Tagged: The Spider

Dr. Kildare! Dr. Yen Sin! Pulp and More from Radio Archives!

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

 
October 19, 2012
 
 
 

“…One of the great citadels of American medicine…”
 
Radio listeners in the 1940s and 50s were introduced to Blair Memorial Hospital this way and welcomed into the life of one of the most enduring physicians of American Fiction. The Story of Dr. Kildare, Volume 3 gives modern listeners the chance to enjoy the drama, humor, and fantastic storytelling that have made Kildare and company a part of American culture.
 
Based on the highly successful Dr. Kildare series of B-Movies by MGM, The Story of Dr. Kildare retained not only the charm and pathos of the films, but also brought two stars from the movies that’d left their marks on the series. Lew Ayers, who portrayed the idealistic young Dr. Kildare in the first MGM films, reprised the part for radio. As important as Ayers, acting legend John Barrymore lent his talents once more to the role of Dr. Leonard Gillespie, Kildare’s curmudgeonly mentor and often partner in the cases Kildare worked in each episode.
 
Great talent was not The Story of Dr. Kildare’s only strong point. Production on this syndicated, relatively low budgeted program was top notch, featuring William P. Rousseau as director, an original score by Walter Schumann, and scripts from such greats as Jean Holloway and Les Crutchfield. Each episode was a self contained superbly presented drama. The Story of Dr. Kildare Volume 3 from Radio Archives is six hours of classic drama at its finest restored to the highest quality possible for pure listening enjoyment. Make The Story of Dr. Kildare, Volume 3 part of your essential listening
 
Six hours, twelve shows of great fun. $17.98 Audio CDs / $8.99 Download.
 

 

Any program in entertainment needs its own special energy, something that drives it to be the best of the best. When that special electricity comes from many different angles, then you get shows like those in Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3.
 
An entry in the comeback of radio drama in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Mutual Radio Theater provided new and amazing shows five nights a week for its entire run. Written by leading names in radio, Mutual Radio Theater also sported something that every show needs to succeed. Star power.
 
Each night of the week, a different star hosted – Lorne Greene, Andy Griffith, Vincent Price, Cicely Tyson, and Leonard Nimoy. These stunning talents, though, were only the beginning. The shows were peopled with stars from both classic radio and modern television and movies. Names from the golden era of radio drama included John Dehner, Vic Perrin, Hans Conried, Marvin Miller, Parley Baer, Elliot Lewis, Jeff Corey, Virginia Gregg, and Lurene Tuttle. Modern entertainment lent some of its best talent as well, including Tom Bosley, Marian Ross, Lloyd Bochner, Rick Jason, Frank Campanella, Toni Tennille, Arthur Hill, and Jesse White.
 
Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3 contains 20 Stereo episodes featuring legendary talent alongside up and coming stars of the early 1980s. Combined with the stellar writing talents of such greats as Arch Oboler, Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3 is a must have for any Radio enthusiast! $59.98 Audio CDs / $29.99 Download.

 
Because of your great response, Digital Downloads of any of our Old Time Radio sets will be priced at 50% off the regular Audio CD price through the end of the year. You get the same sparkling high quality audio content as our compact disc collections at a reduced price, Delivery immediately upon payment, and the ability to play them on your phone, computer, or portable device! Purchase the audio collections you love and enjoy them in a whole new way!
 

 

 
Read by Joey D’Auria and Michael C. Gwynne
 

Among fans of classic pulp fiction, aficionados of supernatural stories consider Popular Publications’ Terror Tales the magazine for people who found the Lovecraftian stories in Weird Tales too tame and Universal’s classic monsters too Hollywood!
 
Between 1934 and 1941, Terror Tales and its legion of unholy authors spewed forth an unremitting litany of horror, terror, torment and torture—all directed at ordinary American couples faced with supernatural menaces torn from their deepest, darkest nightmares. Think Scream during the Great Depression.
 
We have selected seven of the most compelling stories torn from the pages of Terror Tales for this sampler from Hell.
 
In Paul Ernst’s horrific “The Mummy Maker,” an innocent woman faces the fearsome fate of being mummified alive! Norvell Page’s disquieting “Accursed Thirst” takes us into the dark mind of a vampire—or is it a werewolf? The specter of a dead Egyptian deity loosed upon the modern world comes alive in E. Hoffmann Price’s eerie “The Cat Goddess.” Asian elementals harass the curious in Arthur J. Burks’ creepy “Six Doors to Death.” G. T. Fleming-Robert’s gruesome “Moulder of Monsters” serves up twisted human flesh. Maitland Scott’s unsettling “Shadows of Desire” leads us inexorably to a traumatic climax. Finally, terror and horror compete for supremacy in Frederick C. Davis deeply disturbing “Dig Deep the Graves!”
 
Terror Tales is narrated with appropriate doom-laden solemnity by Joey D’Auria and Michael C. Gwynne. Shivers await! Horrors abound! Try not to listen after midnight. We are serious about this. Not for children! Seven terrifying hours. $27.98 Audio CDs / $13.99 Download.
 
By Derrick Ferguson

 
The Mystery of The Dragon’s Shadow is the latest audio adventure from Will Murray’s Pulp Classics. The title character is from the “Yellow Peril” sub-genre of pulp made popular by Sax Rohmer’s Dr. Fu Manchu character. Dr. Yen Sin is very much a character in that same mold as Fu Manchu: a superhumanly brilliant Asian scientist scheming to rule the world. At his disposal is an army of killers, fiendish devices of such advanced science they appear to be magic and femme fatales who relish luring stalwart heroes into inescapable death traps.
 
Two things really set this audiobook apart: the hero of the story, Michael Traile is more than a match for Dr. Yen Sin as due to a childhood surgery, he is incapable of sleeping. This means that he’s got extra time to learn all sorts of skills from the mundane to the mystical. Skills that make him capable of surviving whatever Dr. Yen Sin throws at him.
 
The other thing that sets this audiobook apart is the outstanding voice work of Michael C. Gwynne which is just perfect for this story. To my ears his voice has an authentic 1930’s sound that made me feel like I was listening to a recording from that period and not one recorded today.
 
As an African-American I am frequently asked how I can enjoy reading the pulps and listening to audio dramas of that era as the racism of that period of our country’s history is reflected in the popular culture of the time. Long ago I reconciled myself to the fact that the pulps were produced during a time when people simply were not as enlightened or as culturally sensitive as they are now. In order to enjoy any art form that was created in periods of history that were not sympathetic to a particular culture or race, one either accepts that this was how people saw the world at that time and dives into the story, movie, novel, play or music as pure entertainment or just leaves it alone.
 
There are three Bonus short stories in this audiobook, two of them read by Joey d’Auria and one read by Mr. Gwynne. The three stories involve Asian criminals and Chinatown set mystery and intrigue. It’s a package of stories well worth the time and money and I excitedly look forward to the next audiobook read by Mr. Gwynne and I think that after you listen to Dr. Yen Sin: The Mystery of The Dragon’s Shadow, you will too.
 

 

FREE Spider eBook!

 
Receive an exciting original Spider adventure for FREE! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers.
 
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps, this is a perfect opportunity to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
 
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you get a copy of this classic.
 

See what the Total Pulp Experience is for yourself. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
 
Send an eMail to eBooks@RadioArchives.com and start reading your FREE copy of  the Spider #11 within seconds! Experience The Best Pulps the Past has to offer in the most modern way possible!

 

 

The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge eBooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your eReader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator #5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like the Octopus and more, Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!
 

Throughout the dives of the Underworld and in the dens of criminals, the news was spread in eager whispers: “The Boss will get the Spider! He’ll make himself th’ biggest shot in the country!”… But those nearest the criminal genius sat silent, remembering the horrible acid vat reserved for those who talked too much. Richard Weatworth — that grim Spider who strikes when the Law fails or dares not — faces the bitterest decision of his life. His servants have been maddened, his beloved Nita is a hostage to doom, and he must brand Kirkpatrick — his very dearest friend — with the red seal of the Spider! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
 

America had never before known two such men as those who were pitted against each other: Richard Wentworth, the Spider, the avenger — and Tang-akhmut, the sinister Egyptian, the destroyer. Never before had America witnessed such Titanic Struggle. The man who came out of the East set out deliberately to rule this country — or ruin it — by debauching the women, by promising the men a carnival of looting and rapine and crime. Richard Wentworth knew that he alone could cope with this all-powerful Oriental criminal — yet Richard Wentworth had been swiftly stripped of his armor and his weapons, his wealth and his friends. An unarmed man attacking a Juggernaut, the Spider plunges into this epic battle! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 

Gold — a nation’s strength for war and peace — had been completely looted from the Treasury in Washington by an octopus-like international syndicate. A mysterious madman — more cunning even than death — captained the ruthless spy-crew which was sucking the life-blood from our land. The proudest nation in the world seemed helpless — doomed! One man alone, Operator 5 of the American Intelligence, grasped the full import of that crafty plunder-plan. And he — known to only his best friends as Jimmy Christopher — was spied upon by his brothers of the Service, suspected of treason by a short-sighted superior, hampered by senseless bureaucracy. In the hour of America’s greatest peril, Operator 5 must sacrifice father, friends, honor, and his beloved in order to wrest victory from what promises national dishonor and ignominious defeat! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 
Terror Tales Hugh B. Cave, Book 1

In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a collection of stories from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, all written by Hugh B. Cave, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.

 

In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a collection of stories from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, all written by Paul Ernst, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.
 

Captain Future… the Ace of Space! Born and raised on the moon, Curt Newton survived the murder of his scientist parents to become the protector of the galaxy known as Captain Future. With his Futuremen, Grag the giant robot, Otho, the shape-shifting android and Simon Wright, the Living Brain, he patrols the solar system in the fastest space ship ever constructed, the Comet, pursuing human monsters and alien threats to Earth and her neighbor planets.
 
This is one of the infamous “final seven” Captain Future tales. After a run of twenty pulp issues, the quarterly magazine closed. But that was not the end of Captain Future. He returned in a series of short stories published in Startling Stories magazine, beginning with the January 1950 issue. Edmond Hamilton, creator of Captain Future and author of the majority of the full-length novels, returned to pen seven more Captain Future stories. His style had matured, as had his original audience, and these final seven Captain Future stories are considered to be some of his best. Captain Future left the pages of Startling Stories with the May 1951 issue, but editors left open the possibility that Captain Future might return some day. True fans are still waiting. Until then, Captain Future returns in these vintage pulp tales, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.
 

All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available in the Kindle store and the Barnes and Noble Nook store! and RadioArchives.com!

 
 
You can upgrade the eBooks you have purchased from Radio Archives for FREE. We have made the eBooks look better by polishing the formatting, making the graphics crisper, and a new Contents page. It is now We made it easier to purchase by eliminating the zipfile. Buy a Will Murray’s Pulp Classic from your iPad or other mobile reading device, and be reading within seconds. There is no need for a desktop computer. Customers who have purchased the previous eBooks can upgrade to the new versions for Free. Send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com for upgrade instructions.
 

 

 
One of the top crime-fighters from the golden age of pulp fiction, The Spider returns in two thrill-packed adventures written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “The Spider and the Jewels Of Hell” (1940), Tough, dauntless miners, accustomed to hardship and danger, paled in helpless terror as their homes were destroyed, their loved ones slaughtered! No one was safe, above ground or below, when The Killer walked among them. Only the Spider dared challenge the strangle-hold of fear that held an entire town in its deadly grip! Then, in “Recruit For the Spider Legion” (1943), Staunch supporter of justice and champion of the law Stanley Kirkpatrick, finds himself about to gain unexpected insights into the workings of the system when he himself is faced with the electric chair! Can the very man who has forever branded the Spider a criminal for his vigilante efforts join with his old enemy to battle the forces of Kali? These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 
 
 
 
 

The shattering sequel to Fortress of Solitude.
 
The Doc Savage exploit that went untold for 74 years—Death’s Dark Domain!
 
In the aftermath of the evil John Sunlight’s pillaging of the secret Fortress of Solitude, a dreadful super-weapon has fallen the hands of a Balkan dictator intent upon seizing control of the vampire-haunted zone of desolation known as Ultra-Stygia. War is imminent. Monsters are loose in the disputed region. A strange darkness falls over the sinister landscape. Only Doc Savage, the Man of Bronze, understands the terrible threat to humanity. And only he can prevent the terror from spreading…
 
There are unknown Things prowling the darkest patch of land on the planet. Haunted by creatures that might have emerged from the Hell’s lowest regions, ancient Ultra-Stygia has turned into a cauldron of conflict between rival countries. Monster bats careen through the night sky. Invisible Cyclopes patrol the scorched battleground. And a power beyond understanding robs men of their vision.
 
Can the 20th century’s premier scientist and superman untangle this Gordian knot of carnage before neighboring nations are drawn into an apocalyptic new world war? Or will the Man of Bronze succumb to an unstoppable power he himself has unleashed upon mankind?
 
From the frozen Arctic to the war-torn Balkans, Doc Savage and his fighting five follow a winding trail of terror to a blood-freezing climax.

 
Death’s Dark Domain features a fantastic cover painted by Joe DeVito! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.

 

Back in print after 20 years! The rare Lester Dent-Will Murray collaboration resurrecting the original pulp superman…

 
Also available is the first Altus Press edition of Will Murray’s 1993 Doc Savage adventure, The Forgotten Realm. Deep in the heart of the African Congo lies a secret unsuspected for thousands of years. Doc Savage and his men embark on a quest to discover the secret of the strange individual known only as X Man, X for unknown. Before they come to the end of the trail, they find themselves fighting for their lives like gladiators of old!
 
No one knows who—or what—the strange being who calls himself “X Man” truly is. He was found wandering the ruins of a crumbling Roman fort, dressed in a toga, speaking classical Latin—and clutching a handful of unearthly black seeds.
 
Declared insane, the X Man patiently tends his weird plants until the day, impelled by a nameless terror, he flees Wyndmoor Asylum to unleash a cyclone of violence that is destined to suck the mighty Man of Bronze into the blackest, most unbelievable mystery of his entire career. For far from Scotland lies a domain of death unknown to the world and called by the ancient Latin name of Novum Eboracum—New York!
 
From the wild Scottish moors to the unexplored heart of darkest Africa, Doc Savage and his indomitable men embarked upon a desperate quest for the Forgotten Realm….
 

The Forgotten Realm features a spectacular cover painted by Joe DeVito! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.

