So, some of you may remember that on May 14th I posted that I had found a postcard sent by H.G. Wells to his wife and that I'd sent scans to the H.G. Wells Society to see if it could be evaluated. I heard back last night. The expert wishes to remain anonymous, but has given permission for the details of the evaluation to be shared. Below are the scans that I sent of the front and back of the card. The card shows a train at the top of the Brünig Pass in Switzerland... 1/11 #HGWells#Postcards
Went to list a postcard for sale this morning, then noticed that it was sent by HG Wells to his wife. Obviously I pulled it until I can authenticate it, but I'm fairly sure. 🤞 #HGWells#Postcards
"Scientific people," proceeded the Time Traveller, after the pause required for the proper assimilation of this, "know very well that Time is only a kind of Space.... That line, therefore, we must conclude, was along the Time Dimension."
I am currently re-reading #HGWells#WarOfTheWorlds and I am struck by just what powerful writing it is. The first part covers the sheer terror and uncertainty of a population being forced to leave their homes and familiar environment by a murderous external force that cares nothing for the death of individuals. The evoked images are quite terrifying and bring to mind the situation for the bulk of the population in #Gaza or parts of #Ukraine.
Today, January 5, in 1900, is the date the time traveler returns to his home, where his friends have gathered to hear his remarkable story (The Time Machine, 1960)
My latest "Looking Back on Genre History" segment is now available on Episode 722 of the #StarShipSofa#podcast. I discuss the work and legacy of #ManlyWadeWellman.
Mam kilka takich pozycji, które może nie do końca mnie interesują, ale chcę je poznać ze względu na status klasyki lub odwołania w innych pozycjach. W ten sposób jestem na świeżo po "Wojnie Światów" i powiem Wam, że... nie dziwię się, że kiedyś słuchowisko radiowe wystraszyło ludzi.
Całkiem zgrabnie i realistycznie opisana inwazja Marsjan, która przypomina reportaż lub wręcz blog. Oczywiście, czuć tę archaiczność, a fabuła jest bardzo przewidywalna, ale w wolnym czasie warto poznać, o co było to całe halo.
there is something utterly adorkable about H.G Wells' book 'Little Wars' (1913), especially considering the amazing reproductions of photographs featuring the author and his quite notable friends playing a serious game with toy soldiers... while dressed in what then was most likely considered leisure wear.
NEW TODAY! Robin Johnson talks about his sci-fi comedy Untrue Stories, writing parody fiction, the public feud between George Orwell and H.G. Wells, letting the characters write themselves, and whether technology will save us in the future.
@drskyskull I'm thoroughly enjoying your book in the science of invisibility. It's been a looooong time since I've learned the basics of electromagnetism too, so it's actually been a useful refresher!
Having just finished the chapter on Maxwell... he saw a demonstration of electric trains. Does this mean that they had put together electric motors well before they actually understood the underlying theory of how they worked?
One of the creepier tech-related incidents I remember was many years ago when I wanted the Sam's Photofacts (a third-party creator of device specs and schematics, etc.) for a very old portable TV. Way out of date, but I was trying to help someone with it.
I mentioned to a friend that I was looking for old Photofacts, but I did not say anything about the TV. He scribbled an address on a scrap of paper, an address locally here in L.A. "Try him," he muttered.
I drive over. It's a small unmarked storefront. I go in, the bell on the door rings. Sitting inside, like the caterpillar in "Alice in Wonderland", is this little guy perched on a stool, with immense stacks of paper surrounding him everywhere. Total mayhem.
I walk up to him -- knowing that this was a waste of time and really wanting to get out of there -- and asked if he had the Sam's Photofacts for that specific very old TV model.
Without saying a word, he reached over to the pile of papers right next to him, took the TOP item off the pile, and silently handed it to me. It was the ancient one I needed. Stunned, I paid him the amount marked on the item, and left with it, not completely sure what had just happened.
When I drove by there a month later that storefront was something else entirely. He was gone.
A bit late reporting this, but last week, the indefatigable researcher Fred Shapiro found a clear 1906 example of "science fiction", in reference to H.G. Wells. Since (as with many terms) the early history is a bit muddled, this is an important discovery.
(The first known example is from 1898 (also referring to Wells), with an 1897 quote (perhaps from the same person) in the sense 'a work of science fiction'.)