Category Archives: birthday

A Monster-God for Edmond Hamilton’s Birthday

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“The Monster-God of Mamurth”
The Edmond Hamilton Megapack
Wildside Press
ebook $0.55

On this date, October 20, Edmond Hamilton was born in the year 1904.  While he isn’t the only writer of the fantastic with a birthday today, I think he’s the most important.

Hamilton is best known today as a writer of space opera (and husband of one of our favorite writers, Leigh Brackett), so it might seem that this tribute would be more appropriate over at Futures Past and Present.

What isn’t as well known is that, in addition to publishing muc of his early science fiction in Weird Tales, Hamilton also wrote some weird fantasy adventures stories.  In fact, his first published story, “The Monster-God of Mamurth” is just such a tale. Continue reading →

Happy Birthday, Tanith Lee

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One of the most acclaimed writers of fantasy was born on this date, September 19, in 1947.  I’m talking about Tanith Lee, of course.  While there are other acclaimed writers with birthdays today, none of them are as important and significant as Tanith Lee was to the field of fantasy, nor ever likely to be.  (Yes, that was a swipe at someone with a birthday today, in case you’re wondering.  No, I’m not going to tell you who.)  Tanith Lee died in 2015.

I’ve only read a little bit of her work, but what I’ve read, I’ve really enjoyed.  I’m not sure I’ll have time today to read any of her fiction; the day’s pretty full.  But if not today, then sometime in the next week.  I’ll have some time to kill on Saturday when I’ll need something to read.  Fortunately I recently purchased a couple of collections of her short fiction.   Among them are The Weird Tales of Tanith Lee (stories published in Weird Tales) and Venus Burning:  Realms (stories from Realms of Fantasy).

If you haven’t read her work, check her out.

A Plethora of Birthdays

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This will be a short post, as I am visiting family. They are between internet providers and won’t get the bew service until Tuesday. I’m typing this on my phone, which is a bit slow. I’ll add more photos and illustrations and maybe a liyttle more biographical detail when I return from my wanderings in the cyber wilderness. I’d also like to thank Deuce Richardson for the heads-up on the birthdays, as I have been distracted with travel today.

A number of my favorite writers were born today, September 1.

First, one of the greatest, Edgar Rice Burroughs. Born in 1875, Burroughs created some of the most iconic characters in modern literature, including Tarzan and John Carter. Continue reading →

Bea Mahaffey at 98

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Eric Frank Russell and Bea Mahaffey. Photo by Norman Shorrock.

Bea Mahaffey was born on August 24, 1926.  She passes away in 1987.  Ms. Mahaffey was active in early fandom and was an assistant editor for Ray Palmer after he left Amazing Stories to from Clark Publications.

I realize it may come as a shock to some people that there were female editors in the early 50s.   They seem to think women didn’t become involved in science fiction and fantasy and smash The Patriarchy until [insert arbitrary recent date here].  I spoke to that issue in this post. Not that it did a lot of good.  Some people just don’t listen.  Not regular readers of this blog, of course.  They’re on top of things.

Mahaffey worked with Palmer on Other Worlds, where she is credited as being the person who actually purchased Eric Frank Russell’s classic story “Dear Devil”.  If she had done nothing else in the field, she should be remembered for this.  Mahaffey is also credited as being co-editor with Palmer on Science Stories, Universe Science Fiction, and Mystic Magazine.  Financial considerations forced Palmer to end her employment in 1956.

Bea Mahaffey was quite popular with the male fans of the day.  Legend has it that both male and female attendance at fan gatherings increased when she was there.  The men attended to keep an eye on Bea, and their wives attended to keep an eye on them.  That may or may not be true, but I’m inclined to think it is to at least some extent.  Mike Resnick and Barry Malzberg got in trouble a few years ago when they wrote favorably about Bea Mahaffey’s looks in the SFWA Bulletin.  Personally, I think beauty and achievement should be recognized.

In conclusion, Bea Mahaffey had a impact on the field of the fantastic.

Ray Bradbury at 98

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On this date in 1920, August 22, Ray Bradbury was born.  He was one of the greatest writers of the fantastic of the last 100 years.

I came to Bradbury early.  He was one of the first adult writers I read.  When I was in 5th grade, we had a guest in my reading class one day.  The man was there to read us a Bradbury story.  He described Bradbury as a science fiction writer but  then went on to tell us that what he was going to read wasn’t science fiction.  He read “The Screaming Woman” to us.  Continue reading →

Happy Birthday, Farnsworth

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Farnsworth Wright, legendary editor of Weird Tales, was born on this date, July 29, in the long-ago year of 1888.  He died in 1940.

We last discussed Mr. Wright a few weeks ago in my post on who was the greatest editor of the 20th Century.  I think it’s a toss-up between Wright and Don Wolheim.

What isn’t up for debate is that Wright published some of the greatest writers of the fantastic in his magazines during his tenure as editor:  H. P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Clark Ashton Smith, C. L. Moore, Henry S. Whitehead, Henry Kuttner, Manley Wade Wellman, Robert Bloch, Seabury Quinn.

Just to name a few.

Granted some, like Kuttner and Bloch, went on to fame for later, more mature work.  But Wright recognized something about their writing and published it.

So if today or tonight you happen to read something published in Weird Tales while Wright was the editor, raise your glass to his memory and his legacy.