 

Eerie Halloween Special
The Master of Darkness investigates baffling mysteries in two classic pulp novels by Walter B. Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, a deadly outbreak of “Gypsy Vengeance” pittin gclan against clan can only be ended by The Shadow’s justice! Then, the Knight of Darkness must pierce the mystery behind a silver veil to end the murderous crimewave commanded by “The Veiled Prophet.” BONUS: legendary sleuth Nick Carter investigates murder on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This instant collector’s item showcases the original pulp covers by George Rozen and Graves Gladney plus the classic interior illustrations by Tom Lovell and Edd Cartier, with historical commentary by Anthony Tollin and Will Murray. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

Expanded Manuscript Edition Plus Supersnipe!
The pulp era’s greatest superhero returns in two incredible tales by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc, Monk and Ham journey to the Indo-China jungles to solve the strange enigma of “The Flaming Falcons” in a novel expanded from Lester Dent’s original 1939 manuscript. Then, what is the bizarre connection between “The Two-Wise Owl” and the murder of Ham Brooks’ brother? BONUS: Supersnipe, “the boy with the most comic books in America,” gets imto mischief on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This double-novel collector’s edition features both original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

Expanded Manuscript Edition Plus Supersnipe!
The pulp era’s greatest superhero returns in two incredible tales by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc, Monk and Ham journey to the Indo-China jungles to solve the strange enigma of “The Flaming Falcons” in a novel expanded from Lester Dent’s original 1939 manuscript. Then, what is the bizarre connection between “The Two-Wise Owl” and the murder of Ham Brooks’ brother? BONUS: Supersnipe, “the boy with the most comic books in America,” gets imto mischief on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This double-novel collector’s edition features both original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

 

By John Olsen

 

Who is The Black Falcon? A black feather. The dyed feather of a falcon is the only clue to the man behind an insidious game of crime. Even his evil minions don’t know his identity. Yet they readily accept his payments, packets of money banded along with a single black feather. The law receives taunting letters from the crime master, affixed with another of those black feathers.
 
The Black Falcon boasts of his ability of kidnap wealthy society members and return them at will. And he makes good upon his boasts!
 
Who will be next? None other than Lamont Cranston! Yes, The Black Falcon has confirmed that Cranston is The Shadow, and determines to kidnap him. This will not only serve the purpose of a million-dollar ransom, but will also eliminate the threat from the black-cloaked avenger.
 
It will take all the unique abilities of The Shadow to thwart this Napoleon of crime. It will tax The Shadow to his fullest. And it’s a classic early story that you won’t want to miss.
 
Featured in this story are underworld-agent Cliff Marsland, reporter Clyde Burke and long-time agent Harry Vincent, with Burbank and Rutledge Mann in brief appearances. The Shadow appears in disguise as Lamont Cranston. And representing law and order are Commissioner Weston and Joe Cardona.
 
This story features the appearance of those unique rubber discs. The Shadow uses the concave suction cups to scale the sheer outside wall of a tall apartment house. In these early stories, The Shadow was apparently a bit of an inventor. He was occasionally mentioned as having invented some device that was used. In this one, Harry Vincent uses a wireless sending set, secreted in the rumble seat of his coupe. The equipment, it is mentioned, was The Shadow’s own invention. Is there no end to what The Shadow is capable of?
 
A feature of the early Shadow novels that disappeared after time was The Shadow’s “horror face.” In later years, the horror face was discarded and we learned the under the slouch hat was the face of Kent Allard. Apparently it was Allard’s true face and not disfigured.
 
In this novel, however, The Shadow has his horror face, and reveals it to The Black Falcon in the exciting climax of the story. The Shadow tells The Black Falcon, “…those who have seen the true face of The Shadow have never lived to recite their discovery!” The sight of his face causes The Black Falcon to slump in horror. His ashen face reveals terror, something the evil fiend had never felt before.
 
Yes, this is The Shadow at his finest. It’s a thrilling early pulp novel. And it can be found in The Shadow Volume 5 for only $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 

Comments From Our Customers!
 
Joseph Roman Leary writes:
It was the audio sample that sold me on Dr. Yen Sin. I thought Mr. Gwynne’s narration was great.
 
Larry Black writes:
Please send me a complimentary e-copy of Spider #11 and keep up the excellent work. I really enjoy your virtually endless selection of great Old Time Radio shows!
 
Dale writes:
I’ve been buying ebooks produced by your company for quite a while now and have always been impressed with what I’ve received.
 
It was a VERY pleasant surprise that greeted my eyes when I checked the most recent ‘pulp’ Kindle books on Amazon today and saw that you guys have released over half a dozen collections from the rare ‘Terror Tales’ magazine! I immediately bought all of them except the Hugh B. Cave collection (Being a big Cave fan I already have all of the stories in that collection).
 
THANK YOU VERY MUCH for releasing these! We horror fans are STARVING for these fun, wild and fast-paced stories!
 
The formatting is very nice and the Table of Contents are great with links for every chapter of every story. I’m glad you guys have done just as fine of job with these collections as you have with your other excellent ebooks.
 
PLEASE RELEASE MORE of these fascinating ‘weird menace’ / ‘shudder pulps’! It would be a dream come true to be able to see all (or even most) of the short stories from ‘Terror Tales’ as well as the other 2 essential terror titles like ‘Horror Stories’ and ‘Dime Mystery Magazine’.
 
My friend and I were having a bit of a contentious debate as to whether you have the resources to procure and release most (if not all) of the issues or short stories from the ‘Horror Stories’ or ‘Dime Mystery Magazine’ pulps (also produced by ‘Terror Tales’ creators Popular Publications).
 
As you may already know ‘Horror Stories’ and ‘Dime Mystery Magazine’ issues are EXTREMELY rare and my buddy thinks even you guys couldn’t find enough of them to release substantial collections but I disagreed with him and said that you are the most organized and sophisticated of the pulp companies on the planet and that I think you guys could actually pull it off if you decided to do so.
 
I’m not sure how big the market is for ‘weird menace’ pulps but since even beat up copies of the original issues go for hundreds of dollars these days and good condition copies are some of the most expensive on the market (and recent write-ups in prominent horror magazines / sites have no doubt sparked interest among the younger generations) I suspect you guys could make pretty good money if you were able to release story collections (or better yet, entire issues) from ‘Horror Stories’ or ‘Dime Mystery Magazine’.
 
What are the chances of these 2 titles being released by Radio Archives and do you plan to release more collections from ‘Terror Tales’? I’m developing on a blog site that will prominently feature articles about the ‘Weird Menace’ pulps and would be glad to post links to your ebooks so that people can know where to get them.
 
Also, at the end of Will Murray’s introduction for the ‘Terror Tales’ collections there is mention of an ‘audio’ version of Terror Tales from your company which I find to be especially intriguing.
None of them are listed on the site (as far as I can see) so I assume they haven’t been released yet. Are you planning on adding them in the near future?
 
Thanks again for releasing these incredibly rare stories for the world to see! For far too long literary historians have overlooked this fertile albeit lurid subgenre but the authors were better than the reputation of the subject matter and their work deserves to be seen so that the record can be set straight about the strength of the horror stories from the 30s.
 
I’m spreading the word!
 
Thanks and Take Care
 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 

The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

Mutual, Dr. Yen Sin, Michael C. Gwynne, New Doc and MORE All From Radio Archives!

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

 
October 5, 2012
 
 
 

Any program in entertainment needs its own special energy, something that drives it to be the best of the best. When that special electricity comes from many different angles, then you get shows like those in Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3.
 
An entry in the comeback of radio drama in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Mutual Radio Theater provided new and amazing shows five nights a week for its entire run. Written by leading names in radio, Mutual Radio Theater also sported something that every show needs to succeed. Star power.
 
Each night of the week, a different star hosted – Lorne Greene, Andy Griffith, Vincent Price, Cicely Tyson, and Leonard Nimoy. These stunning talents, though, were only the beginning. The shows were peopled with stars from both classic radio and modern television and movies. Names from the golden era of radio drama included John Dehner, Vic Perrin, Hans Conried, Marvin Miller, Parley Baer, Elliot Lewis, Jeff Corey, Virginia Gregg, and Lurene Tuttle. Modern entertainment lent some of its best talent as well, including Tom Bosley, Marian Ross, Lloyd Bochner, Rick Jason, Frank Campanella, Toni Tennille, Arthur Hill, and Jesse White.
 
Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3 contains 20 Stereo episodes featuring legendary talent alongside up and coming stars of the early 1980s. Combined with the stellar writing talents of such greats as Arch Oboler, Mutual Radio Theater, Volume 3 is a must have for any Radio enthusiast! $59.98 Audio CDs/$29.99 Download. For the next two weeks, Save $20.00 on the Audio CD version.  Introductory Priced at only $39.98!
 

 

“A modern day soldier of fortune finds mystery and intrigue in lands strange and romantic on Dangerous Assignment!”
 
This ad copy for NBC’s globe hopping adventure of intrigue and espionage captured the essence of Dangerous Assignment perfectly. Each week, Steve Mitchell was summoned to the office of the unnamed agency he worked for by his superior, the Commissioner. There, details of a plot that normally meant harm and death might come to the United States were revealed and Steve would be off on another action packed trip to uncover the plot, rout out the villains, and keep America safe for another week.
 
Dangerous Assignment is an excellent example of pulpy Post World War II action, especially with its focus on Mitchell. Played by Brian Donlevy in a two fisted, head on style, Mitchell is the sort of hero America looked for in entertainment in the 1950s. Devoutly patriotic, ready to defend the United States at the drop of a hat, and prepared to stand against any menace, mostly foreign, that might endanger the lives of honest Americans. Definitely not the only character to rise out of the paranoia and concern of Americans about Communists and other foreign threats throughout the 1950s, Steve Mitchell is wonderfully conceived in that mold and played to the hilt by Donlevy.
 
Dangerous Assignment, Volume 2 from Radio Archives features episodes of this classic series restored to sparkling audio quality and full of intrigue, suspense, and humor, making every episode a fun listen for any fan! Ten hours, twenty shows of great fun. $29.98 Audio CDs/$14.99 Download.

 
Because of your great response, Digital Downloads of any of our Old Time Radio sets will be priced at 50% off the regular Audio CD price through the end of the year. You get the same sparkling high quality audio content as our compact disc collections at a reduced price, Delivery immediately upon payment, and the ability to play them on your phone, computer, or portable device! Purchase the audio collections you love and enjoy them in a whole new way!
 

 

 
Read by Michael C. Gwynne
 

Ever since Sax Rohmer conceived Dr. Fu Manchu, thriller writers have attempted to emulate his sinister appeal. No class of authors vied to out-villain Rohmer more than the pulp writers of the 1930s. The very best of these imitations was the work of top pulpateer Donald E. Keyhoe, later to make headlines as the retired Air Force officer who claimed that flying saucers were real.
 
Dr. Yen Sin lasted only three issues in 1936, but Keyhoe’s short-lived trilogy was a memorable attempt to give the “Yellow Peril” theme a mature and suspenseful treatment. The premise is a familiar one—a sinister Chinese super-scientist out to conquer the world. Pitted against him is the Q-Group, headed by State Department operative Michael Traile, who because of a childhood accident cannot sleep. Instead, he employs Yoga as a substitute. Under Traile are a host of secret agents, chief of whom is Eric Gordon of the F. B. I., who reports personally to Director John Glover—actually J. Edgar Hoover. Adding a dash of feminine mystique is Sin’s mysterious cohort, Sonya Damatri, while Eric Gordon’s girlfriend, Iris Vaughan, furnishes the series’ love interest.
 
Beginning with The Mystery of The Dragon’s Shadow and continuing through The Mystery of the Golden Skull and The Mystery of the Singing Mummies, the running battle between Dr. Yen Sin and his sleepless nemesis is a riveting roller-coaster ride of exotic torture, diabolic doom devices and sudden death that rages from Washington, D. C. to San Francisco! One wishes that Popular Publications had seen fit to publish the promised fourth installment, The Mystery of the Faceless Men…This series was that good!
 
Here is the suspenseful first encounter between Dr. Sin and the forces dedicated to destroying his Invisible Empire. The Mystery of the Dragon’s Shadow is read with appropriate gravity by Michael C. Gwynne. Also included are a trio of Chinatown tales by Frank Gruber, Arden X. Pangborn and radio’s famed Arch Obler. Six exciting hours. $23.98 Audio CDs/$11.99 Download.
 
Introducing our newest Audiobook Reader: Michael C. Gwynne
 

Click to Listen to the extended podcast of this interview.
 
Will Murray’s Pulp Classics Line of Audiobooks continue to thrill and excite listeners, due in great part to the fantastic voices bringing these treasures of the past to life for modern fans. In a continuing effort to provide the best in Audiobook entertainment, Radio Archives has added not just another Audiobook reader to the already sterling lineup, but a performer with background in Radio, Television, and Films, and with such a distinctive, vibrant sound all his own that he can only be called ‘The Voice’.
 
Michael C. Gwynne, although new to Radio Archives, is in no way new to Radio. From his early childhood of listening to classic radio programs while waiting for his father, Big Band leader Frankie Kaye, to come home from work late at night, Gwynne discovered an interest very early on in what he heard. “I grew up with a lot of music around the house and a lot of uncles who weren’t really uncles sleeping over on couches and spare beds and lots of laughter well into the early morning hours. My first babysitter was a golden dialed radio that sat in the corner of my little room where my brother and I slept and it was telling stories and singing songs and I thought that’s what the rest of the world was doing.”
 
Determining that he wanted to be a part of what was coming out of radios all over the country, Gwynne set off at a very early age to do just that. “I realized I really loved the magic of radio and it had been my first babysitter, the golden dial that told me stories and scared me to death in the middle of the night and then sang songs. And so I thought wouldn’t that be interesting as a job. This would be in the late 50’s and I started listening to a lot of people on the radio and they were seeming to have a wonderful time playing that Top 40 brand new Rock and Roll Music. By the end of the ninth grade when the school promised to pass me only if I went to another school in the tenth grade, I took my mother’s typewriter into the basement. I wrote some letters to a few radio stations and asked them if there was any jobs to be had and one of them responded rather positively, if I would send an audition tape. I had no idea what that was, we didn’t have a tape recorder in those days…Then I thought, you know what, this is not going to work. I hitchhiked to this little radio station which by then we had moved to Toronto, so it was in a suburb of the big city and showed up on a Saturday afternoon. I just showed up… And I got the job. So radio went from one thing to another…Radio I realized combined two of my favorite passions – radio and traveling. I had a road itch.” Following his passions, Michael found himself in Berkley California, then Natchez, Mississippi and Mobile, Alabama and Monterey, California and Honolulu, Hawaii, as well as more radio jobs that eventually landed him in San Francisco in 1966.
 
Although his avenue into entertainment, Radio would not hold Michael C. Gwynne forever. An interest in acting as well as quite a bit of providence led him into a career full of roles in Television and film as well as interactions and friendship with noted Hollywood actors, such as Robert Mitchum. “I had to try my hand at acting. I had no experience, but like any other thing I’ve done, I had to try it for myself to see if I could do it. So I arranged for the radio station in San Francisco to switch me to their sister station in Manhattan, WWRL, where I did the all night show and studied acting with Stella Adler during the day. All that seemed to be for naught, it was too much like school…but finally I realized just like anything else I had to try it, so quite coincidentally a letter came from a friend I knew in San Francisco who said he was now living in Hollywood and that’s where the actors were and I should come out.”
 
