FANI TASY F iTEVI F VV -, Vol. If. No. 9 SIXPENCE JUN.-JUL. '48 . NEW WORLDS' CRISIS Reoders to Share in New Publishing Project To save .New Wo,rlds' from the fate of .Fantasy'follocF ing the close.down of Pendulum publications. British science fiction readers will be invited to pa.rticipate in a. plan to establish a. publishing company of their owrr. , ,. The scheme. whose prime movers include the edirors of oo[n magazrnes, was broactred at the first get_together of fantasy writers and readers for four I'ears, lield in London at Whitsun. Editor John Carnelt revealed ihat N"ro was Worlds held up indeflnitely.!.et because the publishels had suspended operations. the last (October '47) issue had been oversold by 9,000 copies and the fourth, which was ready for press, tvould have met an even greater demand. The paper situation was such that no other puillisher would be likely to take over the magazine. But a felv who were concerned with its further advancement had agreed to join in launching a new company which, at the flrst opportunity, would use existing facilities for producing and distributing, and would also provide an opportunity for readers to give the enterprise further financial backing. These plans, and other ventures ilrat woutd develop if they were successful, were being prepared in detail and would be announced later. Mr. Carnell said that although every attempt at a regular British science flction publication had failed sooner or later, the reaction to Fa^ntasy and New Worlds had clearlv demonstrated the scope for such a magazine if it rvere doni by people who really kne',rr the fleld. Walter Gillings, editor Fantasy Review, who presided, said that after tB years he had decided it rvas a waste of time ftying to interest existing publishers in the potentiati- ties of British fantasy-flction, of which he was more convinced than ever. Fantasy had folded only because paper shortage made it an uncertain flnancial proposition; pub- lishers had to make profits. But if other groups interested in propagating an idea could establish their own journais antl make progress, why not fantasy fans? He had started Fantasy Review to keep isolated readers informed .,of developments partly in anticipation of the situation now confronting them. Of the informal meetings of writerc and readers which had been held in London since the war, he said it was felt [Continued Overleat 2 FA NTASY these had accomplished more than pre. secretary G. I(en Chapman, whose name war organisations like the Science Fiction was also mentioned in connection with Assoclation which held yearly conven- the proposed new pubiishing cqmpany. It tions. But if the new generation of fans was suggested that this might be incor- Ieit the need of a society to link them porated in time for New Worltls to resume together, it was for them to form one. publication in the autumn. With their new approach to the medium, they would probably be more successful than if it were run by the older BRIIISH SCIENIISIs enthusiasts with their conservative ideasx. NOW READ 'WONDER' The meeting expressed itself in favour new organisation, In a talk on "Science Fiction and of a but no deflnite Astronautics," Arthur C. Clarke, Council proposals were forthcoming, though it was member of British decided to hold a bigger convention next the fnbrplanetary year Society, considered whether s-f had been at which a national association good or bad might be launched. a thing for the space-travel movement. He recalled that the Society Mr. Carnell also reported progress on was started '33, people the Big Pond in by who were Fund, started by American interested in the philosophical aspects of fans with the object of enabling a Britirsh the subject; the flrst secretary, Leslie J. representative to attend the next Worid Johnson, rvas an active s-f fan. To-day Science Fiction Convention to be held in the membership comprised only 20 per New York. An auction of books and cent. of such people. magazines raised a substantial sum for "There are a small minority of members the Fund. who will not Iook at science flction. a Thanks to "Whitcon" organiser J. O. large number who read it surreptitiously Newman, auctioneer Ted Tubb and the and dodt talk about it, and many who speakers were expressed by forrner S.F.A. read and discuss it openly and don't give ';The overwhelming majority of fans a damn what the rest think. These s-f present were new to such gatherings; fans are to be found among both techni- many were meeting fellow enthusiasts for cal and non-technical members." the flrst time. Youngest attendee was He had evidence that many professional 13-1'ss1-.16 Ronald Walter Gillings, scientisk in this country as well as taking an active interest in the proceed- America were regular readers of science ings, discussing the merits of "Skylark" flction. In fact, he had just started Smith rvith his elders- Thrilling Wonder Stories circulating in the Cavendish Laboratory, which had hitherto been sacrosanct to Astounding. Verne and Wells had served to spread FANTASY REVIEW the early ideas of interplanetary travei, A Journal for Readers, Writers and aird the theories of Oberth and other Collectors of Imaginative Fiction pioneers of astronautics were given great play popular prac- SIXPENCE by magazines. It was BI.MONTHLY: tlcally a law that people were introduced Editorial, Advertising and Pub- to the science through science fiction, lishing Omce: 115 Wanstead Park which had thus been of great service to Road. Ilford, Essex. the movement. Subscription rates: In Great Britain ancl Dominions (except He had been more inclined to condemn Canada) 3/6 per year. Single cop- the medium for some of its poorer speci- ies, 7d., post free. In Canada and mens, but the fact remained that people U.S.A., 75c. per year. Single copies, had been persuaded to take even Buck 15c., post free. Rogers and Flash Gordon seriously by developments past years. YoI. 2. No. I Jun.-Jul. '48 the of the fev/ "So, though we cannot dismiss s-f Editor: Walter Gillings. without a stain on its character, I think Associate Edltors: John Carnell, astronautics would never have reached J. Micha.el Rosenblum, D. R. Smith, the stage it now has it hadn't been Arthur F. Hillman, Fted C. Brown, if for Nigel Lindsay, Frank Edward Ar- science flcbion, which has done much to nold. J. O. Newman. A. Vincent break down the psychological barriers Clarke. which still retard our progress. If it is to A m e r i c a n Correspondents: assist us further in the future, it will David I(ishi (Ne"i York). Forrest have to be more factual and deal with J. Ackerman (Hollywood), Sam the sociologicai problems space-flight will Moskowitz (Newark, N.J.), Joseph bring, as in Ray Bradbury's latest story, B. Baker (Chicago). 'And the Moon Be Still as Bright."' REVIEW Wa,Iter Gilling:so FANTASIA Follo$'ing "vociierous complaint" at jibes at science-fantasl' and its fans in Arkham Sampler. August Derleth invited "one of mo.st vocal of s-f adhei'ents" to argue "The Case for Science Fiction" in early issue, plans to devote Winter '49 number entirely to s-f Sa-vs Derleth in nis Introduction to "Strange Ports of Call," collection of s-f master- pieces: "Overwhelming majority of s-f stories are rvritten on an adolescent level . . . Far too much of s-f today suffers from coterie writlng " Fan letters in magazines he describes as "submoronic," even accuses Astounding: Editor Campbell of "writing absurdities" Stephen Grendon, reputed protege of Derleth, author of weird tales, now believed to be pseudonym of Derleth himself Arthur C. Ciarke's stories for suspended British * **,. .. Fantasy, still unpublished, may appear instead in U.S. iff; magazines . 1: s& :r - Unknown annual, due for publication mid-July, titled "Ftom l*!- u"il;; .i1'9;ie;J; i" nave_ rzg pace: yith.,!;;+ bf o"!