Pat Calhoun Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Great Weird Tales Combos Chapter X As the room grew dark the light on the scanner flashed with increased urgency- its tiny brain crying the cry of all sentient beings- “Feed Me!” And the forumites, freshly enchanted by the REH-Brundage matrix, would be especially receptive to another top example of a sublime author-artist WT pairing. Moved by these mighty forces I made my way towards the pulp shelf. Dr Death beamed down from the wall approvingly as I drew forth the January 1941 issue. For what would be the last of his Elak of Atlantis tales Henry Kuttner again won cover and lead story. The venerable Harold Delay set the mood with a lush dragon cover (if not exactly Elak), and interior illustrations came from our beloved Hannes Bok. Let the equation read: HK + HB = WT Wizardry! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theagenes Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 A winning combination for sure...Margaret Brundage and Robert E. Howard. I am rapidly becoming a huge Brundage fan - is she generally considered the tops in her field amongst collectors? Another sad story - she married a hobo, and apparently lived in near poverty till her death in 1976. I would love to see someone do an art book/biography of brundage like some of the others that have been done. I think maybe she is acquired taste, because her style is very different. Part of that I think is the medium she used - pastels as opposed to oil or watercolor. But there are definately a lot of collectors, myself included, who love her work. Her female figures I think often tend to be much better executed than her male figures. I know there are a lot of REH fans that hate the way she depicted Conan and there is a legitimate gripe there (although I like the "Devil in Iron" cover). But some her other covers are just magnificent - the Batwoman and Altar of Melek Taos for example. I got to see the original of the latter last year and it was just amazing (see below). On an interesting side note, if you look close you'll see that woman's nipples are visible - this was also true of the one other Brunage original I've seen, "The Witch's Mark." I'm guessing that most of her WT covers were actually nudes that were "cleaned up" for publication. Maybe BZ could post his copy of the Melek Taos issue for comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Calhoun Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theagenes Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Definately the best of the three covers that depict Conan. (thumbs u At least he's standing up and fighting something, instead of lying down like in the other two: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookwhoitis Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Nipples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theagenes Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Nipples Neil (lookwhoitis) got to see those Brundage originals too - along with a Frazetta, some St. Johns, Pauls, Boks, and even a Wyeth. Good times! Here's a write-up I did on that exhibit for The Cimmerian - even talk about the nipples: http://www.thecimmerian.com/maidens-and-monsters-masters-of-science-fiction-and-fantasy-art-on-display/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theagenes Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 (edited) Great Weird Tales Combos Chapter X As the room grew dark the light on the scanner flashed with increased urgency- its tiny brain crying the cry of all sentient beings- “Feed Me!” And the forumites, freshly enchanted by the REH-Brundage matrix, would be especially receptive to another top example of a sublime author-artist WT pairing. Moved by these mighty forces I made my way towards the pulp shelf. Dr Death beamed down from the wall approvingly as I drew forth the January 1941 issue. For what would be the last of his Elak of Atlantis tales Henry Kuttner again won cover and lead story. The venerable Harold Delay set the mood with a lush dragon cover (if not exactly Elak), and interior illustrations came from our beloved Hannes Bok. Let the equation read: HK + HB = WT Wizardry! That's a gorgeous copy, Pat. I really need to read the Elak stories some time. Are they any good? Edited March 3, 2011 by Theagenes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sacentaur Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Absolutely Spectacular! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Calhoun Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Kuttner can usually be depended on for color, concepts, and action- it's been a looong time... I can surely vouch that the 2nd Prince Raynor yarn, 'The Citadel of Darkness' from the Aug 1939 Strange Stories is an S&S classic. DeCamp's 'Swords and Sorcery' 1963 Pyramid PB ran it with a nice Finlay, and I reread it when I got the Raynor book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sacentaur Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 St John may be more impressive overall, but in the 'Weird Women' niche she reigns supreme! And I didn't mean to slight the great Paul - I am genuinely curious who collectors consider to be the "Alex Schomburg" or "Lou Fine" of pulp covers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BangZoom Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 I would love to see someone do an art book/biography of brundage like some of the others that have been done. I