After a coincidental meeting with Jerrold Freeman, a Producer at Universal, at a 1969 New Years Eve Party, Gwynne found himself with an acting job two weeks later. “I immediately went right into the business, I mean I know it sounds like the classic Hollywood story, but it’s what happened to me. One thing led to another…I didn’t even have an agent, it was only later when I met this young kid named Spielberg and Jerry Freeman also got him on at Universal, I did Spielberg’s first three TV shows.”
 
With roles in TV shows such as Kojak and MacGyver, as well as parts in movies like Sunset with James Garner and Bruce Willis and Private Parts, the Howard Stern movie, Gwynne still did not wander far from a particular interest he had in his youth – Pulps. “I started collecting Weird Tales when I was like fifteen years old. I used to go to every old book store I would see in any town I was in and ask them if they had any Weird Tales. And sometimes mostly they would laugh and say that was a Pulp twenty years ago, they’re not gonna be around anymore, but every now and again one guy would smile and disappear for a minute or two and bring one or two of them from the basement somewhere and I would spend like a dollar apiece for them and keep them, so I’ve amassed quite a collection.”
 
Of the title character of his debut audiobook in the Will Murray’s Pulp Classics line, Gwynne particularly enjoys not only the sheer over the top deviltry of Dr. Yen Sin, but also the fact that this villain has a truly formidable hero to spar with. “First of all, let’s look at this man’s name. Dr. Yen Sin. We all know what yen means and we all know what sin means, that’s how evil this guy is. He enjoys his evil. He’s got a yen for the sin. It’s rooted in a more interesting and singularly recurrent foe, the figure of Michael Traile, the man who could not sleep, the man who never slept. This is a man with almost equal power. Michael Traile began to intrigue me, a story about a young man in India who had a botched operation for a brain aneurism and found that the sleep aspect of the brain was interfered with and now he could no longer sleep. And he had to be taught how to take yoga relaxation exercises in order to keep him from just exploding. His mind couldn’t stop working and how even as a young man they had to constantly give him puzzles to solve, things to read, languages to learn. By the time he was fifteen he was speaking twelve different languages. He had grasped the deepest philosophies of the Orient and had gone on to become a bit of a scholar before he reached his twenties. So now Dr. Yen Sin has a formidable foe.”
 
Michael is clearly having fun with the tales he’s now telling for Will Murray’s Pulp Classics and feels like listeners and fans will as well. “Possibly, it has such a, there’s a quality to them. As soon as I started reading them aloud, I realized, whoa I can have some fun here, I’m not just delivering information. Most read material is delivering information. Pulps employed words of color, even exaggerated color. People thrummed when they talked, things bolted across the room, lightning flashed with a brilliant scientific blur across this room and several people were so satanic and their eyes glistened…As I’m reading them, I’m thinking, My God, I bet the police are going to be here any minute. They’re so big and wonderful and grand and glorious.”
 
Listen to Michael C. Gwynne as he brings Dr. Yen Sin #1 to life for Will Murray’s Pulp Classics from Radio Archives.

 

FREE Spider eBook!

 
Receive an exciting original Spider adventure for FREE! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers.
 
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps, this is a perfect opportunity to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
 
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you get a copy of this classic.
 

See what the Total Pulp Experience is for yourself. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
 
Send an eMail to eBooks@RadioArchives.com and start reading your FREE copy of  the Spider #11 within seconds! Experience The Best Pulps the Past has to offer in the most modern way possible!

 

 

The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge eBooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your eReader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator #5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like the Octopus and more, Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!

 

Cholera! Like Death’s own handmaiden, it was reaping a grim harvest. Corpses piled high in the streets of New York. Innocent men, women and children died faster than their wasted bodies could be cremated. Pestilence reached fatal fingers into every home; terror haunted every breast… Richard Wentworth — whom the Underworld knows and fears as the Spider — realized that a new criminal maniac, keen-witted and ruthless, had loosed the devastating disease to further his own mad ambitions. And the Spider, hampered as ever by the Law, hunted tirelessly by the vengeful lawless, accepts a challenge to the strangest duel in the world, in which the prize he strives to win seems to be disgrace and death! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
 
A depraved Oriental monster had planned the wholesale abductions. White slavery — the horrible traffic in women’s bodies and souls — was stripping America of women. Hunted avidly by the Dragon’s loathsome followers, they vanished, never to return, doomed at best to a vile life in the ghastly harems of the East… Richard Wentworth — whose adventures as the Spider have made him famous throughout the world — was the only hope of salvation for American womanhood. Pursued by G-men, with his beloved Nita captured by the Dragon, Richard Wentworth must battle on, when all others have gone down in shameful defeat! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 

At the heart of a vast international spy ring sat a devilishly cunning Master of Intrigue, spinning a plot intended to render the United States helpless against every foreign onslaught. Wealth, power and brains he had recruited to his organization; evil, destruction and death were the weapons with which he plied his diabolical game: the disarming of the greatest nation in the world! Against this terrible combination, against this hellish overlord, Operator 5 pitted his own brains and strength in a counter-struggle which placed Jimmy Christopher and his beloved Diane in the very jaws of Death! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 
Terror Tales Arthur Leo Zagat, Book 1

In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a collection of stories from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, all written by Arthur Leo Zagat, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.

 

In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a collection of stories from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, all written by Ray Cummings, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.

 

All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available in the Kindle store and the Barnes and Noble Nook store! and RadioArchives.com!

 
 
Radio Archives is very proud to announce that we have Upgraded all of our Pulp eBooks, and you can upgrade the eBooks you have purchased from Radio Archives for FREE.
 
We have upgraded the Will Murray’s Pulp Classics eBooks. We made the eBooks look better by polishing the formatting, making the graphics crisper, and a new Contents page when you open the book just like in a pulp magazine.
 
We made it easier to purchase by eliminating the zipfile. Buy a Will Murray’s Pulp Classic from your iPad or other mobile reading device, and be reading within seconds. There is no need for a desktop computer.
 
Customers who have purchased the previous eBooks can upgrade to the new versions at no additional cost. Send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com and we will send you instructions on how to upgrade.
 

 

 
 

The shattering sequel to Fortress of Solitude.
 
The Doc Savage exploit that went untold for 74 years—Death’s Dark Domain!
 
In the aftermath of the evil John Sunlight’s pillaging of the secret Fortress of Solitude, a dreadful super-weapon has fallen the hands of a Balkan dictator intent upon seizing control of the vampire-haunted zone of desolation known as Ultra-Stygia. War is imminent. Monsters are loose in the disputed region. A strange darkness falls over the sinister landscape. Only Doc Savage, the Man of Bronze, understands the terrible threat to humanity. And only he can prevent the terror from spreading…
 
There are unknown Things prowling the darkest patch of land on the planet. Haunted by creatures that might have emerged from the Hell’s lowest regions, ancient Ultra-Stygia has turned into a cauldron of conflict between rival countries. Monster bats careen through the night sky. Invisible Cyclopes patrol the scorched battleground. And a power beyond understanding robs men of their vision.
 
Can the 20th century’s premier scientist and superman untangle this Gordian knot of carnage before neighboring nations are drawn into an apocalyptic new world war? Or will the Man of Bronze succumb to an unstoppable power he himself has unleashed upon mankind?
 
From the frozen Arctic to the war-torn Balkans, Doc Savage and his fighting five follow a winding trail of terror to a blood-freezing climax.

 
Death’s Dark Domain features a fantastic cover painted by Joe DeVito! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.

 

 
 

Back in print after 20 years! The rare Lester Dent-Will Murray collaboration resurrecting the original pulp superman…

 
Also available is the first Altus Press edition of Will Murray’s 1993 Doc Savage adventure, The Forgotten Realm. Deep in the heart of the African Congo lies a secret unsuspected for thousands of years. Doc Savage and his men embark on a quest to discover the secret of the strange individual known only as X Man, X for unknown. Before they come to the end of the trail, they find themselves fighting for their lives like gladiators of old!
 
No one knows who—or what—the strange being who calls himself “X Man” truly is. He was found wandering the ruins of a crumbling Roman fort, dressed in a toga, speaking classical Latin—and clutching a handful of unearthly black seeds.
 
Declared insane, the X Man patiently tends his weird plants until the day, impelled by a nameless terror, he flees Wyndmoor Asylum to unleash a cyclone of violence that is destined to suck the mighty Man of Bronze into the blackest, most unbelievable mystery of his entire career. For far from Scotland lies a domain of death unknown to the world and called by the ancient Latin name of Novum Eboracum—New York!
 
From the wild Scottish moors to the unexplored heart of darkest Africa, Doc Savage and his indomitable men embarked upon a desperate quest for the Forgotten Realm….
 

The Forgotten Realm features a spectacular cover painted by Joe DeVito! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.

 

Eerie Halloween Special
The Master of Darkness investigates baffling mysteries in two classic pulp novels by Walter B. Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, a deadly outbreak of “Gypsy Vengeance” pittin gclan against clan can only be ended by The Shadow’s justice! Then, the Knight of Darkness must pierce the mystery behind a silver veil to end the murderous crimewave commanded by “The Veiled Prophet.” BONUS: legendary sleuth Nick Carter investigates murder on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This instant collector’s item showcases the original pulp covers by George Rozen and Graves Gladney plus the classic interior illustrations by Tom Lovell and Edd Cartier, with historical commentary by Anthony Tollin and Will Murray. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

Expanded Manuscript Edition Plus Supersnipe!
The pulp era’s greatest superhero returns in two incredible tales by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc, Monk and Ham journey to the Indo-China jungles to solve the strange enigma of “The Flaming Falcons” in a novel expanded from Lester Dent’s original 1939 manuscript. Then, what is the bizarre connection between “The Two-Wise Owl” and the murder of Ham Brooks’ brother? BONUS: Supersnipe, “the boy with the most comic books in America,” gets imto mischief on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This double-novel collector’s edition features both original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

Expanded Manuscript Edition Plus Supersnipe!
The pulp era’s greatest superhero returns in two incredible tales by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc, Monk and Ham journey to the Indo-China jungles to solve the strange enigma of “The Flaming Falcons” in a novel expanded from Lester Dent’s original 1939 manuscript. Then, what is the bizarre connection between “The Two-Wise Owl” and the murder of Ham Brooks’ brother? BONUS: Supersnipe, “the boy with the most comic books in America,” gets imto mischief on the set of a Shadow movie in a classic story from the Golden Age of Comics! This double-novel collector’s edition features both original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Buy it today for $14.95.

 

One of the top crime-fighters from the golden age of pulp fiction, The Spider returns in two thrill-packed adventures written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “Laboratory Of The Damned” (1936), Poisoned! Struck down by a deadly assault from a mad murderer, the Spider finds his friend Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner of Police, doomed to a stupor of living death. Nor is he the only victim… also stricken with the dread malady is Richard Wentworth’s fiancee, Nita van Sloan! The Spider battles both the Law and the Underworld to survive! Then, in “Hell’s Sales Manager” (1940), The Brand wields a weird new weapon that sucks everything in its path into a vortex of destruction! How can even the Master of Men fight an enemy that seems to simply vanish? While this reign of terror goes unchecked, the Spider finds his every effort hampered by a human bloodhound assigned to track down and eliminate him. These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 

 

By Dr. Art Sippo

 

A man is rescued from Long Island Sound by life guards and then tries wildly to escape. But he is eventually caught by a crowd of ruffians who burn his mouth with acid and cut the tendons in his hands as a warning to a woman called Diamond Eve Post to stay away from Taz. The mutilated man makes his way instead to Doc Savage’s headquarters. Unable to speak or write he attempted to communicate with the bronze man by dipping his foot in ink and writing on the carpet. But he dies before he can complete the message. Meanwhile Diamond Eve Post arrived to enlist Doc’s aid in the matter of Taz when the 86th floor headquarters is stormed by the villainous Captain Flamingo and his crew.
 
Eventually, Doc and his men are taken prisoner and secretly taken out to sea on a ship headed to the Caribbean. They escape, to find themselves abandoned on the ship in the middle of the ocean with no one else on board. After several hours, men arise from the sea wearing no special diving equipment though they obviously have been underwater working for a long time. How can this be?
 
Doc Savage and his intrepid crew have come in between two warring factions both vying to control the secrets of Taz which is hidden deep underneath the sea. What is Taz? What is the mystery under the sea that is worth killing for? Can Doc trust Diamond Eve Post? Or are all hands turned against him and his men.
 
The Mystery Under the Sea is a tale of high adventure and ancient mystery. Doc Savage will confront a secret form the forgotten past of mankind: a secret that is worth billions to whomever controls it. But can even he defeat an enemy armed with the power of Taz? Don’t miss this exciting saga! Only $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 

Comments From Our Customers!
 
Pat writes from New Zealand:
I love that all this is being done! A wonderful idea indeed. Keep up the good work.
 
Somehow though, I can’t seem to find an easy way to select an audio book by the reader. I am hoping that you have a heap being read by ‘The Voice’ Michael Gwynne (and others of course). If the readers were listed and that list would pop up for me ….or offer any OTHER way of spotting and selecting them easily, I would be in seventh heaven.

 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 

The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

MOONSTONE BOOKS FOR JANUARY

Moonstone Books has released their solicitation information for their pulp titles appearing in bookstores and comic book shops in January 2013.

cover art: Valarie Jones

KOLCHAK AND DR. MOREAU
Written by Mike Kelly, Mark Grammel, cover by Valarie Jones.
The title says it all as Kolchak finds himself surrounded by creepy parts and pieces of science gone wrong! Is this what it seems like? Could it be reality, when it really started as fantasy from the past?
60 pages, black and white, $5.99.

cover art: Douglas Klauba

KOLCHAK: THE LOST WORLD BONUS EDITION
Written by C.J. Henderson, cover by Douglas Klauba.
Due to the almost instant sell out of the first printing of this novel, Moonstone offers this new second edition with a bonus never-before-seen Kolchak story! After getting a serial killer to confess, Kolchak is offered an international assignment with massive coverage around the world. With fame and fortune finally within his reach, Kolchak is ready to cover the story, when he’s confronted by a mysterious monk who warns him that “the seventy-two must always be.” Kolchak’s dreams are then invaded by unexplainable images that let him know every step he takes is bringing him closer to death.
134 pages, $5.99.

cover art: Dan Brereton

PULP HEROES VS MONSTERS BODY BAG
Written by Nancy Holder, Martin Powell, Mike Bullock, Aaron Shaps, and Bobby Nash, art by Jay Piscopo, Rock Baker, Jeff Austin, Eric Johns, and Andrew Froedge, cover by Dan Brereton.
Each pack contains one each of the 40-page comics, originally priced at a cumulative $15.96.: “The Spider vs the Werewolf”, “Domino Lady vs The Mummy”. “The Phantom Detective vs Frankenstein”, and “The Black Bat vs Dracula”.
160 pages, $11.99.

Pulp Hero Vs. Monster solicits.

Learn more about Moonstone Books here.

PULP SUNDAY TURNS 5!

Here at All Pulp are happy to celebrate the 5th Anniversary of our favorite pulp place: PULP SUNDAY! On August 26, 2007, New Pulp Artist Francesco Francavilla started Pulp Sunday with a series of Old Radio shows of The Shadow and The Spider accompanied by lobby cards and spot illustrations Francavilla drew specifically for each episode. “Little did I know back then that The Shadow and The Spider would eventually come back in comics 5 years later and that I would be providing the covers for them,” Francavilla said on his site.

Over the course of five years, Francesco has also introduced a new pulp hero on Pulp Sunday, The Black Beetle.

Read more about Pulp Sunday’s Anniversary as well as Francesco Francavilla’s upcoming plans at http://pulpsunday.blogspot.com.

PULPFEST PLANS FOR 2013

Even though the 2013 PulpFest convention, held July 25 – 28, 2013 in Columbus, Ohio, is still ten months away, the convention organizers have shared some of their plans for the event. First up, the convention plans to celebrate the hero pulp revolution, which began 80 years ago in 1933, with the debuts of such popular figures as Doc Savage, The Spider, Nick Carter, Pete Rice, The Lone Eagle, The Phantom Detective, and G-8 and His Battle Aces. 2013 is also the centennial of Sax Rohmer’s Dr. Fu Manchu, who made his American debut in a February 1913 issue of Collier’s Magazine.

For more information on PulpFest 2013, visit them at http://www.pulpfest.com.

DANGEROUS ASSIGNMENT, THE OCTOPUS, CAPTAIN FUTURE, AND MORE! FROM RADIO ARCHIVES!

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

 
September 21, 2012
 
 

“A modern day soldier of fortune finds mystery and intrigue in lands strange and romantic on Dangerous Assignment!”
 
This ad copy for NBC’s globe hopping adventure of intrigue and espionage captured the essence of Dangerous Assignment perfectly. Each week, Steve Mitchell was summoned to the office of the unnamed agency he worked for by his superior, the Commissioner. There, details of a plot that normally meant harm and death might come to the United States were revealed and Steve would be off on another action packed trip to uncover the plot, rout out the villains, and keep America safe for another week.
 
Dangerous Assignment is an excellent example of pulpy Post World War II action, especially with its focus on Mitchell. Played by Brian Donlevy in a two fisted, head on style, Mitchell is the sort of hero America looked for in entertainment in the 1950s. Devoutly patriotic, ready to defend the United States at the drop of a hat, and prepared to stand against any menace, mostly foreign, that might endanger the lives of honest Americans. Definitely not the only character to rise out of the paranoia and concern of Americans about Communists and other foreign threats throughout the 1950s, Steve Mitchell is wonderfully conceived in that mold and played to the hilt by Donlevy.
 
Dangerous Assignment, Volume 2 from Radio Archives features episodes of this classic series restored to sparkling audio quality and full of intrigue, suspense, and humor, making every episode a fun listen for any fan! Ten hours, twenty shows of great fun. $29.98 Audio CDs/$14.99 Download.

 
Because of your great response, Digital Downloads of any of our Old Time Radio sets will be priced at 50% off the regular Audio CD price through the end of the year. You get the same sparkling high quality audio content as our compact disc collections at a reduced price, Delivery immediately upon payment, and the ability to play them on your phone, computer, or portable device! Purchase the audio collections you love and enjoy them in a whole new way!
 

Rapid Fire Radio
A Column by Tommy Hancock
 

Reviews!
Crime Club – Anthology series were a staple in the bygone era of Radio Drama and one of the best examples of that type focused on mystery and suspense was Crime Club. The Crime Club collection from Radio Archives spotlights episodes from the show’s second incarnation, hosted by the rather mysterious Librarian. Listeners thrilled each week to criminals’ vile deeds, dashing detectives’ derring do, and enough mystery to fill a paddy wagon. Based on stories from the Crime Club imprint from Doubleday books, Crime Club is not only a great set of exciting mysteries, but also shows just how well good books are when adapted into great audio! Join the Crime Club yourself today.  $29.98 Audio CDs.

 
Cocoanut Grove Ambassadors, Volume 1 – Back in the 1930s, there was no music like Big Band and there was no better place to hear it than the Cocoanut Grove in Hollywood. The Cocoanut Grove Ambassadors, Volume 1 set features the hottest horns, the best beats, and the finest music of the Big Band Era in the place that anyone who wanted to be anybody went to hear bands led by greats like Phil Harris. This is a stunning bit of time travel, taking the listener back to an era when people spun around on the dance floor and the only kind of band was big! Also, these rare recordings are presented in this collection in stunning audio quality, giving you the feeling that the band is really just across the room. Enjoy a night out in 1930s Hollywood with The Cocoanut Ambassadors, Volume 1 from Radio Archives! $29.98 Audio CDs/$14.99 Download.
 

Have Gun Will Travel, Volume 1 – “Have Gun, Will Travel Reads the Card of a Man…” This line opens one of the most popular television westerns of all time, featuring the character of Paladin, a man for hire in the Old West. Have Gun, Will Travel Volume 1 from Radio Archives features classic episodes from the radio version of the series, which started after the Television show began. Radio’s Paladin was a bit more sophisticated and gentleman like than the TV version, thanks in large part to actor John Dehner, but the essence of the character was maintained. Paladin was a dangerous man to be on the wrong side of and Dehner blends that restrained ferocity with genteel trappings extremely well. If you want a dose of fun western action, then get Have Gun Will Travel, Volume 1. $29.98 Audio CDs/$14.99 Download.
 
Of the many detectives that fill pages and thrill OTR listeners, none of them are more unique than Nero Wolfe. Don’t believe me? Listen to The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe collection. Featuring the incredible Sidney Greenstreet as the title character, a role I think he was born to play, this program took the quirky brownstone bound detective and turned a spotlight on him that brought him to cranky, brilliant life. Granted, Wolfe ventured out into the wilds of fresh air more frequently in this show than he did in Rex Stout’s novels and the program went through a variety of actors in search of the right Archie Goodwin, but it’s the character of Wolfe that makes this show stand out as a classic. Set in his ways, curmudgeonly and spoiled, yet a ‘chair bound genius’. That makes great radio. Find out by getting The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe. $29.98 Audio CDs/$14.99 Download.
 

 
Read by Joey d’Auria
 

The origin of Captain Future is the stuff of Science Fiction legend.
 
Thrilling Publications editor-in-chief Leo Margulies and his main SF man, Mort Weisinger, attended the first World Science Fiction Convention in New York back in 1939. Impressed, Margulies blurted out, “I didn’t think you fans could be so damn sincere!” Huddling, they concocted Captain Future on the spot.
 
That was the legend. In reality, Margulies and Weisinger had been brainstorming the concept for many months. Conceived as a Doc Savage of the future, Curt Newton was at first called Mr. Future. After the death of his parents, Newton was raised by a trio of surrogate parents—Grag the robot, Otho the android and Simon Wright, a scientist whose brain was kept alive after his body failed. These three reared up Curt in a secret laboratory on the Moon. His mission: to protect planetary peace.
 
Weisinger turned to the most popular SF writer of his generation, Edmond Hamilton, whose well-received novel starring The Three Planeteers had kicked off the first issue of Startling Stories months before. Known as “The World-Wrecker,” for his audacious star-spanning Space Opera yarns, Hamilton reimagined the new hero as Captain Future, basing the series on The Three Planeteers. The action was set in the far future—the 1990s!
 
Given his own magazine, the Ace of Space debuted in Captain Future and the Space Emperor, a rollicking romp that raced from the Moon to Jupiter. Backed up by his trusty proton pistol and his three nonhuman aides, Captain Future patrolled the known planets in the Comet, a supercool spaceship that camouflaged itself as a fiery comet.
 
The exploits of Captain Future thrilled readers from 1940 to 1951, and later became an internationally syndicated Japanese animated TV show. Here is his debut story, narrated in true retro-heterodyne style by Joey d’Auria. $23.98 Audio CDs/$11.99 Download.
 
 

By Derrick Ferguson

 
Most of our heroes in the pulp entertainment we all love and enjoy so well generally make do with two identities. There’s the civilian identity they use to interact with the regular folks during the daytime. And there’s the masked avenger, complete with mask, cape, slouch hat and blazing automatics they are at night. That’s usually more than enough for them to get by and do their job. Not so for Jeffrey Fairchild. He’s got not one but two alter-egos he needs to get his job done. As Jeffrey Fairchild he’s the administrator of a state-of-the-art hospital he built with the fortune left him by his father, a world famous physician. But he’s also kindly Dr. Skull, the elderly East Side practitioner who works the slums to heal the sick. And when some serious medicine has to be dished out he’s also The Skull Killer, a phantom that hunts New York underworld crusading against crime and criminals.
 
And he needs an extra identity to confront The Octopus, a truly bizarre super criminal who unleashes a hideous plague that turns ordinary men and women into horribly disgusting creatures that look like the grandchildren of Cthulhu.
 
Radio Archives has produced another nail-biting, action-packed audiobook in The Octopus: The City Condemned To Hell. It’s a bit more nightmarish in scope than other audiobooks I’ve heard from Radio Archives and that’s a testament to the always superb production values that assures listeners another suspenseful listening experience that picks you up and carries you along for a fun, if frightening ride. As usual, I intended to listen to just a few chapters at a time but that trick never works. I settled in and listened to the entire thing in one sitting and I can think of no higher compliment to pay to yet another excellent Radio Archives production.

 

FREE Spider eBook!

 

Receive an exciting original Spider adventure for FREE! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers.
 
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps, this is a perfect opportunity to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
 
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you get a copy of this classic.
 

See what the Total Pulp Experience is for yourself. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
 
Send an eMail to eBooks@RadioArchives.com and start reading your FREE copy of  the Spider #11 within seconds! Experience The Best Pulps the Past has to offer in the most modern way possible!

 

 

The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge eBooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your eReader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator #5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like the Octopus and more, Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!

 

The Spider heard the first dread rumors in the secret councils of the Underworld. A keen-witted, ambitious criminal leader named El Gaucho — backed by a powerful army of brutal killers — was pillaging the West. Looting, ravaging, slaughtering wantonly, the master-mind of crime was ruthlessly following a plan which would make him King of America! Richard Wentworth — the debonair aristocrat who is in truth the deadly Spider, protector of the oppressed — knew that he must strike quickly, or die! For Wentworth, ever running a double risk, forced now to sacrifice a brave, dear friend to ghastly torture, faced a grim, new danger in the bounty-hunters who wanted to collect El Gaucho’s reward — its own weight of the purest gold for the Spider’s head! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.

 

They came at night — the clouds of blood-thirsting, poisonous vampire bats — led by a strange man-thing who flew high in the black sky, directing their horrible slaughter. Blood was their desire, and they sucked it from the veins of helpless infants, from the white throats and breasts of frantic women, from the hands and faces of terrorized men. While the authorities doubted and dallied, one man — Richard Wentworth, that brilliant aristocrat who, as the dread Spider, strikes terror in the Underworld — realized that this was another of the devastating onslaughts of lawless genius. Never before was the Spider so badly handicapped. With his beloved Nita captive, his loyal servants out of the battle, himself unarmed and pursued by law and criminal, he must fight the greatest battle of his life when every chance seems lost and every hope is gone..! Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 

Out of the East, eight centuries ago, the first Mongol Horde rode forth under the mighty Genghis Khan, and became the first ‘yellow threat’ to the West. Now a new one has reared, to which that ancient invasion stands as a mere escapade. High-explosives! Deadly bacteria! Poison gases! Flaming thermite! The greatest cities in the West lying in smoking ruins; invaders gutting the very heart of our nation! How can Operator 5, betrayed, condemned, hunted by his own countrymen, fight both them and the enemy? How can he save, from a subjection more horrible than death, the beloved land of his birth? Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks.

 

Curt Newton, Joan Randall and the Futuremen cruise into a strange world peopled with weird, pallid inhabitants, on the quest of a lost satellite which was mysteriously plucked from the sky!… the Ace of Space! Born and raised on the moon, Curt Newton survived the murder of his scientist parents to become the protector of the galaxy known as Captain Future. With his Futuremen, Grag the giant robot, Otho, the shape-shifting android and Simon Wright, the Living Brain, he patrols the solar system in the fastest space ship ever constructed, the Comet, pursuing human monsters and alien threats to Earth and her neighbor planets. The exploits of Captain Future, Wizard of Science, originally appeared in the pages of Captain Future and Startling Stories magazines back in the days before NASA’s manned space program. Captain Future returns in these vintage pulp tales, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format.

 

Out of the night as the city slept, hideously deformed monsters that once were men and women came crawling from their underground sanctuaries… And a panic-mad populace searched for Dr. Skull, condemned of bringing millions of innocent men, women and children to ghastly destruction! The Octopus — fiend of evil! He appeared once, in a single pulp magazine issue, and never appeared again. The magazine never made to a series, for some reason. It was over-the-top action and audacious weird-menace thrills.  A classic, the likes of which has never been seen again! One of the rare supernatural series the pulps, The Octopus returns in this vintage pulp tale, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.

 

All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available in the Kindle store and the Barnes and Noble Nook store! and RadioArchives.com!

 
 
Radio Archives is very proud to announce that we have Upgraded all of our Pulp eBooks, and you can upgrade the eBooks you have purchased from Radio Archives for FREE.
 
We have upgraded every one of the Will Murray’s Pulp Classics eBooks. We made the eBooks look better by polishing the formatting, making the graphics crisper, and a new Table of Contents when you open the book just like in a pulp magazine. As part of the upgrade every eBook has been proof-read several times so you can enjoy these wonderful pulp stories as they were written.
 
We made it easier to purchase by eliminating the zipfile. Buy a Will Murray’s Pulp Classic from your iPad or other mobile reading device, and be reading within seconds. There is no need for a desktop computer.
 
When you see the Radio Archives brand on a product, you can be assured of its excellence.
 
Customers who have purchased the previous eBooks can upgrade to the new versions at no additional cost. Send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com and we will send the instructions on how to upgrade.
 

 

 

The Master of Darkness investigates baffling mysteries in two classic pulp novels by Walter B. Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, The Shadow must unravel the baffling mystery of “The Ribbon Clues” to stop a serial killer and unearth hidden millions! Then, to unmask a diabolical supercrook, The Shadow follows a bizarre trail of murder that leads from San Francisco to Chicago and Manhattan as “Death Rides the Skyway” in an thrill-packed tale of industrial sabotage and deadly greed. This instant collector’s item showcases both classic pulp covers by George Rozen and the original interior illustrations by legendary artist Tom Lovell, with historical commentary by Will Murray. Buy it today for $14.95.
 

