That's an intriguing cover by Tom Lovell. If I'd seen this issue of TOP-NOTCH on the newsstand in 1934, I would have wanted to read it, that's for sure. There are some great authors inside, too: T.T. Flynn, Philip Ketchum, Arthur J. Burks, Nat Schachner, R.V. Gery, and more.
6 comments:
I have about 36 issues of this title, but not this one doggone it.
Grumpy dragons. Small enough to respect a pistol,
For anybody who has read some of this title: How are the Arthur J. Burks stories in this magazine in general? His quality is all over the place in general, but sometimes memorably surreal.
I don't remember Arthur J. Burks as being that good in TOP NOTCH. In fact I eventually gave up on the magazine and stopped reading and collecting it. Despite the name, I never considered it a good general fiction title. For much of it's life it was aimed at the teen age boy market and only became a more adult magazine in the late 1920's and 1930's. I see I still have the 19 or 20 issues containing Gardner's Speed Dash, The Human Fly stories, 1925-1930.
When collectors talk about the major general fiction magazines(Adventure, Short Stories, Argosy, All Story, The Popular, Blue Book), Top Notch is seldom mentioned despite a long life, 1910-1938.
Schacner's "The Dragon of Iskander" was reprinted in the July 1962 issue of the Ziff-Davis digest FANTASTIC STORIES -- a lot easier to find and a lot cheaper than the original pulp, I'm sure. / Denny Lien
Thanks, Denny. I just ordered a copy of that issue of FANTASTIC STORIES.
Post a Comment