The ALL PULP PANEL moves to the front page!!!! In the future, the panel discussions will take place right here for all to see! But, in case you don't know what a panel from ALL PULP is, here are all of our panels from the beginning! IT'S ANOTHER ALL PULP FLASHBACK!!
The Spectacled Seven, that would be the pulp nom de plume for our ALL PULP Staff, will step up to the podium every week or so and provide you with an online panel discussion! A topic will be thrown out for the Panel to debate, discuss, and dither on concerning pulp and all that goes with it! So get your soda and your chips, find you a seat in the audience (preferably not by the big sweaty Klingon that smells like radishes) and sit back and enjoy the insanity, hilarity, and wisdom that is THE PANEL OF THE SPECTACLED SEVEN!
PANEL TOPIC #7- All pulp fans are hoping for that one blockbuster film or television series that will turn the general public's attention back to the classic pulp heroes. With a Green Hornet film hitting theaters soon and Pixar working on a John Carter of Mars movie, perhaps we're almost there. But what classic pulp character would you choose for the big (or small screen) and how would you adapt him or her to a modern audience?
Bobby - Cool topic. For a big budget film I'd love to see Buck Rogers or Flash Gordon do their thing on the big screen. Plus, I also think Lance Star: Sky Ranger would be great on the big screen too. I would love that. :) I also believe that there are several pulp characters who would work really well on television. I could see Domino Lady, Secret Agent X, The Avenger, or Green Lama in weekly adventures. I bet that would be fun.
Barry - Interesting topic! For a big-budget film, I honestly think that John Carter of Mars is a good choice. It's got a bit of sensuality but nothing that couldn't be toned down for a family audience, lots of excitement and the ability for loads of sequels. But if you want me to choose something that's not already in the works (or at least actively filming), how about The Avenger? The basic origin is one of the strongest in the history of the pulps and with just a bit of work, it would function perfectly in the modern day. I'd stop short of giving him the ability to manipulate his face and simply have his face "dead" and nearly devoid of emotion, which would mean the actor playing him would have to be one who could convey emotion with the eyes and body posture. Someone like Hugo Weaving would be perfect, in my opinion. Another option would be Doc Savage... as an animated series! Picture it with the sensibilities of the classic Jonny Quest and I think you'd be able to pull it off. Do it 'straight' like most of the WB Animated DC movies or the new Avengers cartoon and introduce kids to the classics that way.
Sarge - I'm very hopeful for the upcoming "Green Hornet" movie! However, after viewing one, too many, trailers I fear the current entry is going to take a tongue-in-cheek approach like George Pal's "Doc Savage" movie!! I would certainly applaud & approve any living pulp style movie if it took the positive steps necessary to launch an all-encompassing ad campaign!!! That was the major flaw to the 1994 "Shadow" movie! I suspect that the majority of movie & television productions out there are each perceived as taking a gamble!! Instead, imagine the success of the last "Shadow" movie if old "Shadow" radio shows were aired, select issues of "The Shaow" pulp magazine were reprinted & video games based on the radio show & pulps were marketed!!! Wasn't there a well illustrated "Shadow" comic strip that could've been formatted as a comicbook, too? Speaking of comicbooks, couldn't a variety of existing "Shadow" comicbooks been licensed, repackaged & orchestrated for distribution in advance of the movie?
As for pulp inspired television fare; ever since I opened & read my first Paul Ernst authored reprint of "The Avenger" I thought I was reading a paperback adaptation of an already existing TV series!
PANEL TOPIC #6- This one is short, but simple...Is pulp for kids? Is the stuff we call classic as well as what's being written today ok for our children to read? And is there a subgenre within the field that can be labeled 'children's pulp'?
Barry - Classic hero pulp is perfect for adolescent males and I think girls could appreciate a lot of it, as well: I grew up on Doc Savage, The Avenger and The Shadow. There was great visceral appeal to the covers and the situations. The classic stories don't feature very much swearing, sex or anything of that nature so I'd say they're at most PG or PG-13 in rating. As for modern pulp, it depends on how "modernized" it is in terms of storytelling, language and situations. But I think pulp is a great, action-packed, quick way of getting kids to enjoy reading.
Sarge - Not only are the majority of classic pulps kid friendly, as an educator I would encourage fourth graders on up to read them. Classic character pulps like the Avenger, Doc Savage and the Shadow each embody a moral code that reflects Judeo-Christian beliefs. These three paragons of virtue always were ethical in all they did to mete out justice. Most pulp charcters followed suit with only a few exceptions to the rule.