The pulp era’s greatest superman returns in two titanic tales by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, the unbelievable sight of “The Man Who Fell Up” sets Doc and Pat Savage on the trail of the Man of Bronze’s missing aides and a super-weapon that could change the course of World War II. Then, the FBI wrongly links Doc Savage and his aides to brutal outbreaks of mindless insanity! Can the Man of Bronze elude the G-Men long enough to solve the incredible mystery of “The Three Wild Men”? This double-novel collector’s edition features both original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Buy it today for $14.95.
 

One of the top crime-fighters from the golden age of pulp fiction, The Spider returns in two thrill-packed adventures written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “Laboratory Of The Damned” (1936), Poisoned! Struck down by a deadly assault from a mad murderer, the Spider finds his friend Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner of Police, doomed to a stupor of living death. Nor is he the only victim… also stricken with the dread malady is Richard Wentworth’s fiancee, Nita van Sloan! The Spider battles both the Law and the Underworld to survive! Then, in “Hell’s Sales Manager” (1940), The Brand wields a weird new weapon that sucks everything in its path into a vortex of destruction! How can even the Master of Men fight an enemy that seems to simply vanish? While this reign of terror goes unchecked, the Spider finds his every effort hampered by a human bloodhound assigned to track down and eliminate him. These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 

Altus Press is proud to announce the release of the third volume in its acclaimed Wild Adventures of Doc Savage series, written by Will Murray and Lester Dent, writing as Kenneth Robeson.
 
Set in the Fall of 1936, The Infernal Buddha tells the epic story of Doc Savage’s desperate quest to control the Buddha of Ice, a relic of unknown origin—and what may become the most dangerous object on Earth!
 
When a mummy arrives at Doc Savage’s New York headquarters wearing the clothes of his missing assistant, engineer Renny Renwick, Doc, Monk, and Ham rush to Singapore where they get on the trail of a swashbuckling pirate who calls himself the Scourge of the South China Sea, in whose hands a piece of the infernal Buddha has fallen. The trail leads to Pirate Island, the fate of Renny, and a mysterious box containing a terrible, unstoppable power.
 
But that is only the beginning of the quest into which the Man of Bronze plunges—one that will take him to the upper reaches of the Yellow Sea and a series a wild ocean battles against the vicious factions fighting for control on the infernal Buddha.
 
Before it is all over, every human life on Earth will tremble on the brink of eternity, and Doc Savage will face his greatest test.
 
“This may be my wildest Doc novel to date,” says author Will Murray. “The Infernal Buddha is a fantasy epic full of corsairs, criminals and other culprits. The menace is planetary. The threat, extinction. Doc Savage has a reputation for saving the world. This time he does it on the greatest scale possible. I began this book back in 1992, working from an opening situation Lester Dent started in 1935. Together, we have produced a true Doc Savage epic. And it only took about 75 years….”
 
The Infernal Buddha features a startling cover painted by Joe DeVito, depicting Doc Savage as the Buccaneer of Bronze! This cover was painted from a still taken in 1964 of legendary model Steve Holland, and is a variant pose shot for famed illustrator James Bama’s classic cover to The Man of Bronze. There has never been a Doc cover like it! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.
 
 

By John Olsen

 
The identity of the sinister figure known as “Death’s Harlequin” is a mystery. He’s a strange, costumed superspy who is working to cripple America!
 
What we know of this sinister figure is strange, to say the least. He is only known by the name “Number One.” He dresses in a Harlequin’s costume, a shapeless black satin smock with wide white ruffles at the neck and huge white ornamental buttons. But his face… his face is horrible. It’s the face of a dead man; a living corpse in the costume of a Harlequin!
 
Number One is working to destroy America’s ability to enter the war; all this under the direction of a warlike foreign dictator. And The Shadow must stop him, free the innocent blackmail victims from their evil grasp, and reveal the hidden identity of the head of the spy ring. Whew! The Shadow’s going to be one busy hero!
 
This story was written by Theodore Tinsley, not Walter Gibson. Tinsley was faithful to Gibson’s writing style. He is known, however, for a bit more sex and violence than is Gibson. And in this story, that reputation is well-deserved.
 
Tinsley’s villain is a true sadist. A shrill giggle from his thin lips shows that he enjoys the torture and death. He’s depicted as a real degenerate. Tinsley’s graphic descriptions of sadistic torture and murder exceed what Gibson ever did.
 
Number One only employs women. Five women. When one is eliminated for whatever reason, she is replaced with a new recruit. All five are dressed identically in a white silk swimsuit, a rubber bathing cap and a slitted white mask. None can identify any of the others, even when all five meet together in the secret headquarters below Madame Alyce’s beauty establishment.
 
The sinister Number One carries a unique weapon. It looks like a wide-muzzled tear-gas pistol. Instead of a bullet, it spits out a quick puff of brownish vapor in a tiny dark cloud that surrounds its victim, meaning instant death.
 
A final note is regarding a strange metal in Number One’s underground lair. It’s a queer shiny alloy that’s used to panel the secret rooms and jail cells. This unknown alloy of grayish steel has the unique property of being able to disappear. Number One can spy on the prisoners in his jail cells.
 
So, for a great spy novel, with trap-doors, underground tunnels, hidden rooms, secret headquarters and all the usual Shadow twists and turns, this one can’t be beat!
 
Get this tale and another classic Shadow novel in The Shadow, Volume 19 for $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 

Comments From Our Customers!
 
Christopher Southworth writes:

Thanks in advance for performing the upgrade – nothing is more frustrating to me than settling in to read a book which hasn’t been formatted correctly or contains typos. I’m very curious to see the letter columns to get the feel for how the novels were received at the time of initial publishing.
 
Kent Hare writes:
Let me commend you on making the backup features and columns available. That’s an area of the old pulps that I’ve always been interested in but not really been able to check out for myself other than very occasional reprints.
 
Ian Douglas writes:
I would certainly like to have my previously ordered ebooks from RadioArchive upgraded. Thank you for the offer; and keep up the great work.
 
Charles R.L. Power writes:
Please send the upgrade instructions, thanks. I thought your books were remarkably well formatted already, particularly in comparison with some other distributors who don’t seem to understand the ebook formats at all. But I don’t object to improvements on excellent.
 
Jeff Thomason writes:
I just received the email newsletter telling me about upgraded eBooks. I’m very excited about this. How do I download the updated versions?
 
Robert Craig writes:
I love the the concept of the Total Pulp Reprint Experience! I’m going to love all of the extra goodies now included with each ebook. As a regular purchaser of your ebooks (I’ve bought each and everyone that you’ve produced!), I’m thrilled by the upgrade, and I’m looking forward to re-downloading my collection. Well worth the wee bit of extra effort on my part…thanks for doing the heavy lifting on your end! I chatted with Will Murray at PulpFest last month…and he said that I would be thrilled with what was to come from Radio Archives. He was right! Thanks again for the great packaging of these digital pulp treasures.
 
* * *
We received quite a few comments about the FREE Spider eBook. A few are listed below.

 
Thanks so much for this offer. I’ve purchased radio show CDs from you in the past, but this will be a good opportunity to sample your eBook wares.
 
Thanks for the chance to see what these pulp books are about…I have read your many reviews and I am curious…
 
Sounds great
 
Would like to take advantage of your generous offer of a sample free Spider ebook
 
This is both very generous and nice of Radio Archives to offer this free eBook (Spider). I’m a big fan of Doc Savage, yet have never read the Spider. I look forward to reading this.
 
I love the Spider, send me my free book
 
Please send me the free ebook. Looking forward to sampling and if I like it, I will buy more. Thank you.
 
I have over 45 volumes of your great Shadow, Avenger, The Whisperer novels. I would love a copy of The Spider in PC form.
 
I am willing to sample your eBook offerings (and have been curious about them for a while).
 
FREE?! You’re giving away something as awesome as a Spider pulp adventure for FREE? Well, you can’t pass up a deal like that! Please send! Thanks.
 
I’d like to try these new format eBooks. Can I please get a copy of Spider #11?

 
I’ve been a Murray fan since the Destroyer series FIRST came out, a pulp fan since early 70s, and I’ve read half dozen or so Spider novels. I am looking forward to sampling these stories!
 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 

The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

FULL MOON: PHASES OF THE MOON HARDCOVER COMING!

Cover: Andy Black

Moonstone Books has announced that the FULL MOON: Phases of the Moon HC is about 4 weeks away from release and fans of great comics can preorder it from their retailers still…

FULL MOON: Phases of the Moon

Story: Steven L Frank, Paul D. Storrie, CJ Henderson, Earl Mac Rauch
Art: Nathan Stockman, Glen Fernandez
Cover: Andy Black
78pgs, PC, $29.99

The only occasion this crazy time-travelling serial killer saga will appear all together in color!

What started with The Spider, Domino Lady, Honey West, Kolchak and others…ends here!

*Plus the unseen final chapter starring SHEENA!
*Plus a recently uncovered BUCKAROO BANZAI part of this tale!
*Plus a never before seen epilogue starring KOLCHAK, as years later he uncovers the even more startling truth behind the lies!

Moonstone is about to send out an amazing collection of pulp stories and the publisher had this to say about it: “This is Moonstone’s big team up adventure, but with our own spin on that kind of concept.”

First, there are 6 individual comic book short stories, each spotlighting one character with some have characters acting in unison as well.

These 6 stories are broken down into 3 different time eras:

Era: the 1930’s: The Spider & Domino Lady
Era: the early 70’s: Honey West and Kolchak
Era: current day: Sheena

After these 6 stories, come 2 prose stories, one featuring Buckaroo Banzai (written by Banzai’s creator Mac Rauch) and Kolchak.

The Kolchak prose story is the official story ender, as the final truths are revealed.
“Years after the fact, more startling revelations are uncovered by Kolchak, with a wild twist ending!”

Written by Kolchak scribe CJ Henderson!

The overall plot is about a serial killer… and that story flows through the three time periods mentioned.

Finally the publisher concludes my stating “We wanted a big team up story… without the story being too cosmic, because these characters are not all-powerful superheroes, but ones that really put it all on the line… WITHOUT powers.”

The idea for the project and the plot was created by Steven L Frank.

You can still order FULL MOON: PHASES OF THE MOON HC via your retailer and local comic shop:
JUNE DIAMOND PREVIEWS http://www.previewsworld.com/support/previews_docs/orderforms/JUn12_COF.txt
MOONSTONE
PAGE 312-313    
SPOT    JUN12 1198    FULL MOON PHASES O/T MOON HC (C: 0-1-0)    08/29/12    SRP: $29.99       
   
For more on Moonstone Books and its titles, past-present-future, please visit http://www.moonstonebooks.com

You can also directly buy via the Official Moonstone Shop.

Also be sure to “like” Moonstone on Facebook.

JOLSON, RAPID FIRE RADIO, THE SPIDER, THREE PLANETEERS, AND MORE FROM RADIO ARCHIVES!

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

 
July 27, 2012
 

 
The World’s Greatest Entertainer!
 
Al Jolson was and remains a towering figure of the musical theatre – unquestionably the most exciting stage star of his generation, and a profound influence on the generations to follow. He was the first breakthrough star of talking pictures. He was a recording artist of long standing. Although radio stardom eluded him most of his career, it was during Jolson’s dramatic resurgence in popularity after the Second World War that radio truly captured something of the dynamism Jolson brought to his live performances.
 
Jolson took over the venerable “Kraft Music Hall” in 1947 – a series he had headlined briefly in the early 1930s. The program was a masterpiece of careful planning and careful understanding of how to package a performer like Jolson to his best advantage. This 20 CD collection from Radio Archives features the ten programs contained in the original Kraft Music Hall collection from Radio Archives as well as 20 more Jolson hosted episodes, all newly restored to the highest audio quality using equipment that was not available when the first collection was produced nine years ago. In addition, this volume features other classic Jolson radio appearances, including three Lux Radio Theater episodes, two episodes from The Al Jolson Show from 1938, and 1943, and A Salute to Al Jolson.
 
Jolson on the Radio from Radio Archives, a 20 CD collection, is the most comprehensive, best sounding collection of this fantastic performer’s classic radio appearances, showing clearly why Al Jolson deserves every single accolade given him.
 
Due to this being an enhanced version of a previous Radio Archives collection, previous customers purchasing the original Kraft Music Hall featuring Al Jolson collection can upgrade to this enhanced collection for only $45.00 for the next two weeks! This Special Upgrade offer will be available to all customers for the next two weeks! Regularly $59.98, Jolson on the Radio can be a part of your collection for only $45.00 for the next two weeks!
 
Rapid Fire Radio

A Column by Tommy Hancock

 

Reviews!
Frontier Town – Westerns in all mediums continue to be popular among fans. One of the best little known examples of a classic radio western is Frontier Town. Featuring Jeff Chandler (and Reed Hadley in later episodes), this show follows frontier lawyer Chad Remington as he uses his knowledge and fists to bring justice to the wild town of Dos Rios. The dialogue as written by Paul Franklin is terse and delivered by Chandler and company in a way that makes Frontier Town a joy to listen to. And you can enjoy it as well for only $29.98 from Radio Archives.
 
Dr. Christian – Not only is Dr. Christian one of the best examples of family programming from classic radio, it was based loosely on the work of a real physician. Week after week, the action of the series focused more on the daily problems and issues of the patients who came through Christian’s office than the actual medical issues and that was the real charm of this personal endearing program. Get a taste of what so many loved about Dr. Christian with this 6 hour collection featuring the first 12 episodes for $17.98 from Radio Archives.
 
The Whistler, Volume 1 –  The anthology was a staple of classic radio throughout its heyday. One of the most popular and consistently thrilling and chilling series to ever air was The Whistler. Even though it never successfully went nationwide, this West Coast series is extremely popular among fans and collectors, due in large part to the eerie, haunting narration of the title character. Every episode opens with The Whistler leading listeners into the fears and horrors that plague everyday citizens and closes with those citizens suffering fates that kept audiences on the edges of their seats. Each and every episode in this collection is a winner and you can find out for only $29.98 at Radio Archives.
 

Character Spotlight!
Although he played multiple characters, the lead actor on “Mr. President” deserves attention. Featuring the voice work of Edward Arnold in the lead each week, this extremely interesting program brought history to its listeners in a rather unique way. Spotlighting a different President each week, ‘Mr. President’ dramatized some event in their lives, usually carrying through and ending on a patriotic note each week. Supported by a stunning cast of veteran radio actors, Arnold brings a strong and distinct feel to the program, making it stand out as a wonderful product of the era it first aired in! Available from Radio Archives for $29.98!
 
Hancock’s Favorite Episodes!
Not only is this a favorite episode of mine, but the story it’s based on by Raymond Chandler is one of my all time favorite examples of detective fiction. The words spoken by Gerald Mohr and penned by Chandler set a haunting stage for the fantastic episode: “It was one of those hot, dry Santa Ana’s that come down through the mountain passes and curl your hair, make your nerves jump and your skin itch. On nights like that, every booze party ends up in a fight. And meek little housewives feel the edge of a carving knife and study their husband’s necks. Anything can happen when the Santa Ana blows in from the desert.” Enjoy this wonderful episode and nineteen others for $29.98 from Radio Archives!

