DIY History | Transcribe | Hevelin Fanzines | Fantascience Digest, v. 3, issue 3, whole no. 15, November-December 1941

Transcribe
Translate

Fantascience Digest, v. 3, issue 3, whole no. 15, November-December 1941

Page 24

Page 24
TEN YEARS AGO IN STF
by Robert W. Lowndes

   (There weren't many stf magazines in these days. It was not only possible to read them all, but also enjoyable. All the "inner circle" fans did read them all. The titles of the stf books of ten years ago were: AMAZING STORIES, AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY, WONDER STORIES, WONDER STORIES QUARTERLY, and ASTOUNDING STORIES. It all sounds rather simple, doesn't it?)
   1) November 1931
   AMAZING STORIES, large size, 100 pages, printed on medium thickness pulp, featuring a rather good cover by Leo Morey from Jack Williamson's classic "Stone from the Green Star". The goodness of the cover is debatable. However, the main point to bring up is that Morey was the cover artist on AMAZING in those days. It was at this time that the old "aristocrat of science fiction" was beginning to slip. Artwork had already fallen down badly, and the quality of the stories was dropping as well. Not in the case of Williamson's serial, no. But the other tales in the issue were not so hot. Dr. Keller had one of his customary pieces, this one called "The Rat Racket". Abner J. Gelula made his debut with a stinker called "Automaton", the story of a robot who became a sort of Frankenstein creation. (Even ten years ago, that plot smelled.) This judgement of "Automaton", you must realize, is biased; a great many readers thought it good. Also in the issue were "The Anarctic Transformation" by Issac R. Nathanson and "Luvium" by A. R. Mckenzie. In the readers' column some goop was saying how when he placed the very first (April 1926) issue side by side with the current (Sept 1931) issue, how gratified he was at the unbelievable progress, blah blah blah. The issue as a whole, you have probably gathered by now, was not good.

   AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY, large size. Cover by Morey from "The Demons of Rhadi-Mu" by Dr. Miles J. Breuer. In these days, it should be mentioned at once, AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY used only new material -- it did not consist of three back issues of the monthly, bound together sans cover with a new cover for all slapped on. This issue of the Quarterly contained a genuine classic: "Seeds of Life" by John Taine. There were other stories, which read rather pale in comparison. But the Quarterly was still better than the monthly.

   WONDER STORIES had promised in the preceding issue, that the readers could expect a surprise next issue. Not only were they returning to

Saving...

Page 24 TEN YEARS AGO IN STF by Robert W. Lowndes (There weren't many stf magazines in these days. It was not only possible to read them all, but also enjoyable. All the "inner circle" fans did read them all. The titles of the stf books of ten years ago were: AMAZING STORIES, AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY, WONDER STORIES, WONDER STORIES QUARTERLY, and ASTOUNDING STORIES. It all sounds rather simple, doesn't it?) 1) November 1931 AMAZING STORIES, large size, 100 pages, printed on medium thickness pulp, featuring a rather good cover by Leo Morey from Jack Williamson's classic "Stone from the Green Star". The goodness of the cover is debatable. However, the main point to bring up is that Morey was the cover artist on AMAZING in those days. It was at this time that the old "aristocrat of science fiction" was beginning to slip. Artwork had already fallen down badly, and the quality of the stories was dropping as well. Not in the case of Williamson's serial, no. But the other tales in the issue were not so hot. Dr. Keller had one of his customary pieces, this one called "The Rat Racket". Abner J. Gelula made his debut with a stinker called "Automaton", the story of a robot who became a sort of Frankenstein creation. (Even ten years ago, that plot smelled.) This judgement of "Automaton", you must realize, is biased; a great many readers thought it good. Also in the issue were "The Anarctic Transformation" by Issac R. Nathanson and "Luvium" by A. R. Mckenzie. In the readers' column some goop was saying how when he placed the very first (April 1926) issue side by side with the current (Sept 1931) issue, how gratified he was at the unbelievable progress, blah blah blah. The issue as a whole, you have probably gathered by now, was not good. AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY, large size. Cover by Morey from "The Demons of Rhadi-Mu" by Dr. Miles J. Breuer. In these days, it should be mentioned at once, AMAZING STORIES QUARTERLY used only new material -- it did not consist of three back issues of the monthly, bound together sans cover with a new cover for all slapped on. This issue of the Quarterly contained a genuine classic: "Seeds of Life" by John Taine. There were other stories, which read rather pale in comparison. But the Quarterly was still better than the monthly. WONDER STORIES had promised in the preceding issue, that the readers could expect a surprise next issue. Not only were they returning to