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Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Weird Fiction Magazines: (Historical Guides to the World's Periodicals and Newspapers) PDF

970 Pages·1985·2.91 MB·English
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Recent Titles of Historical Guides to the World's Periodicals and Newspapers This series provides historically focused narrative and analytical profiles of periodicals and newspapers with accompanying bibliographical data. Black Journals of the United States Walter C. Daniel Mystery, Detective, and Espionage Magazines Michael L. Cook American Indian and Alaska Native Newspapers and Periodicals, 1826-1924 Daniel F. Littlefield, Jr., and James W. Parins British Literary Magazines: The Augustan Age and the Age of Johnson, 1698-1788 Alvin Sullivan, editor British Literary Magazines: The Romantic Age, 1789-1836 Alvin Sullivan, editor British Literary Magazines: The Victorian and Edwardian Age, 1837-1913 Alvin Sullivan, editor Children's Periodicals of the United States R. Gordon Kelly, editor International Film, Radio, and Television Journals Anthony Slide, editor SCIENCE FICTION, FANTASY, AND WEIRD FICTION MAGAZINES Edited by Marshall B. Tymn and Mike Ashley Historical Guides to the World's Periodicals and Newspapers Greenwood Press Westport, Connecticut • London, England Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Tymn, Marshall B., 1937- Science fiction, fantasy, and weird fiction magazines. (Historical guides to the world's periodicals and newspapers, ISSN 0742-5538) Includes bibliographies and index. 1. Science fiction—Periodicals—History. 2. Fantastic fiction—Periodicals—History. I. Ashley, Michael. II. Title. III. Series. PN3433.T9 1985 809.3'876 84-11523 ISBN 0-313-21221-X (lib. bdg.) Copyright © 1985 by Marshall B. Tymn and Mike Ashley All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 84-11523 ISBN 0-313-21221-X ISSN 0742-5538 First published in 1985 Greenwood Press A division of Congressional Information Service, Inc. 88 Post Road West Westport, Connecticut 06881 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21 Contents Preface vii Acknowledgments xiii Introduction by Thomas D. Clareson xv Abbreviations xxix Section I: English-Language Magazines 3 Section II: Associational English-Language Anthologies 783 Section III: Academic Periodicals and Major Fanzines Joseph L. Sanders 809 Section IV: Non-English-Language Magazines, by Country Hal W. Hall and Mike Ashley 847 Appendix A: Index to Major Cover Artists 901 Appendix B: Chronology 921 Bibliography 927 Index 931 Contributors 965 Preface This volume was compiled to fill a gap in the library of reference works currently available in the field of fantastic literature. Although the contents of science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction magazines have been partially indexed by Donald B. Day for the 1926-1950 period, by Norm Metcalf for the 1951- 1965 period, and by the New England Science Fiction Association from 1966 to the present, no guide as comprehensive in scope as this has ever been pub lished. This volume gives full coverage of the pulp age of science fiction and fantasy, beginning with the general pulp magazines such as Argosy, which was first published in 1882 and regularly included science fiction and fantasy, through the decades of specialist pulp titles that began with the publication of Weird Tales in 1923, up to the contemporary pulps of the early 1980s. It was during the pulp era (roughly from 1926 until the early 1950s) that fantastic literature separated itself from the mainstream of publishing. A long line of specialist pulp titles appeared that were to remain virtually the only outlet for science fiction and fantasy writers during this period. A knowledge of that era is crucial to an understanding of the history of this literature. It was the pulp era that determined the directions in which the genre would develop and laid the groundwork for future writers. Thomas D. Clareson's introduction to this volume provides a balanced historical perspective on this important period in the history of science fiction and fantasy literature. Our purpose in compiling this volume is to provide scholars, researchers and the general reader with a useful tool for evaluating the science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction magazines as a historical and literary phenomenon, and to furnish a bibliographic apparatus for documenting the appearance of these mag azines in all their various phases. Except as it appears scattered througout general histories of this genre, and in capsule form in Peter Nicholls' The Science Fiction Encyclopedia (1979), commentary on these magazines has never been available in any sustained form. This volume provides that commentary for the historian V1U PREFACE and general reader, not only for titles for which information is partially available, but for those titles which have never before been researched. The volume is divided into four sections: Section I: English-Language Mag azines (279 titles), Section II: Associational English-Language Anthologies (15 titles), Section III: Academic Periodicals and Major Fanzines (72 titles), and Section IV: Non-English-Language Magazines, by Country (184 titles). In ad dition, it includes two appendixes: an index to major cover artists and a chronology. Section I, which makes up the bulk of this volume, contains magazines pub lished in the United States, Great Britain, Canada and Australia that are devoted wholly or in part to science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction in all of its forms and variations, beginning with the publication of Argosy in 1882 and ending with the early 1980s. It includes all of the important, as well as all of the less significant, magazines meeting these criteria. The cornerstone of the volume is the Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact entry, which