C. M. Kornbluth - Part 3 1952-1954 - Dark Worlds Quarterly

This post is brought to you by the upcoming Steel and Stone by M. D. Jackson. This novel is made up of three parts, “Rolling Stone” which appeared in Ships of Steel last year, plus two further adventures about Stone the secret agent working with Marella, a woman he saves from invisible foes aboard a spaceliner. Later stories feature Steel’s ship Darlin’ (Darling Buds of May), a killerbot like you’ve never experienced before, as well as Marella’s adventure aboard a Niven Ring at the edge of the galaxy. All three parts combine to make a Space Adventure novel that will keep you turning pages!

For the next three years Kornbluth concentrated on novels, which in turn were serialized mostly in Galaxy. These are the books Kornbluth is most famous for, The Space Merchants, Search the Sky, Gladiator-At-Law (with Fred Pohl) and Gunner Cade (with Judith Merrill). This collaborative method was done by passing drafts back and forth, with Cyril and his partner writing different sections and revising each other’s work for a seamless feel. There will be other novels but none will have quite the same impact.

During this novel writing period Kornbluth began writing non-genre novels under pseudonyms like Simon Eisner and Jordan Park (later with Frederik Pohl). The fact that CMK used pseudonyms implies he wasn’t too proud of these books. I doubt he planned to shift to a mainstream career as Jordan Park but the nom de plum allowed that option if the money was there.

This pinnacle period also saw the first of Kornbluth’s story collections, The Explorers, a paperback by Ballantine Books. Not surprising, the author only includes two stories from the pre-war days, “The Rocket of 1955” and “Thirteen O’Clock”. There will be fourteen collections by 2020 but only three will appear before his death. The majority of collections will include Frederik Pohl, such as The Best of C. M.Kornbluth (1977) which includes an appreciation by Pohl.

1952

Outpost Mars (1952) with Judith Merrill as Cyril Judd

Takeoff (1952)

Gunner Cade (1952) with Judith Merrill as Cyril Judd

The Naked Storm (1952) as Simon Eisner

“That Share of Glory” (Astounding Science Fiction, January 1952) is CMK’s last story for Astounding. Which isn’t to say for John W. Campbell. the next time Kornbluth appears, the magazine will be called Analog, and Cyril will be dead.

“Gunner Cade” (Astounding Science Fiction, March April May 1952) with Judith Merrill as Cyril Judd. The illustrator, Pawalka, seems to be obsessed with hands…

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

“The Luckiest Man in Denv” (Galaxy Science Fiction, June 1952) as Simon Eisner

“Gravy Planet” (aka The Space Merchants) (Galaxy Science Fiction, June July August 1952) with Frederik Pohl