The Savage Distress of Women in Science (Fiction); Pulp Covers, 1930-1960

JF Ptak Science Books   Post 1566

According to most of these big, spongy pulp magazines, women were made to be rescued, and rescued not only from Enormous Situations, but also from unnameable, unknowable Enormous Things.  I guess they were slightly soft-porny, or at least the cover art was, attracting young readers by promises of  an "easily read" with excitement and voluptuous women in need of saving.  It was yet another turn on the fateful screwing of the tale of the damsel in distress, seen and heard countless times in art and story.  Only in these sci fi mags the damsel showed a lot more skin--it is extraordinary how cleavage attracted so much alien danger/romps.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Ray Girvan]

The third down: "Planet of the Knob Heads".

FX: juvenile snigger.

You may not be aware of the British slang - http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/knobhead .

[John F. Ptak]

Thanks, Ray! As it goes, I've received a number of comments regarding that word, all of them coming from the big island just to the west of Europe.