presents the editorial pol icies of John W. Campbell in a new light. Section I concentrates on fiction magazines in the broad spectrum of science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction and does not generally include nonfantasy and nonfiction magazines. A few general fiction or nonfiction titles are included, however, either because of their historical importance or for associational sig nificance. Hence, although the first English-language all-fantasy magazine was Weird Tales in 1923 and the first all-science fiction magazine was Amazing Stories in 1926, several earlier magazines figure in the history and development of science fiction and fantasy magazines, the most obvious being the general fiction magazine Argosy. Because of its importance, an entry is given to Argosy and its companion, All-Story. The same reasoning applies to the inclusion of The Thrill Book, which is often erroneously cited as the first science fiction magazine but is more properly considered a precursor to the fantasy magazine Weird Tales. Science and Invention, Hugo Gernsback's nonfiction technical magazine, which published some science fiction, was another direct antecedent to the science fiction magazine, and it, too, is included. The Black Cat magazine is often cited as an early supernatural magazine, although it was no such thing, and we felt that an entry was necessary to clarify this situation, especially as another short-lived Canadian fantasy magazine of the same name claimed to revive the spirit of the original publication. Like Gernsback's Science and Invention, two modern popular science mag azines, Omni and Ad Astra, also include science fiction. Most of the magazines in Section I, however, are devoted primarily to fiction, although nearly all of the science fiction magazines have carried an occasional nonfiction article. Omni and Ad Astra are included for their science fiction and because of their relevance to the science fiction field. Magazines that concentrate on the cinema or other aspects of fantasy and the occult, with only a passing acknowledgment to fiction, including one or two stories an issue—and these frequently reprints—are ex cluded. Thus, you will find no entries for Famous Monsters of Filmland, World of Horror, New Witchcraft, and their ilk, although Questar is included because PREFACE IX it was making a serious attempt to publish relevant science fiction before it suspended publication. It was not our initial intention to deal with mystery, crime and thriller mag azines, as these are included in another volume in Greenwood's Historical Guides to the World's Periodicals and Newspapers, Michael L. Cook's Mystery, De tective, and Espionage Magazines. However, it was inevitable that there would be some overlap if only because so many horror stories are also mysteries. Some of the overlaps were obvious, such as Gernsback's Scientific Detective Monthly, but once one accepted the inclusion of that title in this book, it left the way open to a number of other borderline magazines such as Ace Mystery. This in turn opened the door to the weird-menace or terror pulps. These pulps have been included when (a) their contents to some extent justify inclusion, (b) their titles might imply a fantasy connection, and confusion might arise through their ex clusion, and (c) their contributors are of associational interest. We would make special reference to the entries on Dime Mystery Magazine, Terror Tales, Horror Stories and Thrilling Mystery for further clarification. Our emphasis is on the supernatural, weird or science fiction aspects of the magazines, as opposed to Cook's emphasis on the detective or mystery story. This same dichotomy affected the hero pulps. Although it was a simple enough decision to include such titles as Doc Savage and Dusty Ayres, where there was a close enough affinity with the science fiction field, the definition became more hazy as we drifted toward such bizarre crime fighters as The Scorpion and The Octopus. Once into the realms of The Shadow and The Avenger, we decided that we had come too far. The dividing line, however, is vague and arbitrary, and the decision was made to exclude all those that usually offered a natural explanation for bizarre events, where that explanation was discovered by natural means. Here again, there is some overlap between our volume and Cook's, but the emphasis in our book is different from that in Cook's. The entries in Section I, which are arranged alphabetically, follow a standard format. Each entry begins with a narrative section on the magazine's history and development. This section provides a view of the magazine's editorial policies and emphases as well as changes in those policies; an idea of the nature of the magazine's contents; the people who played a role in its founding and devel opment; the magazines it influenced and those that influenced it; and an assess ment of its significance within the field. The narrative section is followed by two appended sections, outlining the basic details of the magazine's publication history and providing location sources and sources for further information. This information will be particularly useful to those wishing to do further research. Each section uses the following format: Information Sources BIBLIOGRAPHY: Lists reference sources specific to the magazine. INDEX SOURCES: Lists sources where the magazine is indexed. X PREFACE REPRINT SOURCES: Gives full details of other English-language reprint editions of the magazine, such as British or Canadian editions of an American magazine, and of later magazines that reprinted chiefly from a source magazine. This section also cross-references to foreign-language editions included in Section IV. In addition, it provides information on any derivative anthologies that either drew their contents entirely from the magazine or relied heavily on it as a source publication. LOCATION SOURCES: Lists locations of partial