Assuming my earlier second post on mystery digests (with a
focus on Ed McBain's two mags) made it through, here are a
few more thoughts. My concern of posts making it through
reflect my recent bad record, plus I am typing with one hand
while on narcotics (due to my busted shoulder) so I have
plenty of excuses.
Among the odds and ends of my accumulation of mystery digests
is a copy of
"Conflict" published by Ziff-Davis in Fall 1953 and edited by
Howard Browne, the great author of the Paul Pine mysteries.
The cover is striking--a blonde by Henry Von Dongen--and the
contents features stories by Browne buddies Roy Huggins and
Wlilliam P. McGivern as well as one by the underrated
Charlotte Armstrong.
Yet this was the one and only issue of "Conflict" to reach
publication. At the end of the pulp period, Howard Browne
tried to lead Ziff-Davis mags to quality digests. The classic
example is his creation of Fantastic, which had expensive
wraparound covers and high paid contributions from top
authors including Raymond Chandler. Alas, Ziff-Davis pulled
the plug on this quality experiment--of which the Science
Fiction (Amazing Stories) and Fantasy
(Fantastic) are the best known. The one issue of "Conflict"
shows where Browne might have gone with the magazine. Browne
was often reviled by SF fans because he made no attempt to
hide his preference for mystery fiction over SF.
The biggest drawback to that one issue was the banner display
given
"Hollywood Confidential" by Jack Lait and Lee Mortimer. This
duo had a bestseller that they turned it into a "brand." If
my memory serves me, they sold Browne on this "Confidential"
brand for "Amazing Stories" as well with a piece entitled
"Mars Confidential."
Richard Moore
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