Astonishing Stories

Astonishing Stories was a bi-monthly SF pulp magazine, a companion to Super Science Stories, both initally edited by a 19-year-old Frederik Pohl.

As with Super Science Stories, Pohl filled Astonishing Stories with material provided by his fellow Futurians. During their first year of existence, active Futurians had thirteen stories published in the two prozines, plus two others by James Blish, who later joined the Futurians. Isaac Asimov, Donald Wollheim, Cyril Kornbluth, Richard Wilson, and Pohl himself contributed stories, usually under pseudonyns.

Established authors whose stories were used included Clifford Simak, E. E. "Doc" Smith, Nelson S. Bond, and L. Ron Hubbard. Even Robert Heinlein, under his Lyle Monroe pseudonym, had a couple of stories in the magazine.

Artists whose work was used included Hannes Bok (a Futurian), Dave Kyle (another Fururian), Leslie Perri (aka Doris Baumgardt, another Futurian, who later married Pohl), Frank R. Paul, Leo Morey, Hans Wesso, and Jack Binder.

A column, "Fantasy Circle," provided items from the fan field.

The magazine was published from February, 1940, until April 1943, for a total run of 16 issues. Alden H. Norton followed Pohl as editor (1941-1943).

There was a Canadian edition of the magazine, published in 1942.

There was also a fanzine of this name in the mid-1930s.

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Publication

1940—1943

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