The False Ducks Blahg This Blahg is about me and other things.

   If you’ve read the title to this current blahg and are confused, you’re probably thinking I had another fall and hit my head and am still woozy.  No.  I also have not lost the use of my language.  At least, I hope not.  I have a Bachelor of Arts in English studies so it would be a shame if I could no longer use what I went to school for.  No, the title is, what I think, a clever introduction to today’s topic.  Allow me to elaborate (see, I can still use my English when I need to). 

   Four months ago I finally penned a blahg about the great Science Fiction author, Clifford Simak, THAT BLAHG ABOUT CLIFFORD D. SIMAK.  This current blahg is inspired by that blahg or related to it or is influenced by it.  I’ll stop showing off now.  In that blahg, however, I noted that I maintain a website dedicated to the Science Fiction Short Stories of Clifford Simak, http://www.falseducks.com/simak/.  Simak published 123 short science fiction stories when he was alive and a 124th was published long after his death.  On my website, I list each of the short stories and where you can find each story.  Sometimes, the short story was only available in a science fiction magazine where it was first published or later in anthologies that are now out of date.  Over the years, I purchased a number of these anthologies just so I could read each of those stories.  I also own a number of old pulp magazines because some stories were never republished in anthologies. 

  My entry for the Simak short story, “The Civilization Game” lists, among others, the appearance of that story in the 1961 paperback anthology of “Mind Partner.”  I have owned my copy for a number of years and I think the only story from that anthology that I have read is a story called “The Sly Bungerhop” by William Morrison.  See, I didn’t suffer an injury!  Recently I re-read “The Sly Bungerhop” and it got me thinking that I had no idea who William Morrison was or if he had written any other science fiction short stories.  So, that’s where this blahg really begins.  I’m going to answer those questions. 

   First, it turns out that William Morrison is not really William Morrison.  His real name is Joseph Samaschon.  There is a Wikipedia entry but it’s pretty sparse so I went looking and found a more detailed biography for Joseph Samaschon.  This comes from the website https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/samachson_joseph:

Samachson, Joseph

(1906-1980) US research chemist who became a freelance author between 1938 and 1953 before returning to biochemistry, eventually retiring in 1973 after five years as Associate Clinical Professor of biochemistry at Loyola University, Chicago. His first story, “Bad Medicine” in Thrilling Wonder Stories for February 1941, was published as by William Morrison, under which name he wrote almost all his fiction of interest. Under the House Name Brett Sterling he wrote two Captain Future tales, “Worlds to Come” (Spring 1943 Captain Future) and The Tenth Planet (Spring 1944 Captain Future as “Days of Creation”; 1969). It is believed that Samachson may have written some of the “Sergeant Saturn” letter-column commentary in Captain Future and Startling Stories.

His contributions to science fiction fall into two halves. He wrote sporadically for the Pulp magazines between 1941 and 1944, chiefly for the Standard Magazines Thrilling Wonder Stories and Startling Stories under editors Mort Weisinger and Oscar J Friend. These early stories show his sense of humour, many being written somewhat tongue-in-cheek taking an ironic look at attitudes within society. In “The Man in the Moon” (July 1942 Startling) mankind loses an opportunity to better itself by rejecting its potential benefactor purely because it is an Alien. Likewise in “The Great Invasion” (March 1943 Startling Stories) a misunderstanding between humans and aliens almost ends in disaster. Also since 1941 Samachson had been writing for DC Comics and this began to dominate his work from 1944 through to the mid-1950s. He contributed stories to both Batman and Superman and created several characters of his own – notably, in 1955, J’onn J’onzz the Martian Manhunter, a Shapeshifter from Mars who is stranded on Earth and seeks to use his advanced knowledge and Superpowers to fight crime.

