Greetings, I hope to polish this up and add color and explanation later.
Here's what I hope we will read for class #5
Buck Rogers in print.
Buck Rogers is one of the classic science fiction heroes. This is his first appearance and dates from 1928.
https://archive.org/details/Amazing_Stories_08-1928_Buck_Rogers_Armageddon_2419_AD_
HP Lovecraft is normally classified as a weird horror writer but I think a good argument could be made that often he could be classified as a science fiction writer. I think this story is one example. It's a bit long but it is a classic. It dates from 1931.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/At_the_Mountains_of_Madness
More has been written about him in a later post.
(As an aside, I mentioned that I wrote my MA Thesis on the search for Peking Man, a colloquial term for some specimens of Homo Erecti found in China in 1927. Let me suggest, it's never a bad idea to check and verify when people make claims of lofty education, etc. Although I strongly believe most people are honest and good --if you lose your wallet it usually gets returned-- it only takes one dishonest or predatory person to complicate and change your life, so in that spirit:
https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/8399
This is my MA Thesis. There is no obligation whatsoever to read any of it. Really.
Damon Runyon
Since we are discussing pulp and magazine fiction of the 1930s and 1940s, I'd like to introduce you to Damon Runyon. Damon Runyon is not a science fiction writer and has absolutely no business being mentioned in this class. On the other hand, he's great. He's very, very funny and often considered one of the masters of the craft of short story writing.
So check him out. I have found his story "A Piece of Pie" and if you look at it, I think you will enjoy it.
Here's a radio series from the time based on his stories. A Piece of Pie is story number 21.
Here's a youtube presentation of the radio play.
