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
Tag: Secrets
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
Review: Flash Gordon Strange Adventure Magazine: So bad it’s good
Most of the time, I review pulps that I like after having read them. Not so with Flash Gordon Strange Adventure Magazine (FGSAM). Reading it was like watching a badly-made B-movie, and since Mystery Science Theatre 3000 showed that an audience exists that appreciates such a thing, here’s my attempt to grab a slice of… Continue reading Review: Flash Gordon Strange Adventure Magazine: So bad it’s good
Richard McKenna: How to become a professional writer
The Wikipedia article on Richard McKenna covers his life and fiction reasonably well. But if you’re feeling lazy, I asked ChatGPT to summarize it for you. Richard McKenna (1913–1964) was an American naval officer and author known for his acclaimed debut novel, The Sand Pebbles(1962). Born in Idaho, McKenna served in the U.S. Navy for… Continue reading Richard McKenna: How to become a professional writer
Bill Gulick: No horsing around, and other secrets of a writer
A profile of Bill Gulick that originally appeared in the Spokane, Washington Spokesman-Review dated July 20, 1958. I’ve added a few excerpts from another article in the Tacoma, Washington News-Tribune dated June 26, 1948. Gulick Brings Old West Alive By Jay Kalez IF BILL GULICK, Walla Walla’s prolific novelist and writer of Saturday Evening Post… Continue reading Bill Gulick: No horsing around, and other secrets of a writer
Negatives, Dragon’s Blood and Acid. How line drawings were reproduced
I’ve always been interested in all aspects of pulp production including how they reproduced line drawings in the pulps. The same process worked for stylistically very different artists like Hannes Bok, Virgil Finlay, Edd Cartier, Nick Eggenhoffer, Arthur Rodman Bowker, Dorothy Flack and John R. Flanagan. Read on and find out how they did it.… Continue reading Negatives, Dragon’s Blood and Acid. How line drawings were reproduced
Carbon Copy: The Secret Home Life of an Authors’ Typist
You’ll learn here how one girl’s spare-time work at home became a full-time job—a “specialty” that she finds very satisfactory MARIAN PEHOWSKI “COMANCHE yells split the air as Dan Drew peered around the clearing before the shack. Suddenly, bang ! Bang! Pow—” An Indian raid or a double murder, it’s all in a day’s work… Continue reading Carbon Copy: The Secret Home Life of an Authors’ Typist
Whatever happened to the pulps?
Richard Hill Wilkinson was one of those authors who filled out the pulps. He turned out about a hundred and fifty stories for the pulps under his own name, starting with the Clayton group’s Cowboy Stories and Ace-High, switching horses to Street and Smith’s Love Story and Romantic Range when Clayton shut shop and hopped… Continue reading Whatever happened to the pulps?
Original painting of a magazine cover, absolutely free
A bit late for those of us born later than 1936, unfortunately. If you were born before then, give a good excuse for why you don’t have one or share a photo of your original cover painting. Excerpted from the January 1936 issue of Gold Seal Detective, which would have been on the newsstands from… Continue reading Original painting of a magazine cover, absolutely free