 
 
 

During the Golden Age of Science Fiction, one writer towered over all others. The legendary Edmond Hamilton was the pulp pioneer who took over where Jules Verne and H. G. Wells left off. Hamilton wrote on a scale that dwarfed anything that had come before. Where other writer’s imaginations saw only expeditions to the Moon and Mars, Hamilton envisioned a future filled with an interplanetary police force, space pirates and fearsome weapons capable of destroying whole planets. Among readers of his early fiction in magazines ranging from Amazing Stories to Weird Tales, this penchant for galaxy-spanning space opera soon earned him the nickname of “World-Wrecker” Hamilton.

 

Although NASA has all but debunked the possibility of humanoid life on Mars and Venus—not to mention the frigid, inhospitable outer planets—21st century readers still thrill to Hamilton’s infectiously enthusiastic yarns, which influenced both Star Trek and Star Wars.

 

One of the most intriguing is The Three Planeteers, which ran in the January, 1940 issue of Startling Stories. Inspired by Alexandre Dumas’ classic adventure tale, The Three Musketeers, Hamilton’s reinterpretation of the concept brings together an Earthman, John Thorn, allied a pair of friendly aliens, Sual Av of Venus and hulking Mercurian, Gunner Welk, who are out to stop a sinister despot from shifting the balance of power from the peace-loving Alliance of Inner Planets to the planet-hungry League of Cold Worlds. When the resourceful trio are branded interplanetary outlaws, their only hope is to ally themselves with the renegade Companions of Space, led by the bewitching pirate princess, Lana Cain.

 

This swashbuckling space opera was the type of pulp Hamilton did best, and set the stage for his legendary Captain Future series, also from the publisher of Startling Stories. In that series, as in The Three Planeteers, Hamilton postulated a future Solar System inhabited by distinct races of aliens, each with their own characteristics and cultures. Against this backdrop, the non-stop action races from the inner worlds to the outer regions, with atom-pistols and ray-blasters frying combatants on both sides.

 

Joey D’Auria voices The Three Planeteers’ stellar cast of heroes and despicable space pirates. This is vintage space opera at its most arresting and audacious! Only $20.98 in a deluxe Six Audio CD set.
 
 
 
On the next long trip you owe it to yourself, whether you are a fan of comics, movies or just good storytelling, to give one of Will Murray’s Pulp Classic Audiobooks a try. With well over a dozen adaptations already available for download or on CD sets, Radio Archives http://www.radioarchives.com is now offering what may be their best work yet in the series, The Spider: The Flame Master.
 
With a full musical score and complete sound effects, this Audiobook is the closet thing to the thrill of a great radio drama that modern technology can create. Masterfully produced by Roger Rittner, the set explodes across your speakers with all the thrills that good storytelling can give a listener. He places you right at the center of a movie that your ears are hearing but your mind creates. The reality of what he accomplished this time out makes The Flame Thrower his best work yet in the series. He may have even topped his earlier work on the Doc Savage stories Python Isle and The Jade Ogre as well as the pulp classic Doctor Death, that is saying quite a lot.
 
What sets this apart from the earlier works is not the addition of the musical score or sound effects, for Rittner has skillfully employed those on previous Spider volumes in the series, it is the non-stop breathless action delivered by author Norvell Page’s original story. Working directly from the original story as it first appeared in March 1935, Rittner and his crew give the listener a full take on what Page brought to the page. Noted for his unbelievable actions sequences, Page’s reputation as a writer also rests on his highly imaginative plots.
 
In The Flame Thrower Richard Wentworth, known to many only as The Spider, faces Aronk Dong, the self-proclaimed Man from Mars, who unleashes the wrath of the heavens to subjugate Earth. But what is his real purpose? And hiding behind his deadly French Apaches is Toussaints Louvaine, a mysterious dealer in death who may be on Wentworth’s side … or may not. It is a story filled with possible betrayal, countless battles and some of the most amazing escapes ever found in a Spider story.
 
Listening to the story unravel on CD as I drove, I almost forgot my destination. Actor Nick Santa Maria has truly captured The Spider in the same way that Orson Wells captured The Shadow all those years ago. A veteran of television film and a noted voice over actor in video games as well as advertising, Santa Maria takes The Spider, Master of Men, seriously and his dedication to the character shows in his performance. He pulls you right into the story.
 
Working with Santa Maria is noted voice over actress Robin Riker. She plays Wentworth’s girlfriend and partner, Nita Van Sloan. Her delivery and intonation provides the perfect balance to the work of Santa Maria. It is a thrill to hear the two professionals bounce off of each other as skillfully as they do.
 
The popularity of books on tape and CDs testifies to how many people enjoy their favorite authors in their home and in their car. Having the capability to pause the action is just like setting a good book down to take a breather. Radio Archives Audiobooks series is one of the most exciting entertainment series out there today.
 
Everyone I have heard so far, and I have listened to Doc Savage, G-Man and The Green Lama in their releases, makes me want to hear more.

 
by Derrick Ferguson
 

The more I delve into classic pulp adventure fiction, particularly the characters and series that take place in America I have to wonder why foreign invaders and supercriminals and fiendish dictators didn’t just go and try to overthrow some other country that didn’t have masked avengers or guys like Jimmy Christopher aka Operator #5 protecting it. Don’t these guys network or have a union hall where they meet to discuss why their plots to take over the country never work?

 
But with Jimmy Christopher on the job, it’s no wonder why the United States of America stays safe. Known by his official designation of Operator #5, Jimmy Christopher is virtually a one-man strike force, answerable only to The President of The United States and charged with the defense of the country against any and all aggressors to national security whether they be domestic or external.
 
Operator #5: The Masked Invasion is an interesting audiobook to listen to for a number of reasons. First of all is Jimmy Christopher himself. He’s not as flamboyant or as much of a lone wolf as say, Secret Agent X but he’s equally as effective and as deadly. Jimmy is an excellent magician and there are a couple of times during the story where he takes the time to explain how he pulled off a trick to his daring young sidekick, Tim Donovan. Operator #5 is regarded as a forerunner of 1960’s spies and I can see that in the outlandish villains, wild gimmicks and headlong, non-stop action. So if you’re a fan of the spy novels and movies of that period, this audiobook was made for you.
 
The choice of Richard Epcar to narrate this audiobook is a good one as he does so in a firm, no-nonsense style that matches that of the character of Jimmy Christopher who is a pretty no-nonsense guy himself in his determined pursuit of Loo Kong and his method of blacking out the electrical power of entire cities, thereby plunging them into total darkness and chaos. Radio Archives again gets my thanks for such a quality product that as always gives the Movie Theater of My Mind an excellent and thoroughly entertaining workout.

 

The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge Ebooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your E-Reader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator 5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like Doctor Death and more, Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!
 
Five new golden age Pulp tales exquisitely reformatted into visually stunning E-books!

 

How fight a menace which strikes without warning — which disintegrates flesh and blood and stone to mere chemical atoms! Men fled in blind panic from the merest rumor of a new attack, and even the Spider — dodging the death blasts — can find at first no weapon with which to combat this new and devastating evil which obliterates its victims in the fraction of time between two heart-beats! Another epic exploit of America’s best-loved pulp-fiction character of the 1930s and 1940s: The Spider — Master of Men! As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction: “Meet the Spider” especially for this series of eBooks.
 

Thundering far beneath Manhattan’s thronging streets came the Death Express — a crack New York Central train bearing a gruesome cargo of lifeless men, women and children — their bodies stripped of valuables, naked and mutilated! A grim warning of the terror-reign that threatened America — at the hands of Twentieth Century land-pirates, whose weapon was neither gun nor sword, but the stunning, body-shivering force which lies in electricity! Can the Spider, using mortal weapons, fight the numbing power of the thunderbolt — and survive? Another epic exploit of America’s best-loved pulp-fiction character of the 1930s and 1940s: The Spider — Master of Men! As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction: “Meet the Spider” especially for this series of eBooks.

 

A group of bitter men — a secret League of War — was ready to plunge the world into a new, earth-wide conflict. They issued orders, and bloody organized murder was loosed in the heart of Europe! And behind this carnage, a single man was scheming to make himself the Dictator of the World! Never before had a single person conceived such a colossal plan for profiting from the slaughter of humans. He had overcome all obstacles — except one lone avenger, Operator 5, America’s secret service ace. Can Jimmy Christopher, keep the nations of the world from hurling themselves into a war which can bring nothing but universal defeat, misery, and slavery?
 
Jimmy Christopher, clean-cut, square-jawed and clear-eyed, was the star of the most audacious pulp magazines ever conceived — Operator #5. Savage would-be conquerors, creepy cults, weird weather-controllers and famine-creating menaces to our mid-western breadbasket… these were but a few of the fiendish horrors that Jimmy Christopher was forced to confront. Operator #5 returns in vintage pulp tales, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of Operator #5 eBooks.

 
A cruel plot to seize the satellite Styx, third moon of Pluto, and enslave peaceful natives, sends Captain Future and his loyal aides out on the most dangerous adventure of their careers! Captain Future… the Ace of Space! Born and raised on the moon, Curt Newton survived the murder of his scientist parents to become the protector of the galaxy known as Captain Future. With his Futuremen, Grag the giant robot, Otho, the shape-shifting android and Simon Wright, the Living Brain, he patrols the solar system in the fastest space ship ever constructed, the Comet, pursuing human monsters and alien threats to Earth and her neighbor planets.

 

“When I know the secret of the five casks, I will be all powerful. Find the one who can tell me this secret. I will wait — but not for long.” This was the command Wu Fang gave to his agents deep in New York’s Chinatown. And only two white men guessed his plans, could dare hope to pit their wits and detective skill against the murder scheme of the most dangerous crime master in the world!
 
“Mr. Kildare? This is Wu Fang speaking. I phoned to tell you that a man is going to be murdered. Also, that no attempt will he made on your life until midnight.” …Until midnight. Three hours! But before those three hours were up Kildare knew he was entered upon the most sinister mystery he had ever tackled — the case of the scarlet feather.
 

When you purchase these beautifully reformatted eBooks from RadioArchives.com you receive all three formats in one ZIP file: PDF for PC or Mac computer; Mobi for Kindle and ePub for iPad/IPhone, Android, Sony eReader, and Nook. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook novels to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available in the Kindle store and the Barnes and Noble Nook store! The best Pulp eBooks now available for only $2.99 each from Radio Archives!
 
1 cent Spider eBook!

 
For a limited time you can now download an exciting original Spider adventure for just one thin penny! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers. Their motto? Why “KILL THE SPIDER!” of course.
 
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps this is a perfect opportunity to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
 
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you download this bargain.
 
All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you purchase this eBook from RadioArchives.com you receive all three formats in one ZIP file. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your Spider novels to your new device without the need to purchase anything new. Use the PDF version when reading on your PC or Mac computer. If you have a Kindle, the Mobi version is what you want. If you have an iPad/iPhone, Android, Sony eReader or Nook, then the ePub version is what you want.

 

 

By John Olsen

 
Within a Druid Glen, men clad in grayish robes perform a strange ritual. For they are the Hooded Circle, one of the most bizarre gangs of cutthroats The Shadow has ever encountered.
 
It was a dark and stormy night. And here we go again! In the deeply wooded sections of an exclusive suburb known as Pinewood sat the ruins of the old Grimshaw estate. There was a circle within the ring of stones. A circle of human forms. All were clad in grayish robes, with cloth masks covering their faces. This was the secret meeting place of the Hooded Circle! Can The Shadow thwart the seemingly undefeatable evil? And who is the mysterious cowled leader of the Hooded Circle, those gray-robed outlaws who hold their secret meetings within a ring of Druid stones?
 
Pulling out all the stops, The Shadow calls in his full list of agents. All told, that makes six of The Shadow’s agents who are on hand to assist in the round-up of The Hooded Circle, in the action-packed final chapters.
 
There are a few anomalies in this story. All are subtle, but will be noticeable to anyone who has read all three-hundred-twenty-five Shadow pulp novels. There’s a “hell” uttered by Joe Cardona. Gibson’s characters never swore. Then there’s the matter of the female form. Gibson always wrote in vague terms, when describing a scantily clad female. The descriptions in this story are a bit more detailed. And since when does Cranston smile? Never! Maybe his masklike face carries the trace of a smile, but that’s the most Gibson ever allowed. Not so in this story. Could someone have ghosted the story, or part of it, for Gibson? Perhaps we’ll never know.
 

I found one passage that seemed significant: “It was not surprising that he had passed notice. Cranston had a way of remaining quietly in the background, when he came upon a situation such as this.” This describes the same ability to render oneself virtually invisible by remaining motionless, both physically and mentally, that was related to readers three months earlier in “The Golden Master.”

 
I enjoyed reading this story. It contained enough unique moments to keep me interested, unlike some other run-of-the-mill stories. This is a well-build Shadow mystery that would probably fall among the better stories of 1940. Maybe not the best, but still well worth reading.
And you can get The Hooded Circle and another full length Shadow Adventure for only $12.95 in The Shadow Volume 22 from Radio Archives!
 

The Knight of Darkness wages battles to the death with two of his greatest superfoes! First, The Shadow becomes “The Devil’s Paymaster” to end the sadistic reign of The Prince of Evil in the violent conclusion of Theodore Tinsley’s most acclaimed storyline. Then, Lamont Cranston must die to crush a superfiend’s evil plots when “The Wasp Returns” in an action-packed thriller by Walter B. Gibson. Foreword by Michael Uslan, executive producer of the Summer Bat-Blockbuster, “The Dark Knight Rises.” This instant collector’s item leads off with one of Graves Gladney’s greatest covers, and also showcases all the original interior illustrations by legendary illustrator Earl Mayan, with historical commentary by Will Murray and Anthony Tollin. BONUS: The Shadow tracks down “The Comic Strip Killer” in a classic adventure from the Golden Age of Radio. Buy it today for $14.95.
 

The Man of Bronze returns in two tales of super-science that inspired classic Superman stories. First, a silvery stratospheric craft showers vapors of death upon a Texas town, while Cosmic Rays alter Long Tom’s mental makeup. Doc and Patricia Savage attempt to thwart the deadly plots of a red-hooded mastermind in “He Could Stop the World,” a pulp classic by Laurence Donovan that inspired an early Superman story by Jerry Siegel. Then, “The Laugh of Death” could change the outcome of World War II, in a Lester Dent thriller that introduced Doc’s new Fortress of Solitude that inspired the Man of Steel’s glacier hideaway. This double-novel collector’s edition leads off with a knockout cover by legendary paperback artist James Bama. and also reprints both classic color pulp covers by Robert G. Harris and Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray. Priced at only $14.95.
 

