Tagged: Pulp

  • News
  • July 14, 2011

Pulp 2.0 Press Opens up The Agent 13 Dossier
Pulp Publisher to Collect the AGENT 13 Novels by Flint Dille and David Marconi

agent13-4382766

Los Angeles, CA – Pulp 2.0 Press CEO Bill Cunningham today announced that the company has signed an agreement to redesign and republish the adventures of the classic pulp character, Agent 13, created and written by Flint Dille (Transformers G1) and David Marconi (Enemy of the State). This Pulp 2.0 collector’ edition titled The Agent 13 Dossier will be exclusively in print, and will collect all three of the original Agent 13 novels as well as exclusive features disclosing the secrets behind the mysterious Midnight Avenger.

Agent 13 was originally published in 1986 by TSR in a trilogy of novels – The Invisible Empire, The Serpentine Assassin and Acolytes of Darkness. The character spawned a set of graphic novels drawn by artist Dan Spiegle (with covers by Jeff Butler) as well as a role-playing game and comic. Kidnapped as a young child in 1907, a gifted boy was brought to The Shrine, the hidden headquarters of the ancient organization known as The Brotherhood. His past memories were erased, he was assigned the title Agent 13 and trained as an assassin and agent in clandestine operations. He became the best disciple and would have risen high in the ranks of the Brotherhood, until he discovered its true evil nature under its cadaverous leader, Itsu – The Hand Sinister. Fleeing The Brotherhood he is hunted by their ninja-like agents, and begins a deadly cat-and-mouse contest against the organization. He fights back, forming his own group of allies against the Brotherhood who dare to plunge the world toward war.

“Agent 13 is Dille and Marconi’s love letter to the pulps, cliffhanger serials and comics. We at Pulp 2.0 are ecstatic to present our readers with these great pulp adventures in an exclusive collector’s print edition,” said Pulp 2.0 CEO Bill Cunningham. “I remember reading… okay devouring these books when they first came out, and I’ve always loved the world and characters that Flint and David created. To be able to design a new edition to share these rare novels and the secrets behind Agent 13 is an honor.”

“We were sitting in Flint’s living room one day, and we started jamming ideas back and forth. Flint was a big fan of the pulps and he showed me some of the old materials he had. He had a book featuring the old pulp covers that we looked at that was very inspiring. I had just written some screenplays for Warner Brothers and had good relationships there, and said that if we came up with an interesting story/pitch about this stuff, we can possibly set it up as a screenplay to write.’ So we originally developed AGENT 13 as a studio pitch to set up as a film, and spent quite a lot of time developing the story and characters as we pitched it around to the various producer/buyers around town,” said co-creator David Marconi.

“Then, when the movie wasn’t getting set up as quickly as we hoped, but the story had progressed to the level where we had all the characters and everything else worked out, we decided to just write the book. Flint had access to Random House through Gary Gygax and TSR, so we were able to get a publishing deal, and dove straight into Agent 13 novel world. Which at the end of the day, was more fun in that it allowed us to go much deeper into the characters and backstory which can’t be explored in great detail in a 2 hour script format.”

More details will be forthcoming as the project progresses. The Agent 13 contract was negotiated on behalf of the creators by Howard Bliss of Union Entertainment.

About Flint Dille:

Flint Dille is a living embodiment of Transmedia. His career started by turning toys into TV Shows with G1 Transformers, G.I. Joe, Inhumanoids and Visionaries. He has designed games with Gary Gygax and written movies for Steven Spielberg. Flint has sold game design documents as feature films – Venom (Dimension 2006) and Agent In Place (Lionsgate 2010). Flint directed the interactive movie Terror T.R.A.X., Track of the Vampyre which became a television pilot for Fox as well as Dragonstrike, one of the first hybrid film projects.

