Sunday, December 08, 2013

Today's Vintage Ad


3 comments:

Todd Mason said...

I've had one copy of FICTION over the years (I eventually gave it to someone who could actually read French), but never have held any copies of NUEVA DIMENSION (which I might be able to read with some difficulty), FANTASIA E FANTACIENZA, or any of the other international editions...except for the UK's, which for some reason was longer running as the Brit version of VENTURE than as branded as F&SF...perhaps preferring the VENTURE title (F&SF's twice short-run companion, in the late '50s and turn of the '70s) allowed for more sales in those odd circumstances where the US F&SF would be on sale next to it in the racks.

mybillcrider said...

I really liked the first incarnation of Venture. I have a few copies of the second try, but it wasn't the same.

Todd Mason said...

VENTURE as edited by Robert P. Mills (with Cyril Kornbluth among the assistants) was a real taboo-breaker, even if it also stressed relatively hairy-chested manfulness (not, mind you, to the ridiculous degree of the Men's Sweat magazines), sometimes in the same story, but often enough (particularly in Theodore Sturgeon's work) mocking the hell out that same manfulness (for example, "Affair with a Green Monkey" and "The Girl Had Guts"). VENTURE revived by Edward Ferman was a solid magazine that featured a long novella in each issue. Though it's notable that Mills's F&SF wasn't as interesting as his VENTURE.