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Thunder Jim Wade: The Complete Series
Available for the first time... the complete saga of Thunder Jim Wade! Written by fantasy legend Henry Kuttner, this collection reprints all five adventures of Thunder Jim Wade from 1941. Long discounted as a Doc Savage clone, THUNDER JIM THE COMPLETE SERIES brings to life this classic pulp hero and shows him to be much more than a knock-off! Includes an all-new introduction by pulp historian Will Murray!
392 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2008
About the author
Henry Kuttner
807 books220 followersHenry Kuttner was, alone and in collaboration with his wife, the great science fiction and fantasy writer C.L. Moore, one of the four or five most important writers of the 1940s, the writer whose work went furthest in its sociological and psychological insight to making science fiction a human as well as technological literature. He was an important influence upon every contemporary and every science fiction writer who succeeded him. In the early 1940s and under many pseudonyms, Kuttner and Moore published very widely through the range of the science fiction and fantasy pulp markets.
Their fantasy novels, all of them for the lower grade markets like Future, Thrilling Wonder, and Planet Stories, are forgotten now; their science fiction novels, Fury and Mutant, are however well regarded. There is no question but that Kuttner's talent lay primarily in the shorter form; Mutant is an amalgamation of five novelettes and Fury, his only true science fiction novel, is considered as secondary material. There are, however, 40 or 50 shorter works which are among the most significant achievements in the field and they remain consistently in print. The critic James Blish, quoting a passage from Mutant about the telepathic perception of the little blank, silvery minds of goldfish, noted that writing of this quality was not only rare in science fiction but rare throughout literature: "The Kuttners learned a few thing writing for the pulp magazines, however, that one doesn't learn reading Henry James."
In the early 1950s, Kuttner and Moore, both citing weariness with writing, even creative exhaustion, turned away from science fiction; both obtained undergraduate degrees in psychology from the University of Southern California and Henry Kuttner, enrolled in an MA program, planned to be a clinical psychologist. A few science fiction short stories and novelettes appeared (Humpty Dumpty finished the Baldy series in 1953). Those stories -- Home There Is No Returning, Home Is the Hunter, Two-Handed Engine, and Rite of Passage -- were at the highest level of Kuttner's work. He also published three mystery novels with Harper & Row (of which only the first is certainly his; the other two, apparently, were farmed out by Kuttner to other writers when he found himself incapable of finishing them).
Henry Kuttner died suddenly in his sleep, probably from a stroke, in February 1958; Catherine Moore remarried a physician and survived him by almost three decades but she never published again. She remained in touch with the science fiction community, however, and was Guest of Honor at the World Convention in Denver in 198l. She died of complications of Alzheimer's Disease in 1987.
His pseudonyms include:
Edward J. Bellin
Paul Edmonds
Noel Gardner
James Hall
Keith Hammond
Hudson Hastings
Peter Horn
Kelvin Kent
Robert O. Kenyon
C. H. Liddell
Hugh Maepenn
Will Garth
Scott Morgan
Lawrence O'Donnell
Lewis Padgett
Woodrow Wilson Smith
Charles Stoddard
Their fantasy novels, all of them for the lower grade markets like Future, Thrilling Wonder, and Planet Stories, are forgotten now; their science fiction novels, Fury and Mutant, are however well regarded. There is no question but that Kuttner's talent lay primarily in the shorter form; Mutant is an amalgamation of five novelettes and Fury, his only true science fiction novel, is considered as secondary material. There are, however, 40 or 50 shorter works which are among the most significant achievements in the field and they remain consistently in print. The critic James Blish, quoting a passage from Mutant about the telepathic perception of the little blank, silvery minds of goldfish, noted that writing of this quality was not only rare in science fiction but rare throughout literature: "The Kuttners learned a few thing writing for the pulp magazines, however, that one doesn't learn reading Henry James."
