Wonder Stories facts for kids
The first issue of Air Wonder Stories, July 1929. The cover is by Frank R. Paul.
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| Founder | Hugo Gernsback |
|---|---|
| First issue | July 1929 |
| Final issue | January 1955 |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
Wonder Stories is an early American science fiction magazine. It was published under several titles from 1929 to 1955. Hugo Gernsback started the magazine after he had lost control of his first science fiction magazine, Amazing Stories.
Air Wonder Stories and Science Wonder Stories were merged in 1930 as Wonder Stories. The magazines were not financially successful, and in 1936 Gernsback sold Wonder Stories to Ned Pines at Beacon Publications, where, retitled Thrilling Wonder Stories, it continued for nearly 20 years. The last issue was dated Winter 1955, and the title was then merged with Startling Stories, another of Pines' science fiction magazines.
The editors under Gernsback's ownership were David Lasser, who worked hard to improve the quality of the fiction, and, from mid-1933, Charles Hornig.
Contents
Publication history
Gernsback era
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 1/3 | 1/4 | 1/5 | 1/6 | ||||||
| 1930 | 1/7 | 1/8 | 1/9 | 1/10 | 1/11 | |||||||
| Volume and issue numbers of Air Wonder Stories. The editor was David Lasser throughout. |
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Gernsback's new magazine, Amazing Stories, was successful, but Gernsback lost control of the publisher when it went bankrupt in February 1929.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 1/3 | 1/4 | 1/5 | 1/6 | 1/7 | |||||
| 1930 | 1/8 | 1/9 | 1/10 | 1/11 | 1/12 | |||||||
| Volume and issue numbers of Science Wonder Stories. The editor was David Lasser throughout. |
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Gernsback claimed that science fiction was educational.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | 2/1 | 2/2 | 2/3 | 2/4 | 2/5 | 2/6 | 2/7 | |||||
| 1931 | 2/8 | 2/9 | 2/10 | 2/11 | 2/12 | 3/1 | 3/2 | 3/3 | 3/4 | 3/5 | 3/6 | 3/7 |
| 1932 | 3/8 | 3/9 | 3/10 | 3/11 | 3/12 | 4/1 | 4/2 | 4/3 | 4/4 | 4/5 | 4/6 | 4/7 |
| 1933 | 4/8 | 4/9 | 4/10 | 4/11 | 4/12 | 5/1 | 5/2 | 5/3 | 5/4 | 5/5 | ||
| 1934 | 5/6 | 5/7 | 5/8 | 5/9 | 5/10 | 6/1 | 6/2 | 6/3 | 6/4 | 6/5 | 6/6 | 6/7 |
| 1935 | 6/8 | 6/9 | 6/10 | 6/11 | 6/12 | 7/1 | 7/2 | 7/3 | 7/4 | 7/5 | 7/6 | |
| 1936 | 7/7 | 7/8 | ||||||||||
| Issues of Wonder Stories from the merger of Science Wonder and Air Wonder to the acquisition by Beacon Publications, indicating editors: Lasser (blue, 1930–1933), and Hornig (yellow, 1933–1936) |
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In 1930, Gernsback decided to merge Science Wonder Stories and Air Wonder Stories into Wonder Stories.
The first issue of the merged magazine appeared in June 1930, still on a monthly schedule, with Lasser as editor.
| Winter | Spring | Summer | Fall | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 1/1 | |||||||||||
| 1930 | 1/2 | 1/3 | 1/4 | 2/1 | ||||||||
| 1931 | 2/2 | 2/3 | 2/4 | 3/1 | ||||||||
| 1932 | 3/2 | 3/3 | 3/4 | 4/1 | ||||||||
| 1933 | 4/2 | |||||||||||
| Science Wonder Quarterly (first three issues) and Wonder Stories Quarterly (all subsequent issues). The editor was David Lasser throughout. |
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Wonder Stories had a circulation of about 25,000 in 1934.
