Magazine Review: High Adventure #73: Secret Agent “X”

Magazine Review: High Adventure #73: Secret Agent “X” Edited by John P. Gunnison Let’s take another look at this pulp reprint magazine, this time reprinting stories from Secret Agent “X” May 1934. “Ambassador of Doom” by Brent House: A secret meeting takes place in Washington, D.C.  The matter at hand–whether to preserve or destroy the prototype and… Continue reading Magazine Review: High Adventure #73: Secret Agent “X”

Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News

Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News edited by Lewis H. Lapham This is a “special issue” in addition to the four that this magazine normally puts out in a year.  The subject matter is topical as there has been an avalanche of “news” that is in fact not truthful, while certain politicians and… Continue reading Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News

Magazine Review: Other Worlds April 1952

Magazine Review: Other Worlds April 1952 edited by Raymond A. Palmer Other Worlds was a science fiction digest-sized magazine that began publication in 1949.  Raymond A. Palmer was both the publisher and editor, and thus had a freer hand in choosing what to put in the magazine than most pulp editors.  Mr. Palmer (whose name… Continue reading Magazine Review: Other Worlds April 1952

Magazine Review: Short Stories May 25th, 1939

Magazine Review: Short Stories May 25th, 1939 Edited by Dorothy McIlwrath Short Stories started life in 1890 as a literary magazine, but switched to being a “quality pulp” in 1910, featuring stories of adventure and crime a cut above many of its competitors.   Like many of the pulps, it lost sales badly after World War… Continue reading Magazine Review: Short Stories May 25th, 1939

Magazine Review: Saucy Romantic Adventures August 1936

Magazine Review: Saucy Romantic Adventures August 1936 by various This was one of the “spicy” pulp magazines, sold “under the counter” to readers wanting something more titillating than the standard action fare.  By modern standards, this is pretty tame stuff, mostly consisting of descriptions of women’s naked bodies (minus genitalia) and strong hints that the… Continue reading Magazine Review: Saucy Romantic Adventures August 1936

Magazine Review: Fantastic Universe October 1955

Magazine Review: Fantastic Universe October 1955 edited by Leo Margulies Fantastic Universe was a digest-sized science fiction and fantasy magazine that ran from 1953 to 1960, originally coming out from King-Size Publications.  Its quality is considered to have fallen off after 1956, with lesser stories and more emphasis on pseudo-science articles, but this particular issue… Continue reading Magazine Review: Fantastic Universe October 1955

Magazine Review: Detective Fiction Weekly April 8 1939

Magazine Review: Detective Fiction Weekly April 8 1939  (Formerly Flynn’s) by various Detective Fiction Weekly started publication in 1924 as “Flynn’s”, after its first editor, William J. Flynn, who had previously been director of the Bureau of Investigation before it became the FBI.  It ran regularly under various titles until 1942, when it became a… Continue reading Magazine Review: Detective Fiction Weekly April 8 1939

Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936

Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936 by various Thrilling Mystery was a pulp horror magazine created by Thrilling Publications; I’ve been unable to find publication history details in a quick search.  It specialized in “weird menace” tales, which had supernatural trappings but were ultimately revealed as having non-supernatural (but not necessarily plausible) explanations.  It did… Continue reading Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936

Magazine Review: Famous Fantastic Mysteries March 1944

Magazine Review: Famous Fantastic Mysteries March 1944 edited by Mary Gnaedinger Famous Fantastic Mysteries ran from 1939 to 1953 as primarily a reprint magazine.  It was originally published by the Munsey Company to feature the many speculative fiction stories they’d published over the years in their non-specialist magazines like Argosy, to cash in on the now… Continue reading Magazine Review: Famous Fantastic Mysteries March 1944

Magazine Review: If May 1961

Magazine Review: If May 1961 managing editor Frederik Pohl If was a science fiction magazine that ran from 1952 to 1974.  It was considered a “second tier” magazine due to frequently low sales, but that should not be confused with “second-rate.”  By 1961, If had become a sister magazine to Galaxy, publishing in alternate months.  Under editor… Continue reading Magazine Review: If May 1961