The Man of Bronze returns in two tales of super-science that inspired classic Superman stories. First, a silvery stratospheric craft showers vapors of death upon a Texas town, while Cosmic Rays alter Long Tom’s mental makeup. Doc and Patricia Savage attempt to thwart the deadly plots of a red-hooded mastermind in “He Could Stop the World,” a pulp classic by Laurence Donovan that inspired an early Superman story by Jerry Siegel. Then, “The Laugh of Death” could change the outcome of World War II, in a Lester Dent thriller that introduced Doc’s new Fortress of Solitude that inspired the Man of Steel’s glacier hideaway. This double-novel collector’s edition features both classic color pulp covers by Robert G. Harris and Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of ten Doc Savage novels. Priced at only $14.95 
 

One of the top crime-fighters from the golden age of pulp fiction, The Spider returns in two thrill-packed adventures written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “Laboratory Of The Damned” (1936), Poisoned! Struck down by a deadly assault from a mad murderer, the Spider finds his friend Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner of Police, doomed to a stupor of living death. Nor is he the only victim… also stricken with the dread malady is Richard Wentworth’s fiancee, Nita van Sloan! The Spider battles both the Law and the Underworld to survive! Then, in “Hell’s Sales Manager” (1940), The Brand wields a weird new weapon that sucks everything in its path into a vortex of destruction! How can even the Master of Men fight an enemy that seems to simply vanish? While this reign of terror goes unchecked, the Spider finds his every effort hampered by a human bloodhound assigned to track down and eliminate him. These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 
 

Altus Press is proud to announce the release of the third volume in its acclaimed Wild Adventures of Doc Savage series, written by Will Murray and Lester Dent, writing as Kenneth Robeson.
 
Set in the Fall of 1936, The Infernal Buddha tells the epic story of Doc Savage’s desperate quest to control the Buddha of Ice, a relic of unknown origin—and what may become the most dangerous object on Earth!
 
When a mummy arrives at Doc Savage’s New York headquarters wearing the clothes of his missing assistant, engineer Renny Renwick, Doc, Monk, and Ham rush to Singapore where they get on the trail of a swashbuckling pirate who calls himself the Scourge of the South China Sea, in whose hands a piece of the infernal Buddha has fallen. The trail leads to Pirate Island, the fate of Renny, and a mysterious box containing a terrible, unstoppable power.
 
But that is only the beginning of the quest into which the Man of Bronze plunges—one that will take him to the upper reaches of the Yellow Sea and a series a wild ocean battles against the vicious factions fighting for control on the infernal Buddha.
 
Before it is all over, every human life on Earth will tremble on the brink of eternity, and Doc Savage will face his greatest test.
 
“This may be my wildest Doc novel to date,” says author Will Murray. “The Infernal Buddha is a fantasy epic full of corsairs, criminals and other culprits. The menace is planetary. The threat, extinction. Doc Savage has a reputation for saving the world. This time he does it on the greatest scale possible. I began this book back in 1992, working from an opening situation Lester Dent started in 1935. Together, we have produced a true Doc Savage epic. And it only took about 75 years….”
 
The Infernal Buddha features a startling cover painted by Joe DeVito, depicting Doc Savage as the Buccaneer of Bronze! This cover was painted from a still taken in 1964 of legendary model Steve Holland, and is a variant pose shot for famed illustrator James Bama’s classic cover to The Man of Bronze. There has never been a Doc cover like it! Buy it today for only $24.95 from Radio Archives.

 
Comments From Our Customers!
 
Brad Bennett writes:
When are you going to do a Vol 4 of the Railroad Hour? The first tree volumes are terrific. Just keep up the good work.
 
Charles Bourassa writes:
Wow!  Great place to shop.  I started by buying some Spider Ebooks from Amazon, and then found my way here. I’m mainly interested in the Spider magazines right now. My wish list has 28 Norvel Page novels that I’d like to read.
 
Eric Troup writes:
Thanks. I’ve certainly loved the other two Spiders. Ten stars just aren’t enough!
 
Rodger Johnson writes:
Dan Fowler: G-Man is my favorite audiobook, Richard Epcar is a fantasic reader, give him more to do. Thanks for all the good audio books.
 
Doctor Panic reviews the Kindle edition on Amazon:
The Spider #3 Wings of the Black Death. All I can say is WOW!!. This was the first story by Norvel Page when he stepped in for Scott after the first two issues. This book shows instantly why Page was the master hands down for the Spider. The book is non stop action as you expect, but delves into some of the personal feeling between the characters, not to mention a mastermind villain who right up to the end matches Dick wit for wit. The book is done in nice bold print that is so inviting to read. The book is masterfully redone and better than reading the original because of the layout. 5 happy stars

 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 

The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

The Aldrich Family, The Spider, Pulp Art by Joe DeVito and MORE from Radio Archives!

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

 
June 29, 2012
 

 
Hen-reeee!, Henry Aldrich!
 
Comedy is taking something mundane and ordinary and turning it into a masterpiece of hilarity and humor. No classic radio show did this as well as one centered on the daily chaos surrounding teenager Henry Aldrich! Henry and an entire cast of characters bring laughter to everyday life once more in The Aldrich Family, a collection from Radio Archives!
 
“The Aldrich Family” spotlighted the adolescent escapades of young Henry and the hijinks that ensued from simple things like a bicycle’s flat tire or an overdue library book. The show also features one of the best-remembered openings from classic radio – Alice, Henry’s stalwart mother summons her son by yelling “Hen-reeee! Henry Aldrich!” And Henry responds with a voice riddled with the crackle of puberty, “Coming, Mother!” The show’s opening salvo had such an impact that some play on it still crops up occasionally in modern entertainment.
 
The Aldrich Family features as rich and colorful a cast as any show could. From Alice to Sam, Henry’s father to Homer Brown, Henry’s usual partner in confusion right through to Kathleen Anderson, Henry’s sweetheart, and his arch nemesis George Bigelow. Each character was distinct and had a life beyond the gags and jokes, making this show both real and larger than life at the same time.
 
Restored to sparkling audio quality, The Aldrich Family is a great set for both golden age comedy and characters so believable you can’t help but relate to and laugh with them. Available now from Radio Archives for only $26.98.

 
Rapid Fire Radio
A Column by Tommy Hancock

 

Reviews!
The Kraft Music Hall Starring Al Jolson – Very few entertainers have as complete a package of talent, personality, and sheer staying power as Al Jolson had. This collection proves that, spotlighting Jolson as the lead on The Kraft Music Hall in 1947-48. Jolson parlayed the success of a movie based on his life into a comeback and this show was one of the results. Not only is Jolson at the top of his game, but the sarcastic wit of Oscar Levant and the tuneful stylings of Lou Bring and his orchestra make this an enjoyable peek into the career of a true entertainer! Available now for $14.98 from Radio Archives!
Calling All Cars, Volume 1 – Although most people would rightfully call Dragnet the best of the police procedural radio shows, one that set the stage for it and all other comers is an excellent example of the genre! Calling All Cars, a show sponsored by Rio Grande Oil Company, featured true to life cases of all sorts and highlighted the hard work, dedication, car chases, and gunfights policemen got into to solve them! Fantastic pacing and great performances make this a stand out show and it’s only $29.98 from Radio Archives!
 
One Man’s Family, Volume 1 – Rarely does a show come along that is equal part family drama, soap opera, and slice of life, but in so many ways Carlton E. Morse achieved this with One Man’s Family. Centered on the Barbour Family, this program gave listeners something radio often did not. People written so well they might live down the street from you. And they were people that grew, changed, lived, aged, and died. Truly a classic of modern entertainment, One Man’s Family is a great addition to any fan’s collection. Only $17.98 at Radio Archives!

 

Character Spotlight!
Cut from the same cloth as any cowboy played by John Wayne, Luke Slaughter of Tombstone stands out as a classic character from a fantastic show. A rancher bound and determined to protect what is his, Slaughter is the epitome of a frontier hero slow to talk, quick to defend himself and others, and determined to leave his brand on the West! Performed to near perfection by Sam Buffington, Luke Slaughter is must listen for fans of Western Adventure and is only $23.98 from Radio Archives!
 
Hancock’s Favorite Episodes!
The Unexpected, Volume 1 “The Cripple” starring Marjorie Riordan.
With a program title like The Unexpected, one can expect something different, a twist or turn to set the whole episode on its ear. “The Cripple” is an eerie episode that does this best. A tale of a woman desperate to be with her true love forever but saddled with the care of her paraplegic sister, this show makes my skin crawl every time I hear it. Marjorie Riordan is deliciously evil as the lead character, going to deadly lengths to get the life she feels entitled to and is well deserving of how it all turns out! Definitely top notch acting and writing in this one! You can hear “The Cripple” and more fantastic episodes of The Unexpected, Volume 1 for only $14.98 from Radio Archives!

 
 

The Spider Battles Lightning Itself In New Audiobook
 
Devastating lightning, aimed at the highest buildings and critical public facilities of the city. Targeted with precise malevolence by a Man from Mars – with the flowing mane and deadly claws of the king of beasts.  The Lion Man!  The Flame Master!
 
In one of Norvell Page’s wildest Spider adventures, Richard Wentworth battles not one outrageous foe, but two. The Lion Man, who can rip a man’s flesh with deadly claws and unleash lightning with devastating results at any target he chooses. And a mysterious munitions master, whose allegiance can be bought by the highest bidder.
 
Electric Audio Adventure
“The Flame Master” is the newest Spider audiobook from RadioArchives.com, continuing the fantastic adventures of one of the 1930s’ most relentless avengers. This audio adventure once again features stage and screen actors Nick Santa Maria and Robin Riker as Richard Wentworth, alias The Spider, Master of Men … and Nita Van Sloan, his daring companion who battles at his side despite unspeakable danger.
 
The Spider faces Aronk Dong, the self-proclaimed Man from Mars, who unleashes the wrath of the heavens to subjugate Earth. But what is his real purpose? And hiding behind his deadly French Apaches is Toussaints Louvaine, a mysterious dealer in death who may be on Wentworth’s side … or may not.
 
“In this incredible adventure, no one is who they seem, and everyone has a private agenda,” says director Roger Rittner.  “Nick and Robin are at their best, portraying all the characters in this lightning-charged adventure.”
 
A Unique Listening Experience
“The Flame Master”, like its predecessors “Prince of the Red Looters” and “Wings of the Black Death”, is enhanced with extensive sound effects and period music score.
 
For a sample of the excitement, listen to a preview:

“The Flame Master” is available now at just $19.95 in a deluxe six-CD set. The first two Spider audiobooks, “Prince of the Red Looters” and “Wings of the Black Death” are still available at RadioArchives.com.
 
The Voice of the Spider! Nick Santa Maria
 
I always enjoyed voice work. When I was a kid, I’d improvise crazy comedies into an audio cassette recorder with my friends. During those days, I would try to voice as many different characters as I could as we struggled to make each other laugh. Little did I know how valuable that experience came to be.
 
Eventually, after becoming a professional actor, I was hired to do a great many radio commercials, utilizing some of the very same voices I’d created in my youth. Eventually I got away from voice work to concentrate on other areas of performance. But my heart still belonged in the sound studio.
 
Fast forward quite a number of years. One day I got a call from a friend who asked if I would take part in a radio musical comedy. I took on the task happily. It was only when I arrived that I found I was to play opposite that legendary vocal artist, June Foray.
 
The writer/producer/director of the project was the very talented Roger Rittner. Roger seemed to like my work, because soon afterward came a phone call that would change my life and get me happily back into the sound booth.
 
It turns out that Roger wanted me to be the voice of The Spider. I’d heard of the Shadow, Doc Savage, and a few other pulp novel characters. But the Spider had eluded me.
 
At lunch one day, Roger handed me a box containing the script for the first book I was to tackle, “Prince of the Red Looters”. After reading it, I was hooked. Being a vintage movie fanatic, I could only see an old serial excitingly playing out in my mind’s eye. The characters were rich and full, the writing was vibrant and thrilling, and Roger’s adaptation was brilliantly done. This was not to be a typical audio book; it played out like a radio adventure, complete with sound effects, music, and atmosphere.
 
I found that I would not only be narrating the story, but enacting all of the male characters – with Nita Van Sloan and the other female characters portrayed by the incredible Robin Riker. It was a veritable feast for an old ham like me, as I fully embraced the characters of Richard Wentworth, Police Commissioner Kirkpatrick, and especially the villains.
 
I’m now a veteran of four Spider adventures and look forward to many more. I certainly hope you enjoy what we’ve done with these classic stories, and that the characters are as vivid and enjoyable as they were for readers back in the 1930s.
 

 

The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge Ebooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your E-Reader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator 5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like Doctor Death and more, Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!
 
Five new golden age Pulp tales exquisitely reformatted into visually stunning E-books!

 

In that single, unguarded moment while he played his precious Stradivarius, the combined forces of the Mayor of Hell — the crooked Law and the vengeful Underworld — besieged Richard Wentworth, otherwise known as the Spider, nemesis of criminals! Mourned as dead, the Spider must start life anew, without friends or funds or hidden refuge, so that the Mayor of Hell’s bloody-handed henchmen — who judge no deed too base, who respect neither man nor God — may find their just reward — in death! Another epic exploit of America’s best-loved pulp-fiction character of the 1930s and 1940s: The Spider — Master of Men! As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction: “Meet the Spider” especially for this series of eBooks.
 
Note: #29 is the sequel to #28 The Mayor of Hell.
America faces certain doom as its citizens fall in screaming thousands before the noxious death vapors loosed upon them by the Green Hand. How can the Spider, harried and threatened by a hundred new and deadly perils, check the rising power of the next Dictator — and lay bare the scheming, criminal mind which seeks to enslave the nation? Another epic exploit of America’s best-loved pulp-fiction character of the 1930s and 1940s: The Spider — Master of Men! As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction: “Meet the Spider” especially for this series of eBooks.
 

Speeding through the silent blackness of the night, a long freight-train was laden with a cargo more precious than fine gold — wheat! Then suddenly, the hirelings of Apocryphos unleashed red destruction, and the great machine lay wrecked, its cars of priceless grain afire… Another blow in the ruthless campaign that was driving a proud people, whimpering, to slavery — overwhelmed by the cruel pangs of hunger! The four horsemen of the Apocalypse, thundered sharp-hoofed over the sterile reaches of a famine-wasted continent, while only one man — Operator 5 — realized the ghastly extent of the diabolical plot. And only he — America’s undercover ace — could hope to bring the canny schemer to the justice he deserved — death!
 
Jimmy Christopher, clean-cut, square-jawed and clear-eyed, was the star of the most audacious pulp magazines ever conceived — Operator #5. Savage would-be conquerors, creepy cults, weird weather-controllers and famine-creating menaces to our mid-western breadbasket… these were but a few of the fiendish horrors that Jimmy Christopher was forced to confront. Operator #5 returns in vintage pulp tales, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of Operator #5 eBooks.