_tleii contents will be reprints, . . Coming up in Startling Stories: 'What A. Beltram Mad Universe?" by Ftedric Brown, Henry Kuttner's "The Time Chandler Axis." October Thrilling Wonder will feature "Moonfir'e," by Leigh Brackett, William F. Temple's "Mirac]e Town" Lester del li,ey told New Jersey fans why he no longer writes fantas]': "I flnd Western and sports stolies more profitable" . . . Dr. David H. Keller, writing in Fanscient, bemoaned editors' :ieiection of many of his tales because they were "too beautiful." His detective Taine will reappear in Fantasy Book . . , "A Ship from No$'her€," by Master Mariner A, Bel'tram Chandler, in American Argosy . . . New horror fllm, "The Beast with Five Fingers," with Peter Lorre, reminiscent of William Ftyer Harve)"s s,eird tale of dismembered hand . . "Miranda," with Glynirs Johns as seductive melmaid. dittc Wells' "The Sea Lad1"' Londou Film Society revived silent ctassic'Iv{etropolis" . . . Next Tarza cinemadventure: "Tarzan rnd the Founr"ain of Youth" . . "Atoms, Rockets and the Moon," booklet by Grimtll -.bserva- tory, Los Angeles, has reference to s.f magazines U.S. Rocket Socieii' ; Fl.L, ("Golden Moon") Farnsworth authors "Rockets-New Trail to Empire" (Rocket Associates: {i2) . . . "Into the Atomic Age" (Hutchinson: 9/6) is popular atomics iext- book by B.I.S. member Chapman Pincher Francis L. Ashton's second. .{Llantean novel, "Alas This Great City," forthcoming from Dakers; Wiuiam F. Tenlplc; "The Four-Sided Triangle" from John Inng , Ray Bradbury interviewed by Writers' Markets & Methods: "My stolies are imaginative because that's my fleld. Sincerity is important I never write down, and I'm not ashamed of anything I turn out . . . I don'l use pseudonyms, but 6ome- times editors will insist on one" N. Wesley Firth, "Prince of (British) PuIp Pedlars," scle author of Strange Adventures, Futuristic Stories, owner of 50 pen-names (see ihis column, last issue), got write-up in men's magazine Stag ' . . Clzlrk -{shton Smith. californian sculptor of weird statuettes, fantasy writer and poet, now carving pipes representing Lovecraft characters Sam Merwin, Wonder editol" and Leo Margulies, Thriiling Publications chief, co-authors of "The F]ags Were Thlee" (Hurst & Blackett: 9/6), story of old New Orleans . . . Richard Shaver's "racial memory" piece from Amazing. "I Remember Lemuria," publisheC as $3.00-book by Ventute Press, Illinois, "particularly recomnended "uo students of the occult" Atlantis Research Centre's Egerton Sykes pianuitlg new Lost Continent scouting expedition . Explaining fall of green rain, Time belittled Charles Fort and "group of U.S. literary exhibitionists including . . . Tifian1' Thayer (who) formed Fortean Society, dedicated to 'the frustration of science"' New Yorker on A. E. van Vogt's "World of Nuli-A" (reviewed tr'R, last issue) : "Inter- planetary skuilduggery in the year 2650 . . flne for addicts of science flction but nardty tikety to convert the rest of the public to it" . ' . -A^uthor's agent Forrest J. Ackerman offering unpublished Weinbaum novel, "The Mad Brain" (see this column, Aug.-Sep. '47 issue) for sale to highest bidder. SayB Weinbaum's widow: "It was hacked oub for a newspaper syndicate. We planned olr some d.alr rewriting it" . . . L. Ron Hubbard's Unknown tale, "The Case of the Frierldly Corpse," to appear in book form as "The Wizard and the Witch" FA NTASV THOMAS SHERIDAN tells THE STORY OF 'ASTOUNDING' "To those who regard science f,ction their monthly bible. And as other as 'sclewball literature,' the scientiflc publishers enabled them to line their standing of Astounding Stories may bookshelves with the resurrected works come as a surprise. Although some of van Vogt, Williamson, Geo. O. magazines in this field do cater for Smith and other Astounding idols, they juveniles, with cops-and-robbers stories whooped for joy; for of all the sought- transplanted to Mars . . . Astounding is after back issues which eluded them for the strictly adult mind. Its stories during the war, those of Mr. CamP- are factually accurate because its con- bell's magazine were th€ rarest and tributors are outstanding scientists. Its dearest. If anything ("Slan!" for in- readers include top men of science wtro stance) had appeared in Astoundingt find in science fi.ction . . . mental relaxa- it must have been good. tion . One r€ason for the following Usually, it was. For as long as any Astounding has . . is that it consis- but the oldest fans could remember, tently discusses the social and political Street and Smith's Astounding Stories, aspects of future scientific develoF laLer rechristened Astounding Science- ments. For example, the implications Fiction. had enjoyed undisputed leader- of atomic energy were discussed in (it) ship of the fleld, if the accent on with the utmost intelligence years be- original ideas and literate presentation fore the atomic bomb was invented." of them were any criterion. Its These comments, from an article on genuine technical interest, which science fi.ction which appeared recently Campbell encouraged by using non- in Magazine Digest, are typical of the flction articles on electronics, rocketry attitude of outside observers who have and astronomy. had become more and examined the fleld in the past two more pronounced through the years, years. All have made much of Astound- until its ordinary readers with a mere ing's "intelligent" readership, the pro- smattering of science had begun to phetic slant of its stories (with par- frown over its pages, even to skip some ticular reference to pre-Hiroshima fore- of them. But while' tlrey persevered casts), the scientific qualiflcations of with its ccmplexities they stitl revelled its authors-and of its 3?-years-old in its unusual t|eatment of old and editor, ex-student of nuclear physics, new concepts, iis plausibly fascinating John W. Campbell Jr., hailed by The style of sboryteiling, its attractive but New Yorker as "The New Cassandra." dignifled typography and illustrating. To the vast majority of science flc- And its sensibly provocative letter tlonists, aii this public appreciation of pages, which reflected the earnest their favourite magazine and its re- science-mindedness of its devot€es vered editorial circle-Heinlein, van years before it began to "sell like hot Vogt. Ley, de Camp. Padgett and the cakes at scientist-haunts like Massa- rest-was onlv too well-deserved. For chusetts Institute of Technology or "The Magaziire of Technicians' Bed- Oak (atom-town) Ridge, Tenn." Vide time Stories," as one not-so-enthusi- Pathfinder news review late in '46 astic fan had described it, was the when, out of deference to the sensi- only one worLhy of religious reading; bilities of sober technicians, AS-F be- the rest were mere juvenilia. Thou- gan to play down fhe superlative in its sands of its reputed 100,000 followers title and become iust plain Science squealed with delight wh€n literary Fiction. critic Groff Conklin, ha.ving "dis- Yet, when it flrst appeared as a rival covered" the field, drew largelY on to Amazing and Wonder Stories in Jan., Astounding's war-time issues to com- '30, Astounding's policy was the very pile a fat collection ol "The Best in opposite of that which has made it Science Fiction" for which Editor pre-eminent in the field. Unlike its Campbell wrote the Introduction. 'contemporaries, it was frankly a pulp Their shrieks of gratiflcation cres- magazine, resembling in everything but cendoed when hard on its heels came its science-fantasy theme the other the Random House volume, "Adven- story magazines. such as Cowboy tures in Time and Space"' practically Stories and Clues, published bY its the whole of which was reprinted from original sponsors, the Clayton Cor- REV I EW poration. Its full title was Astounding Stories of Super-Sclence; the accent was on adventure rather than science, with the stories full-blooded and vigor- ous in the genuine pulp style. Ttre monster-grappling covers, done by Hans Waldemar Wessolowski ("Wesso" of Amazing), reflected the new robustious trend, to which veteran writers like FUay Cummings, Victor Rousseau, Murlay Leinster and Harl Vincent responded, to be followed by Arthur J. Burks, Ed- mond Hamiiton, Jack Williamson and others. Cummings's actionful serials, "Bri- gands of the Moon" (March-June, '30) and "The Exile of Time" (April-July, '31), v,/ere none the less excellent stories of their kind, while Leinster's "Murder Madness" (May-Aug., '30) ranked high in popularity in spite of being hardly science flction at aII. Newcomel' Charles Willard Diffin produced much material of a highly dramatic intensity which sometimes achieved flne efiects, "Brood the Dark Moon (Aug.