'' in 1918
Self-written early biography Achmed Abdullah's biography prior to coming to the US is based on his own writings and interviews, and his reminiscences in
The Cat had Nine Lives, and is not verified by independent sources. In 1922, he claimed to a popular writer that his father had been the
governor of Kabul. On the 1930 census, he declared that both his parents were born in
Afghanistan. In his 1933 autobiography, he claimed that his mother was Princess Nourmahal Durani of the
Durrani dynasty, a daughter of an Amir, but that his birth father was Grand Duke Nicholas Romanoff, a non-existent cousin of
Czar Nicholas Romanoff, and that he was born Alexander Nicholayevitch Romanoff in
Yalta, Russia. In his Social Security application, however, he gave his father's name as "Jor. D. Khan" and his mother's name as "Nurmalal Tarmarlan". Regardless, he consistently gave his birthplace as Yalta. In various sources including his autobiography, Abdullah claimed that at the age of 12, he was sent to
Eton College and then to
Oxford University to be educated, though there are no records of him attending either school. He claimed that although he was born
Russian Orthodox, he was raised as a
Muslim by his uncle who adopted him. Abdullah claimed that he himself was a devout
Catholic. Upon his graduation, he said he joined the
British Army and rose to rank of acting colonel during his 17-year military career. He claimed to have served in Afghanistan, Tibet in 1903–04 with the
Younghusband Expedition. He was also deployed in Africa, China and also with the British-Indian army in India. In addition, he was also a colonel in a cavalry regiment for one year in the Turkish army as a British spy. He claimed to have mostly spent the time in the military as a spy because of his wide knowledge of Oriental and Middle Eastern customs and religions. It is said that he traveled widely in Russia, Europe, Africa, the
Middle East, and China and spoke many languages and dialects. He claimed he was made a British citizen by an
Act of Parliament and convicted by the Germans during the First World War for being a spy.
United States Sometime before 1912 he emigrated to the United States and eventually became a writer and playwright, and later on, a Hollywood screenwriter. Abdullah's work appeared in several US magazines, including
Argosy,
All-Story Magazine, ''
Munsey's Magazine and Blue Book.'' Abdullah's short story collection
Wings contains several fantasy stories, which critic
Mike Ashley describes as containing "some of his most effective writing". He translated some Afghan poems, including a poem by the wife of
Mohammad Afzal Khan and
chaharbeiti lyrics. Achmed Abdullah married at least three times: to Irene Bainbridge, Jean Wick, and Rosemary A. Dolan. He was the father of two daughters with Irene Bainbridge: Phyllis Abdullah (who died in childhood) and Pamelia Susan Abdullah Brower. In January 1945, he was admitted to
Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and on May 12, his 64th birthday, he died of a heart attack. == Bibliography ==