For our 106th issue, we seem to have developed a television theme, with a pair of great speculative fiction stories about TV: Norman Spinradâs âPrime Timeâ and Henry Slesarâs âThe Show Must Go On.â Spinradâs tale is a look at a future where people can retire to relive television. And Slesarâs is a darkly cynical look behind the curtain of television production. Jack Vance, H.B. Fyfe, and Joseph Payne Brennan round out our SF and fantasy contributors this issue. âPrime Time,â incidentally, is Norman Spinradâs fiction debut in Black Cat Weekly, and it wonât be his last story for us. He kindly went through his short fiction and selected 10 favorite stories for us to reprint in coming issues, so youâre in for a real treat.
And speaking of treats, our editors are already working on some special Halloween surprises for October. I know youâll be thoroughly spooked by some of them. Something to look forward to, as we approach my favorite holiday season. (Thereâs a reason we have a black cat for a mascot.)
Our novel this issue is a mystery: Scarhaven Keep, by Golden Age British author J.S. Fletcher. Also in mysteries, we have an original from Nikki Knight (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman) and a terrific crime story by Brendan DuBois, who remains a mainstay of short mystery fiction. Of course, no issue is complete without a solve-it-yourself short from Hal Charles.
Great stuff indeed.
Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure:
âThe New York Goodbye,â by Nikki Knight [Michael Bracken Presents short story]
âLast Shot,â by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery]
âThe Roadâs End,â by Brendan DuBois [Barb Goffman Presents short story]
Scarhaven Keep, by J.S. Fletcher [novel]
Science Fiction & Fantasy:
âPrime Time,â by Norman Spinrad [short story]
âThe Show Must Go On,â by Henry Slesar [short story]
âThe Visitor in the Vault,â by Joseph Payne Brennan [short story]
âThe Night of No Moon,â by H.B. Fyfe [short story]
âThe Men Return,â by Jack Vance [short story]