R. L. Stine was born in Columbus Ohio on October 8, 1943. He graduated from Ohio State University in 1965. Under the name Jovial Bob Stine, he wrote dozens of joke books and humor books for kids including How to Be Funny, 101 Silly Monster Jokes, and Bozos on Patrol. He also created Bananas, a zany humor magazine which he worked on for ten years. His first teen horror novel, Blind Date, was published in 1986 under the name R. L. Stine. His other works include Beach House, Hit and Run, The Babysitter, The Girlfriend, the Goosebumps series, and the Fear Street series. He also wrote an adult novel entitled Superstitious.