Thrilling Wonder Stories
| Spring | Summer | Fall | Winter | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| 1936 | 8/1 | 8/2 | 8/3 | |||||||||
| 1937 | 9/1 | 9/2 | 9/3 | 10/1 | 10/2 | 10/3 | ||||||
| 1938 | 11/1 | 11/2 | 11/3 | 12/1 | 12/2 | 12/3 | ||||||
| 1939 | 13/1 | 13/2 | 13/3 | 14/1 | 14/2 | 14/3 | ||||||
| 1940 | 15/1 | 15/2 | 15/3 | 16/1 | 16/2 | 16/3 | 17/1 | 17/2 | 17/3 | 18/1 | 18/2 | 18/3 |
| 1941 | 19/1 | 19/2 | 19/3 | 20/1 | 20/2 | 20/3 | 21/1 | 21/2 | ||||
| 1942 | 21/3 | 22/1 | 22/2 | 22/3 | 23/1 | 23/2 | ||||||
| 1943 | 23/3 | 24/1 | 24/2 | 24/3 | 25/1 | |||||||
| 1944 | 25/2 | 25/3 | 26/1 | 26/2 | ||||||||
| 1945 | 26/3 | 27/1 | 27/2 | 27/3 | ||||||||
| Issues of Thrilling Wonder Stories from 1936 to 1945. Editors are Mort Weisinger (green, 1936–1941), Oscar Friend (pink, 1941–1944), and Sam Merwin (purple, 1945). Underlining indicates that an issue was titled as a quarterly (e.g. "Winter 1944") rather than as a monthly. |
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Pines' magazines included several with "Thrilling" in the title, such as Thrilling Detective and Thrilling Love Stories.
The title was changed to Thrilling Wonder Stories to match the rest of the "Thrilling" line. The first issue appeared in August 1936—four months after the last Gernsback Wonder Stories appeared.
| Spring | Summer | Fall | Winter | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| 1946 | 28/1 | 28/2 | 28/3 | 29/1 | 29/2 | |||||||
| 1947 | 29/3 | 30/1 | 30/2 | 30/3 | 31/1 | 31/2 | ||||||
| 1948 | 31/3 | 32/1 | 32/2 | 32/3 | 33/1 | 33/2 | ||||||
| 1949 | 33/3 | 34/1 | 34/2 | 34/3 | 35/1 | 35/2 | ||||||
| 1950 | 35/3 | 36/1 | 36/2 | 36/3 | 37/1 | 37/2 | ||||||
| 1951 | 37/3 | 38/1 | 38/2 | 38/3 | 39/1 | 39/2 | ||||||
| 1952 | 39/3 | 40/1 | 40/2 | 40/3 | 41/1 | 41/2 | ||||||
| 1953 | 41/3 | 42/1 | 42/2 | 42/3 | 43/1 | |||||||
| 1954 | 43/2 | 43/3 | 44/1 | 44/2 | ||||||||
| 1955 | 44/3 | |||||||||||
| Issues of Thrilling Wonder Stories from 1946 to 1955. Editors are Sam Merwin (purple, 1946–1951), Samuel Mines (orange, 1951–1954), and Alexander Samalman (gray, 1954–1955). Underlining indicates that an issue was titled as a quarterly (e.g. "Winter 1946") rather than as a monthly. |
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Publication details
- Air Wonder Stories
- David Lasser (July 1929 – May 1930)
- Science Wonder Stories
- David Lasser (June 1929 – May 1930)
- Science Wonder Quarterly
- David Lasser (Fall 1929 – Spring 1930)
- Wonder Stories
- David Lasser (June 1930 – October 1933)
- Charles Hornig (November 1933 – March–April 1936)
- Wonder Stories Quarterly
- David Lasser (Summer 1930 – Winter 1933)
- Thrilling Wonder Stories
- Mort Weisinger (August 1936 – April 1941)
- Oscar Friend (August 1941 – Fall 1944)
- Sam Merwin (Winter 1945 – October 1951)
- Samuel Mines (December 1951 – Summer 1954)
- Alexander Samalman (Fall 1954 – Winter 1955)
- Perry, Tom "An Amazing Story: Experiment in Bankruptcy" in Amazing Science Fiction vol. 51, no 3 (May 1978)
Images for kids
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The first issue of Science Wonder Stories, June 1929. The cover is by Frank R. Paul.
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The first issue of Science Wonder Quarterly, Fall 1929. The cover is by Frank R. Paul.
See also
In Spanish: Wonder Stories para niños