Samachson returned to the sf magazines with two stories in 1949, becoming more prolific in that arena in the early 1950s. His cynicism was still present in “The Joker” (December 1951 Fantastic Adventures) where an alien with awesome powers causes havoc to a Spaceship until it is sufficiently astonished by the absurdity of a politician’s speech to let the ship go. However, Samachson also responded to the demands for more mature sf, particularly from John W Campbell Jr and Horace L Gold. “The Sack” (September 1950 Astounding) explores what happens when humans discover an Alien being that is omniscient, but a more humane outlook appears in what came to be regarded as Morrison’s best story, “Country Doctor” (in Star Science Fiction Stories, anth 1953, ed Frederik Pohl), where a doctor has to attend to a sick alien creature. He reversed this idea in “Bedside Manner” (May 1954 Galaxy) where an alien helps to rebuild the victim of an accident in space. Other stories of note include”The Addicts” (January 1952 Galaxy), which shows the effects on a married couple of isolation on an asteroid and “The Model of a Judge” (October 1953 Galaxy SF), which again explores the interaction between humans and aliens but at a deeper psychological level. Samachson continued to produce deceptively simple stories about the human/alien condition throughout the 1950s and yet most of his stories still betrayed a dark humour suggesting that throughout his writing career he was using sf to show human limitations. His last story, “A Feast of Demons” (March 1958 Galaxy) reworked the theme of the philosopher’s stone in terms of the hypothetical Maxwell’s Demon to show how humans might cope with an abundance of wealth and everlasting life (see also Thought Experiment; Time in Reverse).

Although he wrote two further lead novels for the magazines, “Two Worlds to Save” (September 1942 Startling Stories), a Space Opera set on Mercury, and “The Gears of Time” (April 1953 Space Stories) an early example of a Time Travel romance, Samachson published only one standalone sf novel in book form during his lifetime: a juvenile, Mel Oliver and Space Rover on Mars (1954). He never assembled a volume selected from his eighty-or-so short stories and as a consequence his reputation faded. When Frederik Pohl, Martin H Greenberg and Joseph D Olander compiled Galaxy: 30 Years of Innovative Science Fiction (anth 1980), they remarked that Samachson was “one of the most shamefully neglected writers in the history of science fiction.”

A collection of his best William Morrison tales was eventually published, long after his death, as The Sly Bungerhop (coll 2017 ebook) as by William Morrison.

I will highlight that the last paragraph mentions a collection of his best work published in 2017 under the title The Sly Bungerhop through Amazon’s CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.  Here’s the link:  https://www.amazon.com/Sly-Bungerhop-William-Morrison/dp/1544156383/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1FFVWOP8TA9PI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.lS8OM8MqubwpgmockKAeQNschVjUuOh7mUSpbaFI9B8.7sI4gnclKnlC5o5QKRnyZKMmllq8lE_4rAnPT1URyQ0&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+sly+bungerhop&qid=1756922208&sprefix=the+sly+bungerhop%2Caps%2C117&sr=8-2.  Unfortunately, that collection is now out of print.  That left me with virtually nowhere to read other William Morrison stories. 

   I was not deterred.  I was determined to use my research abilities and to rely on a website I had used when creating my Clifford Simak website.  Here’s a link to the William Morrison entry:  https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1246.  The website has a listing for all of Morrison’s science fiction short stories with links to where else those stories later appeared.  Below is the list that I have created in chronological order with the name of the magazine where the story first appeared.  “Et Al” in Latin means “and others” so the title “THE SLY BUNGERHOP ET AL” should start to make sense to you.

1941:

• Bad Medicine – Thrilling Wonder Stories, February 1941
• Plastic Pigskin Daze – Thrilling Wonder Stories – March 1941
• Crossroads of the Universe – Startling Stories July 1941
• Masters of Chance – Thrilling Wonder Stories August 1941
• The Barbarians – Future Fiction August 1941
• Undersea Snatch – Captain Future – Fall 1941
• Christmas on Mars – Thrilling Wonder Stories December 1941

 

1942:

• The Lion-Hearted – Captain Future – Summer 1942
• The Man in the Moon – Startling Stories July 1942
• Two Worlds To Save – Startling Stories Sept 1942

 

1943:

• Forgotten Past – Startling Stories January 1943
• Garments of Doom – Super Science Stories February 1943
• The Great Invasion – Startling Stories – March 1943
• The Invincible Wrestler– Thrilling Wonder Stories – April 1943
• The Wheezers – Captain Future – Summer 1943
• Light in Darkness – Thrilling Wonder Stories, Fall 1943
• The Monkey and the Typewriter – Startling Stories Fall 1943
• The Treasure – Captain Future – Winter 1943

 

1944:

• Get Your Extra Here! – Startling Stories Summer 1944
• The Companions of Sirius – Captain Future, Winter 1944

 

1949:

• Free Land – Thrilling Wonder Stories August 1949
• Skin Dupe – Thrilling Wonder Stories December 1949

 

1950:

• Hop O’ My Thumb – Super Science Stories  May 1950
• The Strangest Bedfellows – Thrilling Wonder Stories – June 1950
• Stars Over Santa Claus – Startling Stories, January 1950
• Disappointment – Startling Stories, July 1950
• The Ancient – Fantastic Story Quarterly – Fall 1950
• The Sack – Astounding Science Fiction, September 1950

