One and a half years back, the first version of FictionMags Search debuted. I made it because I needed it, and asking around, found other people would like it too. Since then, people all over the world have used it. Here’s a map I created showing where users came from: At the time I created… Continue reading Simple, Fast Search for the FictionMags Index: Now Improved
Author: Sai S
Three Pulp Tales: No fiction, only the truth
Tales discovered while searching for other stuff. Music to my ears JULIUS F. STONE says that rehabilitating Key West for the FERA has its ups and down.He gives an example. His staff had renovated a famous old sea-captain’s home down there in order to rent it to visitors. Stone rented the first floor apartment to… Continue reading Three Pulp Tales: No fiction, only the truth
Saddle Up for Love: Ranch Romances, Sep 21, 1956
Ranch Romances was Harold Hersey’s biggest success, started in 1924. A title so profitable it lasted nearly fifty years. The issue I;m reviewing is from September 21 1956. But before we take a look inside this issue, let’s look around. 1956 is a bad time in the pulp market. From 65 issues a month just… Continue reading Saddle Up for Love: Ranch Romances, Sep 21, 1956
Million word man: Utah writer Frank C. Robertson
Frank C. Robertson, of Springville, prolific western writer who is now hard at work on a new book, says he’ll be glad when the European war is over and the Britishers get back to their reading again. This Utah writer has had about 65 novels appear in book form in Great Britain, of which about… Continue reading Million word man: Utah writer Frank C. Robertson
Thirteen Pulp Tales – Secrets of Robert A. W. Lowndes, pulp juggler
This profile of Robert A. W. Lowndes appeared in a 1956 newspaper. WHIRL-A-JIGBY IRVING L. JOFFEE.NEW YORK. Sept. 23 (NANA).—A man who has never lived west of the Hudson and has always been a law-abiding citizen is sole editor of a baker’s dozen true life Western and mystery magazines. He is mild-mannered bespectacled Robert W… Continue reading Thirteen Pulp Tales – Secrets of Robert A. W. Lowndes, pulp juggler
Lon T. Williams : Weird writings of a Law Clerk
Lon T. Williams followed Robert E. Howard in writing weird westerns. Rather obscure, he was first republished by Larry Estep at pulpgen.com (which has now vanished into the aether). Williams’ stories of deputy sheriff Lee Winters, most of which appeared in Real Western Stories, are formulaic, with the hero encountering weirdness as he returns from… Continue reading Lon T. Williams : Weird writings of a Law Clerk
Elliott W. Michener: From Criminal to Author and Gardener
For nearly 30 years, Alcatraz was THE prison, the one no one escaped from. Al Capone was held there, as were Machine Gun Kelly, Mickey Cohen and other prominent gangsters. A total of 36 prisoners made 14 escape attempts, two men trying twice. 23 were caught alive, six were shot and killed during their escape,… Continue reading Elliott W. Michener: From Criminal to Author and Gardener
Art of the Sale: The taxing business of illustration
In 1937, the City of New York tried to bring art into the ambit of the sales tax that had been passed three years earlier. Only to find out artists can be talented in more than one domain. From the La Grande Observer, Oregon, May 05, 1937 Artists Up In Arms Because Of The Sales… Continue reading Art of the Sale: The taxing business of illustration
Tricks of the trade: The Bargain Counter, Ace-High, May 1926
Most pulp magazines had regular letter columns and editorial departments. Ace-High, Clayton’s first pulp, offered The Bargain Counter, a department for people to exchange or trade items. It was quite popular, and if someone were to index it, would offer quite the look at pulp readership. I recently read the May 3, 1926 of Ace-High,… Continue reading Tricks of the trade: The Bargain Counter, Ace-High, May 1926
Explore Australia with Arthur Upfield’s Boney, the First Australian Detective
In 1929, British-born Australian Arthur Upfield(1890-1964) wrote and published his second book, The Barrakee Mystery. Published first in England by Hutchinson, the book was originally written in the 1920s, when Upfield was working as a cook in the Australian Outback. Twice rewritten and substantially altered, the book had good reviews in London, Manchester and in… Continue reading Explore Australia with Arthur Upfield’s Boney, the First Australian Detective