and complete runs of the magazine in academic and public library collections. Publication History TITLE: Gives the original full title of the magazine, with references to subtitle where relevant, and all title changes and variations with relevant issue dates. VOLUME DATA: Gives the full volume and issue sequence, using cover dates and qualifying all changes and errors. Also specifies magazine schedule (quarterly, bi-monthly, monthly, weekly, etc.) and all changes in schedule, together with the total number of issues published. PUBLISHER: Lists the publisher(s) and place of publication. In some instances the publisher's location may be different from the editorial and executive offices, and such variations are noted. EDITORS: Lists all editors directly responsible for the selection of stories and assembling of issues. When duties are divided, that is so indicated. FORMAT: Gives the size and shape of the magazine as well as the number of pages in the magazine. The following general terms are used: Pulp: Magazines printed on cheap, pulp stock usually measuring 7 by 10 inches, although dimensions vary by up to half an inch either way. Large Pulp: Magazines printed on the same cheap paper as pulps but measuring SV2 by 11 inches, again with variations; sometimes referred to as "bedsheet." Neo-pulp: Also magazines printed on pulp paper but of slightly better quality. Dimensions are usually slightly smaller than the pulps, about 6 by 9 inches, but with variations. Digest: Magazines usually printed on pulp stock, 5 by IVi inches. Large Digest: In between neo-pulp and digest in size, measuring 5V-> by 8V2 inches. Used for a while by Astounding and New Worlds. Slick: Glossy magazines printed on coated stock throughout, usually measuring 8 by 11 inches. Large-size: Usually a pulp magazine masquerading as a slick, with glossy, coated covers and some coated interior sheets, but printed predominantly on pulp stock. Di mensions are usually 8 by 11 inches. Pocketbook: Paperback format, usually measuring 4 by 7 inches. The number of pages is given after the format designations. All pages are counted exclusive of covers and regardless of the actual numbering within the magazine. Other variations are usually specified within the entry. Magazines can be either perfect bound, or glued with a spine on which the magazine's title and off-sale date are printed, or saddle- stapled in booklet form, with no spine. PRICE: Gives the cover price at time of sale in the country of publication, together with any variations. PREFACE xi In addition to the alphabetical arrangement of the entries in this section, entries providing cross-references will aid the reader in locating the entries on magazines that underwent name changes or merged with other magazines. Moreover, when ever an entry refers to a magazine that has a separate entry in this volume, an asterisk (*) after the first mention of that magazine so indicates. Greenwood's Historical Guides to the World's Periodicals and Newspapers are not designed to include books. Yet in the science fiction field, there is, at times, a close affinity between original paperback anthologies and magazines. The 1970s paperback series Infinity, for instance, was a direct descendant of the 1950s magazine Infinity. Omitting such anthologies altogether would create a gap in coverage. Thus, Section II was devised to include those paperback an thology series that have a close affiliation with magazines. It does not include showcase anthologies, such as The Berkley Showcase, New Voices or the Clarion volumes, or even all original anthologies or anthology series. Because of their importance to the field, Orbit, New Dimensions and Universe are included, along with Infinity, Nova and New Writings in S.F. Chrysalis was a borderline case, but we opted for inclusion. You will not find Continuum, SF Emphasis, Pulsar, or even New Writings in Horror and the Supernatural because these were planned solely as anthology series with no tug of the forelock to magazines. Nor is the distinction between magazines and anthologies as obvious as one might expect. Donald A. Wollheim, editor of the Avon Fantasy Reader, always asserted, for instance, that the Reader was a series of paperback anthologies; yet, because it appeared on a fairly regular basis at a time when paperback anthologies were the exception rather than the rule, the persuasion of the fan field was to accept the Reader as magazines, and as such they are still indexed today. Thus, the Avon Fantasy Reader appears in Section I. James Baen, on the other hand, launched Destinies as a magazine in book form, and Forrest Ack- erman treated the U.S. editions of Perry Rhodan in the same manner. These two series appear in Section II. A number of British wartime magazines, such as Strange Tales, Strange Love Stories and Occult, were issued in book form by way of convenience. Although one can argue either way regarding their placement, they appear in Section I. Whenever there could be some question as to whether an entry would be in Section I or II, there is a cross-reference referring the reader to the proper section. In addition to the number of fantastic fiction magazines that has existed since the late 1920s, fanzines and, more recently, academic journals have provided a wealth of material about science fiction and fantasy. This volume would not be complete if it did not provide some information on these nonfiction magazines, for they contain much that is of interest to both the scholar and the fan. Section III includes brief entries on a selected list of nonfiction fanzines and scholarly journals. The list is limited to magazines that contain a strong, continuing body of worthwhile information, contain at least one solid, continuing feature of value to the reader, or are of historical significance. Nor is fantastic fiction limited to the English-speaking world. It has developed

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