If you are able to vote for the Hugos this year, then you both know about the Retro Hugos, and you know your time is running out. Weâve only days left to nominate in a lot of categories, and thatâs tricky when besides 2016, weâve got 1941 to deal with. So, if I can offer my humble assistance, here are my thoughts and recommendations for the Retro Hugos. I wonât be  talking about Semiprozine as I canât even guess what counts in that category vs prozines vs fanzines. And also Iâm skipping Related Work. I wish I wasnât, so if anyone has some suggestions on Related Work, please let me know ASAP. Now, onward:
1941 Retro Hugos: The Fan Categories
Fan Writer:
Forrest J Ackerman
Ray Bradbury
H. P. Lovecraft
Donald A. Wollheim
Bob Tucker
Fanzine:
Futuria Fantasia (Ray Bradbury)
Monsters of the Moon (Forrest J Ackerman)
Science Fiction Progress (John Michel, Donald A Wollheim)
Sci-Fic Variety (Bob Tucker)
Snide (Damon Knight)
The fan categories do not work well in the Retro format, and I have left out Fan Artist and Fancast, and bet that almost everyone will do the same. Fan activates are of a time, and without context, they mean little. The zines mean even less because so few have survived. Fan writing is important for what it does to the fans that year, and it is hard to guess now. Even in 1941 is was uncertain as there was an attempt to index all the fanzines and it failed. Add in that they changed names from month to month, or the same person would do several, and you have a mess. The best we can do, if we really want to do anything, is give a nod to those where the people later became major movers and shakers in the fan community (like Ackerman and Tucker) or became important writers or editors (like Bradbury, Kuttner, Wollheim, and Knight). If any Fanzine stands out, it is Bradburyâs Futuria Fantasia which published short-shorts and flash from himself, Heinlein, and several other soon to be important authors.
1941 Retro Hugos: Professional Artist
J.W. Scott
Hubert Rogers
Virgil Finlay
Margaret Brundage
Ed Cartier
Going through cover art from the â40s, the works seem to only thrill me for a moment, and greater inspection leaves me cold. Even some of the âbiggest names,â now largely forgotten, seem to have been just churning out simple quick pics. Still, a few stand out. I am taken by Scottâs work on Future Fiction and Marvel Tales (see the pic above). Rogerâs work for Astounding is a notch above the rest as well. The rest are simply a bit better than the average. Brundage, one of the few women artists working in F&SF and frequent pinup painter, is my favorite artist of the five Iâm recommending, but 1940 does not seem to be a great year for her.
1941 Retro Hugos: Editor, Short Form
Frederik Pohl
Raymond A. Palmer
Dorothy McIlwraith
John W. Campbell, Jr.
Mort Weisinger or Malcolm Reiss.
A pre-DC Comics Weisinger (Captain Future, Startling Stories, Thrilling Wonder Stories) or Reiss (Planet Stories) are both solid choices for the final slot, with Palmer (Amazing Stories) and McIlwraith (Weird Tales) pretty much requiring their two places. But lets face it, this is a two man race, with one of them given a huge head start. Pohl would be my top choice, as Campbell has had a mixed effect on the field (see my comments under Short Story below). But both are important and are the obvious choices. Every nominating ballot should contain Pohl and Campbell.
A few of the editors othersâ have suggested are unknown to me. I have no idea who Mary Gnaedinger, F. Orlin Tremaine, or Martin Goodman are, which makes me think their legacy is not equal to that of the others and Iâm afraid this is mainly about legacy.
Note: Farnsworth Wright is not eligible, having turned over Weird Tales to McIlwraith in â39.
1941 Retro Hugos: Editor, Long Form
Iâve no clue. Zilch. Got an idea? Let me know.
1941 Retro Hugos: Dramatic Presentation
Long Form:
Fantasia
The Thief of Bagdad
Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe
2 blanks
Short Form:
Night on Bald Mountain
The Sorcererâs Apprentice
Pinocchio (88 min)
The Invisible Man Returns (81 min)
The Ghost Breakers (85 min)
Iâve explain this already here. Keep these in mind as people are suggesting films under 90 minutes for Long Form, and thatâs not how the categories work.
