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Horace Gold



Pen names: Clyde Crane Campbell, Dudley Dell
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"The Biography Project"
(as by Dudley Dell)
© Galaxy, Sep 1951
The Old Die Rich and Other Science Fiction, 1955
--/ cool time sf story

"Fog"
(as C. C. Campbell)
© Astounding Stories, 1935

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Horace Gold
"Gold"
(as by Clyde Crane Campbell)
© Astounding Stories, Jan 1935
--/ cool sf story
--/ rare find

Humorous investigation of the true value of gold, when anything can be turned to gold. Written by Gold (how appropriate). Plenty of Jewish flair & flavor by one of the most prominent Jewish sf writers / editors.

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"Hero"
© Thrilling Wonder Stories, Oct 1939
The Old Die Rich, 1955
--/ cool sf story

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Horace Gold
(as Clyde Crane Campbell)
"Inflexure"

© Astounding Stories, October 1934
(first story)
--/ fourth place apocalyptic sf story
--/ wonder award
--/ idea award: time & dimensional storms
--/ awesome scale
--/ rare find

Clunky style, mind-boggling scale, epic "global disaster" canvas, a guilty treat to all lovers of pulp fiction, this crazy tale has everything, defining the genre of "apocalyptic pot-boiler": the obligatory drunk (yet still brilliant) scientist, prehistoric monsters crawling out of every hole, the element of surprise by an imminent, unavoidable doom, and most of all - the lasting image of Earth being saved by a cohort of hardened scientists in a huge battered airship. Come to think of it, the premise is quite intricate and spectacular even by the "wonder" standards of 30s Astounding: a fourth-dimensional star passes through the Solar System, turning Earth's dimensions inside-out and rotating time plane perpendicular to all other dimensions (don't ask). No wonder scientists get drunk in droves, unable to even start to explain this swirling, ROYAL MESS. Among the side-effects of this extra-dimensional star collision: ALL past and future inhabitants of Earth appear on its surface at once, creating hilarious religious and political repercussions. Gold has a blast describing individual and totalitarian ways to cope with such global heresy. The sudden collapse of all physical laws lead to stupendous human suffering, in some ways reflecting the fears and premonitions of pre-war era. With enough ideas to fill rows of books, this story predates such classics as "Riverworld" of Philip Jose Farmer and "Time Storm" by Gordon R. Dickson (they might, or might not have read it, but their books seem to be written as "Inflexure" remakes). The ultimate doom is (surprisingly) delayed by the titanic effort of past & future science geniuses, but then, sure enough, humanity turns to mutual extermination with a renewed vigor, and more apocalyptic visions soon follow.

I loved this "wonder soup". It seems that Gold has put all of his "pulp-blockbuster" ideas and "hackish" writing energies into this, his very first, tale - and then continued to write significantly less frantic, and frankly, more boring science fiction & fantasy.
review: 23-Dec-07 (read in 2007)

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"The Man With English"
© Star Science Fiction # 1, 1953
The Old Die Rich, 1955

"A Matter Of Form"
(Gilroy series)
© Astounding Stories, Dec 1938
--/ cool sf novella
--/ wonder award: turning into dog

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"No Charge For Alterations"
© Amazing Stories, Apr 1953
Authentic Science Fiction, Jul 1956

The Old Die Rich and Other Science Fiction, 1955
--/ third place sf story
--/ idea award
--/ emotion award
--/ shock value
--/ rare find

A masterpiece; a shocking story for any freedom-lover and independent thinker. On rural backwater planets local doctors "heal" adventurous traits and excessive imagination in colonists with a wicked personality adjustment procedure. What's more, they routinely tamper with our God-given bodies in the most unholy way: changing them according to anybody's whim. One husband ended up changed a hundred times by his wife who could not make up her mind (the guy only wanted her to be happy). The resulting nightmarish culture is maintained by the matter-of-fact brainwashing of all newcomers. And this is not a repressive totalitarian regime, either. All is done in the name of EFFICIENCY (here, the creepiest word!) and seems to be a logical extension of pioneer agricultural economics. It only makes sense to suppress the desire of exploration when all you have to do is tend the land you're given, to be satisfied with soup and potatoes and your contribution to society. I had to shudder... And Gold put all of his "fist in a velvet-glove" irony into this story, as though he had to exorcise his own deep fears...
review: 10-Jan-08 (read in 2008)

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"The Trouble With Water"
© Unknown, Mar 1939
The Old Die Rich and Others, 1955
--/ cool f story
--/ wonder award

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EXPLANATION OF THE RATING SYSTEM:

"SF&F Reading Experience" is part of "Dark Roasted Blend / Thrilling Wonder" family of sites. We try to highlight the most entertaining and rewarding science fiction and fantasy, with emphasis on memorable reader experience, not necessarily general acceptance by the critics. Have fun, and delve into our extensive ratings and reviews!

Most reviews are written by Avi Abrams, unless otherwise noted. Reviews also appear on our unique historical retrospective page Wonder Timeline of Science Fiction. Feel free to submit your own review, if a particular story is not listed here.


All major OFFICIAL AWARDS are highlighted in BLUE
("winner" has a letter "W" by it, otherwise it is a runner-up only)

Our PERSONAL AWARDS (ratings) are highlighted in RED and PURPLE:
--/ first place :
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--/ cool : (equal to fifth place)
ALL "BEST OF" LISTS ARE LOCATED HERE

These awards are given in the following categories:
- novel :
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- story :
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Also, there are our personal STYLE / GENRE SPECIFIC AWARDS. These reflect the story's content and the lasting impression on the reader:

--/ wonder award
sense-of-wonder, "visual intensity" and inventiveness

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exhilarating plot, excitement / action

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