Tag: pulps

The Moon Man Rises

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I’ve been obsessing lately about Frederick C. Davis’ “Moon Man” stories from the mid-1930’s. That all came about through a series of synchronicities, the kind that make you think you have something important sitting in your lap. I’m a big fan of Davis’ writing in “Operator No. 5,” another 1930’s series. I like him so much I wanted to read more of his works. I noticed that he had a crazy character with a globe on his head that reminded me of Spiderman’s “Mysterio.” But this seemed a bit different…

New Article — “Brother Can You Spare a Dime?”

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Brother Can you Spare a Dime meme

I’ve subtitled this article “How The Great Depression Influenced the Pulps” because I believe that when society is truly down there are still bright sparks who transcend what’s happening around them and create anyway. There seems a parallel in today’s society. Those who can still create after two and a half Covid years, a war, and (in the U.S.) madly rising costs of food and fuel, as well as other shortages…well, then you’re doing okay. I had the idea for this article quite a few months ago, noting that the…

Reproduction of the “Serpents of Siva” pulp cover

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Serpents of Siva comparison

George Rozen cover painting for The Shadow magazine featuring “Serpents of Siva” in the April 1938 issue. This copy was something of an experiment. I was struck by the luminous green color of the buddha and wanted to try to recreate it with colored inks and densely-applied colored pencils. I set it up on Stonehenge paper. This is a heavy paper with good tooth and can take some wetting. I feel the results are a mixed bag. The luminosity comes through but the color isn’t dense enough. Probably, casein or…

New Article – “The Harp and The Blade: A Bard’s Adventures in Old France”

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Harp and Blade meme

I’ve a new article in the online magazine, Black Gate: Adventures in Fantasy Literature. Ironically, the book I’m reviewing is not a fantasy story, even though it was marketed as one for several decades. In fact, it’s an adventure story, originally serialized in Argosy magazine in 1940. The review is meaty, more in depth than I usually go. This time I felt it was well worth my time to dig deeply as it’s an interesting tale and highly enjoyable. You can still find The Harp and the Blade in print…

“Tomorrow We Die!” Thrilling Detective Pulp Cover

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Thrilling-Detective-1938-comparison

When I saw this pulp cover from October 1938 (left), I was immediately struck by the beauty of the woman holding the smoking gun. I’m still researching the original cover artist but it was certainly one of the now-famous pulp illustrators. As per usual, the original was most likely painted in oils. I can tell because of the glazing of the skin. When I do a copy like this I work as though I’m painting in oils and not in watermedia. This approach has pluses and minuses. On the plus…

Happy Birthday to Murray Leinster (and a new article)

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Today is Murray Leinster’s birthday. He is, without a doubt, one of my very favorite science fiction writers. Leinster started publishing before 1920 and was was still publishing sci-fi teleplays and novels into the late 1960’s for TV shows such as “Time Tunnel.” (And since he pioneered (YES, pioneered!) the entire subgenre of multiple reality sci-fi stories, working on “Time Tunnel” is entirely appropriate.) My new article — “PulpFest Historical- 125 Years of Murray Leinster” is live now at the PulpFest blog so head over there and check it out!…

Three George Rozen Shadow copies

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The Rackets King 9bbb hard crop

Over the past year, I’ve dedicated a great deal of time to the improvement of my pulp art. George Rozen is one of the many pulp artists I’ve been studying. His “Shadow” covers from the 1930’s are truly wonderful–the art is punchy and the visual storytelling, top notch! To date, I’ve copied several Rozen “Shadow” covers. My most recent one is a copy of the June 15th 1938 issue featuring the novel, “The Rackets King.” This was my first attempt at copying one of the famous Shadow “hand” covers. It…

PulpFest Historical — Harry Bates, Pittsburgh’s Own

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I have a new article out today on the PulpFest website. When I was asked to write about Harry Bates,  I didn’t know much about him, only that he was an early editor of ASTOUNDING STORIES. I certainly didn’t know he’d written the story on which “The Day the Earth Stood Still” was based. Certainly, this was a big contribution the history of science fiction. But, to me, the bigger contribution was his being the very first editor of ASTOUNDING. Along with publisher William Clayton, Bates started a legacy that…

PulpFest Profiles: David & Daniel Ritter & First Fandom Experience

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FFE pubs

If you follow me at all, you know about my fascination with early science fiction. Perhaps I was born into the wrong era or maybe it’s something in my astrological chart. Who knows? Either way, I find the early stories very compelling (well, not all of them, of course, but many) and feel that some of their themes can be successfully used to reinvigorate the contemporary trend of dystopian science fiction. When I first met David and Daniel Ritter at PulpFest 2019, I was surprised and delighted. Their First Fandom…

Pulpfest Profile: Bradbury in Oz

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Laurent Durieux_THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ

I love fairy tales, the stories, illustrations, the works! They form the basis for many cultural stereotypes and were used as both teaching tales for children and as a way to critique society without risk of censure. L. Frank Baum can be considered the first truly American fabulist. His Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) gave American boys and girls the chance to imagine fairy tales taking place in their own country. It was ground-breaking at the time and firmly stamped the land of Oz into the fabric of our society.…