Silver John

Silver John is a fictional character from a series of fantasy stories by Manly Wade Wellman. Though fans refer to him as Silver John or as John the Balladeer, the stories call him simply John. John is a wandering singer who carries a guitar strung with silver strings.

Description
John frequently encounters creatures and superstitions from the folk tales and superstitions of the mountain people. Though he carries no weapons he is highly intelligent and skilled in a number of areas, both practical and esoteric. It is implied that his knowledge of occult and folk legendarium is of Ph.D level. This knowledge has granted him competent use of magic; which he has used on occasion to overcome enemies or obstacles, but it is primarily his courage, wit and essential goodness always allow him to triumph over supernatural evils. He carries with him a book of protective spells and enchantments called The Long Lost Friend.

He has an implied mystic link of some sort to John the Baptist, and much of his personal philosophy can be traced to a "primitive", Gospel-based, Christianity.

Biography
He is a veteran of the Korean War, and served in the U.S. Army as a sharpshooter.

On one occasion he is "employed" by the State Department to investigate on their behalf a possible instance of Satanism.

Appearances
The short stories of John have been collected three times:


 * Who Fears the Devil? (1963)


 * John the Balladeer (1988)


 * Owls Hoot in Daytime and Other Omens (2003)

In addition, there are five novels about John. Wellman was planning an additional novel, to be titled The Valley So Low, but died before writing it. The title would be used for a collection of his stories, instead. Silver John novels:


 * The Old Gods Waken(1979)


 * After Dark (1980)


 * The Lost and Lurking (1981)


 * The Hanging Stones (1982)


 * Voice of the Mountain (1984)

In popular culture
The Legend of Hillbilly John, a low-budget movie about John, was released in 1973.

The novel Old Nathan by David Drake, a friend of Wellman's, was inspired by the Silver John stories.

Hellboy creator Mike Mignola makes a deliberate homage to John in his story The Crooked Man.