1941 Retro Hugos: Best Graphic Story
Captain America Comics #1 (Joe Simon, Jack Kirby)
Batman #1 (Bill Finger, Bob Kane, Sheldon Moldoff, Jerry Robinson)
Introducing Captain Marvel! (Bill Parker, C.C. Beck)
The Spectre! (Jerry Siegel, Bernard Baily)
The Origin of the Spirit (Will Eisner, Joe Kubert)
Others to consider:
Buck Rogers: Forgotten Earth Colony
Flash Gordon: Ice Kingdom of Mongo
Flash Comics #1
Doc Savage Comics #1
With my suggestions in the artistic/literary categories, Iâm saying what I think after reading/examining the works. But not here. In this case, Iâm not going with my artistic feelings, but the level of importance the comics have, and the opinions of others. But those in the know seem to have general agreement: either it is the five above, or you go with comic strips that appeared in newspapers, specifically Buck Rogers: Forgotten Earth Colony and Flash Gordon: Ice Kingdom of Mongo. History says Captain America and Batman, and so shall I.
In any case, Captain America Comics #1 really needs to be up there, if just for the cover. Itâs the one with Cap punching Hitler which was both important at the time and iconic now. Batman #1 is Batmanâs first solo comic, and also introduces the Joker. So, yeah, history demands it be on the list.
The Spectre!, Introducing Captain Marvel! (thatâs Shazam), and The Origin of the Spirit donât have the same clout, but all are major comics. I suspect if one of these doesnât thrill you, tossing in Flash Comics #1 or Doc Savage Comics #1 would be the move to make, but with Cap and the Bat keeping their places on the nominating list.
1941 Retro Hugos: Best Short Story
Strange Playfellow aka Robbie (Isaac Asimov)
Beauty and the Beast (Henry Kuttner)
The Song of the Slaves (Manly Wade Wellman)
Revolt of the Ants (Milton Kaletsky)
Quietus (Ross Rocklynne)
Others to consider:
Homo Sol (Isaac Asimov)
The Pipes of Pan (Lester del Rey)
Threshold (Henry Kuttner)
The Uncanny Power of Edwin Cobalt (Henry Kuttner)
Clerical Error (Clifford D. Simak)
The Sea Thing (A. E. van Vogt)
When It Was Moonlight (Manly Wade Wellman)
Robbie is the closest to a sure thing there is. It is the first of Asimovâs robot stories. I canât say Iâm a big fan, but it is reasonably good and historically important. While I very much doubt I will vote for it on the final ballot, I think it does deserve a place on that ballot. Asimovâs Homo Sol is also worth considering, but is somewhat lesser in quality, and much lesser in importance. It also has some questionable racial elements, brought in not by Asimovâs choosing, but by his editor, Campbell (and brings up why Campbell is not the guy to win Best editor). After this, Asimov kept stories with aliens, that could be used as metaphors, away from Campbell. So if you are going with one Asimov tale, it should be Robbie.
I could fill my whole list with Kuttner. My favorite three short stories for the year are all his, but that might be too much for anyone but me. While Threshold (a man attempting to outsmart a demon) and The Uncanny Power of Edwin Cobalt (a manâs doubt makes things vanish from the universe) are both quite good, Beauty and the Beast is the best. Itâs a Daikaiju (giant monster story), from the monsterâs point of view. It also has enough elements in common with the Ray Harryhausen film, 20 Million Miles to Earth, that I am certain the filmmakers did a bit or âborrowing.â
Manly Wade Wellman has two horror-tinged fantasy stories up for the awards, one with vampires and one with zombies. The zombie piece, The Song of the Slaves, has a deeper theme while giving us a satisfying Twilight Zone-type story. A slave holder decides it would be fun to catch the slaves himself, but is none to happy when they begin singing about his death.
Revolt of the Ants is a satire, something all too rare in F&SF. It has aged well and fits with todayâs society as well as it did with 1940s. And it was one I hadnât read before, so a point to the Retro Hugos for introducing it to me.
Quietus reminds me of Kuttner, del Rey, and Van Vogt as it questions our prejudices and preconcieved notions. Alien birds pass by a mainly destroyed Earth in search of intelligent life and make a large mistake.
I suspect Simakâs Clerical Error would be on my list as I recall liking it a great deal, but it has been twenty-five years since I read it and the details escape me. My copy seems to also have escaped me.
What I havenât listed, but will certainly rear up, are the stories of Heinlein. He has multiple (Requiem, Let There Be Light, Successful Operation), and people will tend to vote for them simply because heâs Heinlein. Luckily, they arenât bad stories. But they also arenât great.
Of note, Ray Bradbury self published a pair of stories in his fanzine. Thatâs enough to get the fanzine on my list, but these pre-professional Bradbury stories feel like what they areâa talented beginnerâs work.
If you haven’t read these (and those that follow), some are available online with a quick Google search (like Manly Wade Wellman’s) and some can be found in free ebooks linked to over at File770.
1941 Retro Hugos: Best Novelette
It! (Theodore Sturgeon)
The Hardwood Pile (L. Sprague de Camp)
All is Illusion (Henry Kuttner & C. L. Moore)
Vault of the Beast (A E Van Vogt)
Into the Darkness (Ross Rocklynne)
Others to consider:
The Smallest God (Lester del Rey)
The Roads Must Roll (Robert A. Heinlein)
The Elixir of Invisibility (Henry Kuttner)
Fruit of Knowledge (C. L. Moore)
* About half the people Iâve checked are putting Farewell to the Master as a novelette, but my count puts it as a novella. It certainly should be on your nominating ballot somewhere.
This is a hard category because there are so many great authors who published in 1940, and because many of the stories have been largely forgotten. Thereâs Theodore Sturgeon, L. Sprague de Camp, Jack Williamson, A. E. van Vogt, Clifford D. Simak, Robert A. Heinlein, Alfred Bester, Isaac Asimov, Clark Ashton Smith, C. L. Moore, August W. Derleth, and Lester del Rey. What eases it a bit is that some of it is pointless. With a lot of searching I might be able to find all of the del Ray and Simak stories, but it doesnât seem like many people are trying. Iâm seeing the same few stories mentioned by reviewers, usually involving the name âHeinlein.â Iâve read many, and tried to prep for this, but I know Iâve missed a bunch. So Iâve gone with great stories that also are ones others have likely seen.
Of those, It! is the big one. It is a highly influential horror story, and I suspect the only real competition for final votes for Heinleinâs The Roads Must Roll (which doesn’t quite make my list, but will be getting a political boost from the Sad Puppies). Besides It!, I really like The Hardwood Pile, which I first read many years ago. Iâm fond of all of de Campâs work, and this one is particularly amusing. And if the Retro Hugos are good for anything, it is giving me a chance to nominate Henry Kuttner. I am amazed at how many have forgotten him. He was one of the greats, and if I wanted to give multiple nominees to an individual (which Iâd rather avoid), Iâd also list The Elixir of Invisibility. But All is Illusion is the one to go with. Itâs a touch better, no doubt due to his collaboration with C. L. Moore, another one of the greats. Also, if you are noticing the lack of women on this listâyou should be, as their just werenât many in the genre in 1941. But there was Catherine Lucille Moore, and she deserves a lot more recognition than she has received.
Vault of the Beast screams Van Vogt, which I take as a good thing. It could have been horror as easily as SF. It is sharp and a fun read. It seems to be a choice for anyone who has read it and I think the only reason it wonât make the ballot is that not enough people have.
Ross Rocklynne has almost entirely been forgotten, yet this is the second time Iâve put him on my list (heâs up under short story). Into the Darkness is a philosophical piece, and way ahead of its time. If you are tired of the pulp, here is a work of the 1940s that takes a deeper approach.
Besides my choices, and my stated âothers to considerâ I expect to have a few people vote for Asimovâs Half-Breed stories because they are available and heâs Asimov, but they are lesser Asimov which even Asimov acknowledged. Another often mentioned contender is The Voyage That Lasted 600 Years by Don Wilcox as itâs the first generation ship story. But while it is reasonably entertaining, the lack of vision is astounding. It has a simplistic American world with no eye to the future, which is something SF needs.