Tim Byrd's DOC WILDE & THE FROGS OF DOOM is an ideal way for younger readers to make the transition from action movies to tales of high adventure. Tim Storm's MAGENTA ZEPHYR & THE UNIVERSE BENDER is written in such a way that it should appeal to the young and old of both genders for decades to come. Wayne Reinagel's PULP HEROES trilogy is an ideal way to introduce all ages to classic literature through the pulps. In defense of the younger generation and the pulp literature they choose to read I would hesitate to label anything as 'children's pulps' or distinguish such a subgenre.
What is much more of a concern is getting classic pulps into the hands of younger readers. Another equally important concern is encouraging female readership to accept the pulps as a legimate literary genre that's worth the time and effort to read. Micah Wright's CONSTANT PAYNE would be a great way to introduce pulps to a younger generation of lads and lasses! In wrapping things up, another big plus for the Avenger, Doc Savage and the Shadow is that their novels were short thus that way more inviting to the young reader!
Bobby - Absolutely. I see no reason that there cannot be all-age pulps. I try to write my stories for at least teenagers and up.
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PANEL TOPIC #5-Pulp is everywhere! Whereas a couple of decades ago, we only talked about 'pulp fiction' in terms of the glorious magazines of yesteryear, now we have 'pulp comics', 'pulp movies', 'pulp tv', 'pulp books', even a 'pulp news site' (Yes, totally gratuitous plug). But...what about Pulp Music? Is there such a thing? Does one genre of music typify pulp more than any other, and if so, what artists represent that? Or are there just certain songs you would associate with pulp and if so, why, what makes those songs connected to pulp? So come on, let's dish about the Soundtrack of Pulp.
Sarge - I really don't know if there's one particular musical genre that typifies the pulps but there's a lot of music out there that certainly moves the plot along! "Another One Bites the Dust," "Killer Queen," and "We are the Champions!" are three tunes by Queen that quickly come to mind. Don Gates posted an eye-popping montage of hard-boiled detective pulp covers on YouTube to accompany "Gun!" Then there's some favorite movie soundtracks that I've been known to play as I sit down in my favorite armchair to read a pulp, such as "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad," "The Crimson Pirate," "Cutthroat Island," "Doc Savage," "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," "Hatari!" "Jurassic Park," "The Long Duel," "The Magnificent Seven," "The Phantom," "The Rocketeer," "Star Wars!" and any James Bond movie soundtrack that's handy! Then there are two theme park soundtracks: "Epcot's Illuminations" and "Universal's Islands of Adventure" that I believe, also, lend themselves to PULP STYLE LIVING!
Tommy- This is a question that I thought would get a little more response than this because it is something that has always sort of nipped at me...People associate so many things with pulp, why not music? Plus, so many creators work, write, draw to music...so it seemed a natural question...
I think the music most associated with Pulp would likely be Jazz and/or popular music associated with the 30s-50s. Sinatra, Fitzgerald, Armstrong, et al. evoke a certain feeling and I think its a feeling most people get when they think about Doc Savage, Dan Fortune, Captain Hazzard, et al.
Now, personally for me, the music varies to the idea I'm having. I am very music focused and only wish I could write songs. Music is a different way to evoke emotion, feeling, but it can be complimentary to writing and art, not parallel to. Peculiar Oddfellow evokes my most eclectic thoughts when I think of his 'pulp soundtrack', all genres, all songs could fit into Pec's crazy life at some point. Doc Daye, who I'm working on now, alternates between easy Jazz (Doc) and the really raw, wild improv stuff of the early 20s on up into the modern day (Pariah). Western stuff I write usually turns me toward western story songs. A major influence for me though, music having an effect on how I write stories...rests in four people-Johnny Cash, Jimmy Buffett, and Meatloaf, Chris Ledoux.
Sarge - Pulps can no longer be defined by the quality of paper they're printed on. Even at the heart of the pulp era it was a given that the pulps worked well with radio! I found it most serendipitous that we had been discussing pulp related music at our fb groups when this topic appearred as an ALL PULP panel theme! Much of the musical accompaniment our heroes garnered on the radio were budget conscious decisions but they've effectively found their way into our collective memories. The classic that is almost universally acknowledged is "The William Tell Overture" and its long association with the Lone Ranger. Everytime my cell phone rings I'm reminded of the Green Hornet by the "Flight of the Bumble Bee." Two other examples that quickly come to mind are "Omphale's Spinning Wheel" that hauntingly accompanied the Shadow and the "Donna Diana Overture" that was just as much a part of "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon" as Yukon King!
From my original comment on Pulp Music any ALL PULP member is aware of my fondness for Queen and my glaring oversights regarding their contribution to pulp music. I'd like to make my corrections now by adding Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now," "Seven Seas of Rhye," "We Will Rock You" and Queen's definitive soundtrack for the 1980 remake of "Flash Gordon" to my Pulp Playlist!
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PANEL TOPIC #4- With the hopefully growing interest in pulp fiction, there will be more need of chances for the fans to meet the creators, for creators themselves to enjoy each others' company, and to expose the world to all that is pulp. One major way this is done is via the pulp convention. What does it take to make a pulp convention a great convention? What sort of things have you seen at conventions that should be mirrored by others? What are events, focuses, things you'd like to see at conventions that you're not really seeing yet?
Ron Panels are okay and fun, but I personally prefer author readings followed by q & a. It's really a kick to listen to a pulp writer read his work and then have a one on one with the audience. Writing is such a lonely job, these kind of exchanges make for wonderful con experiences between both the writers and their fans.
Tommy-I was going to wait a bit to weigh in on this since I am doing a convention next year, but anyway- I see conventions as a great way to mingle writer and fan, artist and writer, etc. Panels are great, readings rock, interviews and vendor rooms are fantastic, and of course there's the cosplay sometimes... but here's what I also think a convention needs and it's one of the goals of Pulp Ark...Pulp Ark is being billed as a convention (a place for those of like interest and mind to gather and visit) and a conference for writers and artists (A place for creators to share, learn, grow, and mature as a group in their art)...That is something that I think needs to be brought to the table...a focus on the people turning out the stories, a chance for them not just to visit over a few drinks, but take a little time to really constructively work to improve themselves and the field. Want to see if that works or not? Come to Pulp Ark next May...
Sarge - I've attended local comicbook conventions in WNY & South Florida. Unfortunately, they've been more like swap-meets that featured a signing by one comicbook artist or writer. None of these lackluster events included the interaction that is vital to the living pulp style! It would be superb to have pulp fans sit down with pulp artists & writers and learn, share & work with them!! Costume & trivia contests, forums, instructional workshops, staged old-time radio shows, viewing amateur videos or adventure movies & serials, signings, and vendor rooms would be the way to go!!!
Bobby - I love attending conventions. As a writer, meeting fans and hopefully making new ones is one of the big perks of my job. Writing is such a solitary job so it's great to get out and meet people. I enjoy being on panels, doing readings, interviews, book signings, etc. They are fun for me. A good convention allows me time at my table to sign and sell books and do panels, but leaves some free time to walk around and see the convention.
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PANEL TOPIC #3-On this Moonstone Monday, it's fitting to take up Moonstone itself with the panel. Many would say that Moonstone is at the forefront, or at least in the best position, to get pulp fiction of all sorts noticed. Joe and his crew have been focusing on this genre, in some form or another, for years, most recently with their RETURN OF THE ORIGINALS comic line. Do you think Moonstone has a formula, something they're doing that is working for them, some sort of technique? If so, what do you think it is? And on a fanboy note, who would you like to see Moonstone tackle that they haven't yet...
Barry- I don't think it's any great secret about why their stuff is better regarded than what's coming out of DC or some of the Dynamite stuff, etc. They treat the material with respect! They might change or update some things but you know that they read and understood what made the originals work before they did so. With some of the First Wave stuff and elsewhere, it's like they just want the names and basic concepts -- they're fine with recreating everything else. Moonstone doesn't do that -- and they seem to try and cater to both the old-school fans and newer ones, which is a hard line to walk but one they've been able to keep to. In terms of what I'd like to see from them in the future... Man, if they could get Doc Savage and The Avenger, I'd be a happy man. I'd also like to see them get ahold of the rights to The Rook -- and I think I know the guy they could talk to. He's pretty cheap, from what I've heard.
Tommy- I agree with every point Barry has made and have one to add. One of the things that I think Moonstone is doing right enough that you could refer to it as part of their 'formula' is they are endeavoring to not only keep the pulp characters and feel intact, but they are still producing pulp fiction, prose stories that could have been printed back in the heyday of the original pulps. So many times when companies get ahold of characters like our pulp icons, they are all head up about getting them into comics or getting them on the screen or whatever. Moonstone has no qualms about doing that with these characters, but they include in their approach using the characters in the medium they were created for...the written word. And I think that has gone a long way in getting them noticed. Moonstone's pulp line exists in comics, but also in a series of anthologies that really boggles the mind. Moonstone's formula...Realizing the full potential of pulp characters lies within their original medium as well as brand new ones.
Who do I want to see? So many of the ones I'd like to see are already coming (Cannot wait for the Secret 6 and IV Frost)...I dunno who I would add to that list really...
Bobby- I agree with what everyone else is saying. It all boils down to respecting the characters and their history. Can updates be made? Sure, but the most important aspect is the character. I think Moonstone has done a great job keeping the characters in character.
Sarge- Moonstone is a luminous gem in the reigning crown of current pulpdom! DC should be dragged off in chains to the 3rd level sub-basement in Dr. T's dungeons for its pulp revisionist way of muddled thinking most foul!! Have the Blogger Banshee or the Ghastly Googler been used as pulp villains yet? It would be marvel-ous to sit down with Joe and his valiant Moonstone flightcrew and plot the future of pulps, together!!! In fact, I wholeheartedly agree with Barry that Moonstone's powers-that-be should contact The Rook's chronicler and make some kind of arrangements for his publishing future there! While we're at it there's Challenger Storm, Magenta Zephyr and the Purple Lotus!! All pulp heroes from the Deep Fried South!!! They could and would all flourish under Moonstone's shine!
Ron- As a small part of Return of the Originals, I know there is no set formula, other than Joe and company approached people who love and respect the pulps and hired them to do the right thing. All our styles are different, but that respect is the constant here and that's why Moonstone gets it right. As to which other pulp hero unused would I like to see? Sorry, but I'm not about to share that publicly. I've got plans for several of them with other comic companies and am not about to spill the beans here. Chuckle.
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PANEL TOPIC #2-It seems, at least to a die hard pulp fan, that everywhere you look someone is slapping the word PULP on what they write, draw, film, etc. these days. For the most part, it's likely a fitting title, especially if the person creating said work knows what pulp is and has some semblance of staying true to it. However, there are those using it willy nilly or even worse, claiming that they are producing pulp stories just because they have control of some pulp character or have pulp type characters. Let's talk about two or three things? First off, what is the WRONG way to handle a pulp property, especially one that is well established already. Then let's call laundry clean..or dirty...Who today is doing Pulp right? And..yep, you guessed it, who today is doing Pulp completely wrong?
Van - The small-press outfits are getting Pulp right. They have less to lose, and are generally staffed from top to bottom with die-hard true believers who want to be faithful to the original concepts they love. The big publishing houses are under intense pressure to keep an eye on the bottom line (ie money!) and thus they constantly try to find ways to jazz properties up in the hope of reaching the biggest audience they can-- but of course what they actually do is fail to reach new readers and also alienate the existing ones. And I can't imagine that ever changing, honestly.
Tommy - I agree with everything Van said, but I'm going to be a bit bolder... DC Comics is making a joke of themselves by the travesty they are calling First Wave. Although I don't completely dislike how Paul Malmont is handling Doc, the tripe they have called The Avenger resembles nothing I ever read concerning Benson and crew. Now, I know Marvel is doing/has done something recently called Marvel Noir or something, and I've heard people refer to it as pulp, but I don't know if its good or not. I do know it's a 'noir' take on their own characters. There's less risk there to do that than what DC did, going out on a limb with characters that weren't their own, unlike Marvel who may have 'pulped' up their character but were using THEIR characters.
On the other hand, the list of who is getting it right is lengthy and I won't get them all here...some of these are dealing with both established and original characters, some just one or the other...but among those getting it right are Moonstone, Airship 27, Age of Adventure, Wildcat Books, White Rocket Books, etc. etc. And Van is right when he says these and other outfits like them have less to lose, but it's also about a love for the work. And no, I'm not naive enough to think that some of us wouldn't 'sell out' so to speak if DC or a big company waved the right amount in front of us, but I also feel like a lot of us are in this end of it...because we love Pulp and want to be where we can do it right and our own way. I only hope that Pro Se Press, my entry (and my business partner's) into this field lives up to the love of Pulp like the others who are getting it right.
Derrick-I think that there has been a lot of Pulp inspired original properties in the movies and on TV in recent years. It's just that recently the creators/owners of the properties have decided to use the proper term because they see that it sells what they're doing. "Pulp" had a bogus stimga attached to it for years and only the folks who were comfortable with it because they were the ones who knew what they were doing.
And I also believe that there's a big wave of interest and excitement in Pulp inspired work that going to hit soon. And if there's anything that TV/Motion Picture people can smell, it's a trend coming. And they're getting better at getting in on a trend while it's 'hot' and not three years after the trend has passed and something else has come along.
The wrong way to handle any Classic Pulp character or property is to 'update' it or 'make it relevant to today's readers'. As if anybody truly knows the minds of readers and what they want. I highly suspect that like the judge who knows pornography when he sees it, most readers don't know what they want to read unless they read it. And they deserve to read the Classic Pulp characters as they were originally presented. If you want to do a Pulp character that is 'relevant to today's readers' then go on and create your own character. Don't twist Justice, Inc. or Rima The Jungle Girl all outta shape to fit your concept of what you perceive as 'relevant'. I don't admire a writer who feels they have to make The Spirit darker and give him more of an edge or doesn't get what has made Doc Savage work as a character for 70 years. Just present the characters as they are and let the readers decide if they want it or not. Because ultimately the readers are the final word on what you've written and how the characters are presented.
Bobby- To me, pulp is a state of mind, a feeling, moreso than a particular style of writing. With my work I never try to emulate the style of the original pulps, but rather the intent. Telling thrilling tales that hit you right between the eyes.
Barry- Bobby is right on. Pulp isn't defined by the era or by any particular elements of the genre. It's a mindset. Pulp is all about entertainment -- it's not about holding a mirror up to humanity so we can better understand our condition. It's not about illuminating some deep, dark secret about what drives us as living creatures. The point of a Doc Savage story is this: If you build a crazy weather-controlling machine and try to use it to conquer the world, Doc Savage is gonna come and kick your ass. That's pulp.
As for who's handling pulp right these days, it's the usual suspects listed above and almost all of them are relatively "small" in the great scheme of things: Wild Cat Books, Airship 27, Moonstone, Pro Se, Age of Adventure, etc. I'm not a fan of DC's First Wave books (especially the horror that is their version of The Avenger) but I do know quite a few people who weren't familiar with the characters before who really like those titles. Maybe, just maybe, they'll be led to check out the original stories and find out how much better they were. One can hope.
Ron- All of us seem to agree on the small outfits getting pulps right because we've invested our time and effort in something we love. One has to wonder time and time again why DC & Marvel even bother. If they are determined to change characters until they are virtually unrecognizable to pulp fans, then why not simply create their own characters? The bottom line here is the "big boys" live too much in the present and don't understand real heroes anymore. They want anti-heroes, angst ridden characters with feet of clay. And that's a sad reflection on them and our times. The pulps were about heroes and when have we not needed them so badly as right now?
Tommy- So, I get the feeling we all pretty much are on the same page with this topic. It's about money for the bigger companies and something more personal about the smaller independent guys, in other words...us. An ALL PULP supporter and well known pulpster, Win Eckert, pointed something out to me, though, that I hadn't considered and fits in with what we're saying, especially what Ron said about how badly we need heroes right now.
Usually in discussions of pulp characters, most people don't specify, but usually do discuss American characters. We forget oftentimes that there are a plethora of pulp characters from beyond our borders that have the potential to be those heroes we need so badly today. Sun Koh is one that gets a lot of attention and rightfully so, but there are so many others and I for one will say that I don't know nearly enough to even discuss them intelligently. Win did remind me, though, that one of the 'small' outfits that is in this for the love of these characters is Black Coat Press. I have heard of Black Coat on a past episode of the Book Cave, but really that's been my only exposure. They definitely deserve to be listed with those who are 'getting it right', though, from everything I do know. And although this is a bit of a tangent, ALL PULP will be making moves and taking steps to truly extend a hand to Black Coat and other publishers and fans of international pulps..after all, we are ALL PULP...
Bobby - "If you build a crazy weather-controlling machine and try to use it to conquer the world, Doc Savage is gonna come and kick your ass. That's pulp."
This might just be my new favorite quote.
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PANEL TOPIC #1-Pulp is a genre that historically, it seems, has been aimed at adult males seeking blood, guts, violence, and sex on some level. With modern pulp, however, some are saying that the audience is or at least needs to be broader? What is your opinion on this and if you think pulp is trying to reach a bigger piece of the population, cite some examples.
Barry - Classic pulp certainly catered to adolescent and adult males but I don't think it really needs to change to appeal to women or other demographics. Look at the Mummy movies with Brendan Fraser. Classic pulp and women love them. Same for Indiana Jones and the Special Agent Pendergast novels. There was a time when women were expected to be turned off by violence and sex in their entertainment but that's no longer the case. The biggest thing that needs to be done is to treat female characters as real people and not have them half-naked and in need of rescue all the time. That's what turns women off from classic pulp, not the sex or violence.
Ron - I totally agree with Barry's statements here. What I find bothersome was a quote heard on Public Radio about the book business in general that stated women read make up the bargest audience of fiction readers. That one caught me totally by surprise. As a pulp guy who attends several pulp related cons a year, the majority of our readers are male. So I'd question that so called fact. Thing is, keeping on topic, there were all too few female pulp writers in the day. Something we at Airship 27 Productions have tried to correct, not only with recruiting talented female writers (Bernadette Johnson/Janet Harriet) but also to purposely creating new classic female pulp heroes. Barry's done one for us called Dusk, while Aaron Smith created Red Veil. The more we involve women in pulps, the more both their contributions and support will grow.
Tommy-I think this question naturally turns us toward the gender issue and both of you guys are exactly right in your statements. It seems like that even though there were a handful of characters in the golden age of most media (1930s-1950s) that were female, very few if any 'pulp heroes' were women, so we, being the writers of today, are retrofitting these characters in. And I'm with Ron on one way to bring women into this genre is to increase the number of writers and artists that are female within it. Pro Se has a couple, Nancy Hansen, a fantasy pulp production powerhouse, and Megan Smith, a brand new up and coming writer. These ladies and the scant others that are involved will bring a little variety to the table, but we definitely could use more.
But what about other audiences? Are there other ways to expand the reach pulp has? What about kids? Should children be reading Pulp? Should pulp writers target kids? Pro Se has some kid friendly stuff in the works that fits the pulp definition, but its aimed at a younger demographic...and are we past the point in our history where we can have the discussion of ethnicities being groups to be aiming at. There's a lot of talk in pulp about being politically correct and not referencing or using the old pulp stuff that was obviously racist...but is there a reverse to this? Should we be writing, if we're so predisposed, to certain ethnicities and giving them heroic roles and front and center attention, to make sure they are represented? Or are we enlightened enough finally that we don't have to pay attention to ethnicity when writing a pulp hero?
Sarge-Ardently agree with Barry that pulp fiction has consistantly catered to adolescent and adult males! Unfortunately, as Barry pointed out, females were usually relegated to subservient roles, treated like window dressing or both.
When Ron added that public perception is that women make up the major number of overall readership, today, it certainly explains why actioneers are on the wane! Ron offers hope as he further points out new female pulp writers and female new pulp heroines.
From my perspective there definitely is hope and my shining example is my daughter, Alanna! I know, I know, I may sound like a doughting dad but let me state my case. Alanna is a fourth generation pulp enthusiast. She's read the Avenger, Doc Savage, Phantom Detective, Shadow, the Spider and just finished reading the first two volumes in Wayne Reinagel's PULP HEROES Triology. Moving on, let your fingers do the walking and you'll easily find Alanna's "Silhouette Pastiches" and "Worlds of Doc Diamond" FaceBook Groups. Next, you'll see that she provides an able assist on my Facebooks Groups: Bronze Pastiches, Purple Prose Pulp Parade and the Sergeant Preston of the Yukon Fan Club. Just ask Alanna and she will tell you the three of us are avid bibliophiles. Ask her again and she will tell you that the first mystery series she read was "Clue!" Alanna graduated to Nero Wolfe and currently she's a Stuart Woods devotee. She began to write her own pulp related mysteries in elementary school and continues off and on to this day. I realize Alanna may be the exception to the rule and was unduly influenced by dueling Shadow laughter emenating from her dad and grandfather but with likes of her as a pulp fan there's always hope for more female pulp fans!
Tommy's latest contribution to the current topic took a pincer approach! He brought up the younger audience and ethnicty. Let me merge them together with an observation that has been most prevalent to this educator's observation in the last thirty years. America's under thirty population is mostly colorblind to race! This is a healthy condition that needs to be nurtured and maintained just like pulps as a legitimate literary form. Too often pulps and comicbooks are lumped together and thrown out with the tabloids and yet they're both worth saving and savoring. May I suggest that we look into ways to make inroads into schools by the creating and distributing media kits that inform young teachers of the worlds that pulps can open up for their pupils! What other form of media can set the imagination on fire like the pulps? Once the imagination has been sparked, there's a growing need to read, read and read more across a lifetime! I'm always perplexed when I meet a fellow teacher or educator that doesn't enjoy reading!! This really worries me and makes me want to hand them a vintage copy of "Planet Stories" or "The Shadow!!!"
Two Fisted News from the World of Pulp!
