Robert Payne (1911-1983) was acclaimed as a "literary phenomenon of astounding industry and versatility" by Orville Prescott of The New York Times. During his lifetime he had over 100 books published on an extraordinarily wide range of subjects. He was known chiefly for his biographies and histories, but he also wrote novels, poetry and was a multi-lingual translator. When he died the Times (London) headlined his obituary "Prolific Writer of High Standard."

His literary career began in 1936 with a jumpstart: translation of Yuri Olyesha's Envy (Hogarth Press), War in the Marshes (Faber & Faber--T.S. Eliot was his editor), Forever China, China Awake, and the most enduring of all--The White Pony, culled from 3000 years of Chinese poetry, in 1947. In the 60's and 70's his career catapulted him to enormous stature as biographer and literary figure with the publication of his great biographies: Lenin, Stalin, Gandhi, Hitler, Leonardo. Critics raved about his "vast erudition," his "magic power over words" and that rare ability to capture the essence of his subjects and bring them to life

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