Think Small, Show us your Digests! 7 7

[Dr. Love]

But what is a digest? is it defined by size? content?  both?

The below is from the Science Fiction Encyclopedia.  I have found ISFDB, the Internet Speculative Fiction Database to be of great value in researching digests.  I believe that this is the database CGC is pulling from for label attributes on digests, moving forward, as GCD would be of no or little use to them here.

"A term used to describe a Magazine format, in contrast to, for example, Slick or Pulp, which are both larger. The format was made popular by the Reader's Digest, which first appeared in February 1922, though at that time the word "digest" meant that the magazine was presenting a selection of material from a wide range of other sources and thus making it "digestible" to the reader. The word referred to the content, not the size, but that original meaning has long since been superseded.

The page size of a digest is approximately 7.5 x 5 in, though it can vary slightly; for example, Galaxy was normally a little smaller than Astounding. The latter was the first important sf magazine to turn digest, in November 1943, and by the mid-1950s almost all SF Magazines had followed suit, the Pulp format disappearing. The popularity of science fiction led to the digest magazine boom of the period 1952 to 1955, but by the end of the 1950s a blight had settled over the sf field. The competition with paperbacks led to some magazines taking on the pocketbook format, which averages 7 x 4.25 in; notably New Worlds in the mid-1960s and Destinies from 1978 to 1981, an approach further encouraged by the growing market in Original Anthologies during the 1970s. Magazine circulation has continued to fall, especially newsstand sales, and magazines have tried various formats to retain their visibility. Some, such as Vertex and Science Fiction Age tried the letter-size Slick format, whilst both Analog and Asimov's have twice increased their dimensions so that they are now large digest, measuring 8.5 x 5.75 in, virtually Review size (see Academic Journals). The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction is now the only surviving true digest size sf magazine, retaining a consistency from its first issue in 1949."

Edited September 20, 2023 by Dr. Love

[Dr. Love]

Have digests made their way into slabs?  Yes, slowly, and far and few between.  With CGC's debut of pulp slabs coming to the Collector's Summit 11/4/23, I would imagine that more extensive sci fi/mystery digest slabbing may not be that far behind.

One of the big questions, for me at least, will be what kind of slab will the digests go into.  The one below is in a 1" deep slab, the deepest slab CGC has in production, more in keeping for a thicker pulp.  This introductory issue for Imagination has 164 pages.  But the typical digest has 132 pages.  Whether it can be put into a less deep slab, and of course centered (rather than right justified), will have a lot to do with the decision to submit.  At least for me!

 

[Darwination]

Ah, thanks, Doc, for chiming in with a good question on the digests.  The size is definitely a thing.  My opinion is they don't have to be squarebound, and that we are generally talking about a decently high page count.  I think you are right that the term comes from Reader's Digest but the way we use it doesn't incorporate the "digestable" aspect you mention.

A neat cross post to this one I noticed here on the Timely thread and its tie to Captain America Comics original numbering:
 

Another digest title I've done some digging into lately, from Lev Gleason but also previously owned by Arthur Bernhard (comics ties on both these guys):

http://www.philsp.com/data/data450.html#READERSSCOPE

 

That type of digest aside, a number of the pulps switched over to a digest format as the traditional pulp faded away.  Western Story, The Shadow, etc.

When I think of digests, I think of Manhunt, but I know the SF community is huge in their love of the 50s and 60s titles.

I'm not the sort to put my books in the boxes, but I do get a kick out of finding the right size bag and boards for the many different sizes of pub grouped into the digest category.  And, yeah, CGC is gonna need a different case.  And if I see any of you mooks boxing up pocket magazines, the shank's coming out ><

A couple of recent "digest" scans I've put up at the IA and Flickr.  In my Flickr placards, you can find download links and IA links under the cover if it is a full scan.  The Dell is new, the Army Romances an old scan with McCoy
 

 

But, really, I've been wondering where even to post pocket magazine stuff, "non-comic" magazines I guess...

EDIT: and since we are talking pulps getting CGC'd.  My predicition is the average SF pulp will be the type to get the biggest average spike in interest/value.  There are enough of them to be collectible, the cover art is fantastic with comics crossover appeal, and many have been kept in high grade.

Edited September 20, 2023 by Darwination

[OtherEric]

On 9/20/2023 at 10:24 AM, Darwination said:

Ah, thanks, Doc for chiming in with a good question on the digests.  The size is definitely thing.  My opinion is they don't have to be squarebound, and that we are generally talking about a decently high page count.

Squarebound is definitely the more common format, but it's absolutely not required.  The Avon Fantasy Readers are mostly stapled, only the first few are squarebound.

[Yorick]

I like a certain author...  I'm prohibited from writing his name.

[Kevin.J]

[OtherEric]

On 9/20/2023 at 12:11 PM, Yorick said:

I like a certain author...  I'm prohibited from writing his name.

PKD, I presume?

[PopKulture]

On 9/20/2023 at 10:53 AM, Dr. Love said:

 

That looks ridiculous slabbed. How unnecessarily bulky and unwieldy. Boy, what a pleasure it’ll be to go through our books in X number of years… 

[Yorick]

On 9/20/2023 at 1:50 PM, OtherEric said:

PKD, I presume?

YEP!!

[Robot Man]

The kind I always gravitate to out in the wild…

[Robot Man]

Is it a digest or a comic? Or a digest size comic? Who cares, all Matt Baker interior. I lucked into this with a bunch of other PBs and digests out at a flea market years ago. I took one look and knew what it was! 

[Robot Man]

What are these Harvey file copies? Comics? Digests? Small Magazines? Who cares. Lotsa of fun no matter what they are! 

[Darwination]

On 9/21/2023 at 1:39 PM, Robot Man said:

Is it a digest or a comic? Or a digest size comic? Who cares, all Matt Baker interior. I lucked into this with a bunch of other PBs and digests out at a flea market years ago. I took one look and knew what it was! 

That's a heck of a flea market find.  I read it recently and was slightly disappointed (after years of built up expectations), but it's not a stretch to call it a first graphic novel (though preceded by the likes of Milt Gross' He Done Her Wrong or the woodcut novels of Lynd Ward).  There's another one in this series.

Not mine

[Darwination]

Humor digests!  Unmined, though I'm surprised they have many of them up at the GCD.  Even better with babes in them ala the Humorama line

Edited September 21, 2023 by Darwination

[Robot Man]

On 9/21/2023 at 11:53 AM, Darwination said:

That's a heck of a flea market find.  I read it recently and was slightly disappointed (after years of built up expectations), but it's not a stretch to call it a first graphic novel (though preceded by the likes of Milt Gross' He Done Her Wrong or the woodcut novels of Lynd Ward).  There's another one in this series.

Not mine

I know about that one as well but have never had the opportunity to own one. 

[mrwoogieman]

On 9/20/2023 at 3:11 PM, Yorick said:

I like a certain author...  I'm prohibited from writing his name.

Fellatio Wallace?

 

[Darwination]

[Darwination]

[Darwination]

[Darwination]

So if the military themed joke books and Humorama sorts of pubs are digests, I guess that makes a whole crop of other earlier joke magazines going back to the early 20s digests, too?

 

C

Can't believe I don't own any Calgary Eye Opener to throw in here, that's a great one, will post some from my files, not mine, though -