If you missed 1930….
Argosy in the 1930s had no problem with Science Fiction or Horror or more often “fake” Horror, where the truth proves to be something normal in the best tradition of Ann Radcliffe. Science Fiction tales were usually published only one piece an issue, sometimes a short story or novella or a serialized novel. But multiple “off-trail” pieces rarely appeared in the same issue.
I will admit I don’t have a complete run of these magazines and I am working from authors and titles, so I may miss some pieces. If so, I will add them in when I can. Titles like “Sinister House” and “Tavern of Terror” could be Mystery or Suspense pieces as easily as Horror tales. I have erred on the side of caution.
“When Death Went Blind” by Garret Smith (January 3, 1931)
“The Man With the Pin-Point Eyes” by Erle Stanley Gardner (January 10, 1931) This story can be found in the collection The Human Zero: The Science Fiction of Erle Stanley Gardner in 1981.
“Caves of Ocean” by Ralph Milne Farley (January 17-February 7, 1931) in four parts, has Farley take us under the sea. Paul Ernst did it a few months earlier in Astounding. Raymond Z. Gallun would do it four years later in “Davey Jones’s Ambassador”.
“The Green Goddess” by J. U. Giesy & Junius B. Smith (January 31-March 7, 1931) in six parts, features the occult detective, Prince Abdul Omar of Persia, better known as Semi-Dual. This was his thirty-fourth and final tale. (The Thirty-third, The Ledger of Life would appear last in 1934.) Everyone remembers Jules de Grandin in Weird Tales but Semi-Dual was did it first by ten years and had a impressively long run. (De Grandin had ninety-three stories, perhaps the greatest of all time.)
The Hothouse World by Fred MacIsaac (February 21-March 28, 1931) in six parts, was MacIsaac second-last serial for Argosy. SFE describes MacIsaac’s work thus” US author who appeared frequently in Argosy after World War One with stories in which his sober prophetic intelligence wrestles with his Pulp-magazine instincts, and usually loses.” The rumor is MacIsaac killed himself when his Pulp markets dried up and he could no longer sell.
“The Master of Money” by Allan K. Echols (February 28, 1931)
“Beyond the Dark Nebula” by Harl Vincent (April 4, 1931) is an obvious SF tale from a Pulpster who wrote for all the magazines at the time.
Jan of the Jungle ·by Otis Adelbert Kline (April 18-May 23, 1931) was Kline’s version of Tarzan in six parts. The novel is set in Central America. The author had a second Tarzan clone going the same year in Weird Tales with Tam of the Tiger. OAK was careful to set his novels in different places than Burroughs, to remain a little original (and avoid court). Fans imagined a great rivalry between them. This wasn’t the case.
Call of the Savage was made into a serial in 1935. Noah Beery Jr. played Jan. (You may remember him better as Rockford’s dad on Rockford Files.)
“Vampire” by Loring Brent (April 25-May 2, 1931) in two parts, is a good example of a supernatural-appearing story that proves to be otherwise. The author is actually George F. Worts, who wrote under both names in Argosy. The main character is Peter the Brazen who had a successful series in the magazine. This tale is the twelfth. Peter has super-normal powers that he uses to fight evil. The series often had Yellow Peril elements in it. He had four tales in 1930 but none has the occult appearances that this one does.
“Chinese for Racket” by Loring Brent (May 30-June 6, 1931) in two parts, is a Peter the Brazen story.
“The Unseen Death” by Allan K. Echols (May 30, 1931) was Echols’ third of eleven fantastic tales. At first they appeared in Argosy but later in Shudder Pulps like Mystery Tales. Pulp tales with voices from radios are popular in the Pulps. Agatha Christie will have one called “Wireless” two years later in The Hound of Death (1933).
“The Hard Cider Ghost” by William Merriam Rouse (June 6, 1931) was one of a number of Rouse stories to appear in Argosy. Rouse got his start writing about Quebec and the legends of the French Canadians. Later he shifted to the Adirondacks in New York (not that far away) to appeal more strongly to an American audience. Not all of his stories have supernatural elements but some do. The title of this one suggests the spooks have come out of a bottle.
“Out of the Silence” by Garret Smith (June 6, 1931)
“Under the Polar Ice” by Jack Allman (June 13-27, 1931) in three parts, is a Northern from a writer who wrote lots of them. I’m not sure what makes this one a strange Northern.
Tama, Princess of Mercury by Ray Cummings (June 27-July 18, 1931) in four parts, is a sequel to Tama of the Light Country (1930). Cummings did continue the series like he did with his Venus novels. “…fantastic war of heat-ray and flying girl-warriors that rages on Mercury’s metal desert…” I wonder why he didn’t?
The Radio Pirates by Ralph Milne Farley (August 1-22, 1931) in four parts, is another serial in the long-running series. The Science Fiction elements seem to be drying up. This one is a fairly down-to-earth invasion tale.
“Solomon’s Caves” by H. Bedford-Jones (August 15-September 4, 1931) is a John Solomon story with no real supernatural elements.
“The Bandits of the Cylinder” by Ray Cummings (August 29, 1931) is a tale set in the 1980s where crime still exists!
Red Twilight by Harl Vincent (September 12-26, 1931) in three parts, is a tale set on Mars. The Martians, of course, want our water.
“Flyer of Eternal Midnight” by Ray Cummings (October 3, 1931)
“The Voodoo Express” by Theodore Roscoe (October 10, 1931) is a typical Roscoe set-up with a supernatural-looking Mystery that has a earthly explanation. He did something similar in “Ghost on Lonesome Hill” (Argosy, December 27, 1941).
“The Moon Drug” by R. F. Starzl (October 17, 1931) is quite a surprise to me because I had no idea that Starzl wrote this one.
The Jungle Rebellion by Ray Cummings (October 31-December 5, 1931) in six parts, is a more obscure Cummings novel. This novel, like Snow Girl (November 2-23,1928), never received a paperback edition.
“Cave of the Blue Scorpion” by Loring Brent (November 21, 1931) is a Peter the Brazen story.
“Aztec Treasure” by W. Wirt (December 5, 1931) is the fifteenth story in the Jimmie Cordie series. Most of these aren’t fantastic but this one is. That Aztec dude has a jaguar claw weapon. Edgar Rice Burroughs would use something similar in Tarzan and the Leopard Men (in Argosy‘s competitor, Blue Book in 1932).
“The Human Zero” by Erle Stanley Gardner (December 19, 1931) begins with a kidnapping and ends in a mad scientist’s laboratory. This was the title story for the collection The Human Zero: The Science Fiction of Erle Stanley Gardner in 1981. Gardner is two years away from Perry mason fame. Even after his lawyer character made him a superstar, ESG wrote all kinds of fiction including the charming Whispering Sands adventure tales. Reprinted in Fantastic, January 1962.
Conclusion
The Fantastic in the Argosy: 1931 proved to be a good year for sequels and stories from long-time contributors. Not a lot of experimenting but writers could do that in other magazines like Amazing Stories or Weird Tales. If you wanted the Argosy dollar, safe was best. That being said, the editors of Argosy had a higher standard for good writing than many of the early SF Pulps, which tending towards big ideas but purple prose.
Absolutely fantastic