Black Mask – recent reprints

 Recently, I’ve been seeing an increasing number of reprints from Black Mask, the hard-boiled crime fiction magazine magazine. Black Mask was the magazine that first published authors like Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, the creators of the American private eye story. Otto Penzler, the editor of the Black Mask series of reprints, talks about it… Continue reading Black Mask – recent reprints

Origin stories: Hashknife Hartley by W.C. Tuttle

  [This is a slightly modified excerpt from an article in the The Pittsburgh Press of Jul 23, 1950.]   W.C. Tuttle, author of the “Hashknife Hartley” stories, admits that the idea for the “Hashknife Hartley” Western adventures was born of a blister but the character is the composite of two men Tuttle knew some… Continue reading Origin stories: Hashknife Hartley by W.C. Tuttle

Altus Press’ first release of James B. Hendryx’s Black John books

Kindle Ebook version Kindle Ebook version Kindle Ebook version Altus Press has released three Halfaday Creek books by James B. Hendryx. The stories are set in Halfaday Creek at the time of the Yukon gold rush. Halfaday Creek is a refuge for outlaws on the run from the law, and is located conveniently near the… Continue reading Altus Press’ first release of James B. Hendryx’s Black John books

Magazine recirculation – life after the newsstand

From the New York Times, Mar 22, 1936:   OLD MAGAZINES TRAVEL WIDELY   FOR many an old magazine the wastebasket is not, by any means, the end of the trail. Janitors and waste-paper dealers conspire to salvage an amazing proportion of all printed matter not given directly to welfare organizations. Once reclaimed, periodicals are classified… Continue reading Magazine recirculation – life after the newsstand

Biblio-maniacal thoughts from Bohumil Hrabal’s Too Loud a Solitude

Pulpfest 2013 just ended, and as usual, I did  could not attend (Plane tickets alone would have cost me 1300$ or more). Unable to be there, I was drowning my regrets in cheap drinks and costly books as usual. One of those books was Bohumil Hrabal‘s Too Loud a Solitude and on reading it I thought… Continue reading Biblio-maniacal thoughts from Bohumil Hrabal’s Too Loud a Solitude

Short story by Robert V. Carr – Business Letters of a Cowboy

From the Popular Magazine, January 7, 1916, comes this funny story of a cowboy. Robert V. Carr, the author, was a famous cowboy poet. Thanks to the PulpMags project for providing the original scans of this. I wish I could get the other stories in the series. Anyone who can share, please drop a line… Continue reading Short story by Robert V. Carr – Business Letters of a Cowboy