 
Carried far outside the solar system, and wrecked on a volcanic planetoid in company with a shipload of condemned criminals, Captain Future faces the supreme test of his courage! Captain Future… the Ace of Space! Born and raised on the moon, Curt Newton survived the murder of his scientist parents to become the protector of the galaxy known as Captain Future. With his Futuremen, Grag the giant robot, Otho, the shape-shifting android and Simon Wright, the Living Brain, he patrols the solar system in the fastest space ship ever constructed, the Comet, pursuing human monsters and alien threats to Earth and her neighbor planets.

 

Captain Future and his valiant aides speed to the rescue of the Sagittarian system — ready to lock in mortal combat with deadly enemies from another dimension! Captain Future… the Ace of Space! Born and raised on the moon, Curt Newton survived the murder of his scientist parents to become the protector of the galaxy known as Captain Future. With his Futuremen, Grag the giant robot, Otho, the shape-shifting android and Simon Wright, the Living Brain, he patrols the solar system in the fastest space ship ever constructed, the Comet, pursuing human monsters and alien threats to Earth and her neighbor planets.
 

When you purchase these beautifully reformatted eBooks from RadioArchives.com you receive all three formats in one ZIP file: PDF for PC or Mac computer; Mobi for Kindle and ePub for iPad/IPhone, Android, Sony eReader, and Nook. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook novels to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available in the Kindle store and the Barnes and Noble Nook store! The best Pulp eBooks now available for only $2.99 each from Radio Archives!
 
1 cent Spider eBook!

 
For a limited time you can now download an exciting original Spider adventure for just one thin penny! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers. Their motto? Why “KILL THE SPIDER!” of course.
 
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps this is a perfect opportunity to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
 
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you download this bargain.
 
All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you purchase this eBook from RadioArchives.com you receive all three formats in one ZIP file. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your Spider novels to your new device without the need to purchase anything new. Use the PDF version when reading on your PC or Mac computer. If you have a Kindle, the Mobi version is what you want. If you have an iPad/iPhone, Android, Sony eReader or Nook, then the ePub version is what you want.

 

 

The Pulp Book Store at Radio Archives is proud to announce the addition of a store featuring one of the best modern Pulp Artists today! The Art of Joe DeVito spotlights the phenomenal work of a multitalented creator. A writer, sculptor, and more, DeVito is perhaps best known for his fantastic paintings that have graced book covers, billboards and more. Notably, DeVito is the artist responsible for the stunning covers of The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage series written by Will Murray and published by Altus Press.
 
Art and creativity are definitely part of what defines Joe DeVito. “I guess you can say I’ve been an artist all of my life” he stated. “I was born the year the Russians launched Sputnik, was told I began drawing recognizably and continuously around the age of 3 or 4, and have been working at it professionally for over 30 years now. Drawing, sculpting (albeit with Play Doh at first) and telling stories (such as, at the age of 4, describing the reason for drawing an entire town in crayon on my mother’s newly waxed kitchen floor) go as far back as I can remember.”
 
As with many creators, the influences, which led Joe down the path he’s traveled, were a part of his early life. “I’m originally from a large family that started out in Hell’s Kitchen in New York City. We moved to NJ in the early 60’s and I went from the Museum of Natural History and an asphalt playground with metal monkey bars and steel swings, to being able to run around in fields and explore woods and rivers almost overnight. It was quite a shock and greatly augmented my emotional, creative and physical landscape. I like to think the two halves made for a more complete whole.”
 
Pulp found its way into Joe’s formative years as well. “It was my utter infatuation with dinosaurs, books, magazines and monster movies that perhaps were my earliest connection with the pulps, at least in a visual sense. Watching our small B&W TV with the ubiquitous rabbit-ear antenna, virtually everything had a mysterious, atmospheric pulp quality to it! Those early years indelibly stamped my imagination. An essential part of being creative (for me at least) was never losing that initial sense of mystery, wonder and infatuation that I first experienced.”
 
When asked to define Pulp Art, Joe offered, “One way is to say that Pulp art is characterized by its tremendously atmospheric lighting, generally created by a strong light source that in turn generates powerful, cast shadows. These effects are heighted still further by the use of exaggerated perspective, unusual angles and topped off by eye-catching color accents on a limited palette, often applied with bold brush work.”
 
“Of course,” he continued, “subject matter consisting of an edge-of-your-seat, life-threatening situation involving a tough guy; multi-tentacled/orbed alien; monster or other creature either saving or threatening a curvatious woman – often while putting a .38, .45, Tommy gun, ray gun, laser beam, surgical implement or other threatening device through its paces – have been known to be associated with pulp art from time to time as well.”
 
Using those standards, Pulp Art most definitely is something that, like much of the fiction from that era, transcends the period most associated with it and appeals to a modern audience. According to Joe, “There are certainly a multitude of different reasons for people to escape into the pulps. It would not surprise me if one of the subliminal common threads was a certain nostalgia. Maybe it’s that in such a complicated, psychobabble-saturated world as the one we now live in the Pulps often hearken back to a time where there were good guys, there were bad guys and in the end the good guy wins. End of story.”
 
“As for the art, it is an optical thrill ride: All the things mentioned earlier and more apply: Heroes, heroines, villains, monsters, flying saucers and aliens, action, adventure, danger – all combined in a picture making feast for the eyeballs.”
 
Joe finds his own escape and enjoyment in the very Pulp art he creates for others looking for the same. He also cites a plethora of influences on his work. “There aren’t many things as enjoyable as creating a dramatically lit, action packed pulp-inspired painting. My initial art influences and inspirations in this area are too numerous to mention. After all these years it’s now second nature. Others would be the aforementioned old movies, most notably the original King Kong and all the great (and not so great) B monster movies; film noir and associated spy, detective (epitomized by Bogey, of course), and other flicks, not to mention SF/Fantasy/Adventure Pulp magazine covers to name a few.”
 
And like all fans, even those who are also creators, Joe has a favorite Pulp character to work on. And it’s one he’s very familiar with. “Doc Savage: It’s the nostalgia of the imagery, him being a superhero character who is still human; camaraderie; super villains; lots of old fashioned monsters and mystery; action; adventure; fabulous steam punk inspiring gadgetry that could be tinkered together in your own personal lab…did I mention ray guns?”
 
The Art of Joe DeVito is the place to get visually stunning posters featuring the truly amazing Pulp Art of Joe DeVito. Each poster is 12 X 18 and available for $19.98! From the 86th Floor of the Empire State Building to the shores of Skull Island and beyond, The Art of Joe DeVito is your ticket to Pulp adventure!
 

 

The Master of Darkness battles murderous master villains in thrilling pulp novels by Walter B. Gibson and Theodore Tinsley writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, the Master of Darkness journeys to New Orleans to uncover the hidden identity of the international swindler known only as “Cyro.” Then, The Shadow suspects that “The Man Who Died Twice” still lives, and is the key to the Prince of Evil’s plot to murder Lamont Cranston! This instant collector’s item showcases the original color covers by George Rozen and Graves Gladney and the classic interior illustrations by legendary illustrators Tom Lovell and Earl Mayan, with historical commentary by Will Murray. Buy it today for $14.95.
 

A knockout painting by legendary paperback artist James Bama leads off a special variant edition of two action-packed pulp epics by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, a bequest from a dying scientist leads Doc Savage to Death Valley in search of a long-dead pirate’s legendary treasure. Can this amazing invention allow “The Pirate’s Ghost” to speak from beyond the grave? Then, the Man of Bronze goes undercover at a Wyoming dude ranch to solve the bizarre puzzle of a strange “Green Eagle” with lead feathers! This special anniversary edition also showcases the original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and an intriguing article by The Shadow’s famous raconteur, Walter B. Gibson. Priced at only $14.95.
 

The Pulp Era’s most unusual mystery man returns in three action-packed adventures by Paul Ernst and Emile Tepperman writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” Dick Benson’s life will be forever changed after “Murder on Wheels” and the mysterious Cole Wilson lure The Avenger into a deadly trap! Then, “The Three Gold Crowns” and a dentist’s forceps leads The Avenger to Mr. Death’s house of murder. PLUS: “Death to The Avenger,” a bonus Avenger novelette, and a Whisperer thriller by Alan Hathway. This classic pulp reprint features the color pulp covers by H. W. Scott, Paul Orban’s original interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray. Priced at only $14.95 
 

One of the top crime-fighters from the golden age of pulp fiction, The Spider returns in two thrill-packed adventures written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “The Spider and the Scarlet Surgeon” (1941), With unheard of skill, the Red Surgeon can change a patient into an imbecile… or a genius of crime! Not only can he alter the physical shell, but this mad doctor can even amputate parts of a victim’s personality, even their conscience. And his greatest ambition is to operate on none other than Stanley Kirkpatrick, Nita van Sloan… and the Spider! Then, in “The Spider and the Death Piper” (1942), Weird compelling music lures the inhabitants of Martinsville to suicide! By ones and twos at first, then in a stampede of maddened self-destruction. Even Richard Wentworth, with the iron will of the Spider, felt the irresistible calling of that Devil-tune! Can even the Master of Men prevail against an unearthly power that goads the listener to suicide? These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 
 
 
 

By John Olsen

 
“The Plot Master” is a battle of wits or a gang of international crooks against The Shadow. And at stake are millions of dollars and the security of our nation. The Plot Master is out to steal the Navy Department’s mystery submarine and only The Shadow can stop him!
 
What a great story we have, here. It’s a face-off between two masters of disguise — The Shadow and Eric Hildrow, the Plot Master. You can never be too sure who’s who in this thrilling tale of espionage. This story has plenty of suspense and action, and any pulp mystery with a location known as Death Island gets bonus points from me, to start with. This is one Shadow story that delivers the goods, right from the start.
 
Yes, this is one terrific Shadow novel, and it’s one in which surprisingly few of The Shadow’s agents appear. Harry Vincent plays a leading role in this story. Burbank is there to pass along messages, and Clyde Burke is mentioned but doesn’t actually appear. Cliff Marsland appears about halfway through the story and gets to see some action with The Shadow. And of course new agent Miles Crofton gets to see a bit of action, too. But most of the action is carried by The Shadow and Harry Vincent.
 
The Shadow really gets batted around in this story. Entombed, shot, blown up… yet he miraculously survives. But not without injury. By the end of the story, he’s pretty beat up. And that’s where the strange vial of purplish liquid comes into play. As he was going through his earlier trials, I kept wondering why he didn’t use that incredible restorative fluid. But at the story’s fantastic climax, he finally does.
 
This is one of the top Shadow novels. It’s got just about everything. It’s got death traps from which there can be no escape: “The Shadow was encased in a trap of death. Death by confinement, within the suffocating walls of the air-tight submarine chamber.” And yet, amazingly, he does escape.
 
There’s also the squishy rubber suction cups that The Shadow uses to climb sheer walls. There’s the explosives in the lining of his cloak. There’s the secret messages transmitted on the open airwaves using emphasized words in advertisements over WNX Radio in New York. There’s the amazing autogyro. And the famous vial containing the purple liquid. If you’re looking for a top Shadow pulp novel to read, you won’t do much better than this one. It’s a lot of fun, and will make you glad you chose to read The Shadow. And it can be yours along with another great Shadow novel for only $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 


Comments From Our Customers!
 
Ernest Spellmeyer writes:
I thank you for your prompt response in sending 2 sets of Dragnet CDs to me. The quality of your product and the sound quality of the CDs are terrific.
 
Ed Morrissey writes:
I really enjoyed The Spider – Wings of the Black Death CD set. Keep it up.
 
Larry Scheflin:
I really love the stuff you’ve been doing. Many thanks for all your efforts. I have purchased all four Doc Savage audiobooks and was wondering if there are any plans for more. They are excellent.
 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 

The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
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FORTIER TAKES ON ‘WINGS OF THE BLACK DEATH’ FROM RADIO ARCHIVES!

ALL PULP REVIEWS by Ron Fortier
THE SPIDER
Wings of the Black Death
(An Audio Book)
Radio Archives.com
6 CD Set
4 hrs. 46 min.
With the expansion of the increasing popular New Pulp movement, it was only inevitable that the audio book industry would enter this exciting new field.  One of the most aggressive to do so in the past year has been Radio Archives out of Spokane, Washington, headed by the wonderfully creative and energetic Roger Rittner.  Working with noted pulp writer and historian, Will Murray, Rittner and Radio Archives have began doing expansive audio book versions of classic pulp thrillers with the feel of genuine old time radio melodramas.  It is important to note that these are not exact, full cast recordings, but by adding brilliant sound effects and period background music, Radio Archives provides such marvelous audio atmosphere as to beautifully mimic those old radio plays.
“Wings of the Black,” was written by Norvell Page, writing as Grant Stockbridge, and appeared in the December 1933 issue of “The Spider” magazine. This exciting audio adaptation produced and directed by Rittner, features Nick Santa Maria as both the narrator and primary male characters to include Richard Wentworth, aka the Spider, and Police Commissioner Stanley Kirkpatrck along with Robin Riker who takes on the role of Nita Van Sloan, Wentworth’s paramour.  They are absolutely marvelous, each evoking these well known characters as we all imagined they would sound…and act towards each other.
The plot centers about a fiendish villain calling himself the Black Death. He has managed to get a strain of the Bubonic Plague and is systematically unleashing it on the people of New York City. He will only stop when they pay him a billion dollar ransom.  As if that were not horrendous enough, this merciless fiend has managed to convince the police that it is the Spider who is responsible to the point of leaving the Spider’s telltale crimson seal on the foreheads of his policemen victims.  Now, for the first time ever, Commissioner Kirkpatrick finds himself believing the Spider is in reality a heartless monster and he proceeds to hunt him down with all the resources at his command. Suddenly Richard Wentworth is battling both the fiendish mastermind and the police, frantically trying to evade capture until he can solve the mystery of the Black Death and bring him to justice.
Rittner’s direction is pace-perfect as he leads both Santa Maria and Riker through each chapter hitting all the right beats, from moments of intense action scenes to those of quiet, anxious reflection as the pair, depending on each other as never before, endure the Spider’s greatest challenge of his crime-fighting career.  Radio Archives’ “The Spider – Wings of the Black Death,” is a winner from the opening scene to the last. It pulls the listener into the raw, brutal, fantastic world of the classic pulps and in the end provides such a unique, rewarding experience as to delight both old and new fans alike.
Finally, this audio book is available both as a digital download and in the 6 CD set, both reasonably priced.  For those into new fangled digital toys, this reviewer would imagine the digital version would be their obvious choice. Whereas the legion of audio book listeners who prefer enjoying books while on long road trips will find the CD set much to their liking.  Either way, this is a package you will be thrilled with.  And if you aren’t familiar with audio books, this is easily the right book to begin with.  Enjoy.