Pulp Classics

When Strange Tales first appeared in 1931 as a pulp magazine, it was clearly something new. Edited by Harry Bates as a companion to Astounding Stories, it combined the supernatural horror and fantasy of Weird Tales with vigorous action plots. Had the Great Depression not intervened and killed it after seven issues, the whole history of fantastic fiction might have been different.

Strange Tales rapidly attracted the most imaginative and capable writers of the day, including such Weird Tales regulars as Robert E. Howard, Clark Ashton Smith, Henry S. Whitehead, Hugh B. Cave, Ray Cummings, and numerous others.

Certainly Strange Tales gave Weird Tales a serious run for its money.

The March 1932 issue features work by Paul Ernst, Henry S. Whitehead, Gordon MacCreagh, and more. The fine cover by H.W. Wesso illustrates "The Duel of the Sorcerers," by Paul Ernst.

The famous "weird menace" pulp magazines of the 1930s and 1940s are among the rarest and most sought-after publications by collectors. The "Spicy" magazines -- which included Spicy Mystery, Spicy Adventure, Spicy Detective, and others -- published a titilating mix of fantasy, horror, mystery, and suspense, punctuated by episodes of torture, sadism, sex, and other risque elements. Although tame by current standards, and sometimes of dubious literary merit, these publications presented tales which thrilled a sensation-hungry audience. Despite the themes and constraints of the market, writers who would later become famous -- including Hugh B. Cave, E. Hoffman Price, Robert Leslie Bellem, and many more -- were frequent contributors. The February 1937 issue features Bellem, Hugh Speer, Justin Case (Hugh B. Cave), and many others -- plus all the classic "spicy" artwork!