In the early 1950s, Kuttner and Moore, both citing weariness with writing, even creative exhaustion, turned away from science fiction; both obtained undergraduate degrees in psychology from the University of Southern California and Henry Kuttner, enrolled in an MA program, planned to be a clinical psychologist. A few science fiction short stories and novelettes appeared (Humpty Dumpty finished the Baldy series in 1953). Those stories -- Home There Is No Returning, Home Is the Hunter, Two-Handed Engine, and Rite of Passage -- were at the highest level of Kuttner's work. He also published three mystery novels with Harper & Row (of which only the first is certainly his; the other two, apparently, were farmed out by Kuttner to other writers when he found himself incapable of finishing them).
Henry Kuttner died suddenly in his sleep, probably from a stroke, in February 1958; Catherine Moore remarried a physician and survived him by almost three decades but she never published again. She remained in touch with the science fiction community, however, and was Guest of Honor at the World Convention in Denver in 198l. She died of complications of Alzheimer's Disease in 1987.
His pseudonyms include:
Edward J. Bellin
Paul Edmonds
Noel Gardner
James Hall
Keith Hammond
Hudson Hastings
Peter Horn
Kelvin Kent
Robert O. Kenyon
C. H. Liddell
Hugh Maepenn
Will Garth
Scott Morgan
Lawrence O'Donnell
Lewis Padgett
Woodrow Wilson Smith
Charles Stoddard
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 31, 2026
Originally published in Thrilling Adventures Magazine in 1941, Kuttner’s pulp hero Jim Wade is usually passed off as Doc Savage clone. There are a few similarities in those two, but many differences, and a lot of writers of the time had similar characters. These were fun quick pulpy reads. I believe there were five stories in all. This is certainly not Kuttner’s best work. I believe writing in the format for Thrilling Adventures limited what Kuttner could do with some of the sci/fi tech aspects. Kuttner is a far superior author to Lester Dent, but if you want to compare the Doc Savage stories to these, I’ll take Savage every time.
September 9, 2010
From May through September of 1941, Henery Kuttner published five "Thunder" Jim Wade novelettes in the Thrilling Wonder Stories. Kuttner would go on to science fiction literary success for his many short stories and novels until passing away in 1958. The Thunder Jim Wade stories were all attributed to "Charles Stoddard", a house pseudonym used by the Thrilling Wonder editors. Mostly forgotten today, the stories were considered Doc Savage imitations at the time. However, Altus Press printed the complete set two years ago, so now it's possible to read them and compare.
First of all, Thunder Jim has a unique origin: he was raised in a hidden valley by descendant of an ancient Crete civilization. His father, an famous explorer, crashed his plane in the valley while surveying the area. Thunder Jim survives with the street-wise pilot Miggs, but he's only able to leave the valley as an adult. From the Creteans he's learned he secret of making a metal alloy which makes him wealthy. From Miggs, he's learned all kinds of con artist games and slight of hand tricks. Later, he hooks up with Red Argyle and Dirk Mirat, who become his assistants in all kinds of adventures. From his base of operations in the south pacific, Thunder Jim Wade searches the globe for villains worthy of his talents.
What makes the series of interest is Thunder Jim's all-purpose vehicle: The Thunderbug. The Thunderbug can fly, travel across (and under) water, or rumble over land on it's retractable treads. Made of the special Cretean alloy, it's just about impervious to bullets or standard explosives. I can't help but wonder if Gerry Anderson read one of these stories and it all came back to him when he was planning Supercar and Thunderbirds.
There are five stories in this collection. The opening story has Thunder Jim journeying back to the lost valley where he was raised to stop a band of criminals from looting the place. "The Hills of Gold" takes place near Iraq, of all places. "The Poison People" leads him to South America where a band of cut-throats are attempting to loot Inca treasure from it's rightful owners. "The Devil's Glacier" is another lost valley novelette, this time with vikings. "Waters of Death"
concludes the series in a lost southeast Asian civilization.
It's too bad the series was canceled before it got rolling. There's plenty of local atmosphere in each tale. Some of them have the feel of sketches; perhaps Kuttner had to shorten them for space limitations. Still, it's good to have all the stories back in one volume.
First of all, Thunder Jim has a unique origin: he was raised in a hidden valley by descendant of an ancient Crete civilization. His father, an famous explorer, crashed his plane in the valley while surveying the area. Thunder Jim survives with the street-wise pilot Miggs, but he's only able to leave the valley as an adult. From the Creteans he's learned he secret of making a metal alloy which makes him wealthy. From Miggs, he's learned all kinds of con artist games and slight of hand tricks. Later, he hooks up with Red Argyle and Dirk Mirat, who become his assistants in all kinds of adventures. From his base of operations in the south pacific, Thunder Jim Wade searches the globe for villains worthy of his talents.
