I've got to read some more of the Ki-Gor novels one of these days. In the meantime, I'll just look at this eye-catching George Gross cover for a while. I don't know who wrote the lead novel under the John Peter Drummond house-name, but there are also stories by Fiction House regulars Dan Cushman, Bryce Walton, and Emmett McDowell.
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Recently I wrote an intro for a new Stark House volume on James McKimmey and learned that he wrote a few of the Ki-Gor tales.
I don't know if anybody has determined which Ki-Gor novels McKimmey wrote, but yeah, he did some of them. I've read only the first one in the series but liked it quite a bit. I really need to get back to it. McKimmey writing Ki-Gor is sort of strange but interesting. You knew that Babette Rosmond tried to get John D. MacDonald to write Doc Savage novels, didn't you, since he was already contributing backup stories and novellas to the pulp?
I've read a few Ki-Gors by now and they're much better than I expected, though they're probably still an acquired taste.
If they're as good as that cover looks, I'm going to have to try them. And MacCl d wrjting Doc Savage? If only.
This issue is indeed very solid--I read it cover to cover. The Ki-Gor novel was an enjoyable lost race tale with some notable staring simians, and the backup stories are worthwhile. The Cushman story is good jungle noir, and one called 'The Terrible Drums' by Pail Selonke (?) is a nice, borderline weird tale. While many pulp interiors fall short of their covers--and this cover is an excellent one which I coincidentally have on display on my bookshelf---Jungle Stories delivers here.
I've got a complete collection of JUNGLE STORIES and have read many of them. I've liked some of the Ki-gor stories but found some of them weak. The back-up stories are usually pretty good. I enjoy the art more than anything, especially the later issues with illustrations by H. B. Vestal. One issue that I have notes that there may be a Ki-gor movie in the works.
I once owned a cover painting for JUNGLE STORIES. I only paid a hundred bucks for it but it is long gone in some forgotten art trade that I made with Bob Lesser years ago. It showed a gorilla about to gobble up the girl.
Not only did I trade off the painting but I also traded off my complete set of JUNGLE STORIES. I regret both actions and often observe a moment of silence as a wake up and realize they really are gone...
Walker,
I envy much of your notable collection, but I do NOT envy letting an original Jungle Stories cover go (!) nor the issues. It's a quality adventure oriented magazine that is often pulpier (read: less realistic) than Adventure and Argosy, but very much worth reading---lots of talented writers in there. Lost White Race of the Hidden Plain (in the second issue) is a really, really good lost race tale that is quite artfully constructed---that subgenre is a top favorite of mine.
But it's never too late to start acquiring the issue---I've purchased a pile in the last few years...
Happy 4th of July and blogiversary!
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