 

1951:

• Star Slave – with Harry Nix Super Science Stories – June 1951
• Monster – Planet Stories July 1951
• Vermin – Fantastic Story Magazine, Fall 1951
• The Cupids of Venus – Startling Stories, November 1951
• The Dark Dimension – Marvel Science Fiction – November 1951
• The Joker – Fantastic Adventures – December 1951

 

1952:

• The Addicts – Galaxy January 1952
• Asylum – Marvel Science Fiction, May 1952
• The Luckiest Man Alive! – Science Fiction Quarterly May 1952
• Shipping Clerk – Galaxy Science Fiction June 1952
• New Universe – Startling Stories July 1952
• Temptation – Fantastic Adventures – July 1952
• Runaway – Galaxy Science Fiction November 1952
• Scent Of Danger – Science Fiction Quarterly – November 1952
• Dragon Army – Fantastic Adventures, November 1952
• Revenge – Space Stories December 1952

 

1953:

• Forgotten Danger – Science Fiction Adventures February 1953
• The Hunters – Space Science Fiction – February 1953
• Divinity – Space Science Fiction March 1953
• The Gears Of Time – Space Stories – April 1953
• The Haters – Rocket Stories, April 1953
• Long Life to You, Albert! – Science Fiction Adventures July 1953
• Task of Kayin – Planet Stories July 1953
• The Weather on Mercury – Galaxy July 1953
• The Model of a Judge – Galaxy – October 1953
• Date of Publication, 2083 A.D. – Fantastic Universe Oct/Nov 1953
• Country Doctor – Star Science Fiction Stories (anthology) 1953

 

1954:

• Battleground – Amazing Stories November 1954
• Bedside Manner – Galaxy May 1954
• Split Personality – Fantastic Story – Winter 1954
• G’rilla – Beyond Fantasy Fiction January 1954
• Playground – The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 1954
• The Inner Worlds – The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, April 1954
• Heads You Lose – Beyond Fantasy Fiction May 1954
• Messenger – Imagination July 1954
• No Star’s Land – Fantastic Universe July 1954
• There Ought to Be a Lore – Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction – September 1954
• Unwelcomed Visitor – If October 1954
• Music of the Sphere – Fantasy and Science Fiction October 1954
• The Ardent Soul – The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction December 1954

 

1955:

• Dead Man’s Planet – Galaxy v09n05 February 1955
• Dark Destiny – Startling Stories Spring 1955
• The Hollywood Habit – Fantastic Universe – April 1955
• Hiding Place – Fantastic Universe, June 1955
• Picture Bride – Galaxy June 1955
• Spoken For – Galaxy July 1955

 

1956:

• The Head Hunters – with Frederik Pohl – Fantastic Universe – January 1956
• Star Slugger – The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction – June 1956

 

1957:

• The Sly Bungerhop – Galaxy Science Fiction, September 1957
• Stepping Stone – The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction December 1957

 

1958:

• A Feast of Demons – Galaxy March 1958

 

If my math is correct, that’s 79 short science fiction stories.  https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1246 also lists “Two Worlds To Save” 1942 and “The Gears Of Time” 1953 as novels but they were published in pulp magazine format only and not as stand-alone novels.  The only short story from the above list not to be published in a magazine first was “Country Doctor” which only appeared in the Star Science Fiction Stories anthology from 1953.  Apparently Samachson/Morrison also published under the name Brett Starling when he published the stories “Worlds To Come” in “Captain Future, Spring, 1943,” and “Days of Creation” in “Captain Future, Spring, 1944.”  Below are the magazine covers for those two stories.

The story “Days Of Creation” was also published by Popular Library in 1969 as a novel under the title, “The Tenth Planet”: 

Finally, regarding novels, Morrison had his novel,”Mel Oliver and Space Rover on Mars” published by Gnome Press in 1954:

   As for other short stories by William Morrison in other genres, there was another website that listed all of his other stories but it was taken down over the past week.  Luckily, I was able to note those other stories.  Here’s the list as it appeared with the magazine listed where it was published:

The Birds Tell Everything – Thrilling Detective, April 1941

Death Takes Wings – G-Men Detective, July 1942

Don’t Tell the Police – Popular Detective, February 1943

Flight To Death – Popular Detective, June 1943

G-Boy – G-Men Detective, September 1941

Good Luck Jonah –  Texas Rangers February 1943 (western)

Happy Birthday, Dear Warden – Exciting Detective, Summer 1942

Killer on the Run – Fifteen Detective Stories, August 1953

Money from Heaven – G-Men Detective, March 1942

Murder Takes Nerve – Thrilling Mystery, November 1942

No Medal for Murdock – G-Men Detective, Fall 1944

Pop and the Law – Black Book Detective, May 1942

Return Without Scalps,  – Thrilling Western, May 1943

Santa Claus Ain’t Tough – Thrilling Detective, March 1941

Studio Father – Family Circle, January 1954

They Picked a Sucker – Thrilling Mystery,  Summer 1944

Thirty-Seven Dead Men – Thrilling Adventures, October 1942

When Rattlers Meet – West,  November 1942

Widow’s Choice – Texas Rangers, August 1943

You Got Me Hypnotized – The Masked Detective, Summer 1942

Youthful Matron – Family Circle, November 1954

 

So, with the 79 short science fiction stories, the three novels, and the western and mystery stories, I’m looking to read over 100 titles. You are probably wondering about now, how I’m going to accomplish all of this when the majority of these stories only appeared in old magazines.  First, there’s a wonderful website that has catalogued many of these early science fiction magazines and has made them available as PDF downloads.  There’s nothing like reading the original magazine but then you can get sidetracked by other stories in those magazines.  You can check out that site here:  https://www.luminist.org/archives/.  As an added bonus, that site also hosts Western and Mystery magazines so I’ve already found some of the Morrison stories from those genres.  Archive.org also hosts a number of these magazines in different viewing and downloadable formats.  You can check it out at:  https://archive.org/details/PulpMags.  If you know the name of the magazine and the publication date then you can use their search engine to find what you’re looking for.

   As an added bonus I found an article about William Morrison from “Startling Stories” September 1942.  It appeared in their Meet The Author section.  Here it is: 

I’ve already started reading some of the science fiction stories.  I first started reading by alphabetical title but then I switched to chronological appearance so I could see how Morrison’s writing progressed over time.  Here’s what I’ve read so far: 

A Feast of Demons (1958)

Asylum (1952

Bad Medicine (1941)

Battleground (1954)

Bedside Manner (1954)

Christmas on Mars

Crossroads of the Universe (1941

Dark Destiny (1955)

Date of Publication, 2083 A.D. (1953)

Dead Man’s Planet (1955)

Disappointment (1950)

Divinity (1953)

Masters of Chance (1941)

No Star’s Land (1954)

Plastic Pigskin Daze (1941)

The Barbarians (1941)

The Lion-Hearted (1942)

The Man in the Moon (1942)

The Sly Bungerhop

Undersea Snatch (1941)

The early ones from 1941 and 1942 had settings that dealt with planets in our solar system like Mars, Venus, and Mercury or moons of those planets.  Of course, science now tells us those planets are uninhabited but the stories are entertaining.  Later in 1942 the stories range from things happening on Earth now or in the future or on planets that have never been discovered.  I’m enjoying them all and I’ll post more on my progress in future blahgs.  Here are some images of Morrison stories featured prominently on the cover: 

I’m also working on trying to discover if there were other Morrison science fiction stories that might have been missed on other lists.  The “Thrilling Wonder Stories” edition of February 1941 that carried the story “Bad Medicine” credited Morrison as having previously written “The Thirteenth Moon” and “The Crystal Death.”  Here’s a screenshot of the magazine where it mentions the two stories:

“Thrilling Wonder Stories” also mentioned the same two stories in the March 1941 edition when they published Morrison’s “Plastic Pigskin Daze”:

It’s possible they were not written by Morrison but I’ve found no other listings for these two stories and I’d think that “Thrilling Wonder Stories” would not have credited Morrison stories that appeared in a competitor’s magazine.  In fact, I’ve seen other editions of “Thrilling Wonder Stories” where they credited correctly, previous stories by Morrison.  Check out this August 1941 edition where they mentioned both “Bad Medicine” and “Plastic Pigskin Daze”:

“Bad Medicine” is the first science fiction story by Morrison that I’ve seen listed as appearing in “Thrilling Wonder Stories.”  I checked the January 1941 edition of “Thrilling Wonder Stories” as well as all of the editions for 1940 and 1939 and there are no stories attributed to Morrison and none with stories by the titles “The Thirteenth Moon” or “The Crystal Death.”  That’s another mystery for another day.  I’ll just read what I have but I’ll keep trying to track down any information on these two “alleged” stories.  Keep checking back.