She was born Frankie Leroy Griggs in Appleton City in 1908, the daughter of Frank and Lillian Griggs.
In 1926, she graduated from Appleton City High School in a class of 32 students. She went on to become a best-selling author — but not under the name on her diploma.
During her long career as a novelist, Frankie-Lee Griggs wrote hundreds of novels and short stories under numerous pen names. One was Francesca Greer, an alias with the same initials as her own. To the readers of her Gothic novels, she was Marie Eyre. Stuart Jason was her ‘70s persona. But she is most well-known by readers as Saliee O’Brien.
On Wednesday, Oct. 15, Frankie-Lee’s grandson, Thurlow B. Weed IV, will be in Appleton City for a book-signing of “Stories from the Heartland”, nine short stories by Saliee O’Brien (a.k.a. Frankie-Lee Griggs). The book-signing will be at the Appleton City Library, 105 W. 4th St., from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
“After her death, I came across quite a number of unpublished manuscripts,” Thurlow said, “including the one for ‘I, Applehead,’ which I published in 2015.”
Frankie’s son, Thurlow B. Weed III, predeceased her in 1980 at age 42. Her grandson became the executor of her literary estate. Thurlow IV was born in Hollywood, Florida, and lived in a duplex with his family next door to his grandmother — he called her “Oma,” the Dutch term for grandmother. He grew up knowing Oma was an author, and remembers there was a strict “Do Not Disturb” rule during her writing hours from 8 a.m. to noon.
His mother was Dutch. His father, Thurlow B. Weed III, was a Presbyterian minister who answered a call to serve a Bahamian church in Key West, where Thurlow IV grew up. In 1995, Thurlow moved to Columbus, Ohio, and now lives in Lancaster, Ohio. He is a church organist and composer of traditional English hymnody — three of his hymns are in the latest Presbyterian hymnal. He also composes choral anthems and has written several children’s stories.
Thurlow remains active as an organist at a church in Logan, Ohio. He volunteers for the Rise Up Arts Alliance (RUAA), a non-profit community theater group in Lancaster that works with children with disabilities through the Penguin Project. He is on the RUAA board and donates 50 percent of the sales of his grandmother’s books to the organization.
He has donated two copies of “Stories from the Heartland” to the Appleton City Public Library and one to the Appleton City Museum. At the Oct. 15 signing, Thurlow will offer both Heartland and I, Applehead for sale — “Stories from the Heartland” for $15 and “I, Applehead” for $5.
“Anyone who already has a copy is invited to bring it in and I will sign it,” he said, noting that he signs as the books’ editor.
The stories in Heartland revolve around family, faith, and folk-gothic legends from the rural Midwest. They range from pirate tales on the Mississippi to love stories inspired by local Missouri history, including one dedicated to the ACHS Class of 1926.
Thurlow last visited Appleton City in 2003, when Mayor Larry Bristow proclaimed May 12, 2003, Frankie-Lee Griggs Janas Day.
Frankie-Lee’s writing career began at age 12, when she published her first ghost story in The Appleton City Journal. She studied literature, rhetoric, and expression in junior college — training that helped her become known as “the Queen of Southern Romance.”
Among her many novels are The Bride of Gaylord Hall (1971), Return to Gravesend (1972), Bury Me Not at Sea (1974), and Blackgable Inn (1975). She also wrote the Black Lord series under the name Stuart Jason.
She was known for her sharp wit — once responding to a critic who doubted a woman could write a harsh plot twist:
“I am very much a woman, and I can write anything I damn please!”
Throughout her life, Frankie-Lee had four legal last names and used numerous pen names. She immortalized many Appleton City figures and places in her stories, including Dr. Wilburn Cline, Phoebe Caton, Carita Miller, and her aunt Annie Griggs Bailey.
Frankie-Lee’s gothic tale “Heiress to Evil” begins at the Appleton City train depot in 1880 and unfolds with mystery and romance. Other works — including Swift the Tide, Farewell the Stranger, Shadow of the Caravan, and Beelfontaine — are available at the Appleton City Library.
She died on Feb. 15, 2002, in Hollywood, Florida, at the age of 93. She was buried next to her third husband, Eugene Janas, in Hollywood Memorial Gardens. Her grave marker bears the name Frankie-Lee Griggs Janas.
