Mon 9 Nov 2015
CON REPORT: Pulp Adventurecon, November 7, 2015, by Walker Martin.
Posted by Steve under Collecting , Conventions , Pulp Fiction[24] Comments
Pulp AdventureCon, November 7, 2015
by Walker Martin
This one day pulp and paperback convention has been an annual event for over a dozen years and has been held at the Ramada on Route 206 near the NJ Turnpike exit in Bordentown, NJ. Frankly, I don’t think Rich Harvey has received enough credit for his dedication in putting on this convention each year. He has even started to do a one day show in Florida during the winter.
In addition to pulps and paperbacks, the 47 tables also held pulp reprints, slick magazines, dime novels, DVDs of old movies, and original artwork. There were over a hundred attendees and the room always looked crowded and busy during the day. In addition to Rich Harvey, author Audrey Parente also was helping out and things were run very smoothly with many dealers coming from as far away as Boston, Connecticut, Maryland, NY, and even Florida. Restaurants and hotels were within easy reach.
Though this is a one day convention, for the past several years it has been a four day event for me and some fellow collector friends. For instance Matt Moring, who runs Altus Press and owns much of the old Munsey and Popular Publications, comes down for a visit starting the Wednesday before the convention and spends several days meeting with us doing research.
Digges La Touche, otherwise known as The Reading Machine and The Major, is a great pulp resource and along with me, we discuss with Matt all sorts of ideas involving the pulps and even the slicks. This time we drove Matt to distraction talking about H. Bedford Jones best series which most collectors do not even known about, the Pinky Jenkins novellas that were published in Ace High in the 1920’s.
We also talked about some of the great slick magazine series like the Glencannon stories by Guy Gilpatric and the Scipio series by Clarence Buddington Kelland. These literary discussions took place not only at my house and up at Digges’ brother’s place but also at the various local restaurants.
I’ve also gotten into the habit of hosting a pulp luncheon for collectors who arrive early on Friday and stay overnight at the Ramada for the Saturday show. These luncheons are attended only by serious, and I mean really serious, readers and collectors. This year in addition to myself, the discussions held the rapt attention of Matt Moring, The Reading Machine, Ed Hulse, and dealers Nick Certo, Scott Hartshorn, and Paul Herman.
Legendary collector and dealer Jack Irwin also attended and the day before had provided several of us some much needed reading matter when we visited his storage facility which non-collectors call a house. I’ve known Jack since the 1960’s and he has been collecting pulps for over 70 years.
Digges picked me up at 7:30 am on the day of the convention and by 8:15 we were in the dealers room of the Ramada looking through piles of pulps, digests, paperbacks, and slicks. Though the official opening time is 10:00 am, many tables set up quite early and fellow dealers visit each other. We would have been there earlier but the city of Trenton was shut down by what looked like the entire police force as they blockaded many of the streets. Some type of marathon. You know, the usual non-collector waste of time. I never will understand non-readers and non-collectors.
I had a table and proceeded to dump several boxes of books and pulps. I must have brought a couple hundred hardcover detective and mystery novels that I had read and no longer wanted. Also over 50 banged up pulps. Since I wanted to sell everything, I priced everything at one dollar each. That’s right, everything was a buck! Evidently no one believed me because I sold only 18 hardcovers and made $18.00.
At the end of the show, since I was threatening to throw the contents of the entire table into the dumpster, I gave away all the hardcovers to fellow readers. Every collector has a non-collector who is in charge of harassing them about their collection of books, and I had told my non-collecting spouse that these books were making a one way trip and would not be returning to our house.
But don’t feel sorry about my lack of money-making skills. First of all, I found a pulp cover painting for a reasonable price. The photo shows me holding it and it is the cover from a 1934 Western Story. The artist is Frank Spradling, and it is quite unusual, as it shows a nighttime scene that must have happened a million times out west. A cowboy hears a noise at his campfire and reaches for his gun.
Several books made their debut at this convention. The latest of Ed Hulse’s Murania Press volumes was available. It’s a reprint of a Dime Mystery novel from 1933 by William Corcoran called The Purple Eye. Altus Press had several new collections from their Dime Detective Library, including one of the best and most unusual series, the Jeffery Wren series by G.T. Fleming-Roberts. It stars the best of the magician detectives and includes an introduction by Fleming-Roberts’ son.
But the most noteworthy debut was the stunning blockbuster collection from Altus Press titled Them That Lives by Their Guns. It’s volume one of the collected hard-boiled stories of Race Williams by Carroll John Daly, creator of the hard-boiled detective story. This large book has 654 pages and is only $29.95. All of the stories, except one, are from Black Mask, 1923-1927. There is a long introduction discussing the pros and cons of Daly’s work. This is a must buy volume of historical significance and though Race Williams is a murdering SOB, every pulp reader and collector should have this collection. I’m sure we will be seeing some interesting reviews from both lovers and haters of Daly’s work.
