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The Collected Pulp Horror: Volume One
A collection of the out-of-print first three issues of Pulp Horror, the fanzine dedicated to vintage horror fiction from pulps, magazines and paperbacks, featuring interviews, articles and reviews on 50 years of classic horror fiction.
- GenresHorrorPulpNonfiction
130 pages, Paperback
Published January 12, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 20, 2019
Look, I’ll just flat out admit it….I not only love books but I also love books ABOUT books. I have been indebted to titles such as Grady Hendrix’s excellent “Paperbacks From Hell” as well as a plethora of independent magazines with names like “The Sleazy Reader” and “The Paperback Fanatic.” Both of those titles are put together by writer and editor Justin Marriott, who also produces the exceedingly excellent “Pulp Horror” fanzine. These books and magazines have opened up an entire new world for me, focusing as they do on the pleasures to be found in researching and collecting classic and pulp paperbacks and digests. I can’t encourage you enough to go out and sample one of these great magazines for yourself. You will revel in the knowledge that you find, and nothing, but nothing, can compare to the black & white and full color reproductions of book covers that can be found within these pages. I’m a sucker for cover art, as anyone who has read my pulp reviews can attest. Many is time that I threw caution to the wind and bought a book solely on the strength of the cover art alone.
I’m a bit late to the game, though. Marriott has been publishing his magazines for a number of years now, but I only recently got on the bandwagon after an internet search led me to a copy of “The Sleazy Reader.” What I’m reviewing today is a collection of the first three issues of the “Pulp Horror” magazine that Marriott edits and writes copy for. It’s great to have all of these early issues in one source, even though the content has been edited for the sake of freshness and relevance to what is going on in the publishing world today with respect to reprints and re-releases of classic pulp horror novels and short stories. There are a ton of great interviews and articles between these covers, and I won’t burden you with a complete rundown of each and every one, but I will give you a highlighted taste of what you might discover if you decide to make an investment in the production.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE ONE:
“If You Go Down to the Woods” - An examination of David Pinner’s 1968 cult classic “Ritual,” which happens to be the uncredited basis for “The Wicker Man.” Pinner attempted to sue the makers of “The Wicker Man” for plagiarism, but he was unsuccessful despite the fact that both the movie and the novelization of “The Wicker Man” stole scenes almost wholesale from his original text. “Ritual” can still be tracked down on various book sites, but it’s an expensive proposition for the collector.
“Strange Tales: A Study of the Short-Lived Pulp Which Was Set Up In Direct Competition With Weird Tales” - “Strange Tales” (1931-1933) only lasted for seven issues, but it did manage to make something of an impact in such a short time on the shelves. “Strange Tales” attracted a lot of the same authors that “Weird Tales” used, but their pay rate was better. The thought here is that the digest would have eventually killed off “Weird Tales” if the Depression hadn’t shut down the magazine before it had an opportunity to do so. Lots of great cover art and a rundown of some of the best stories that the ill-fated publication had to offer.
“The Grandest Guignol of All: Ray Russell’s Unholy Trinity” - by Will Errickson - “Unholy Trinity” collects author Ray Russell’s neo-Gothic horror trilogy composed of “Sagittarius,” “Sanguinarius,” and “Sardonicus.” In these books Russell brings to the fore three of the most notorious monsters of all time, Countess Bathory, Gilles de Rais, and Jack the Ripper. All have been published as stand alone stories, but the best thing to do if you want to dive into this collection is to look for the 1967 Bantam paperback edition that collected all three of the tales. Just be prepared to spend a bit of cash, as copies are scarce on the secondary market.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE TWO:
“The SF-Horror Crossover” - Science-fiction and horror have always been complimentary genres. Many books (and films) have been all too happy to blend styles and tropes to come up with something new. One of the best modern examples is the “Alien” franchise, which has correctly been called “Lovecraft in space.” Before “Alien,” though, there were plenty of other examples of genre blending. Fans will immediately recognize “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” as a book that scared the science out of you, and “Day of the Triffids” made backyard horticulturalists tremble in their raised beds. The real gem in this article is Philip Jose Farmer’s pornographic blend of psychosexual horror “Image of the Beast,” and its sequel “Blown.” What Marriott fails to mention is that Farmer actually wrote a TRILOGY here, with “Traitor to the Living” serving as the final volume. It’s good to know that my knowledge of the pulps is at least on a par with some of the experts in the field.
“Hell is Empty, and All the Devils Are Here” - An examination of James Blish’s duology “Black Easter” and “The Day After Judgement.” An arms dealer named Baines and a black magician named Wane decide to set the demons of the underworld free just for the hell of it. Bored, rich white dudes were just so much more fun back in the day. The highlight of the books is when the Army gets involved and starts battling demons with high-tech weaponry. This is good stuff, Maynard.