Flint has twice won ‘Game Script of the Year’ (Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (with JZP) and Dead to Rights and was nominated for Ghostbusters and Dark Athena. He has worked on crown jewel franchises including James Bond, Mission: Impossible, Tiny Toons, Batman: Rise of Sin Tsu (Guiness Book of Videogame Records for creating the first Batman villain outside of the comics), Superman, Dungeons & Dragons, Teen Titans and Scooby-Doo.

He has a degree in Ancient History from U.C. Berkeley and an MFA from USC. Currently, Flint is teaching a class on Alternate Reality Games at UCLA. His follow up book to The Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing and Design is about Transmedia.

About David Marconi:

A native of Highland Park, Ill., Marconi was passionate about film making from an early age. After winning several high-school film making competitions, Marconi was awarded an Alumni Merit Scholarship to attend the University of Southern California’s Film School. Upon graduation, landed his first job as Francis Ford Coppola’s assistant on The Outsiders.

Working closely with Coppola, Marconi “cut his directing teeth” watching Francis direct both The Outsiders and Rumblefish. In 1993, Marconi wrote and directed his first feature, The Harvest, (Columbia TriStar). The film premiered in the ‘official selection’ of the San Sebastian Film Festival and went on to win numerous awards in International Film festivals.

The success of The Harvest brought Marconi to the attention of Simpson/Bruckheimer who commissioned Marconi to write his original screenplay Enemy of the State (Disney) starring Will Smith and Gene Hackman. Marconi continued creating tent-pole action films for the major studios; WW3.com (which served as the basis for the Die Hard sequel; Live Free or Die Hard ) (Twentieth Century Fox,) Perfect Suspect for Chris Rock (Twentieth Century Fox,) and the high-tech., science fiction epic; No Man’s Land. (Dreamworks.)

Most recently, Marconi was a featured guest speaker for IADC, International Attorney’s Defense Council, and the Department of Defense Cyber-Crime Conference where he lectured on his film Enemy of the State and how it relates to privacy concerns and cyber-warfare in a post 9-11 world. 2011 will mark Marconi’s second foray behind the lens as a writer/director with his new feature film; INTERSECTION, a gritty thriller currently in pre-production being produced by Luc Besson, the director of THE PROFESSIONAL, FIFTH ELEMENT and Europa Corp. Holding duel citizenship for the US and EU (Italy,) Marconi divides his time between Los Angeles and Europe.

MORE SKY RANGER! MORE AUTHORS! MORE IPULP!

  • News
  • July 10, 2011

The Lance Star: Sky Ranger interviews – Author Frank Dirscherl

Frank Dirscherl

With the announcement of Lance Star: Sky Ranger joining the iPulp Fiction Library, we wanted to introduce readers to some of the Honorary Sky Rangers involved with making these stories happen. Next up is Lance star: Sky Ranger Author Frank Dirscherl.

LSSR: Tell us a little about yourself and where readers can find out more about you and your work?

FD: I’m a 38 year old librarian, live in Australia and have been writing off and on my whole life, professionally for about 10 or so years now. I’ve mainly been writing the adventures of my modern day pulp paradin, The Wraith, in both comic book and prose form, but I’ve worked on some other projects as well. My two websites contain further information and links to buy my work – http://www.trinitycomics.com/ and http://www.frankdirscherl.com/.

Attack of the Bird Man Now Available.

LSSR: How did you become involved with the Lance Star: Sky Ranger series?

FD: I don’t quite recall how I was introduced to Mr Ron Fortier online, but ultimately, he invited me to contribute to this, and other works, from his publishing venture Airship 27, and I eagerly signed up. I only wish I’d have had the time to contribute more than I thus far have, but there will be more from me coming, rest assured. Pulp storytelling is my absolute favorite, and the more I can contribute to this genre, the better.

LSSR: Who is Lance Star? What makes pulp characters like Lance and the Sky Rangers appeal to you as a writer and a reader?

FD: Lance Star is an aviator adventurer who surrounds himself with a team of fellow enthusiasts and who end up fighting crime and seeking adventure the world over. I think characters such as Doc Savage and even Indiana Jones are probably of a similar ilk to Lance. What I love about all such pulp novel characters is that their stories are, for mine, true adventures. When coming to the end of such a story, one gets the feeling you’ve been on a real ride, unlike any other in fiction. The adventures are often fast-paced and even, at times, feverish and melodramatic—the characters go through so much in the course of their adventure, and I love that. Above all else, I’m a reader of the genre, so that makes it all the more special to also be a writer of such stories. I feel privileged to be able to contribute in some small way to the genre.

The Wraith: Valley of Evil

LSSR: Digital content has changed the publishing landscape. As a creator, what excites you about digital content? As a reader?

FD: What excites me is that all our work can now be accessed by as wide a range of readers as possible. Never before has the work of all authors been as easily accessible as they are now with the ‘digital revolution’. This can only be of benefit to all creators. For just a few dollars—often as low as two or three—a reader can download a book and have it instantly available to read on their e-reader. I myself own a Kindle, and it’s an amazing tool.

LSSR: Your Lance Star: Sky Ranger story, “Attack Of The Birdman” is currently available in print, as an eBook, and soon to be released individually at iPulp Fiction. What can you tell us about this story? (plug it, tease it)

FD: I was somewhat inspired by the Alfred Hitchcock film, The Birds, but also by an incident which happened while I was pondering my Lance Star story. On that day, I looked outside my (then) home and saw dozens of birds congregated on a power line that weren’t there moments earlier. That really gave me the spark of an idea as to where to take my story. But, what if a master criminal was behind the appearance of the birds. What if he was controlling them, using them to further his own nefarious plans? And, what if he was possibly not even human? Once I’d established that, a Birdman threatening the country, everything flowed easily from there. It turned into a rollicking adventure, one which links very well into the established Lance Star mythos, and I think is one of the best stories I’ve thus far written.

The Wraith: Cult of the Damned

LSSR: Any upcoming projects you would like to plug?

FD: My latest novel in The Wraith Adventures series, Cry of the Werewolf, will be out either later this year or early next year, and I’m very excited about that. The Wraith is truly out of his comfort zone in this one as he vacations with his girlfriend in the countryside and battles with werewolves, a Satanic cult and much more. I’ve also just completed my Wraith short story, titled Sundown, for the upcoming Airship 27 Wraith anthology and another Wraith short story, Zombies Attack!, for an anthology titled Superheroes vs. Zombies (from Coscom Entertainment). More short stories to come, and readers can always access the various comic books I’ve also written and published from my aforementioned websites.

LSSR: Thanks, Frank.

You can find Lance Star: Sky Ranger “Attack Of The Bird Man”
at http://www.ipulpfiction.com/bookstore.php?sort=Title

BIG BANG IS BACK THANKS TO PULP 2.0 PRESS!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July
5th, 2011
        
                                                                                                                    Pulp
2.0 Press


Pulp 2.0 Press Acquires Publishing Rights to Big Bang Universe


Pulp Publisher to reprint classic Big Bang Comics as Collector’s Volumes




Los Angeles, CA – Pulp 2.0 Press CEO Bill Cunningham today announced that the company has acquired the publishing and media licensing rights to the library of work by creators Gary Carlson and Chris Ecker under their Big Bang Comics imprint.  This deal signals another expansion for the company’s library of graphic novels. “I’ve always loved the history and the classic sensibility of the Big Bang Comics characters like Knight Watchman, Ultiman, Thunder Girl and others that Gary and Chris have created.  I’m very pleased we have a chance to bring their work and the work of celebrated giants like Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson, Shelly Moldoff, and Marty Nodell out in collector’s editions that capture that four color fun we all enjoyed when we were kids.”

The company plans to issue their editions as showcases to each individual Big Bang Comics character by collecting all of that character’s work under one cover, and adding historical reference, essays and rare, behind-the-scenes photos, sketches, covers, and memorabilia.  Formerly published by Image comics, Big Bang made a reputation for itself as the place where comics were fun again by creating the classic comics work of BB giants like Tom King and Jack Kingler.
“Big Bang Comics is an example of the kind of of fun we want to inject back into book publishing,” said Cunningham.  “I grew up reading books like The Great Comic Book Heroes and Batman:
From the 30’s to the 70’s. Each Big Bang character deserves the same sort of presentation so fans old and new can read and appreciate both the comics and the history behind the company just
like I did.”

“Big Bang Comics began in 1992 when Chris Ecker told me that he was tired of comic book publishers and art directors telling him that he drew like an “old guy” and that he was going to sit down and draw an old style comic book story and that I was going to write it.  We talked his ideaover at a small comic convention in Elgin, Illinois where we both lived. Then we got Gary Reed  at Caliber Press involved as our first publisher and the rest is history. With Big Bang I got to write stories about the characters I had loved and even got to work with some of my favorite creators: Shelly Moldoff, Mart Nodell, Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson (they even signed it “Swanderson”!), Dave Cockrum and Rich Buckler,” said Big Bang Creator Gary Carlson.
Big Bang Co-Creator Chris Ecker adds, “If the Golden Age and Silver Age creators had the opportunity to see their work available on “space aged” digital devices (like, say a Kindle or Nook), they’d have jumped at it. With Pulp2.0, we’re able to do things with our “vintage” comic universe that they could only dream–and write or draw–about. I also think there’s an untapped group of potential fans that aren’t familiar with Big Bang out there, and the digital and print on demand capabilities that our Pulp 2.0 partnership presents will allow them total access. “

Individual editions in Pulp 2.0’s Big Bang Comics Collector’s series will be announced as they become available.  The first editions are scheduled for 2nd quarter 2012. For more information on Big Bang go to: www.bigbangcomics.com

About Pulp 2.0:
Pulp 2.0 is a publishing and media company that creates and distributes quality pulp entertainment media in every manner possible for its audience all over the world to enjoy. The company licenses, redesigns and republishes classic pulp, exploitation paperbacks and magazines through a variety of print and digital media; breathing new life into many of these ‘lost’ properties.

The company also creates new pulp entertainment for its target audience including the original vampire blaxploitation novel Brother Blood by Donald F. Glut, the internet radio adventure serial   “The Murder Legion Strikes at Midnight” (produced in association with Toronto’s  Decoder Ring Theater), and the tribute to legendary radio adventure historian Jim Harmon, Radio Western Adventures that features a lost western tale by Doc Savage creator Lester Dent.  In addition, the company is developing the re-release of Glut’s widely acclaimed horror-adventure book series The
New Adventures of Frankenstein in collectible editions for print and digital.  For more information go to: www.pulp2ohpress.com




FIREWORKS AND FREEDOM-THANKS FROM ALL PULP

ALL PULP wishes everyone who celebrates July 4th or any day of freedome a HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY and specifically thanks each and every man and woman who ever wore a uniform, stood against tyranny, and/or fought for the right that every American has to be free today!   Enjoy your families, fellowship, and your freedom, not just today, but every single moment.  Happy 4th of July from ALL PULP!

THE BOOK CAVE GOES TO PYTHON ISLE AND GETS PLANETARY!

  • News
  • June 30, 2011
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Will Murray, Roger Ritner and Michael McConnohie join the Book Cave crew to discuss Python Isle and future audio books.
Will Murray – www.adventuresinbronze.com
On Facebook: The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage.
Radioarchives.com
Michael McConnohie
              
              
              
 
Thu, 23 June 2011
Shelby Vick of the online Pulp magazine Planetary joins the Book Cave crew to talk about his site.
http://www.planetarystories.com/
After the first one — www.planetarystories.com/wonerlust.htm — the other links are www.planetarystories.com/W2.htm — www.planetarystories.com/W3.htm — www.planetarystories.com/W4.htm — www.planetarystories.com/W5.htm — www.planetarystories.com/W6.htm
Also, I left out someone really important: Ron N Butler, of the Atlanta Radio group, turned up by Jerry Page. Ron has developed Rory Rammer, Space Marshal as, for instance, in www.planetarystories.com/rammer.htm and www.planetarystories.com/planetoid.htm for instance. Rory Rammer is PERFECT for Planetary Stories.
our Associate Editor is Robert Kennedy

Legendary Writer/Anthologist Greenberg Passes

  • News
  • June 26, 2011

ALL PULP is saddened to repost the news of the passing of Martin H. Greenberg.  Though the name may not be familiar to many, Greenberg gained fame as being one of the most dedicated anthologists of recent years.  Many fantastic story collections that inspired many ALL PULP readers as well as Pulp creators of all sorts, were thanks either in whole or at least in part to Mr. Greenberg. He will be missed.

reposted from www.fantafiction.com

R.I.P. Martin H. Greenberg (1941-2011)

 
Martin Harry Greenberg (March 1, 1941-June 25, 2011) was an American speculative fiction anthologist and writer.

Greenberg took a doctorate in Political Science in 1969, and has taught at the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay since 1975. His first anthology was Political Science Fiction (1974, with Patricia Warrick), intended to be used as a teaching guide, then continuing with a sequence of educational anthology titles under the series name Through Science Fiction. In the late 70s Greenberg began partnering with Joseph D. Olander on more conventional SF anthologies. Early in his career, Greenberg was sometimes confused with Martin Greenberg the publisher of Gnome Press, but the anthologist has stated (at science fiction conventions, and in some of his anthologies) that they are no relation. Asimov suggested that he call himself “Martin H. Greenberg” or “Martin Harry Greenberg” to distinguish him from the other Martin Greenberg.

He shared the 2005 Prometheus Special Award with Mark Tier for the anthologies Give Me Liberty and Visions of Liberty.

Greenberg typically teamed up with another editor, splitting the duties of story selection, editing, copyright searches, and the handling of author royalties. Major partners include Isaac Asimov (127 anthologies), Charles G. Waugh, Jane Yolen, and Robert Silverberg.

In 2009, he was the recipient of one of the first three Solstice Awards presented by the SFWA in recognition of his contributions to the field of science fiction.

HANCOCK TIPS HIS HAT TO A TOME ON THE SHADOW!!

  • News
  • June 23, 2011

TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp by Tommy Hancock

THE SHADOW-The History and Mystery of the Radio Program, 1930-1954
Written by Martin Grams, Jr. 
Published by OTR Publishing
2011
830 pages

Reviewing Pulp is fun.  Reading a story full of derring do and dastardly do badders is invigorating.  Tackling a novel with larger than life heroes and plots that boggle the mind and senses makes me eager to pick up the next one and share with the world what I think.  I think the process of reviewing, of sharing insight and opinion on anything has to be, at its basis, fun for the reviewer.  Many would think, then, that tackling a book that is nonfiction, historical, and full of facts and such would be boring for a Pulp reviewer.  Maybe so.

But not this book.  Wow.

THE SHADOW-The History and Mystery of the Radio Program, 1930-1954, written by Martin Grams, Jr. opens with both of those on the first page-history and mystery.  Welcoming the reader in with opening paragraphs that could well be the lead in of a pulp story in any magazine or collection, Grams takes what some might consider mundane information only for the most die hard of radio and/or Shadow fans and makes this entire work a sprawling, epic narrative bulging not only with what happened, but why things happened and who was involved.  Grams tackles the variety of personalities involved in the development of the Shadow radio program and injects the feats and fallacies of all involved into every page.

This book is exactly what the title states, an extremely complex and comprehensive history of the phenomenon that was the long running SHADOW radio program.   Grams starts with the origins of the character as a narrator for pulp tales and step by step takes the reader through the growth spurts and growing pains of the program that truly made The Shadow a part of the modern pantheon of American heroes.  Although one would think that there would be urges to devote a lot of space to Orson Welles’ time on the program or to the intricacies and involvement of Street and Smith, Grams not only gives those and other well known aspects of this history their due, but he brings into light so many, one would daresay every aspect of this show and then does something even more startling.  He makes every bit of it interesting, from the details about all the creative minds involved to the advertising to the effect that this program had on the industry and society alike. 

One stand out section of this fantastic work is the episode guide.  Grams is meticulous in not only describing the episode, but the way his guide is constructed lets you know not only where everything fits in continuity, but also gives you a sense of the impact of many of the episodes.  This is not simply a reprinting or even a presentation of a new broadcast log or notes taken on each episode.  Grams did a truly masterful job of providing information that was simultaneously educational and gratifying in this well done blow by blow episode guide.

THE SHADOW-The History and Mystery of the Radio Program, 1930-1954 is a must read for so many people-For the die hard pulp fan; for the Shadow fan; for the reader interested in OTR; for students of American culture; for the casual reader who wants to be exposed to multiple interests all at once; and probably several others I’m forgetting.   This may sit on shelves as a reference or research book, which it is, but it is also highly entertaining and engaging.

FIVE OUT FIVE TIPS OF HANCOCK’S HAT-The Shadow may know what evil lurks in the hearts of men, but nobody knows the Shadow radio program and its history like Martin Grams, Jr.

A BOOK A DAY IS BACK!

  • News
  • June 15, 2011

After a brief hiatus, the column spotlighting a different book each day (or most days at least) that would add to any Pulp fan’s, writer’s, and artist’s knowledge and toolbox, is BACK!  Bear Manor Media is once again the go to source for the content for this column, but as always, if you have another resource or a suggested title to spotlight here, please email allpulp@yahoo.com and let us know!  And now….

http://www.bearmanormedia.com/

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THE CASE FILES OF THE ORIENTAL SLEUTHS:
CHARLIE CHAN
MR. MOTO
MR. WONG

During the golden age of magazine fiction, motion pictures, and radio-roughly the 1920s through the late 1940s-three Oriental crime fighters were introduced to the American public.  Through the media which they inhabited they became fictional icons in American popular culture: Honolulu Police Inspector Charlie Chan, International Secret Agent Mr. I. A. Moto, and Justice Department Agent Mr. James Lee Wong-commonly known as the Oriental Sleuths.

Created by respected authors Earl Derr Biggers, Pulitzer Prize-winner John P. Marquand, and Hugh Wiley, the three Oriental sleuths’ adventures first appeared in popular magazines and then were quickly snapped up by Hollywood to sate the appetites of film-goers for detective thrillers on the silver screen.  Charlie Chan carried his case loads over into radio, television, newspaper comic strips, comic books, Better Little Books, and games.  Mr. Moto followed with radio adventures and a graphic novel, and Mr. Wong added comic book exploits to his résumé.

Now author David Rothel brings all three Oriental sleuths together for the first time in one volume as he examines their origins and covers their development in all the media forms they encompassed through the years. 

THE SUSPENSEFUL NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES
THE EXCITING FILMS
THE MYSTERIOUS RADIO EPISODES
THE LIVE-ACTION TELEVISION EPISODES
THE ANIMATED TELEVISION EPISODES
THE CLASSIC COMIC BOOKS, BETTER LITTLE BOOKS, AND GAMES
IN FACT, JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT
THE ORIENTAL SLEUTHS

INTERVIEW WITH WRITER MARTIN POWELL ABOUT MONSTERS!!

AP:  Martin, thanks for joining ALL PULP once again for an interview.  Can you catch us up to speed on some of the things you’ve been doing since your last visit?
POWELL:  Thanks for asking me back.  It’s been a crazily busy time since we last spoke.  I’m writing several new comics, graphic novels, and co-writing a screenplay, as well as a top secret new pulp prose novel featuring a very famous classic character.  Also, I have a new novella for teens about to be published.  There’s a lot going on here.  I’m not sure where to begin.
AP:  You are involved in a very special project, one that means a lot to you both professionally and personally.  Talk a bit, if you would, about the professional aspects of FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN, how you became involved, the process of getting the project going, etc.?
POWELL:  I’ve written a vintage-style “filmbook” treatment of the classic Universal movie FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN for the newly resurrected Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine.  Fans of the magazine will know exactly what I mean, but to clarify, this will be a pulpy prose version of the story as adapted from Curt Siodmak’s original screenplay, profusely illustrated with photos from the film.  This is one of the secret projects I’ve been teasing about on Facebook for the past few months.  I pitched the proposal around last Halloween to editor Jessie Lilley, and she was wild about it.  Next, we approached Joe Jusko for the cover.  There was no other artist better suited and we were absolutely thrilled when he enthusiastically agreed.  Joe loves this stuff as much as we do, and he created a magnificently monstrous cover painting.
AP:  One question is why?  Why does a classic monster movie need the sort of adaptation you’re giving it decades after it was released?
POWELL:  Because this version of the movie has never been seen before, containing several scenes that were cut from the released film.  In my filmbook, Bela Lugosi’s Frankenstein Monster is blind, and will speak, as Siodmak originally intended. Think of it as a sort of “Director’s Cut” of a long-cherished classic monster movie.  Today, there are almost always novelized paperbacks of current hit movies, and FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN was a ground-breaking blockbuster at the box office, and deserves the very same attention today.
AP:  How do you as a writer take this entire concept, including the very classic, but also in some views very stereotypical portrayals of these monsters and make it appeal to a modern audience?
POWELL:  In no way do I consider these characters “stereotypical.”  Someone might as well say Superman, Sherlock Holmes, or Tarzan are stereotypes.  The Frankenstein Monster and the Wolf Man are legendary archetypes of the cinema, and will far outlive the soulless slashers and the zombie-glut of today.  I doubt there are very many kids over the age of six, anywhere in this country, who can’t name the classic monsters by sight, even if they’ve never seen one of the old movies.
AP:  What does this being a feature in a magazine add to the concept, if anything?  Why this particular medium?
 POWELL:  It’s not just any magazine—this is Famous Monsters of Filmland!  As co-created by the late, great Forrest J Ackerman, it’s been the single most influential publication of my life.  This is a national magazine with a tremendous readership, and there’s no greater home for this project.  I can hardly express how exciting it is to be the writer of a cover feature in this iconic magazine!
AP:  All right, now let’s talk about your personal affection for these characters.  Why do these monsters mean so much to you?
POWELL:  That’s tough to describe, but I’ll try.  I was sick a lot as a little kid and Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine served as a sort of security blanket for me every dreaded time I went to the doctor’s office. FM never, ever failed to make me feel better.  I was a monster movie fanatic, and my older brothers have told me that Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi were the first movie stars I recognized on TV.  FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN was only the second Frankenstein film I ever saw—and also was my first encounter with the Wolf Man—when I was six years old, and I was utterly fascinated.  When I first read Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein novel at the age of eleven, it was a life-defining moment.  That book, and especially the Boris Karloff films, changed me forever and I’ve never been the same since.
AP:  Horror in recent years has moved away from Frankenstein, Wolf Man, Dracula, etc., and more to the visceral slasher type killers and the torture types.  Why do you think this has occurred?  And can the classic monsters and the stories those movies told be made viable again?
 POWELL:  Personally, I feel these slasher/torture movies represent lazy storytelling.  Somewhere, somehow, the horror film became the gross-out film, with visceral effects replacing story and performance.  To each his own, but I don’t find that sort of thing very entertaining.  The classic monster movies have their peaks and valleys, but they’ve always returned to the screen and to new popularity.  It’s happening again already.  I recently read in Variety that no less than a half-dozen new Frankenstein films are currently in production in Hollywood.  Plus, there’s The National Theatre’s brilliant new Frankenstein stage play by Danny Boyle and Nick Dear, where actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternated the roles of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature.  The play was a huge critical success and a phenomenal sell-out hit.  Audiences are always ready for something done exceptionally well.
AP:  This is a Pulp news site.  Some would, and actually have, argued that things such as movie adaptations of classic monster tales and other such things don’t qualify as Pulp.  How would you respond to that?
 POWELL:  ‘Pulp’, at least as I understand it, is difficult to contain with such a narrow view, and by its nature has a very broad definition.
AP:  You’ve also got a ton of other projects going.  Care to share any information on what you can talk about?
 POWELL:  Well, I’m the writer for the continuing comic book series of THE SPIDER, for Moonstone, including a Halloween Special issue with artist Jay Piscopo, whom I’m very excited to be working with again.  And speaking of my favorite holiday, my teen-readers mystery novella THE HALLOWEEN LEGION will be published later in the summer, and is probably the most personal project I’ve ever written.  Also, I’ve just been contracted for a number of graphic novels coming from Sequential Pulp Comics, an imprint of Dark Horse Comics, including an exciting collaboration with my favorite author, Edgar Rice Burroughs, which will be happily teaming me again with my good friend, and Golden Lion Award Winner, illustrator Tom Floyd.  Very shortly, I’ll be co-writing the screenplay for a new murder mystery set in the 1920s, but there’s not much more I can say about that right now.  Most importantly, I’m surrounded by the things I love, which is the luckiest place for any writer to be.
AP: Martin, it’s been absolutely great to have you back on ALL PULP!
POWELL:  Thank you very much.  I always appreciate your interest in what I’m doing.

HANCOCK TIPS HIS HAT PIRATE STYLE!

TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp by Tommy Hancock
GUAN-YIN AND THE HORRORS OF SKULL ISLAND
by Barry Reese
Published by Wild Cat Books
2009

One of the best things about Pulp fiction is that since it was a medium that arguably has grown into its own genre, it is rife with all sorts of sub genres one can write within.   One story by one author can be a masked vigilante tale, then the next a straight western, and the third a science fiction ‘what if’ and all three will still be called Pulp.  The stories are more varied and authors are thankfully allowed to be more versatile, to take chances outside of the sub genres they are known for.

Barry Reese, known for his hero, THE ROOK, and most recently for LAZARUS GRAY as wellas a plethora of other tales and such, took just such a chance two years back by walking the plank right off feet first into a pirate tale that also doubled as a mash up of sorts.

GUAN-YIN AND THE HORRORS OF SKULL ISLAND focuses on a saucy, talented, and smart female captain of a pirate ship.  Helming THE LOTUS BLOSSOM, Guan Yin is a pirate that can stand her own with sword, fist, and pillaging up against any man calling himself pirate, but she is also a woman with a mission.  As a child, Guan’s pirate father went on one more escapade and never returned.  Growing up in his shadow and eventually filling his figurative boots, Guan Yin harbored for years the hope of finding out what happened to her father.  That hope is answered when a strange African, M’buku tells her that a great treasure awaits him, her, and her crew on an island draped in mysteries and myths.  An island where, according to M’buku, hints of what happened to her father, also exist.

This book is a quick read, both short in length and traveling at a break neck speed.  The characters often start off as stereotypical, but Reese throws a little bit of that exploration and realization that he is known for, adding a bit of flesh and fat to the bare bones of the words he writes.

Is this book a definitive tale rife with pirate lore and nautical fact?  No.  GUAN YIN is not to be held up in comparison to Sabatini and other pirate classics, but I don’t believe that was necessarily the intent. Is this Reese’s strongest entry into the Pulp genre?  No.  But this is a fun romp through a Pulp trope with a certain large monkey and his worshipping natives froma  certain hollywood classic thrown in for good measure.  GUAN YIN is the tale that we all imagine we’d like to write and/or live as we’re growing up and Reese did one of those and for that imagination, he did it well.

THREE OUT OF FIVE TIPS OF THE HAT-A great romp on the high seas worth the read.

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