I’ve saved the best for last. You may wonder about the photos showing horror and fantasy writer Chet Williamson and me holding up four old issues of All Story. Chet bought these 1913-1914 issues 37 years ago and decided to sell them to me, thus completing my 444 issue set of All Story. It’s been a quest that I’ve been involved in for many decades and I now have probably the only complete set in existence.
Many collectors complain about the trials and tribulations of collecting the weekly pulps. I’m talking about not only All Story, 1905-1920, but also Western Story, 1919-1949, Detective Story,, 1915-1949, Detective Fiction Weekly, Argosy, etc. I collect and read all these magazines and have managed to compile extensive runs.
Instead of finding it a terrible and expensive job, I have enjoyed myself tremendously and I don’t regret the money that I’ve spent on these magazines. It’s been a load of fun and I’ve tried to get that enjoyment across in my series of articles called “Collecting Pulps: A Memoir”.
I stress *read* because there actually is quality fiction in these old magazines. Don’t believe ignorant literary critics that lump all the pulps together as sub-literary. There actually is such a thing as a good pulp magazine, and that’s why I’ve been collecting them for most of my life. There are bad titles also, but that’s another story.
So ended several days of meeting with old friends, talking about books, pulps, and old movies. There is no better way to spend our time. Collecting books is a lifelong activity and you may retire from a job or a profession but you never retire from collecting. I urge all readers and collectors to support the Windy City Pulp Convention and Pulpfest. They are great fun!
Editorial Note: Thanks to Sai Shankar for the use of the photos.
November 9th, 2015 at 5:26 pm
Thank you, Walker, for yet another glimpse into the life of the crazed collector. I eagerly devour each installment.
And congratulations on achieving your All Story goal.
“Some type of marathon. You know, the usual non-collector waste of time.” made me laugh so hard. Go man, go!
November 9th, 2015 at 7:00 pm
Howard, I couldn’t believe it. Here I was in the pursuit of my collector goals and the city of Trenton was shut down to such an extent that we couldn’t get on the highway to attend the convention! The typical non-collector can really be annoying at times.
At the convention as word spread that I had completed the ALL STORY set, I was impressed by the number of people that came up to me and offered congratulations. Maybe there is still hope for the collector in this age of electronic gadgets…
November 9th, 2015 at 10:24 pm
I wish I’d been able to get away this year. Last year was a lot of fun, and it sounds as though the show is getting better every year.
November 9th, 2015 at 11:07 pm
The Bordentown convention is getting better. In addition to the ALL STORY magazines and the WESTERN STORY cover painting, there also was a dealer with 50 or so SHORT STORIES from the 1920’s and 1930’s and John Gunnison had a couple long boxes of ADVENTURE from 1918 through 1927, which is considered the best period. A dealer which we call Cowboy Tony had stacks of interesting slick magazines containing interesting fiction.
November 9th, 2015 at 11:18 pm
In a email Sai Shankar just reminded me about how David Saunders identified the artist of the painting by looking at the blurred upper half of a signature. Also when I went to put the painting in Digges’ car, he had bought so many magazines that it wouldn’t fit in the back seat or trunk. There was barely room for me and one of my boxes.
So I had to go inside and ask Sai Shankar if he would take care of the painting overnight and deliver it the next day on Sunday. He visited me Sunday to see my art collection and we almost forgot to take it out of the car.
November 10th, 2015 at 2:08 pm
Congratulations on completing ALL-STORY! What a tremendous accomplishment! It is hard to believe it could be done. The ghost of Clinton Pettee is dancing a jig!
I will let you know when I have a chance to uplaod a biographical profile on the artist Frank Spradling (1886-1972). The best part of his life story was his friendship with John Newton Howitt!
The Bordentown Super-Duper-Harvey-Con was plenty of fun and filled with friends, but there was one friend we all missed…it will never be the same for me without Steve Kennedy.
Thanks to everyone who made the 2015 installment a success.
November 10th, 2015 at 4:18 pm
David, I was hoping that you might do a biographical entry on Frank Spradling. I never noticed his art until I bought the WESTERN STORY cover painting. I already made room for it and it’s hanging in the Laundry room(wall space is at a premium!).
As we mentioned at the show, last year Steve Kennedy had a table and sold some art. I miss his visits and phone calls about pulp art.
This may have been the best Bordentown convention. Top guest of honor with Chet Williamson and plenty of rare pulps.
November 10th, 2015 at 9:48 pm
Sorry to say I did not get to say congratulations for your acquiring the All-Story you needed to complete your run. I think I was just too stunned that it all come together so well. So belated congratulations to you.