“King Crab: An Interview with Guy Smith” - Smith wrote a ton of direct-to-paperback potboilers that sold well enough to keep him on the racks, but his “The Rats” ripoff titled “Night of the Crabs” set him up for unprecedented success. Several sequels sold like fresh seafood just off the docks, and if the thought of evil crabs clickety-clacking their way into your nightmares doesn’t do it for you...well, then I guess there is no hope. Why the hell are you even reading this review?
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE THREE:
“Suffer the Children” - An examination of Charles Birkin, a writer who was not afraid to put children in horrendous peril, to the point where it almost became a literary obsession for him. Birkin avoided supernatural tropes for the most part in his fiction, preferring the horrors of the more human kind over ghosts and goblins. He also tended to stay away from the formula of the bad guys getting their just desserts, often making his core characters suffer awful terrors and perils and leaving them no room for redemption or escape. Perhaps a bit of a big downer, but the guy could certainly get a lot of mileage out of even the most mundane of frights.
“The Return of Dracula” - An interview with Robert Lorry, author of the cult Dracula series. This is a GREAT interview with an unassuming and brutally honest author who knew his limitations and made the most of what talents he had. The real deal here is the focus on his “Horrorscope” series that was aborted after just four releases when Pinnacle went out of business. These books are hard to find but well worth the investment.
There are a ton of other articles worth mentioning but we’d be here all day, and I don’t know about you but I’m getting winded. Look, bottom line…..this is 130 pages of pulp paperback glory, and you owe it to yourself to plunk down yer 6 clams and get a copy. It’s MORE than worth the investment in coin, but be careful…..I have already been haunting Abebooks looking for titles that I didn’t have or didn’t even know about. It’s a fun can of worms to have, but your wallet might suffer because of it. But what else do you have to spend money on besides books? GET THIS!!!!!!
I’m a bit late to the game, though. Marriott has been publishing his magazines for a number of years now, but I only recently got on the bandwagon after an internet search led me to a copy of “The Sleazy Reader.” What I’m reviewing today is a collection of the first three issues of the “Pulp Horror” magazine that Marriott edits and writes copy for. It’s great to have all of these early issues in one source, even though the content has been edited for the sake of freshness and relevance to what is going on in the publishing world today with respect to reprints and re-releases of classic pulp horror novels and short stories. There are a ton of great interviews and articles between these covers, and I won’t burden you with a complete rundown of each and every one, but I will give you a highlighted taste of what you might discover if you decide to make an investment in the production.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE ONE:
“If You Go Down to the Woods” - An examination of David Pinner’s 1968 cult classic “Ritual,” which happens to be the uncredited basis for “The Wicker Man.” Pinner attempted to sue the makers of “The Wicker Man” for plagiarism, but he was unsuccessful despite the fact that both the movie and the novelization of “The Wicker Man” stole scenes almost wholesale from his original text. “Ritual” can still be tracked down on various book sites, but it’s an expensive proposition for the collector.
“Strange Tales: A Study of the Short-Lived Pulp Which Was Set Up In Direct Competition With Weird Tales” - “Strange Tales” (1931-1933) only lasted for seven issues, but it did manage to make something of an impact in such a short time on the shelves. “Strange Tales” attracted a lot of the same authors that “Weird Tales” used, but their pay rate was better. The thought here is that the digest would have eventually killed off “Weird Tales” if the Depression hadn’t shut down the magazine before it had an opportunity to do so. Lots of great cover art and a rundown of some of the best stories that the ill-fated publication had to offer.
“The Grandest Guignol of All: Ray Russell’s Unholy Trinity” - by Will Errickson - “Unholy Trinity” collects author Ray Russell’s neo-Gothic horror trilogy composed of “Sagittarius,” “Sanguinarius,” and “Sardonicus.” In these books Russell brings to the fore three of the most notorious monsters of all time, Countess Bathory, Gilles de Rais, and Jack the Ripper. All have been published as stand alone stories, but the best thing to do if you want to dive into this collection is to look for the 1967 Bantam paperback edition that collected all three of the tales. Just be prepared to spend a bit of cash, as copies are scarce on the secondary market.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE TWO:
“The SF-Horror Crossover” - Science-fiction and horror have always been complimentary genres. Many books (and films) have been all too happy to blend styles and tropes to come up with something new. One of the best modern examples is the “Alien” franchise, which has correctly been called “Lovecraft in space.” Before “Alien,” though, there were plenty of other examples of genre blending. Fans will immediately recognize “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” as a book that scared the science out of you, and “Day of the Triffids” made backyard horticulturalists tremble in their raised beds. The real gem in this article is Philip Jose Farmer’s pornographic blend of psychosexual horror “Image of the Beast,” and its sequel “Blown.” What Marriott fails to mention is that Farmer actually wrote a TRILOGY here, with “Traitor to the Living” serving as the final volume. It’s good to know that my knowledge of the pulps is at least on a par with some of the experts in the field.
