“My Past is Mine” by Gerda Rhoads was published in the October 1954 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. Gerda Rhoads, born in Austria, wrote just one published speculative fiction story. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

“The Happy Music” by Jeanne Williams was published in the January 1955 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. Jeanne Williams is one of the great American Western writers, and her writing career has spanned over 60 years. She wrote a handful of science fiction and fantasy stories during her career, but...

“Nightmare on the Nose” by Evelyn E. Smith was published in the October 1953 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. Evelyn E. Smith was an esteemed writer of science fiction and mystery stories, and she appeared frequently in the pages of the 1950s science fiction digests. --- Support this podcast:...

“Beyond the Door” by Philip K. Dick was published in the January 1954 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. Philip K. Dick is one of science fiction's most enduring figures. We previously featured his story "The Skull" in season four of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts. --- Support this podcast:...

“Lost in the Future” by John Victor Peterson was published in the January 1954 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. John Victor Peterson wrote science fiction stories from 1938 to 1959, and he published one novel, Rock the Big Rock, in 1970.  --- Support this podcast:...

"The Recalcitrant" by Evelyn Goldstein was published in the September 1954 issue of Fantastic Universe. This season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts features stories from the pages of the magazine Fantastic Universe, and particularly from the first two volumes of the magazine, published between 1953 and 1955. Evelyn Goldstein wrote a handful of science fiction stories in the 1950s. She was a school teacher in New York City for 30 years, and she continued writing other works before her passing in...

Season five of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts is coming soon. I’m reading stories from the first two volumes of the classic speculative fiction magazine Fantastic Universe, including stories in the public domain from Evelyn Goldstein, Philip K. Dick and Judith Merril. In the meantime, enjoy this essay from Philip Jose Farmer. I think it really captures the heart and spirit of the magazine. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"An Empty Bottle" is a short story written by Mari Wolf and published in the September 1952 issue of If magazine. Mari Wolf’s influence on science fiction is one that has endured over the past 70 years: She’s the first person to use “droid” in describing a robot. “An Empty Bottle” is just one of a handful of stories she had published. She also wrote about science fiction fandom. In addition to her fiction writing, she worked at Jet Propulsion Laboratory. --- Support this podcast:...

"The Last Gentleman" is a short story written by Dorothea Magill Faulkner and published in the January 1953 issue of If magazine. Dorothea Magill Faulkner, writing as Rory Magill, had just two short science fiction stories and a handful of poems published in the early 1950s. She was also a prominent member of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"Welcome, Martians!" is a short story written by S.A. Lombino and published in the May 1952 issue of If magazine. S.A. Lombino (later, Evan Hunter) was a prolific science fiction and mystery writer. His best-known effort may be in the form of a screenplay adaptation for The Birds, which sparked a long friendship with Alfred Hitchcock. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"Resurrection Seven" is a short story written by Stephen Marlowe published in the May 1952 issue of If magazine. Stephen Marlowe was a prolific science fiction and mystery writer. Born Milton Lesser, he later adopted one of his pseudonyms as his legal name. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"The Stowaway" is a short science fiction story written by Alvin Heiner and published in the March 1952 issue of If magazine. Alvin Heiner is recorded as having published just two short stories, both of which were published in If magazine in 1952. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"You, Too, Can Be a Millionaire" is a short story written by Noel Loomis published in the Nov. 1952 issue of If. Noel Loomis wrote a number of science fiction stories, but it was his work in westerns, both in short story and novels, in addition to television writing, that brought him the most prominence. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

Philip K. Dick is an author who needs little introduction. His works have influenced generations of readers, and his stories have been adapted into countless works of cinema. “The Skull” is one of a handful of his stories that is in the public domain. "The Skull" was published in the September 1953 issue of If. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

Lyn Venable's "Time Enough at Last" is one of the enduring short science fiction stories published in If, owing in part to its appearance in The Twilight Zone in a classic episode starring Burgess Meredith. Though she only had seven short stories published, Lyn Venable's impact on the legacy science fiction is unmistakable. "Time Enough at Last" was published in the January 1953 issue of If. Lyn Venable's story “Homesick” was featured in Season Two of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts. --- Support...

The fourth season of Vintage Sci-Fi Shorts starts on Sunday. To tide you over until then, here's a short story from our featured publication this season, the first volume of If Magazine. "The Last Supper" is a short science fiction story written by T.D. Hamm. Thelma D. Hamm wrote and published 11 short stories from 1952 to 1961, and she was an uncredited collaborator with her husband, fellow science fiction writer E. Everett Evans. --- Support this podcast:...

The story of a strange and direful doom that lurked within the pages of an old book, bound in human skin This episode features "The Album", a story by Amelia Reynolds Long. It was first published in the December 1936 issue of Weird Tales. The Album is a story by Amelia Reynolds Long, who wrote science fiction stories throughout the 1930s, while detective fiction dominated her work in the 1940s. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

A tragic story about an author who lived altogether too vividly in his literary work. This episode features "Creation Unforgivable," a story by David H. Keller. It was first published in the April 1930 issue of Weird Tales. Keller, a psychiatrist by trade, wrote for many of the early pulp magazines, including Amazing Stories and Weird Tales. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

A unique story of stargazing — a bizarre tale of life in two planets and the splendor of a far world. "The Planet of the Dead" is a story by Clark Ashton Smith first published in the March 1932 issue of Weird Tales. Smith was a prolific writer who helped pioneer weird fiction, and he was one of the "big three" writing for Weird Tales, alongside Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"Hall of Mirrors" is a short story written by Fredric Brown. It was published in the December 1953 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. Fredric Brown was a science fiction and mystery writer whose influence extends to numerous prominent storytellers, including Guillermo del Toro, Stephen King and Umberto Eco. While he never won a prominent science fiction award, he did win an Edgar award for his first full-length novel, The Fabulous Clipjoint. He also wrote a short story adapted into the classic...

"The Celestial Hammerlock," a short story written by Donald Colvin. It was published in the October 1951 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. "The Celestial Hammerlock" is just one of two published works known to be written by Donald Colvin.  If you know anything about Donald Colvin's life or career, please send me a note on Twitter at @SciFiShortsPod. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"Warm" is a short story by Robert Sheckley. It was published in the June 1953 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. Robert Sheckley was one of science fiction's prolific short story writers, with well over 200 credits to his name. He was a Hugo nominee for his short story writing in 1956 and 1959, and his only Nebula nomination for his writing came in 1965. In the 2000 Nebula awards, Sheckley was given a Special Author Emeritus award. --- Support this podcast:...

"The Trap" is a short story by Betsy Curtis. It was published in the August 1953 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. Betsy Curtis wrote a handful of short stories between 1950 and 1973, earning her only major award nomination in 1969: A Hugo nomination for "The Steiger Effect." --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vintage-sci-fi-shorts/support

"The Reluctant Heroes" is a novelette written by Frank M. Robinson. It appeared in the January 1951 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. Frank M. Robinson wrote numerous short science fiction stories in the 1950s, with his later work turning longer form. He won his first major award in 1991: A Lambda award for The Dark Beyond the Stars. In addition to his fiction work, Robinson wrote extensively about science fiction. He was also a speechwriter for Harvey Milk, and he later played a small role...