What makes the series of interest is Thunder Jim's all-purpose vehicle: The Thunderbug. The Thunderbug can fly, travel across (and under) water, or rumble over land on it's retractable treads. Made of the special Cretean alloy, it's just about impervious to bullets or standard explosives. I can't help but wonder if Gerry Anderson read one of these stories and it all came back to him when he was planning Supercar and Thunderbirds.
There are five stories in this collection. The opening story has Thunder Jim journeying back to the lost valley where he was raised to stop a band of criminals from looting the place. "The Hills of Gold" takes place near Iraq, of all places. "The Poison People" leads him to South America where a band of cut-throats are attempting to loot Inca treasure from it's rightful owners. "The Devil's Glacier" is another lost valley novelette, this time with vikings. "Waters of Death"
concludes the series in a lost southeast Asian civilization.
It's too bad the series was canceled before it got rolling. There's plenty of local atmosphere in each tale. Some of them have the feel of sketches; perhaps Kuttner had to shorten them for space limitations. Still, it's good to have all the stories back in one volume.
November 29, 2010
We have another great hero pulp collection from Altus Press.
This short-lived hero pulp series is collected completely for the first time. Written by the well-known sf author Henry Kuttner, who married another well-known sf author, CL Moore, these stories were published under the house name of "Charles Stoddard". Obviously, this meant the character was owned by the publisher (who is now defunct, so the character is apparently public domain).
The stories reprinted are: "Thunder Jim Wade", "The Hills of Gold", "The Poison People", "The Devil's Glacier", and "Waters of Death", all published in 1941 in 5 successive issues of "Thrilling Adventure".
Thunder Jim Wade is usually written off as a Doc Savage clone. He was raised by a lost civilization (Minos, a lost colony of Crete in Africa) after his explorer father died, and left when another explorer found the hidden land. He has various mental and physical abilities, most due to his upbringing. Afterwards, he became a sort of roving troubleshooter, operating out of a secret island in the south Pacific, alerted to trouble by agents scattered around in major cities. He created a unique vehicle called the Thunderbug (a combination tank, submarine, airplane). Its built using a special alloy (you'll learn more about this in the first story), and its hinted in a later story that the motor(s) may be atomic.
He has 2 two aides: "Red" Argyle" & "Dirk" Marat. Henry Kuttner described "Red" Argyle as "a burly giant with knarled hands ... and ... deft fingers". Sort of a "Monk" Mayfair type. Kuttner described "Dirk" Marat as "small, innocent-looking chap with blond hair and black eyebrows, and one great passion. That was for cold steel. He could handle guns, but preferred to work with knives." It seems that many of the other pulp heroes only had 2 sidekicks/assistants. Prehaps dealing with 5 or 6 was too many for some authors. :)
The first story introduces the reader to TJW, tho its clear he's been operating for awhile, when he has to return to the hidden land when criminal elements learn of it and invade it. TJW also tells his associates about his background (kind of an origin), which they hadn't previously learn. The second story deals with a group of criminals who try to create a jihad in the middle east, as a cover to rob several banks in the area. The third story deals with a hidden gold mine in the Andes, taken over by a criminal (with apparent Nazi connections, the first real mention of the WWII), and besieged by the local natives. The fourth story deals with two lost cities in Alaska, one of Norseman, the other of Russians who left during the period of Catharine the Great. A criminal is trying to stir up trouble over a chinese statue of gold. The fifth is considered the best story, dealing with a lost city in Burma, a gold-making machine, and the attempt to takeover this hidden land.
Overall, the stories aren't as good as I would have hoped. Not sure the cause. The length forces the author to wrap things up quickly. The format of the magazine they ran in may have been part of the problem, as it focuses on adventure stories, so the sciencefictional/fantastical aspects are downplayed. How much was the author constrained by editorial fiat. Who knows. There is great potential with these characters that I think wasn't fully utilized.
TJW is similiar to other pulp heroes: a physical marvel with a mysterious past, very smart/inventive. I was surprised by him smoking in the first story, as I don't recall any other pulp hero smoking. And he drinks in a few.
The book also has the original illustrations, and reprints the 5 covers of the issues of "Thrilling Adventures" he appeared in on the back cover, but he only appears on 2 covers, in a sort of Flash Gordon type outfit.
This short-lived hero pulp series is collected completely for the first time. Written by the well-known sf author Henry Kuttner, who married another well-known sf author, CL Moore, these stories were published under the house name of "Charles Stoddard". Obviously, this meant the character was owned by the publisher (who is now defunct, so the character is apparently public domain).
The stories reprinted are: "Thunder Jim Wade", "The Hills of Gold", "The Poison People", "The Devil's Glacier", and "Waters of Death", all published in 1941 in 5 successive issues of "Thrilling Adventure".
Thunder Jim Wade is usually written off as a Doc Savage clone. He was raised by a lost civilization (Minos, a lost colony of Crete in Africa) after his explorer father died, and left when another explorer found the hidden land. He has various mental and physical abilities, most due to his upbringing. Afterwards, he became a sort of roving troubleshooter, operating out of a secret island in the south Pacific, alerted to trouble by agents scattered around in major cities. He created a unique vehicle called the Thunderbug (a combination tank, submarine, airplane). Its built using a special alloy (you'll learn more about this in the first story), and its hinted in a later story that the motor(s) may be atomic.
He has 2 two aides: "Red" Argyle" & "Dirk" Marat. Henry Kuttner described "Red" Argyle as "a burly giant with knarled hands ... and ... deft fingers". Sort of a "Monk" Mayfair type. Kuttner described "Dirk" Marat as "small, innocent-looking chap with blond hair and black eyebrows, and one great passion. That was for cold steel. He could handle guns, but preferred to work with knives." It seems that many of the other pulp heroes only had 2 sidekicks/assistants. Prehaps dealing with 5 or 6 was too many for some authors. :)
The first story introduces the reader to TJW, tho its clear he's been operating for awhile, when he has to return to the hidden land when criminal elements learn of it and invade it. TJW also tells his associates about his background (kind of an origin), which they hadn't previously learn. The second story deals with a group of criminals who try to create a jihad in the middle east, as a cover to rob several banks in the area. The third story deals with a hidden gold mine in the Andes, taken over by a criminal (with apparent Nazi connections, the first real mention of the WWII), and besieged by the local natives. The fourth story deals with two lost cities in Alaska, one of Norseman, the other of Russians who left during the period of Catharine the Great. A criminal is trying to stir up trouble over a chinese statue of gold. The fifth is considered the best story, dealing with a lost city in Burma, a gold-making machine, and the attempt to takeover this hidden land.
Overall, the stories aren't as good as I would have hoped. Not sure the cause. The length forces the author to wrap things up quickly. The format of the magazine they ran in may have been part of the problem, as it focuses on adventure stories, so the sciencefictional/fantastical aspects are downplayed. How much was the author constrained by editorial fiat. Who knows. There is great potential with these characters that I think wasn't fully utilized.
TJW is similiar to other pulp heroes: a physical marvel with a mysterious past, very smart/inventive. I was surprised by him smoking in the first story, as I don't recall any other pulp hero smoking. And he drinks in a few.
The book also has the original illustrations, and reprints the 5 covers of the issues of "Thrilling Adventures" he appeared in on the back cover, but he only appears on 2 covers, in a sort of Flash Gordon type outfit.
January 8, 2015
Great pulp adventure!
This was like reading a Doc Savage story, but, at the risk of blasphemy, I think Henry Kuttner wrote better than Lester Dent. It's too bad Kuttner only wrote 5 stories. I would've loved to read more!
This was like reading a Doc Savage story, but, at the risk of blasphemy, I think Henry Kuttner wrote better than Lester Dent. It's too bad Kuttner only wrote 5 stories. I would've loved to read more!
January 16, 2016
Early pulp stories by this extremely prolific writer. Thunder Jim is not as good as the later fantasy and SiFi stories but still a good read. Recommended
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews