Forefathers of Sword and Sorcery: James Branch Cabell
James Branch Cabell was, by far, the preeminent American literary fantasist of the 1920s and early '30s. And yet, he is barely known outside hardcore literary fantasy circles now.
Read MoreWindy City Pulp and Paper Convention 2019 Report
The 19th annual Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention took place this past weekend in Lombard, IL. It was a three-day affair, but unfortunately I was only able to attend for part of the day on Saturday. Five hours may seem like a good amount of time, but it wasn’t nearly enough to take in all the event had to offer.
Read MoreMundy Monday: The Eye of Zeitoon
The Eye of Zeitoon was Talbot Mundy’s sixth novel and the sequel to The Ivory Trail. It is the story of four friends, soldiers-of-fortune, and their adventures in the Ottoman Empire just before the start of the Italo-Turkish War in 1911.
Read MoreThe DMRtian Chronicles, 4/14/2019
This week: Robert E. Howard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Kuttner, Leiber, Brackett, Brundage, Frazetta, and more.
Read MoreCollecting Merritt: The Metal Monster
I stated before about collecting Merritt that he is rich territory for the collector. After his novels were published in the pulps, they each--with the exception of The Metal Monster--went straight to hardback. After that came pulp reprints, digests, soft cover editions, foreign editions...
Read MoreHannes Bok: The Perfect (Weird Tales) Cover
Fifty-five years ago today, Wayne Francis Woodard, better known as "Hannes Bok," died in poverty. He was friends with, and had his work admired by, the likes of Ray Bradbury, A. Merritt, August Derleth, Farnsworth Wright and others. His shining triumph was his cover painting for the November 1941 issue of Weird Tales.
Read MoreThe DMRtian Chronicles, 4/7/2019
This week: New deluxe editions of Leigh Brackett sword and planet classics, Conan, C.L. Moore, Michael Whelan, a new Dune movie and more.
Read MoreMiguel Martins -- Five Years Gone
This blog post is a tribute to Miguel Martins, who died five years ago today. Miguel was a scholar and enthusiastic fan of Robert E. Howard and sword and sorcery in general. He was also a good friend to me. I didn't write anything regarding Miguel at the time of his death. I am doing so now. He deserves to be remembered.
Read MoreMetallic Mirrors Part Two: Ken Kelly
Ken Kelly is a titan in the field of fantasy illustration. He’s done original paintings for a few classic metal albums, such as Manowar’s Kings of Metal and Rainbow’s Rising, but a good deal more records feature his work, especially those depicting Conan and other Robert E. Howard characters.
Read MoreMundy Monday: The Ivory Trail
The Ivory Trail is the story of four friends, soldiers-of-fortune, and their adventures across Portuguese, British and German East Africa in the year 1900.
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