November 10th, 2015 at 11:05 pm
Thanks Barry. I never thought I’d be able to complete the set until just recently. Fortunately the four issues I needed were available at this convention.
November 11th, 2015 at 5:52 am
I neglected to mention that I am amazed that you are only the third owner of these issues as they came out of an estate sale 37 years ago from the home of the man that bought them off a newsstand. The condition looked pretty swell to me also.
November 11th, 2015 at 4:20 pm
Great report, Walker. Sounds like a fun weekend. Congratulations on finishing up your ALL-STORY run!
November 11th, 2015 at 5:18 pm
Wonderful report, Walker. You are right about Rich Harvey. He has done a terrific job putting these conventions together year after year. He began them shortly after Albert Tonik stopped holding his wonderful, one-day “Tonikons” in the basement of the condo he shares with his spouse.
So many, many thanks to Rich Harvey and Audrey Parente. Good luck with Pulp AdventureCon South in Fort Lauderdale. It will take place February 20.
November 11th, 2015 at 7:26 pm
Thanks Bill. I have received so many emails and congratulations on the various discussion groups. For a hundred year old magazine it looks like ALL STORY still is remembered!
November 11th, 2015 at 7:34 pm
Mike: I fondly remember the Tonikons that Al Tonik used to host at his home. There were around 20 over the years and I attended all of them. I used to supply the beer(since I was the only beer drinker!). Rich Harvey was just a kid when the Tonikons started and Al used to tell us to not bring any risqué items because Rich was underage.
While all the rest of us were saying too bad that the Tonikons were over, Rich actually did something about it and started the Pulp Adventurecons. This one on November 7 was the best one of them all.
November 12th, 2015 at 12:32 pm
Great con report Walker! Nice to finish a run like that, it doesn’t happen every day…Do you remember the exact year you bought your first ALL-STORY? I have a feeling it must have been in the 60’s.
November 12th, 2015 at 3:34 pm
Rob, the first ALL STORY I bought was right after I got out of the army, in 1968 or 1969. It was one of the early SF issues but I forget which one. I remember even then I was griping about Edgar Rice Burroughs costing more than the other issues.
November 12th, 2015 at 8:01 pm
That is an epic search to collect the 444 issues in 46-47 years.
November 12th, 2015 at 11:02 pm
ALL STORY, because of the competition for the Burroughs issues and the classic early SF issues, is certainly one of the toughest runs to complete. I only started to think it might be possible when I obtained the October 1912 issue. I have two copies, both flawed, but still, two copies!
One is coverless and the other is coverless and someone excerpted the Tarzan novel also.
November 15th, 2015 at 2:46 pm
Walker, great report as always. It’s fantastic that you still have so much enthusiasm for this great stuff. I had a great time with you & everyone else in our quest to turn Harveycon North into another four-day show.
And it was a treat to see those All-Storys in person… beautiful copies, and as we know, they don’t grow on trees in ANY condition.
November 15th, 2015 at 3:54 pm
Talk about enthusiasm. It’s amazing the amount of excellent collections that Altus Press keeps cranking out. And I guess we have turned Pulp Adventurecon into a 4 day show. In fact with Sai Shankar’s visit to my house on Sunday, it was a 5 day show for me.
November 17th, 2015 at 4:38 pm
Hi Walker,
Great report! So much fun to read. Heartiest congrats for completing the 444 issues of All-Story! That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in anyone’s collecting history. I doubt it would be possible today. Chet must have a great heart to sell you those two issues. Wow, just fantastic!
Congrats to Rich, Audrey and everyone else who made the show possible. I wish I could have been there! But I made six trips in 2015 from the far Northwest, driving more than 28,000 miles, so I maxed out. But one of these years, I want to attend this show!
Have a good winter, Walker.
November 17th, 2015 at 7:16 pm
Thanks Michelle. As you know collecting books and pulps is great fun and I’ve been at it most of my life. Since age 13 when I discovered SF magazines. But it really started even earlier when my father handed me a stack of Edgar Rice Burroughs hardcovers at age 9 and told me they were great stories. They certainly were and he is in at least 79 of the 444 ALL STORY magazines.
It’s been a real struggle fighting with the ERB collectors for these ALL STORY’S but I finally completed the set.
December 7th, 2015 at 8:57 pm
A little late, but just getting to reading this. Although I’ve never been to one of these conventions, some year I’d really like to attend. (Except my days of acquiring Old Stuff are firmly behind me.)
December 7th, 2015 at 11:04 pm
I hope you can attend the next one Andy. They are always a lot of fun and there are plenty of fellow readers and collectors to talk to. I’ve been to all of them–over 15–and they all were enjoyable.