“Hell is Empty, and All the Devils Are Here” - An examination of James Blish’s duology “Black Easter” and “The Day After Judgement.” An arms dealer named Baines and a black magician named Wane decide to set the demons of the underworld free just for the hell of it. Bored, rich white dudes were just so much more fun back in the day. The highlight of the books is when the Army gets involved and starts battling demons with high-tech weaponry. This is good stuff, Maynard.
“King Crab: An Interview with Guy Smith” - Smith wrote a ton of direct-to-paperback potboilers that sold well enough to keep him on the racks, but his “The Rats” ripoff titled “Night of the Crabs” set him up for unprecedented success. Several sequels sold like fresh seafood just off the docks, and if the thought of evil crabs clickety-clacking their way into your nightmares doesn’t do it for you...well, then I guess there is no hope. Why the hell are you even reading this review?
HIGHLIGHTS FROM ISSUE THREE:
“Suffer the Children” - An examination of Charles Birkin, a writer who was not afraid to put children in horrendous peril, to the point where it almost became a literary obsession for him. Birkin avoided supernatural tropes for the most part in his fiction, preferring the horrors of the more human kind over ghosts and goblins. He also tended to stay away from the formula of the bad guys getting their just desserts, often making his core characters suffer awful terrors and perils and leaving them no room for redemption or escape. Perhaps a bit of a big downer, but the guy could certainly get a lot of mileage out of even the most mundane of frights.
“The Return of Dracula” - An interview with Robert Lorry, author of the cult Dracula series. This is a GREAT interview with an unassuming and brutally honest author who knew his limitations and made the most of what talents he had. The real deal here is the focus on his “Horrorscope” series that was aborted after just four releases when Pinnacle went out of business. These books are hard to find but well worth the investment.
There are a ton of other articles worth mentioning but we’d be here all day, and I don’t know about you but I’m getting winded. Look, bottom line…..this is 130 pages of pulp paperback glory, and you owe it to yourself to plunk down yer 6 clams and get a copy. It’s MORE than worth the investment in coin, but be careful…..I have already been haunting Abebooks looking for titles that I didn’t have or didn’t even know about. It’s a fun can of worms to have, but your wallet might suffer because of it. But what else do you have to spend money on besides books? GET THIS!!!!!!
January 13, 2020
A fun resource for horror and (to an extent) vintage sci-fi enthusiasts. The first three issues of the fanzine are collected here and each brings something a little different, however, a common theme seems to be a lean towards the short forms of fiction such as short story collections and anthologies. Personally, I've hunted down three books mentioned here and will be on the look out for more.
A perfect compliment to the wonderful Paperbacks From Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction by Grady Hendrix
A perfect compliment to the wonderful Paperbacks From Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction by Grady Hendrix
May 27, 2023
Hugely enjoyable. The interviews in particular are a delight.
Want to read
January 20, 2019This book constitutes a collection of:
Issue one - "It Lives"
Issue two - "2000AD Made Me Do It"
Issue three - "Long Live The New Flesh!"
Bonus Interviews - "The Talking Dead"
Issue one - "It Lives"
Issue two - "2000AD Made Me Do It"
Issue three - "Long Live The New Flesh!"
Bonus Interviews - "The Talking Dead"
February 10, 2019
The bad thing about reading this, is that now my "to read" list will grow even bigger, with very hard to find books!
January 8, 2021
If you love paperback books, especially horror ones, and you haven't read this yet, you are missing out. It reprints the first three issues of the "Pulp Horror" fanzine that delved into those lovely horror books we all miss. It looks at the various editions, the cover artists, and writers, and this one has some lengthy reviews, author interviews, and looks at various authors' works. I found a whole lot of stuff I need to read now thanks to it.
Great stuff. Is there a second volume?
Great stuff. Is there a second volume?
July 29, 2019
Really enjoyed this collection of Pulp Horror magazines, several good reviews of horror novels from 70s and 80s. Along with a few interviews of the horror authors of the time period. Have a lot of new books I need to get now.
January 22, 2020
I liked the chapter on Sci-Fi/Horror the most. There are a lot of books covered here that I've never read and likely never will. But the author does a fine job of making material I am unfamiliar with entertaining to read about.
July 3, 2019
A mixed bag, but well worth its price.
November 9, 2024
I lot of interesting articles about paperbacks and authors from the 60s, 70s and 80s. Will read more.
April 29, 2025
Great re-issue of the first 3 issues of pulp horror. It’s said that certain interviews were omitted from issue 3, which I wish wasn’t the case, but what you get is still worth a look.
June 6, 2020
This is a great dive into lesser known horror books. I found it after finishing Paperbacks From Hell and it was worth it.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews