Three by Wellman

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Manly Wade Wellman

Today, May 21, marks the birth of Manly Wade Wellman (1903-1986). Wellman is best remembered for his stories of the John the Balladeer, set in the Appalachian mountains. But he wrote a lot of other things, as well.

I first discovered Wellman’s short stories in the pages of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.  He had a number of  stories published there in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. Someone who had had a subscription had sold an almost complete run to the local second hand bookstore when I was in high school. Wellman’s stories were among the first I read when I picked up an issue with his name on the cover.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, Wellman is a favorite around these here parts, so in honor of his birth, in addition to raising a glass in his honor later this evening, I’m going to look at three of his stories that feature the same  character, Sergeant Jaeger. Continue reading →

Retro Hugos: “When the Bow Breaks” by Lewis Padgett

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Anyone who hangs out around here for any length of time and doesn’t know that Lewis Padgett is one the the pen names used by Henry Kuttner and his wife C. L. Moore clearly hasn’t been paying attention.  Written under the Lewis Padgett by-line, “When the Bough Breaks” was first published in the November 1944 issue of Astounding.

The spring before I started high school, my parents gave permission for me to join the Science Fiction Book Club. So I had a source of hardcover science fiction and fantasy to read that summer.  This was in the days before science fiction was regularly published in hardcover. Most books were mass market paperbacks.

At the time, the SFBC offered a number of titles from Ballantine’s Best of series. This was a way I could discover new writers, and I took full advantage of it.  I mean, if these writers weren’t good, why was there a volume entitled The Best of followed by their names? I was making money mowing lawns, so I had the funds to afford to buy some books. I was already familiar with the series because I had found The Best of Jack Williamson at a flea market about eighteen months earlier, and I bought every one the SFBC offered at the time.  (For some reason, they never offered The Best of C. L. Moore while I was a member, although they had published such a volume a year or three earlier.) Continue reading →

A Visit to Redbeard’s Place

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Gene Wolfe

The Retro Hugo post I was too tired to write last night will have to wait another day, because today, May 7, is Gene Wolfe’s birthday. The more I read Gene Wolfe (1931-2019), the more I appreciate him as a writer.

Tonight’s story is “Redbeard”.  It’s a short tale, not really fantasy unless you count reference to a haunted house, the Redbeard place. It’s certainly not science fiction.  It’s definitely horror, with a bit of noir thrown in for good measure. It was devilish fun. Continue reading →

Retro Hugos: “City” by Clifford D. Simak

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Published in the May 1944 issue of Astounding, “City” launched the series that was later collected in book form under that title.  Although I read it last year in The Ghost of a Model T, I reread it for this series.

The story takes place in what would have been considered the relatively near future, although it would certainly be considered our past. It’s set in 1990.

Cities have mostly been abandoned, with the bulk of the population moving out to country estates. Most neighborhoods have been abandoned, with only a few holdouts of the originals residents remaining. Farming is all done by hydroponics now. So the farmers have moved into the abandoned houses. They live a subsistence life by hunting, small gardening, and scavenging. Continue reading →

Jane Rice’s “The Idol of the Flies”

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Today’s (April 30) birthday post looks at story by someone who should not exist. Jane Rice(1913-2003) wrote fantasy and horror for the pulps, primarily Unknown.  As all right-thinking people know, women weren’t allowed to write for the pulps.  They were kept out by chauvinistic such as John W. Campbell, Jr., the editor of Astounding and, well, Unknown. Just goes to show what  some right-thinking people don’t know.

“The Idol of the Flies” is probably Jane Rice’s best known story.  I had not read it until a few minutes ago.

There’s a subgenre about evil children, Jterome Bixby’s “It’s a Wonderful Life” being a prime example. This story falls firmly into that category.

Continue reading →

Two Wrote Adventure

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Rafael Sabatini

Today, April 29, marks the birth of two of the most prolific and popular writers of adventure stories in the early 20th Century.  Rafael Sabatini (1875-1950) and H. Bedford-Jones (1887-1949).  I haven’t had time to read anything by either man today.  It’s also Jack Williamson’s birthday, and I did manage to read one of his stories.

Both Sabatini and Bedford-Jones published in Adventure magazine, one of the top fiction publications of the day, and one of the highest-paying.

Fortunately the works of both men are in print.  Sabatini is best remembered for his pirate novels, such as Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk.

H. Bedford-Jones

I’ve read a bit more Sabatini than I have Bedford-Jones, so I don’t know where to tell you to start. Altus Press has been reprinting his work for a while now, and there are plenty of titles to choose from.

I’ve been reading some stragiht historical adventure lately and want to read more.  These are two authors I to move higher in the queue.

 

Quick Update

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Just a note to let all of you know how it’s going. We’re all healthy, if a little stir crazy from confinement.  The governor is allowing businesses to open on a limited basis.  Here’s hoping it’s a success.  I haven’t been to a book store in over a month.

There’s a week of class left, then finals.  I’m about to be buried under a mountain of grading.  Actually, the mountain i already here.  I’ve just been ignoring it.

Tomorrow morning I’ll be helping a friend’s mother, who is in her 80s, have some trash cleared.  Some asshat dumped a load of heavy junk against her fence, and she can’t get out into the alley to take out her trash, so she walks to the end of the block and back up the alley. We’re loading it onto some trailers and taking it to the dump, which is currently only open on Wednesday and Saturday. I don’t have class tomorrow, so I’m able to help.

Then it’s back to putting in a garden.  There are two more places to till.   I’ve already planted corn, beans, and cucumbers.  Next it’s tomatoes, bell peppers, carrots, and a little okra.

I’ve got a deadline on a short story I need to finish by the end of the week.

And of course, more birthday and Retro Hugo posts.  Plus a few other things I’ve been trying to get to.  Most of those may have to wait until after finals, but I’ll get in as many as I can.  Tomorrow is the birthday of Rafael Sabatini, H. Bedford-Jones, and Jack Williamson, so I have to do something.

How’s everyone else doing.

Two Shorts by Frank Belknap Long

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Frank Belknap Long

Frank Belknap Long (1901-1994) was born on this date, April 27.  A correspondent of Lovecraft, Long was a prolific author in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. He wrote science fiction as well as weird fantasy and horror.  His quality varied quite a bit, which is to to be expected when an author is that prolific.When he was good, he was very good.  Case in point, “The Hounds of Tindalos” is, in my opinion, one of the best Mythos stories ever written.  You may not agree, but that’s okay. It’s a free country. You can be wrong if you want to.

Let’s look at two of his shorter works.  Time has been tight today, or I would have reviewed a longer piece, such as “The Horror From the Hills.”  Maybe some other time.

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H. L. Gold’s “Trouble With Water”

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H. L. Gold

Okay, I’m going to violate one of my unwritten rules and post two items today.  In addition to being A. E. van Vogt’s birthday, it’s also Horace L. Gold’s birthday.  Born on April 26 in 1914, Gold passed away in 1996.

Although best remembered as the editor of Galaxy during the 1950s, Gold was also a successful writer of fiction in the 1930s and 40s.  While not one to the top tier, Gold’s fiction tended to the humorous.

“Trouble With Water” is probably his best known story.  I started to post this on Futures Past and Present because Gold was a science fiction editor.  But this is a fantasy story  (even if it was reprinted in Isaac Asimov Presents the Great SF Stories 1: 1939, where I first read it). Continue reading →