Sci Fi Readers in 1948

January 1949

In my previous blog post, I commented on "What Mad Universe" by Fredric Brown. "What Mad Universe" was first published in the September 1948 issue of Startling Stories. There was a lively letters column in Startling Stories and Brown's story included a fan letter written to Surprising Stories, so I could not resist getting in my time machine and going to the January 1949 issue of Startling Stories so I could read fan reactions to "What Mad Universe". I've previously commented on "The Time Axis" and "The Sub-Standard Sardines" which were published in that issue of Startling Stories.

One topic from the September 1948 issue of Startling Stories that was raised by several fans in their letters to the editor was the identity of the artist who had made black-and-white illustrations for "What Mad Universe".....

Vern Stevens?                Related Reading: Wine of the Dreamers

who dunnit?

The Stevens Family. The ISFDB does not list an artist named Vern Stevens and the ISFDB lists the artist for "What Mad Universe" as "interior artwork by uncredited". It seems likely that the artist was Lawrence Sterne Stevens. According to Wikipedia, the father of Stevens had the same name and was "Rector of the Zion Protestant Episcopal Church". Also according to Wikipedia there was a son named Peter Stevens who sometimes did illustrations for the pulps. So who was "Vern"? That is a mystery, but I suspect this was an error and that "Vern" should have been "Sterne".

One fan letter from Tom Jewett called out for praise several of the illustrations for "What Mad Universe" including the one shown below...

In the July 1948 issue of Startling Stories: "The Valley of Creation" by Edmond Hamilton

As was the case for me, Tom was relieved that the entire story was not just Keith having a dream. The "page 11" illustration is shown as Figure 1 in my previous blog post and the cover art is near the bottom of that blog post. Bergey and "Vern" must have cooperated to make sure that two copies of the "femme's" sexy costume ended up in that issue. Brown wrote into "What Mad Universe" a fan letter from "Joe Doppelberg" and fan Joe Schaumburger took note of the similarity of the character's name to his own (see the image to the right).

I recently blogged about "Quest of the Starhope" by Leigh Brackett which was set on Mars. The 1944 story "Shadow over Mars" was apparently a favorite of Joe Schaumburger.

the "if" deal

Another fan (Chad Oliver) played along with "What Mad Universe" and signed his letter to the editor as "Joe Doppelberg" (see the image, above). Robert Rivenes identified Brown as a writer of detective stories, but wished Brown luck as a science fiction story teller.

"What Mad Universe" provided big laughs.

Like other fan commentators who got published in the January issue, Roberta Hesse was able to laugh at "What Mad Universe" and its depiction of science fiction fans. Roberta and some other fans also seemed to enjoy the re-printed 1931 story "Tetrahedra of Space". In that old story, creatures from the planet Mercury visit Earth. They are shaped like tetrahedra and don't like water. The hero of the story finally figures out how to communicate with the tetrahedra and convinces them to move on to Mars where the climate is dryer. 

numerical ratings (three significant digits!) provided by Rapp

Roberta also noted that Jack Vance's Magnus Ridolph character was just a little too perfect (see the image above).

Unlike Roberta, Arthur Rapp was not impressed by "Tetrahedra of Space". He rated both "What Mad Universe" and Vance's "Sanatoris Short-Cut" quite highly (see the ratings to the right).

Arthur wanted to quibble over the most likely fantasy universe of a science fiction fan. In Brown's "What Mad Universe", science fiction was almost non-existent because space aliens and space travel were mundane facts of daily life for the people of Earth.

a good fantasy

Peter Ridley also ranked "Tetrahedra of Space" above  "What Mad Universe". 

I have to wonder if Brown's red spherical creatures in "Arena" were inspired by the tetrahedra from Mercury. Here in this millennium, most biologists suspect that bags of water (cells) are the best way to make life on a planet. It is hard to imagine how life got a start on Mercury, a world with no water.

the joy of recursive science fiction

Fan Service. Al Gillboord was favorably impressed by the fact that "What Mad Universe" was a science fiction story that featured a protagonist who wrote science fiction stories. Fredric Brown was praised for his easy-to-read style of writing.

A Parody, by any other name, would smell as sweet.

satire and humor

Wilkie Conor labeled "What Mad Universe" as being "rich in satire". Brown found a way to poke fun at some aspects of science fiction and Sci Fi fandom, while not offending the readers of Startling Stories. Brown had been writing science fiction stories for several years (for example, see "Star Mouse", 1942).

too many "plurality of worlds" stories

R. L. Farnsworth was reaching his tolerance limit for stories about what he called "plurality of worlds". I'm not sure if that comment was targeted at "What Mad Universe" and Brown's insistence that there are an infinite number of parallel universes.

I suspect that "Bonestell" was Chesley Bonestell. He had been painting scenes set in space since about 1944 and doing covers for Astounding since 1947. 

The letter from Rusty Doss (below) was possibly just what the editors wanted to hear from new fans. Maybe only the "long-time fans" of Startling Stories could appreciate the inside jokes of the letters column.

Next: more Fredric Brown stories including the adventures of Mitkey mouse.

Back to the future of plastic: an advertisement in the January 1949 issue of Startling Stories.