Storytelling in the Pulps, Comics, and Radio: How Technology Changed Popular Fiction in America

Tim DeForest

McFarland, May 18, 2004 - Literary Criticism - 235 pages

The first half of the twentieth century was a golden age of American storytelling. Mailboxes burgeoned with pulp magazines, conveying an endless variety of fiction. Comic strips, with their ongoing dramatic storylines, were a staple of the papers, eagerly followed by millions of readers. Families gathered around the radio, anxious to hear the exploits of their favorite heroes and villains. Before the emergence of television as a dominant—and stifling—cultural force, storytelling blossomed in America as audiences and artists alike embraced new mediums of expression. This examination of storytelling in America during the first half of the twentieth century covers comics, radio, and pulp magazines. Each was bolstered by new or improved technologies and used unique attributes to tell dramatic stories. Sections of the book cover each medium. One appendix gives a timeline for developments relative to the subject, and another highlights particular episodes and story arcs that typify radio drama. Illustrations and a bibliography are included.

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LibraryThing Review

User Review  - Meg067 - LibraryThing

This book explains the evolution of story telling in the pulps, radio, and comics. It is written as if DeForest was telling a story aloud. His passion for the material is immediately evident. This ...

User Review -

This book explains the evolution of story telling in the pulps, radio, and comics. It is written as if DeForest was telling a story aloud. His passion for the material is immediately evident. This book is extremely comprehensive, but written in such a way that it could considered light reading. It has a personality of all its own and captures an unique era of American entertainment.  

Contents

• Preface: 1
• The Pulps or One Darn Thing After Another: 11
• Unpleasant Interlude: 89
• The Death of the Pulps: 108
• An Unlikely Adventurer: 115
• Cops in the Comics: 122
• From the Jungle to the Round Table: 128
• Fighter Pilots Pretty Girls and the Dragon Lady: 140
• Assigning Blame: 146
• The Shadow on Radio: 157
• Superman: 168
• Tired of the Everyday Routine? Suspense Escape Carlton: 178
• Dragnet: 189
• Science Fiction on Radio: 197
• Timeline: 205
• Notes: 213
• Bibliography: 221

About the author

Tim DeForest lives in Sarasota, Florida, and is the circulation manager of the library at the Ringling School of Art and Design. His previously published articles cover a variety of subjects, from military history to the Wild West.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Storytelling in the Pulps, Comics, and Radio: How Technology Changed Popular Fiction in America
• Author: Tim DeForest
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: McFarland, 2004
• ISBN: 0786419024, 9780786419029
• Length: 235 pages
• Subjects: Literary Criticism / Comics & Graphic Novels; Literary Criticism / General; Performing Arts / Radio / General; Social Science / Popular Culture