Conclusion from the review of Down & Out: The Magazine No. 1 in The Digest Enthusiast No. 7.
When I first heard about The Magazine—its publisher and editor—my expectations soared. The potential to achieve something truly outstanding was not only exciting, but seemed entirely possible. I wasn’t disappointed. The Magazine is off to a stellar start. Every story and feature is an absolute winner. I only wish I could give it six stars instead of the five available on amazon and Goodreads.
Excerpt from Tom Brinkmann’s article on The Occult Digest from The Digest Enthusiast book seven:
This current manifestation of the title, The Occult Digest, is also a digest in the true sense of the word, which does not refer to its size (8” x 10” book), but its content. It does link its title and lineage to The Occult Digest published by Danelson, saying:
“The Occult Digest originated in the early 1920s and endured several re-births and transformations. Black Moon is honoured to be instrumental in the current re-birth of this historical publication and it is our goal to bring this time-tested entity into the present day to give voice to the many writers, artists and poets representing the myriad facets of esoteric thought, practice, and expression.“
A regular contributor to TDE, Tom Brinkmann writes about unusual, off-the-beaten-path magazines, digests, and tabloids. His Bad Mags website was active from June 2004 to July 2017. His books, Bad Mags Volume 1 (2008) and Volume 2 (2009) are available from secondary outlets, including amazon.com
Rocket Stoires Vol. 1 No. 3 Sept. 1953
Harry Harrison takes over when Lester del Rey tells John Raymond he’s through.
Contents
Wade Kaempfert: An Editorial on Men Who Dared
Irving E. Cox “Apprentice to the Lamp” art by Alex Ebel
James E. Gunn “Killer” art by Kelly Freas
Chester Cohen “Flower Girl” art by Joseph Eberle
Stanley Mullen “The Robot Moon” art by H.R. Smith
Alger Rome “Underestimation” art by Joseph Eberle
Kirby Brooks “Technical Difficulty”
Noel Loomis “Day’s Work” art by H.R. Smith
The World S-F Convention
Kenneth Wright: On the Shelves
Felix Boyd (Harry Harrison*) “An Artist’s Life” art by Milton Berwin
Publisher: John Raymond
Editor: Wade Kaempfert (Harry Harrison*)
Assoc. Editor: John Vincent, E. Lynn
Art Director: Milton Berwin
Cover: Civillitti
160 pages, 35¢
*Page 489, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Weird Fiction Magazines by Marshall B. Tymn and Mike Ashley, 1985 Greenwood Press
Read Vince Nowell, Sr.’s article “When Things Go Wrong—The Lester del Rey/John Raymond Fiasco” in The Digest Enthusiast book seven.
Pulp Literature reads as good as it looks. It’s the product of a small team— mostly women—committed to their publishing company, with a track record that speaks for itself—15 quarterly issues delivered on schedule for nearly four years running [now even longer].
Most of the stories in this issue of Pulp Literature are outstanding—with the minority still worthy of your time and effort. This edition is an excellent place to start if you’re a new or occasional reader of the series. For regulars, the issue is another solid installment of the top-quality journal you’ve come to expect from Pulp Literature Press.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine Vol. 11 No. 12 Dec. 1966
Alfred Hitchcock: Dear Reader
Contents
Max Van Derveer “The Holiday Spirit”
J.A. Mas “The Deadly Handyman”
Lawrence Block “Some Things a Man Must Do”
James N. Semple “Lull in Homicide”
Dan J. Marlowe “The Annuity”
Bob Bristow “The Message”
Mike Brett “Crooks, Satchels, and Selma”
Parley J. Cooper “The Servant Problem”
Carl Henry Rathjen “Jump Job”
Jack Webb “Day of the Tiger”
Robert Edmond Alter “No Place Like Home”
Wenzell Brown “The Blue Man”
Richard O. Lewis “Shakedown”
James McKimmey “The Magic Tree”
Editor: G.F. Foster
160 pages, 50¢
Contents from Galactic Central.
Switchblade No. 2, edited by Scotch Rutherford:
A solid second issue of a welcome new crime digest. The upgrade in design looks great on paper, or in pixels—but the stories are the main event. Collectively, a five-star rating, with Charles Roland’s “Profski Gets It” the standout, S.E. Bailey’s “A Talent for Killing” worth extra points, and Scotch Rutherford and Stephen D. Rogers in a dead sweat for best flash.
Fate No. 734
Contents
I See By the Papers by Fate Staff
Phyllis Galde: From Your Editor
Natalie Fowler: Top Ten Haunted American Castles
Rosemary Ellen Guiley: Mystery at Manresa Castle
Richard Senate: Did the Nazis has a super cannon Called a “V-3” to Destroy London?
Steve Smith: Is There a Monster in Lake Champlain?
Rob Ryder: Lake Vostok’s Cephalopod
Maxim W. Furek: Cannibalism’s Unspeakable Reality
Mary A. Joyce: Cherokee Little People Were Real
Bear Steals Picnic Lunch in Yogi Bear-like Fashion
Sean Casteel: Weird Winged Wonders
Cookie Laine: The Stanley Hotel
Soldiers from India find Yeti Tracks
Theo Kostaridis: Twilight and Daunting
Sir Arthur Grimble: The Calling of the Porpoise (Fate Feb. 1964)
Pope Lick Legend Claims Another Life
Barbara Arnstein: Love Through Life After Life
Alejandro Parra: Nurses’ Unusual Hospital Experiences
Judy Carroll: A Guide to the Emerging Paradigm
Chris Lovelidge: Question Everything
Kevin Swanson: The Schumann Resonance
True Mystic Experiences
My Proof of Survival
Report from the Readers
Book Reviews
The Amazing Godwin from Spirit as told to Phyllis Galde by Janice Carlson
Editor-in-Chief: Phyllis Galde
Executive Editor: Rosemary Ellen Guiley
Editors: Susan Swan, Jamie Anderson, Natalie Fowler
Social Media: Jamie Anderson
Fate Radio Host: Kat Hobson
Cover image courtesy Maxwell Drake
Approximately 5.25” x 7.75” 120 pages
$5.95
Fate website
Excerpt from Steve Carper’s series “One-and-Dones” that appears in The Digest Enthusiast No. 7–9:
“Jacob R. Brussel was a New York bookstore owner noted for carrying erotica, connected with the small world of taboo-breaking books and writers. He published and distributed an early (and then completely illegal) edition of Tropic of Cancer and also the much less noted Oragenitalism. An Encyclopaedic Outline of Oral Technique in Genital Excitation.
“. . . a second 1945 release, One Hundred Years of American Humor, edited by J. Brussel, whose existence knocks an otherwise perfect one-and-done example off the list. Both covers of the anthology raise questions. The front cover says “Price 25 cents”yet the “Now 10¢.” stamp is clearly not an after-market artifact. Could this rarity have two printings?”
Now Available from McFarland: Steve Carper’s Robots in American Popular Culture. And be sure to check out the companion website robotsinamericanpopularculture.com.
Excerpt from the review of Black Cat Mystery Magazine No. 1 from The Digest Enthusiast No. 7:
“Beside a Flowering Wall” by Fletcher Flora is reprinted from Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine April 1968. A spinster is visited by the lost love of her life. “The wonder was that he had [once] loved her, for she had been a plain girl, as she was a plain woman, with an odd faded look as if she had been laundered too many times in boiling water.” The crime here was the loss of what might have been, until the opportunity to erase it forever arose.
“Nothing ruins a midnight stroll through Deep Ellum like being kidnapped.”
“A Death in Deep Ellum” by William Dylan Powell Switchblade #2 July 2017
