed by vices, Old Bugs falls from grace to a drunken bar regular who cleans just to get more of the drugs and drinks that led him to ruin. Coming face to face with his “could have been” child who is a bright, successful and rising young man, Old Bugs is moved to a blinding rage to prevent the young man from falling into the same vices that took his life down this path. Old Bugs succeeds but at the cost of his own life and the young man, Alfred, tragically discovers this wild man is not just some random stranger but his mother’s former lover. No monsters or magic here, just a tragic story of life.

[Josh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Man, Lovecraft was a HUGE dork.

This is about as dull and preachy as it gets, and somehow twice as purple as his last few. I'd give it half a star if I could. There's almost nothing going on here. He wrote it to scare his friend off from trying alcohol before the ban, and honestly the worst thing prohibition caused wasn't the rise of organise crime and mob controlled black markets - it was this story. It's only redeeming qualities come from the fairly tidy 'reveal' at the end (although that's being generous), a few pretty great descriptions of ranting, whisky, and the use of a mop as a Macedonian hopelite's javelin, one use of 'gibbeous', and the character name "Old Bugs" - which goes hard.

0.5 Unusually Generous Doses of Crude Whisky of 5

1/2🥃⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛

[Austin Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

TAKEN FROM WIKIPEDIA:

"The piece was written after Lovecraft's friend Alfred Galpin's suggestion that he wanted to try alcohol before Prohibition went into effect. In response, Lovecraft, a teetotaler, wrote a tale of an old derelict known as Old Bugs, who turns out to be Galpin himself, brought low by "evil habits, dating from a first drink taken years before in woodland seclusion." At the bottom of the manuscript, Lovecraft had written, "Now will you be good?" The woman whose engagement to Old Bugs is canceled due to his drinking, Eleanor Wing, was a fellow student in Galpin's high school press club."

[Oleksandr Fediienko · Rating 2 out of 5]

1950-ий рік, Чикаго, в дії "сухий" закон. В більярдній Шіена незаконно торгують алкоголем і наркотиками. Серед усіх завсідників виділяється Старий Реп'ях. Він підробляє у закладі в обмін на чарку, яка рятує його від смерті та божевілля, але коли напивається, починає розмовляти, наче поет, чим дивує інших, бо вони таких розумних слів не знають. Старий Реп'ях носить при серці фотографію поважної дами, яка точно не рівня такому пропащому чоловікові. І він скаженіє, коли молодики приходять, щоби вперше спробувати віскі на смак, бо саме так він згубив своє життя.