- John Russell Fearn, the Lancashite like of $rriter who, with his remarkable fund Nov.. '31) and "Two Thousand Miles of story-ideas, Below" (June, '32-Jan., '33). But, for assisted in the develoD- part, ment of StreeL & Smith's Astounding the most there was little origin- Stories. After making his fifst ality or sincerity to disbinguish the appearance pure hackwork. in Ama.zing, he came to sbories from the forefront as a producer of Stock-character serles were, there- "thought-variank" and was featured fore, to be expected. Capt. S. P. Meek so prominenUy by Editor Tremaine set th€ fashlon with the exploits of his that fans referred to him as ',Cover- scientific detecLive Dr. Bird, who was copp€r" Fearn. His fello$. Biltish invariably engaged in frustrating some writers, not so prollnc as he, preicrred Soviet plot against the U.S. Sewell to call him "The Blackpool Wonder.,, Peaslee Wright followed with Comman- Other names under which he has der Hanson, a retired space veteran appeared in print: Thornton Avre, who yarned of his interplanetary Poiton Cross, GeofireJ' Armstrong, escapades. Finally, commencing q/ith Ephraim Winiki . . . He also became a the Nov., '31, issue, came "Hawk star contributor of Thrilling Wonder, Carse." Though one critic caustically still appears occasionatly in Startling rated him "a space cowboy with ray- Stories. guns," this memorable character's duel with the Oriental Ku Sui gave an undoubtedly came a,s a relief after impetus to Anthony Gilmore's tales of Amazing's tedious tales which were interplanetary warfare that was hardly often too largely composed of scientific exceeded by the current epics of E. E. chit-chat. But the new magazine did Smith and Campbell in the more reput- nof do well enough to weather the eco- able Amazing. As to the real identity nomic depression, and after thiruy-four of Gilmore a fan controversy raged for issues, of which the last few were bi- years afterwards, and the mystery was monthiy, the ,Clayton Astounding was never finally resolved; though the suspended with the March, '33, number. theory is that the pseudonym b€longed A companion magazine, Strange Tales, jointly to Editor Harry Bates and his featuring weird and horror stories. to Associate Desmond HalI, who also which much the same coberie of writers wrote in the magazine as H. G. Winter. contributed, also folded after. seven bi- The flourishing "Readers' Corner," monthly issues. which later became "Brass Tacks," Six months later, however', Astound- showed general approval of the policy ing reappeared on the stands as a of concentrating on story-interest and Street and Smith publication-amid taking the science for granted, which wails from its wondering fans. For at 6 FANTASY nrst it was an odd mixture of weird, appearance of H. P. Lovecraft in '36, science and "pure" fantasy, mostly with his "At the Mountains of Mad- puerile; the cover was poor, and the in- ness" (I'eb.-April) and "The Shadow side illustrallops quite without atmo- Out of Time" (June), made a peculiar sphere or artistry of the Wesso stan- conLlast with the hea,vy - science dard. But Leinster, Burks and William- material of Sclrachner, wiliiamson and sorrwere recognisable among the un- Fearn (who had reached his peak with famiiiar names on the cont€nts page; "Mathematica"). and the intrusion of and within two or three issues, with what some readels deemed weird fan- monthJy publication, the sbandard tasy did not go Linchallenged in spite vastly improved under bhe expert editor- of the luxury of trimmed edges. There ship of F. Orlin TYemaine. Having an- was stronger disapproval of the chil- norinced. his intention "to develop a dishly-written pieo:s of one Warner van magazine worthy of the best literary Lorne, rumoured later to be none other traditions," he introduced a new trend than Editor fremaine himself ; but the of "heavy science" and bold conception excelience of Stuart's "Frictional without particular regard for plausi- Losses" (July) combined with the bility, which with Nat Schachner's "An- now-famous series of articies on the cestral V oices" (Dec., '33), Donald Solar System, which Campbell did Wandrei's "Colossus" (Jan., '34), and under his owrt name, to make amends Thomas Caiverb McOlary's "Rebirth" for any backsliding. (Feb.-Mar'., '34), soon placed Astound' The constant recruitment of new ing h€ad and shouldels above its writels-J. Harvey Haggard, Clifton B. dwindling cornpetitors and kept it ex- Kruse, Eando Binder, Ross Rocklynne, panding in circulation as in tlre scope P. Schuyler Milier, Manly wade Well- of its "thought-variant" stories. man, Neil R. Jones, C. L. l\[oore-and Following a series of undistin- iliustrators, like Marchioni, who were guished shorts which lagged over from already experienced in the fietrd, en- the Clayton magazine, Wiiiiamson sured Astounding's continued progress helped [o set the Pace with "The in spite of the resurgence of Wonder Legion of Space" (April-Sep., '34), flrst Stories, which had fallen by the way- of the series concerning the popular side late in '35, while Amazing still Giies Habibula. Attracted by lugher plodded on under Dr. O'Conor pavlnen[ lhan the f,eld had ever known ("Weights and Measures") Sloane- -beio.e. other Amazing and wonder The year '37 ushered in "Science Dis- stars joined the Astounding roster, and cussions" and regular scibnce articles; bv the end of Lhe year Smith's "Sky- authols Eric Frank Russell, L. Sprague tirk ot Valeron" and Campbell's "The de Camp and Nelson S. Bond. Schach- MightiesL Machine" were being serial- ner, Fearn and Williamson continued iseO simultaneously. To most s-f well to the fore, undaunted bY new- readers these two smash-hits repre- comers. two of them making a fresh sented the pinnacl€ of achievement bow thernselves under pseudonyms- in the ntedium; though there were few Schachner as Chan Corb,ett, Fear.Il as who realised the extent to which Eng- Thornton .Ayt'e. In October, Doc Smith returned wittr lish wriLer John Russell Fearn was to (to dumbfound them with his audacious "Galactic Patrol," flrst all appear- plots in a sLring of cover-stealing pieces ances) of the Lensmen series, whictr including "The Brain of Lighb'' (May' continued through the years to end re- andl'The Biue Infinity" (Sep., '35). cently with "Children of the Lens." In '34) the midst of this, fandom was both sur- The acquisition of Howard V. Brown prised news (an- Eiliott Dold as and delighted by 'uhe as cover al'tist and of nounced in Scientifiction) of Campbell's iilustrator gave furLher strength to the contributors appointment as editor; and it soon be- magazine, whose regular came apparent that Astounding was ab tfris pbriod included such stalwarts phase Vincent' entering on another of its de- as Stanton A. Coblentz, Harl veiopment-evolution was the word he Raymond Z. Galiun and Frank Belknap editorial year regeneratlon used-in the ygt unskllled Long. Its second of hands of one t'ho had been among the was notabie for the int'erplanefary cleverest exponents of the medium stories of the successful newcomer since he first appeared in Amazing Stanley G. Weinbaum, and for the '30 Atoms pieces Don A. ear'ly in $'ith "When the haunting far-fulure of Failed." Stuart. otherwise Campbell, commenc- ing with "Twilight" (Nov', '34). The (To be concluded) R EVI EW Booh Beviews The Humanity of Dr. Kefler LIFE EVERLASTING and Other Tales of Science, Fantasy and Horror, by David H. Keller, M.D., collected by Sam Moskowitz and Will Sykora. Avalon, Newark, New JerseY, $3.50. Reviewed by Thomas Sheridan natural that Dr. I(eller should have Gernsback launched gravitated to this medium' In a fascin- When Hugo -ftrn:-G '. psvcho-ana)vsis of the man and science wonder storiiJ-ln h-is.m-otives3!l"e which forms rn- issued a long memoran[ir"i a critical poricy ""lrGiti"g to-ihisbo-ok' Mr'.Moskowitz its editoriat to ;;id-#;;;i;i lllq:9tio!1"^111.t that his early association with butors, and ofierins ;;i;i;" hospitals is responsible for the writers based on nis zsl"':ts'-i*riiii-'t"6"*" ".; f9!.t31 ence of science flction. *;r-;; "underlying horror and morbidity in estaniiiir*ed his \!l.itine'" But this element' wilter, atreaoy werr i; tii; :}":*.of have nuro, wirose *orr< rre teuor seems to come to nerd;;-;;-";od;i ;tl^t}.:"" some his shorter when it canil€ to writinJi,il6iiffi;1" tlre surface onlv !n of as the Tuch-printed "The as distinct from robotsoa"i"rvi"itirii. *PI:i,.t'llitt which again ap- ;;wrren you get through reading-tii one of -l-"]lc the cellar"' Kelier's stories,', ruia tfiuir- rfto in ttris cross-section of his exten- Dr. ryars,sivercontribution to the fleld. In none had started the batl *rf*f iiln li.a-z: in Storles, almost thlnk you know oI longer stories he has written ing '?ou the^tne course of 20 years "has horl'or ple- the characters personalt?