think maybe she is acquired taste, because her style is very different. Part of that I think is the medium she used - pastels as opposed to oil or watercolor. But there are definately a lot of collectors, myself included, who love her work. Her female figures I think often tend to be much better executed than her male figures. I know there are a lot of REH fans that hate the way she depicted Conan and there is a legitimate gripe there (although I like the "Devil in Iron" cover). But some her other covers are just magnificent - the Batwoman and Altar of Melek Taos for example. I got to see the original of the latter last year and it was just amazing (see below). On an interesting side note, if you look close you'll see that woman's nipples are visible - this was also true of the one other Brunage original I've seen, "The Witch's Mark." I'm guessing that most of her WT covers were actually nudes that were "cleaned up" for publication. Maybe BZ could post his copy of the Melek Taos issue for comparison. Weird Tales (September 1932) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamstrange Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Your Weird Tales are stunning! Those pristine copies show off the quality of the Brundage cover art! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BangZoom Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 Your Weird Tales are stunning! Those pristine copies show off the quality of the Brundage cover art! Thanks. Many of them were part of an original owner collection that also included many ERB books that are now part of my collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BangZoom Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 St John may be more impressive overall, but in the 'Weird Women' niche she reigns supreme! And I didn't mean to slight the great Paul - I am genuinely curious who collectors consider to be the "Alex Schomburg" or "Lou Fine" of pulp covers. Steve, you can check out the list of past Hugo Award winners: Link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamstrange Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 St John may be more impressive overall, but in the 'Weird Women' niche she reigns supreme! And I didn't mean to slight the great Paul - I am genuinely curious who collectors consider to be the "Alex Schomburg" or "Lou Fine" of pulp covers. Brundage, St John, Ward, Saunders, Finlay, and Freas are some I like a lot. Overall I'm most amazed by St John's work. I would love to see originals. There isn't a better introduction to the pulp artist and paintings than this book. http://www.amazon.com/Pulp-Art-Original-Paintings-Magazines/dp/1402730357/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1299126007&sr=8-2-fkmr0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BangZoom Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 St John may be more impressive overall, but in the 'Weird Women' niche she reigns supreme! And I didn't mean to slight the great Paul - I am genuinely curious who collectors consider to be the "Alex Schomburg" or "Lou Fine" of pulp covers. Brundage, St John, Ward, Saunders, Finlay, and Freas are some I like a lot. Overall I'm most amazed by St John's work. I would love to see originals. There isn't a better introduction to the pulp artist and paintings than this book. http://www.amazon.com/Pulp-Art-Original-Paintings-Magazines/dp/1402730357/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1299126007&sr=8-2-fkmr0 I would also recommend Pulp Culture and The Classic Era of American Pulp Magazines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamstrange Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 St John may be more impressive overall, but in the 'Weird Women' niche she reigns supreme! And I didn't mean to slight the great Paul - I am genuinely curious who collectors consider to be the "Alex Schomburg" or "Lou Fine" of pulp covers. Brundage, St John, Ward, Saunders, Finlay, and Freas are some I like a lot. Overall I'm most amazed by St John's work. I would love to see originals. There isn't a better introduction to the pulp artist and paintings than this book. http://www.amazon.com/Pulp-Art-Original-Paintings-Magazines/dp/1402730357/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1299126007&sr=8-2-fkmr0 I would also recommend Pulp Culture and The Classic Era of American Pulp Magazines. Those are both excellent as well. (thumbs u Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Calhoun Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Freas DJ for book by Mrs Henry Kuttner. is 1952 pub with JCC date 12/25/52... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Calhoun Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 1953 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrooge Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Brundage, St John, Ward, Saunders, Finlay, and Freas are some I like a lot. Overall I'm most amazed by St John's work. I would love to see originals. There isn't a better introduction to the pulp artist and paintings than this book. http://www.amazon.com/Pulp-Art-Original-Paintings-Magazines/dp/1402730357/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1299126007&sr=8-2-fkmr0 Other favorites that come immediately to mind are Baumhofer, Belarski, DeSoto and Howitt and Hewitt. If not already listed, you should check out Dave Saunders's webpage about pulp artists - Pulp Artists Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...