He began working as a scenarist for silent films (reportedly at his wife's insistence) in 1912. In 1918 he published "The Planeteer" in All-Story Weekly. His "Dr. Kinney" stories were reprinted by Ace Books in 1965, and with Austin Hall he co-wrote the novel The Blind Spot.
Reportedly he died as a result of an involvement in a bank robbery attempt. According to his granddaughter was the only witness, was himself a gangster.