^i^dernsback.who ft was, o! cog1s9, Mr. giffi$S"i:tlrn$,H"",T1i"f#i5 published o.1. {ettgr'p flrst pie_ce, "The il"i"iain the gloomy face overlong or Revott or the Pedestriairr" i6"'r it the sor[, aspicr of life forever.,' Feb.,''*eAiu- '28), which brougi f*Ilil|]f: itrg iirat itu*un .^^Ilg..d, .the-fantasy pad.els of the toich for which he soon"..u.rtiitfli- rnadd a lasting '28-'35 period,- for whom Dr. I(el1er con- ieputation. But Dr. I{eller had been triyed to write constantly as rvell as wiiting about people-real people, more 9rnc.e1etV, _found in his stories that re often ir-an flctitious charaiteri-for B0 fresNng humanity -and simplicity of Vuari nefo"" economic necessity im- approach for which they were ever i,eifeA frirn to wrife stories for ironey ready to commend him. They found insteaA of merely for his own gratiflca- ideas, too, which were often strikingly iio"."-- Always he has tried-to write original,.yet always easy to appreciate -Gautifufly;;" iather than to suit edi- be-cause they were so near to everyday totiai po1i6ies, *tti"ft explains why so affairs and involved ordinary people much 'of hii work has' appeared in like the Smiths and the Joneses. Ev€n amateur publications. ffet, untit recent his scientists seemed human rafher Veaii, tre^was a favourite with editors than superhuman, and his detective, is wett as readers. Dr. T. Oigonor Taine of San Francisco, such a thor- dio""u, Amazing's eiderly successor to oughlV engaging-character that one be- CernstiacX, and-Farnswo"rbh Wright of gan to wonder if he didn't solve tris WeiiO fat,is both got to know trim per- cases more by luck than genius. sonally; and all, according to Mr. Mos- "The Human Termites," perhaps, the kowiti, thought so highly of his hardly ran true -to form; but on materi'al that "no author ever evaded whole we enjoyed Keller because he magazine policy as successfully amused us while the rest amazed us, or Many of his published stories had not tried to. At the same time, tre always the slightest tinge oi fantasy, but the gave us something to think about; con- readers rarely complained." sistently he warned us against the pur- Having spent many years as a psy- suit of science without thought of the cfriairtsi among abnbrinal people,^bb- consequences of imprudent.application. fore he startedto rub shorildeis with For instance, supposing-disease cottld iu"ti'v'' r",oing characters, it is oHl?li$"t'"n X * H:i*;,-3iti'"'ry; xsee "Half a Century of Writing" Nature compensate for it? Such is the (Fantasy Review, Dec., i4?-Jan., '48.) theme of "Life Everlasting"' the two- 8 FANTASY part Amazing story of 14 years back in facr, be tempted to regard it as con- which comprises half of ttris bulky flrming the weaknesses we have long volume. It is not. to our mind. one oi sensed in his work, rather than its in- his best: the latt€r part is not as con- trinsic qualities of strength. For we vincing or smooth as the fi,rst, and ttre have never been able to rid ourselves of biological basis is hazier than we might the feeling that some of Dr. Keller's reasonably expect a physician to leave famous characters, especially his busi- it. But it has human intelest in Dlentv. ness tycoons, were too exaggerated to especially in the situation of a planei be life-like, and that his notoriously deprived of babies which has alwavs simple style of writing too often ap- intrigued Dr. Keller-presumably b€- proached mere childishness. Yet still Cause, aS a country doctor in earlier we feel more at home with his ordinarv days. he brought many of them into people than with some of the impossiblb this imperfect world. puppets cf more confi.dent reriters; a,nd We found more credibility, and some there is no denying the beauty which better writing. among the short sLories. often transfuses his lucid prose. For of which eight are reprinted here from which an interesting explanation now several magazines while two are pre- emerges. through Mr. Moskowitz. sented for the flrst time. Thorieh, He tells us of Dr. I(eller's early again, with the exception of the de- struggles to €xpress himself in English lightfully macabre "The Dead Woman,,, which later inspired the story, "fire which has earned its place wittr .,The Lost Language" (Amazing, Jan., '34), Thing in the Cellar" in British weird and of the too-extensive vocabulary he tale collections, we cannot cont€nt our- was forced to acquire to satisfy his selves that these pieceg represent Dr. proud parent. "Thus . . . when h-e be- Keller at his best, from our vivid recol- gan to write, his compositions were dis- lections of his work. We still find difr- tinguished by an exemplary economy of culty in admiling "No More TG.mor- bi-syllable words and a use of strort rows" for anything more than its idea, sentences. This resulted in a literary the treatment of which strikes us as style which has never been duplicated painfully laborious. "The Cerebral by any other science fiction writer." Library," too, after much careful pre- The book, published in a Iimited edi- paraiion, descends into streer bathos, tion of 1,000 copies, is accompanied by thanks to comic detective Taine. Of the a complete bibliography of Dr. Keller's rest, one of the new stories, "Heredity," work, which has appeared in no less is perhaps the most successful in spite than 39 publications. His contribution (or because?) of its shuddery theme. to fantasy-fiction is one of which he, no If we were to take this selection as less than Mr. Moskowitz, may be justly typical of Dr'. Keller's output, we would, proud. The Flame That Went Out THE BLACK FLAME, by Stanley G. new dustbovirl, they ran amok. They Weinbaum. Fantasy Press, Fleading, seized upon science fiction-which until Pa. S3.00. then had been proceeding, sometimes Ileviewed by ,rohn Beynon extravagantly and sometimes senten- tiorisly, but still with a spring of de- fire primary phase of magazine ductive logic as its source-and exuber- science fiction was already past when, antly battered it into nonsensibility. in '34, Stanley G. Weinbaum arrived. It was clear to the newcomers that it The first in the fleld. the men who en- needed hotting up. Bigger is better, and joyed working out their ideas with faster is beiter. For proper thrill and enough scientiflc background to ensure excitement, therefore, wars must be a good story, were going into eclipse, intergalactic, w'ith thousands of ships largely because new ideas do not grow mounting hundreds of rays; speed must on every bush. Many of the writers in- be reckoned in light-years per second, fi.ltrating at that time were competent worlds be propelled frorn one system r,9 and experienced, and their journalistic anottrer. And what about the sex sense was shocked by the failure of the angle? Hey, bring on the dancing older writers to exploit the field fully. girls ! Leaping into the medium with all the In the ensuing orgy whole universes joy of settlers perceiving a site for a were vaporized, non-interacting super- BEVIEW I men slugged their way around space showed little of tt in the 'Flame'stories. more like supermaniacs. impermeably The plan of both these stories is space-suited heroes cavorted through similar. In each a man is emotionally the cosmos with curvaceous cuti€s in- truncheoned by an uncannily beautiful evitably clad in bathing suits-and all creature who has contrived to preserve interest departed from the stories. The her teen-age notions of irresistibility in- contemptuous cracks in other periodi- tact for several centuries. fn "Dawn cals were well deserved as the form of Flame," which flrst appeared in the which had shown such promise was re- Memorial Volume of Weinbaum's work, duced to moronic levels-from which, the victim is a husky boy from the hills, in some instances, it has never re- and the story begins better than it covered. ends. An atmosphere is created and a Yet in spi're of the shoddy hack-junk, promisingly interesting locale built up; there have always been a few idea men there is careful consideration of details and a few who could really write, and and an air of verisimilitude. buf this it has been those who have kepi us tapers off into banality when emotion bopefully panning in the sludge. And sets in. We feel certain that Wein- 'when someone $rith new ideas does baum was capable of remoulding this occur, he is acclaimed-perhaps over- story into much more convincing shape, acclaimed. In Fantasy Magazine's and it is diffcult to believe that he analysis of the fleld in '35, Weinbaum would not have preferred to do so at was voted the most popular author (in the prospect of its publication in book spite of the accomplished journalists form. who were still holding their galactic The second story, which gives its jamboree); and, oddly enough, be- title to this volume, was nrsb pub- cause he simply f,old stories, without llshed in a magazine (Startling Stories, pursuing this or that "slant." EIe Jan., '39), and just what happened to didn't even write polished stories, but it between the time it left Weinbaum's there was sor4ething in him that made typewriter a,rld the time it app€ared in us feel he waS going to improve as he print is anybody's guess. The theme in- went on. Unfortunately, we were volves a Twentieth Century engineer never to know. who is electrocuted into dormancy and Soon after his death a lot of non- awakes to nnd himsell in a time- sense was written about him. To say traveller - and - sultry - princess set-up. that he "would have rvritten each letter Every few pages he is on the point of of his name in flaming symbols on the extermination for some sultry or poli- stars themselves," as Flayrnond Palmer tical reason; he monotonousiy escapes did, was not only silly but sickly; nor this fate for some whimsical or sultry does success in one or two pulps pla,ce unr€ason, or possibly because there are anyone on "the pinnacle of science flc- a number of pages still to go. And he tion." This kind of thing produced an ends up just as you knew he would. opposition which swung to the other ex- In the beginning there is Wetnbaum- treme. claiming that his success was his setting, his ideas occu$ing. Later, fortuitous and due solely to fhe inferi- the ideas drop out without logical in- ority of hi5 competitors. fluence on the story, and a hatful of In his flrst story, "A Martian corny stand-bys is thrown in. It is quit€ Odyssey," th€re was something that forgotten that the hero is an engineer singled it out: we made a mental note and a condemned murderer, tedious of the new author, a thing which had slabs of sultry behaviour help to keep scarcely been worth doing for some the wordage piling up; and U the sus- time. Just what that quality was has pens€ were to suspend anything it never been made clear. It was oertainly might be your interest, because you're not €ase of writing or conjuring with now right back with the very formula words, nor was it even skilful construc- in contrast to which Weinbaum first tion. As near to it as we can get is that came as such a breath of fresh air. there vsas a feeling of sympathy, an If you aiready know Weinbaum's enjoyment of his own invention and I stories, parts of these may appeal to gift of reticence. It was this last you. If you do not, You are likely to ability to suggest and imply while re- wonder why the book has been Pub- fusing elaborate explanations that was Iished, except as a handsome collec- one of his most stimulating character- tor's item designed to enshrine the istics. He never again displayed it as memory of one who might have been well as in "A Martian OdYsseY"; he a great writer. 10 FANTASY Better Than The Best A TREASURY OF SCIENCE FIGTION, imposed duty of casting a wide net e_dited by-Grofi Conklin. Crown, New could have caused him to choose from YoIk. $3.00. the great bulk of better work which Reviewed by John K. Aiken van Vogt l:as tei his credit. All these This second collection of science flc- pieces have, if little else, an interest- tion prepared by Mr. Conklin contains ing or surpiising culmination, though 518pp. and thilty sfories, as against the one which may still be over-fresh in 785pp. and forty stories of its predeces_ the memory of the reader. In those sor. Of the thirty tales, twenty-five cases \-!-here the culminating point is are drawn from a singie magazine rit feeble and the handling equally in- rs sulety unnecessary to specify which ferior, as in Polton Cross's "Wings one), and nineteen have appeared .n Across the Cosmos," rescuing them the last four years; in fact, all but five from oblivion is an act of cruelty uo pieces of the whole collection were all concelned. oliginally p'.rblished during or since the At the other end of the scale, pride war, and three appeared as recenily as of place must surely go to C. L. the July and August, ,4?, issues of Moore's "No Woman Born," the best Mr. Campbell's magazine. of all this writer's distinguished rf From which it may be inferred that, Iimited output and litUe short of per- unlike "The Best in Science Fiction.,,x fection in itself, Hard on its heels rvhich rvas quarters comes Lervis Padgett's crir.icised..col'n" in some "Mimsy Were for rhe alnount of it lleaned, the Borogroves," as upsetting a piece this "Treasury" is a very up-tothe- of dimensional cradle - snatching as minute anthology indeed. It is also, could give any parent nightmares. taken all round and in spite of its Third is Malcolm Jameson's "Children smnller content, definitely better value of the Betsy-B," less satisfying technic- than "The Best.,' It contains no ally but a notable piece of work in the material qrhose interest lies only in its humorous vein. For these three alone, antiquity, and lelatively little which is the collection is worth possessing; and so b1d as to be unreadable save by the among the dozen or more other flrst- most conscientior.rs critic. To balance class stories it boasts are Simak's this, there is as much really memorable "Tools" (with a characteristically sym- woik, while the ballast is sound, pathetic treatment of a particularly thought-provoking stuff of the kind alien life-form), Sprague de Camp's which writers Iike R,obert A. Heinlein, "Living Fossil," Wiliamson's "With Clifford D. Simak and Jack William- Folded Hands," and Lawrence O'Don- son can be relied upon to provide. nell's "Vintage Season." That the proportion of truly out- It is pleasant, too, to find two ex- standing work, bad and good, is still amples of the work of British author not what it might be in a critical com- Arthur C. Clarke, both well-deserving of pilation from so rich a literature. is their place. Heinlein is represented by due not so much to lVIr. Conklin's over- one of his Satevepost stories, "It's Great compensated recoil from the antique to be Back," intriguing in prospect but, (for there have been plenty of good in the event, disappointingly stight. stories during th.r past eight years) as If it was Mr. Conklin's aim to show to his categorical selection policy. The the trend of science fiction during the inevitable result of this aim to include war years, he has succeeded very well. as wide as possible a variety of plots is But it cannot be pretended that the eol- the presence of several ephemera whose lection contains only the cream of the only point is their point; which are all period. An ideal anthology, we think, r er.y v,ell loetween lhe covers of a maga- would aim less at variety and more at zine but out of place in an anthology, quality; would present the work of Such, for erample, are Edward Gren- fewer but more experienced writers and don's "The I'igure," Martin Pearson's represent them more fully. It would "T'he Embassy," William Tenn's "Child's include such thoughtful writers as Play," H. Beam Piper's "Time and Time Isaac Asimov, Hal Clement, A. Bertram Again," and A. E. van Vogt's "Jugger- Chandler and Eric F?ank Russell. and naut": the last only Mr. Conklin's self- feature stories of greater length, less *Reviewed Feb.-Mar.. '4?, issue. concentrated in the immediate past. REVIEW 11 None the le$s, Mr. Conklin is mov- covers, have some such title as "The jng in approximately the right direc- Greatest Classics of Science I'iction," tion; and it is tempting, and surely and contain about three superb and ex- legitimate in this of all fields, fo extra- traordinarily diverse stories, aII due to polate into the future from the first appear in Astounding several years in 'Workingtwo volumes of this hoped-for series. the anthology's own future. More from the data already sum- power to Mr. Conklin: this would be anarised, one may prophesy that the weII worth the three dollars. But extra- rth collection to come from Crown polation is not, the mathematicians tell ?ublishers will appear between paper us, infallible. Twelve For Your Friends n. . . AND SOME WERE HUIi|AN," by cent-spinners; they are all gems, Lest€r del Rey. Pdme Press. Phila- ranging from the gentle wackiness of dclphia. Pa. $3.00. "Hereafter, Inc.", in which a seu- Reviewed by Peter Phillips righteous clerk insists on finding lfell in ]feaven, to his short novel, Take any one of this collection of "Nerves," which has already reached Lester del Rey's best pieces, put them the general pubic through "Adventures in the pages of a general magazine in- in ?ime and Space." This, a continuous stead of Astounding or Unknown (from narrative, covering two or three days, which they came) and they rvould be of a disaster in an atomic plant (pub-' properly acclaimed on their merits as lished in Astounding, incidentally, long stories. Riffie through your fantasy before lliroshima), is a brilliant magazines and, being as honestly dis- example of how to maintain dramatic passionate as any fantasy fan can, pick tension without resorting to a series of out the tales of which you could say artificially - confrived climaxes. We the same. Or, as Mr. del R,ey himself tried it on a non-fan who doesn't know puts it in his tr'oreword, that might be a neutron from a nutcracker. Verdict: ''intended for the entertainment of per- "Couldn't stop until I'd flnished it." fect strangers." There is also the famed tale of rival You']l agree that so many favourites, rockefeers, "The Stars Look Down," particularly in science flction, rely to which reads strangely but realistically an unconscionable extent on their in these days of rigorously-controlled specialised appeal; on previous know- research which will result, if the cur- ledge of the chalacters concerned, on rent prophets are right, in Government presumed acceptance of certain scien- space-ships and Government bases on tifi.c concepts, on an elliptical, allusive 'style. Luna. But there are, praise be, no The writers, correctly, trust the supermen and no double-dyed villains trained reader to fiIl the gaps. But, un- anywhere in the book. The conflicts fortunately, many of them seem to take that occur are between intelligence and the style for the substance and forget stupidity; between Man, his environ- or disregard the flrst tenets of good ment and his limitations. A more ac- storytelling, so that the pieces curate title, perhaps, would be "And A1l emerge as mere expositlons of un- Were Human"; because in a broad usual ideas. sense there is a warm humanity in all Mr. del Rey has the ideas; but even del Rey's fascinating characters: a 'with his admitted cent-spinners, he re- Neanderthal man; a dryad; an elfin mains a craftsman with an eye for con- coppersmith who flnds his metier, after struction and the turn of a pretty long absence from the paths of men, in phrase. And these twelve aren't his repairing auto radiators; an asbestos lizard; a female robot with sex-appeal- plus; a dog; a copper-hungry Moon lmportant to Subscribers monkey. If a subscriptlon blank is encloeed, They all add up to a seleetlon of you should renew your subscription stories which give added pleasure in immediately. Note the new address the feeling that the author enjoyed to which it shoultl be sent: writing them-and wdting them well. FANTASY REVIEW The volume is suitably illustrated by 115 Wanstcad Pa,rk R.oad. Sol Levin, and equally suitably dedl- Ilford. Essex cated to Mr. Campb€ll, t2 FA NTASY Slan With A Typewriter OUT OF THE UNKNOWN, by A. E. Those who have been fortunate 1a1-V9gt & E. Matrre HuIl. I'antasy enough to read all the issues of Un- Publishing Co., Los Angeles. S2.b0. known will doubtless remember .,The ,,The Reviewed by ,lohn Chrnell Ultimate Wish" (Feb. '43) and Wishes We Make" (June ,48). These ..Would it be sacrilegious to suggest are very fair examples of the well- r.nai tne name of van Vogt may- tend to worked stories we came to expect of become monotonous among the in_ this magazine, with obvious sign-s of the creasing number of tiiles coming from thought and care expended on their the fantasy presses of America? Then complications. But her third piece, we will merely state that the legion of "The Patient" (Oct. '43), which telts of his admirers, and of the beloved Un- a condemned man's six wishes. each known Worlds, will heartily welcome one ending in death by hanging, js to lnrs rrrst volume from the publishers our mind by far the best. One wishes. of Fantasy Book, which he shares with now, that Unknown would revive to his wife-and rather overshadows q/ork her carry on its fine traditions and brine with his own three stories. But as us more taies like this. she has laboured to some extent on tually vir_ The three van Vogt stories trave more every story he has published. lt of the weird element. and serve wourd seem to show that an equal share of the the many facets which his writing has h9?gurl should righily be hers: espe_ presented through the years. Sufficient cralry srnce one may have too much of for those who have read them to men- a good thing, even of van Vogt, and rter tion the titles: "The Sea ThinE', (Jan. own three pieces serve as breath_ '40), "The Ghost" (Aug. '42), and ,,ttre ing in between the thought- (Feb. provoking,lpaces Witch" '43). They should have chilling tales of her frus_ no Dand. difficulty in recollecting them. But after reading them again, we have
books for rnid.sumrmer moods WHO GOES THERE? IF THIS GOES ON By John W. Campbelt By Robert A. Heinlein Seven classic stories L6l6 One of Astounding's finest serial,s r6/6 OUT OF THE UNKNOWN By A. E. van Vogt a.nd FINAL BLAGKOUT E. Mayne Ifdl By L. Ron Hubbarrd Six fantasies from Unknown How World War II might have Worlds L{l 6 ended 16/6
READY JULY Erio Frank Russell's fine fantasy SINISTER BARRIER The story which launched unknown worlds in 1989. Revised and with some 30,000 words added. t6/6
THE SUNtrEN IryORLD TEIPLANETAB,Y By Stanton A. Coblents: 16/6 By E. E. Smittr: 16/6 TIIE MTGHTIEST MACIIINE TIIE BIITCI{ II,AME By John W. Campbe]I: 16/6 By Stanley c. Wetnbaum: 16/6 E. J. GARNELL I7 BURWASH ROAD, PLUMSTEAD, LONDON, S.E. I8 aEvtEw 13 reached the conclusion that neither cannot quite make contact. Even with editors nor readers, much less his re- these present tales, one has the same viewers, can really appreciate van impression as one gets from any of his Vogt's writings. A1I our comments are science flction stories: we don't really but vapourings from those who live undelstand them as he intended they in the world of Lo-day and are trying should be understood. The learned vainly to understand something which among us may cry down this state- belongs at least a little way in the fu- ment, but after long consultation with f,ure. all types of readers we have yet to find One instinctively feels that his one who can lucidly explain what van stories are good, that the man can Vogt is all aboul. We can only des- write; but there seems to us a nebulous cribe him as the "slan" of fantasy something about his work-an other- writers. worldliness, as if his mind were more The book is well illustrated, and has advanced than ours and although he a dust-jacket by our front page friend is writing down to our intellect he still Rov Hr.lnt. Introduction to a Genius? THE BEST SHORT STORIES OF M. evaluation on the basis of the twelv€ P. SHIEL, selected by John Gaws- stories in this collecLion. But, in plead- worth. Gollancz, 10/6. ing this ignorance, I cannot refrain Reviewed by Peter Phillips from an opinion: that Shiel's is not an genius. A Turkish bath can be refreshing, enduring in moderation; in excess, it enervates. "He tells of a wilder wonderland than So. for me, with the orchidaceous pro- Poe dreamed of," said the late Arthur lixity of Shiel's prose. A few pages Machen. But it is a less human won- at a time are enough; then I need an derland. There is a story in this collec- interlral for recovery, digestion and tion. "Vaila." which in theme and treat- consultation oI the S.O.E.D. before ment invites direct comparison with plunging again into the leaping torrent Poe's "Fall of tfre House of Usher." The of his convolute imagery. For example, brooding horror of Poe's bale lies in a this passage from "Phorphor": delicate perversion of normal human "Close she hugged it (a canary) values, and it is unforgettable; but trouling, laughing, trilling, light-wheel- "Vaila" assaults the imagination with ing to the hint of a dance, a maiden- such a dinning battery of words that it canephorus tripudiary in tlre Comus of defeats its own purpose and stultifles the Dionysia . . She was dressed only where it is intended to horrify, leaving in a thin llama Greek robe of amber ttre reader bemused rather than uneasy. brown and through the shaken folds Where there is nothing human. in- her limbs glanced, bluish to aspiration's humanity loses its point; where naught eye, as limbs of new-sprung Aphrodite is normal, abnornality loses its savour. mirrored fluctuant among brown sea- But perhaps, to those who know Shiel, weed in the Paphian shallows . . ." After I am only succeeding in exposing my a while, you find yourself mouthing the own lack of sensibilities. euphony aloud. It is this aural appeal, Shiel's earliest character, the occul- indeed, that provides the chief differ- tist-detective Prince Zaleski" appears ence between Shiel and his similarly ln the flrst three stories; and these, to word-entranced fellow-Irishman, Joyce ; m]' cloddish mind, were the most enjoy- for there is little of Joyce that delights able. But still I could not refl'ain from ear equally with eye. comparing the cold, infinitely erudite Except in America, rmognition of Zaleski with Poe's warm. truman Shiel's luxuriant genius appears to have Dupin; and Shiel's intriguing but arti been largely confined to the cogne ficially-premised logic with Poe's fac- scenti for many years. Even now, a tual analyses in "The Mystery of Marie year affer his death at the age of 81, Roget." a deflnitive evaluation of his work for Summation: Shiel was great, not to the general reading public-only now be ignored-and this book provides "discoverlng" him-has not been at- probably the best introduction to him- tempted; and it would be a presump- but not to be elevated among the im- tion for one unacquainted with his mortals . . . yet. Let Time prove me longer works to anticipate such an a liar. 74 FA NTASY As Good As Neur THE TORCH, by Jack Bechdott. h.ime the prirne press x Press, Philadelphia, pa. $2.b0. Box 20L9, Miildle City Station, Reviewed by John Carnell Philadelphia, 3, Pa., U.S.A. The current reprinting of magazine stories which, Announce their forthcoming with the names of ttreir flction authors, are within the memory of most titles. fantasy fans, may leave some of us wary of this unfamiliar novel from the WITHOUT SORCERY files of the American Argosy, But al- By Theodore S0urgeo,n, 16/6 though it appeared in 1920, before the A collection of the f,nest work produced days of the science flction magazine by this outstanding writer who has not proper, there is nothing archaic either yet received all the attention he deserves jn theme or the telling of this tale of from the anthologists. New Yoik in 3010 A.D., after a major catastrophe has swept away all but the LEST DARKNESS FALL remnants of civiiisation. By L. Sprague de Camp, 16i6 With the exception that.it has in it De Camp's best-liked story from the that "love interest" which vras essen- pages of Unknown Workls. Ttre first tial to the stories of those davs-the edition of this book ha^s long: been out of hero torn between two loves. the beau- print and vainly sought after by tilul blonde heroine and the rival bnl- collectors. nette with evil designs, who were still with us in the '30's and are not always NOMAD absent even now-it might easily have By George O. Smith, 16/6 been written in the past few years. The Being the flrst loook presentation of the theme was not entirely new, of course, popular serial Astoundlng Nov. in '20: witness George Allan in '44 to England's Feb. '45, under the pseudongn of Wesley "Darkness and Dawn" trilogy, dating Long. back to 1912 and an earlier Munsey magazine, Cavalier. Yet several more recent variations on it, such as T'homas LORDS OF GREATION Calvert McOlary's "Rebirth," seem to By Eando Binder, 16/6 us less deserving of "classic" statrrs One of the great fantasy serials from ttran Mr. Bechdolt's piece, which had the famous Argosy magazine, by the become lost amid the mass of material popular author-duo. of this kind Argosy printed and is well worthy of its resurrection. Also: Let us, however, warn those publish- A novel by Lester del Rey tentatlvely ers who may wish to unearth other titled LUNAR, LANDING. material from these nles that thev will And a collectlon of the works ol have to search very diligently to flnC Charles R. Tanner, whose name ls better- stufi to equai this. known to readers of 15 years ago. The struggle between the ruling class of ruined New York, knovr'n as the Now Available: Tower people, and the Folk who are AND SOME WEBE HUMAN_Lester del little more than slaves living in what Rey t6l3 is was once the Manhattan subway, TIIE TORCH-Jack Bechdolt 1316 drawn with uncommon realism. Ac- cording to legend, the torch of liberty VENUS EQUILATEEAL Geoqge O. which once was held upraised by the Smith - 16/6 ancient statue of the Great Woman in the harbour will bum again, when the xSole Folk regain their freedom; and the British Representative: story of the young captain Fortune's E. ,1. conversion to the Brotherhood of the CARNELL Torch, to lead the battle against the 17 BUR,WASE R,OAD, PLUMSTEAD, tyrants in a world where bows and ar- LONDON, S.E. 18 rows are more plentiful than guns, :s full of intense action and conviction. REVI EW 15 NIGET LINDSAY & KENI{ETH SLATER g'iving reviews of cu,rre,nt issue and n€rvs of stories to come AMONG THE MAGAZINES Latest frustraticn for ihe British fan- A. E. van Vogt's "The Rul1" revived the tasy fan is the new dollar-conselving setiing of his "Co-operate or Else" and Board of Trade lesbricfion on the im- "Second Solution," of earlier years, and portation of foreign publications which presented some interesting notions on makes it impossible to renew subscrip- the evolution of alien life-forms. L. tions to the American maga.zines when Ron Hubbard's "The Obsolete Weapon" they run out-unless you can flnd a got an amusing slant on the anachron- friendly U.S. fan who will place a direct isms of time-travel, and Muuay Lein- subscription in your name. You can no ster kept us thoroughly intrigued Lry longer subscribe through an agent here, "The Strange Case of Jolrn Kingman." but there is nothing to prevent issues Thrilling Wonder fol. August has a. coming into the counl,ry as long as they selectlon of stolies as varied as the are paid for in Amellca; and althougn most jaded reader could rvish for. Fea-- you ca1]not send money, an Amefican ttrre novel is "I\ltr'. Zytztz Goes to Mars," contact will probably welcome any by Noel Loomis, whom you Inay remem-, British publications you send him in ber for his "Iron Men" and "City of return. Glass" in reoent Startlings. M1'. What's- Though, unfortunately, there will be his+rame is a lualtian plant-nran who no New Worlds to represent the last wants to become a space pilot-and. remnants of original British science does, after much iunny business. An: fiction, rvhich lvill be virtually extinct other piece with a light touch is Wes-- with the suspension of the Pendulum lel' Long's "Climare-Incorporated"; publication. The less said about Nhis, 'rVilliam Tenn provides mol'e sericus perhaps, the better; though we must sptrce-cp,eia in "The lonian Cjicle," and sympathise with Editor Carnell after Tireodore Stnrgecn has an ingenious, all his e5ct'ts to make progress with the idea whjch he presents with his usual. magazine in spite of delays and diffi- wfiting skiil in "Memory." Ray Brad-. culties which were outside his province. briry. Murray Leinster and Margar€t St., And hope that one day the titie, which Clair contribute the sho:tsr pieces has been ihloitgh nany vicissiLudes, ri'hich mal
A WEALTH OF FANTASY in Four Anthologies Edited by August Derleth
A coliection of 19 short stories and the H.P. Lovecra,ft Astounding novel, "At the STRANGE PORTS OF GALL Nlountains of Maciiress." Iiare classics of science-fantasy b)' Helnlein, van Vogt, 20 Masterpieces of Science Fiction Stulgeon. Keller'. Bradbury. Kutlner, Bond, Schuj]er Millcr'. and oLhers. 251- A volume which bring-s back into print manl' sLoi.'ies which have long been THE SLEEPING AND THE unav'ailanle, including Lovecraft's "The DEAD Dreams rn l.ite witch-House," "The Double Shadow," by Clark Ashton Smittt, 30 Uncanny Tales "Ouf of the Picture," by Arthur Machen, and many others. 22/6 Trventy-three notable teles, with iilustra- tions by Lee Brown CoYe. Including THE NIGHT SIDE Lovecratt's "The Co]our Out of Space," Henrv llutrner's "Mimsv Were the Boro- Masterpieces of the Strange and goves", and others by'Dunsany, Wake- Terrible field. Machen, Coppard, Bradbury, Bloch, Counselman, etc. r7 l6 "This collection of grim tales is an admirabie and cunning blend of vintage Dieces and others of the modern school of WHO KNOCKS? ihe macabre."-Arthur F. Hillman in 20 Masterpieces of the Spectral Fantasy R,eview' Stories by Blackwood, Lovecraft, Sturgeon, Whitehead, Quinn, etc., wit| illustrations bv Coye. L5/6
May be ordered from: G. KEN CHAPMAN (British Sales Representative), 23 Farnley Road, South Norwood, London, S.E.25 fiEVtEW 19
AMONG THE MAGAZINES-continued rrom page rO voted to the defence of reason . . dedi- Mystely of the Flying Disks," one cated to the scientiflc method, to calm article being an eye-witness account of analysis of the known and the unknown them by the airman who started the . . . You might call Fate a 'cosmic re- nine days' wonder-wtrich Fate refuses porter."' to dismiss as spots before the eyes. You might call I'ort that, too. Not Also up our street are articies on "Mes- that he is mentioned in thls issue; sages from MaIs" by Vincent H. Gad- though Richard Sha,ver and Flaymond dis, and on people who hear voices, by Palmer are, and more than one oI' G. H. Irwin; while Harold M. Sher- Amazing's writers ,conLribute to the man writes on "Mark Twain and Hal- mag., which seems to us to savour of ley's Comet," and Il,. P. Graha,m on the Zifi-Davis product, typographically "Science and the Soul." You recognise and otherwise. But the imprint is that the names . . . ? The case of l(asper of the Clark Publishing Co., Chicago; Hauser, ancient cults, the Great Pyra- the editor, Robert N. Webster. It's a mid and "giants in those days" are quarterly, pocket-size. other subjects, mixed with spooks and The cover alfd, 44 of the 128 pages automatic writing, presented in popu- have to do with various aspects of "The lar style with plenty of pictures.
WANTED UR,GENTLY: Indexes to SMALT ADYERTS A-stounding, Weird, etc., publishett by per U.S. fans. Can ofier similar items in ex- Special Rat,e to Collectors: 2d. change; send wants.-Box 116, Fnntasy word (5c. Canaila, anil U.S.A.); mlni- Review. mum 12 words. To Traders and others: per (7c. SPHIN:( CHILD, by Stanley Mullen; 3d. word in Canada and U.S.A.). 35c. from New Collector's. 421 Claremont AII advertisements in this section must be prepaitl. (15c.) Parkway. New York City, 5?, U.S.A. Box numbers 6d. extra. PHILOSOPHER of Fantasv: Dr. Olaf YOU WILL flnd the Directory of Stapledon interviewed in Scientifiction Anglo-Fandom invaluable for making for June '37; tl6 (35c.) per copy, post contacts. Published bv the British free, from Fantasy Review (Service Fantasy Library, comprising names and Dept.), 115 Wanstead Park Road. Ilford, addresses of over 300 fans (members and Essex. non-members) in the British Isles. tfie new issue is now ready. Copies, 1/- post free, obtainable from the Librarian: Ron Hohnes, 67 Lineside Road, Belle Vale, NEW Catacre, Liverpool. A OPERATION FANTAST is in urgent need of Tales of Wonder. pre-war Fan- SERY'CE tasy, AS-F and Unknown B.R,.E.'s '49-'43. If you have any to ofier write to It. F. Slater, Riverside. South Brink. Wisbech, Cambs. FANTASY LIFE EVERLASTING and Other Tales of Science, Fantasy and Iforror. by David II. Keller, M.D., collected bv Sam Mos- kowitz and Will Sykora. with a critical LI BRARY and biographical Introduction by Sa,m Moskowitz; 394 pp.; now available at CAN NOW SUPPLY ALL TIIE $3.50 from T'lre Avalon Co., P.O. Box NEW AMER,ICAN SCIENCE 8052, Clinton HilI Station, Newark. N.J., u.s.A. FICTION AND FAN TA SY MR,. A. BER,TRAM CHANDLER, wishes NOVELS ON LOAN to info,rm his correspondents that his address is now 29 Cambridge Road, :r Hounslow. Middlesex, and to express his regret that he has been unallle to reply For fuu details of this Postal to recent letters owing to pressure of personal business. Service send s.a.e. to EXCIIANGD Taine's "The Time Stream" (Hadley), with jacket, plus FANTASY LIBRARY Fantasy R,eader Nos. 4 and 5, for mint copy "Strange to TeU" (Messner), 143 SOUTHBORO' LANE "Travellers in Time" or "Man into B"""tr'r lDoubleday).-Box 117, Fantasy BICKLEY, KENT Review. In Pursuit of the Legendory O Large stock of Tfrere are many titles in the American) of Weird, Fantastic fantasy book fleld which have be- and Scientific Fiction. come almost legendary, they are so O "Want Lists" receive indivld- dificult t0 come by; and lt is these ualattention. rareties we are constantly being I I I I I I asked to supply. We have no O Orders welcomed' fiom the genie to conjure them Empire and the U.S.A. Send up for us, on per behalf of our clients. But we have Cash International Money so eniarged our sphere of systematlc Order. search of late that even the most O SelI us your Collection of diligeDt and fortunate of collectors Science-I'iction; send List is likely to f,nd something to lnter- stating condition and get our est him ir: our forthcoming lists. Cash Ofier. If you are not already on our O Put your Name on our Mailing mailing list, a postcard will ensure List for Flee Mornthly Cate- that you receive these as they are logues. issued. . WILLIAMS SCIENGE FANTASY E. SERVIGE ll Clowders Road, (Dept. FRs) Catford, London, S.E.6 6E Victoria Street, Liverymol, I
ver a lqng period we have been urged by many readers to increase the size of - ASIOUND/NG SCTNNCD FTCTTON (BRITISH EDITION) order to include more of the contents of the -in' original American edition.
production difficulties have now been overcome and the AUGUST ISSUE to be published on August 21st wilt be the FIRST IN THE NEW SIZE. u-
- Owing to pa.per rattoning, the demand ca,rurot be fully met I foro recommend you to place a r€grrlal order with your newsr I I I PUBLISIIING & DISTR,IBUTING ATLAS 18 BR,TDE II\NE, trLnEr STREET, I n
Ripley Printing Society Ltd,, Ripley, Derbys. This version of the rnagazine was assembled by Farrago & Farrago using a copy from the collection of the late Harry Turner, who created the cover artwork for the early issues of Fantasy Review.
All copyrights acknowledged, all articles and artwork remain the intellectual property of their creators.