1941 Retro Hugos: Best Novella
The Mathematics of Magic (L. Sprague de Camp & Fletcher Pratt)
The Roaring Trumpet (L. Sprague de Camp & Fletcher Pratt)
Farewell to the Master (Harry Bates)
Some Williamson or Heinlein
Yes, I have two by de Camp and Pratt, but I love them both. They were later joined to become the novel The Incomplete Enchanter, and later still, another story was added to make it The Complete Enchanter. Anyway you read them, they are delightful, humorous, action fantasy and a must read. Either of the two would make a fine eventual winner. Farewell to the Master is another bit of history that demands to be on the ballot. An excellent story, it is also the source material for The Day the Earth Stood Still (bet you didnât know it had a source).
After my top three, it is harder to find anything that really should get an award. Most of the rest of the novellas Iâve found have been pure pulp (and I donât say that as a positive). There is a Lovecraft work (which might be a novelette), but I doubt even Lovecraft enthusiasts will be pushing for it. So that leaves the Williamson (Darker Than You Think, The Sun Maker) or Heinlein stories (Blow Ups happen, Coventry, The Devil Makes the Law, If This Goes OnâŚ). They arenât bad, and wouldnât be an embarrassment, except for the politics behind promoting Heinlein, but Iâll be sticking with three nominees. The Devil Makes the Law (later re-titled Magic, Inc) is probably my favorite of the six, though I havenât read a few of these for many years. I expect Heinlein to end up winning this in the final vote, as a kind of life time achievement awardâeither for The Devil Makes Law or Blow Ups Happen. The Pup vote will edge it that way. In fact, with their political focus, I wouldnât be surprised if we end up with four Heinlein stories. In that scenario, I imagine the lesser known Farewell to the Master being kept off the ballot, which would be a real shame.
Just as the Sad Puppies rigged the game last year and are still messing things up, we shouldnât be surprised if the Scientologists get back into the game this year. They did it before (they are the proof of concept for the cheating that the Pups have adopted). Their founder, L. Ron Hubbard, has an eligible, and not poorly received story, The Indigestible Triton.
1941 Retro Hugos: Best Novel
Slan (A. E. van Vogt)
The Ill-Made Knight (T. H. White)
A Million Years to Conquer (Henry Kuttner)
The two biggies here are Slan (A. E. van Vogt) and The Ill-Made Knight (T. H. White). These two need to make the ballot, and I suspect they will. Frankly, the entire exercise loses all legitimacy without these two. After those two, it gets a little harder to choose. 1940 does not seem to have been a year that published a lot of books that I, or most F&SF readers, have kept on the shelf. Well over half of the books Iâve seen listed Iâve never heard of. Even many of the authors have slipped into obscurity. But some authors are very well know, though from either earlier or later books. E. E. Smith, Manly Wade Wellman, L. Frank Baum, Jack Williamson, Edmond Hamilton, L. Ron Hubbard, H. G. Wells, and Edgar Rice Burroughs are all names I expect genre readers to know, but not for these books. Even when you know of the books, that isnât necessarily a positive. Smithâs Gray Lensman is part of his Lensman series which is still well known, but most people agree this is not one of the better entries. Burroughs has a Mars book, but not the one you are likely to pick up if you want to dig into his Martian saga. Even Baumâs co-written Oz book gets little love. I wish I could be a bit more helpful, but three is all I can find that are award-worthy. I do like Kuttnerâs A Million Yearâs to Conquer (re-titled The Creature from Beyond Infinity for a â60s re-release). It is far from one of Kuttnerâs best works, but Kuttnerâs weaker efforts are equal to most writerâs best works. Kuttner is one of the masters of SF, and in his prime heâd have blown everyone else away. As is, this isnât my top vote for the year, but it is worth nominating. I hope I am not stepping into the âlife time achievementâ arena that I think will be behind multiple of the final nominees this year.
As with the previous category (and short story, though I think it is less likely in that cagegory), there is the chance of Scientologists trying to play the system since L. Ron Hubbard has three works that could be nominated (Final Blackout, Fear, Typewriter in the Sky). I have not read the Hubbard works, and there is some disagreement on their exact length, so some might count as novellas.
Note: Robert A. Heinleinâs If this Goes On is not eligible. It is too short, even though the Pups are slating it in this category. It was later enlarged into a re-titled novel, but that was a decade in the future.
And thatâs it. If you have any thoughts, let me know, and the quicker the better.