BACK with the third and final of Frederick Blakeslee’s “The Roaring Town” featurettes. Blakeslee only produced three installments of his two-page illustrated looks into the boom towns of the Wild West in Pecos Kid Western. Authored by Jhan Robbins, the prolific western story author and editor of pulp magazines, and deftly illustrated by Blakeslee, the feature delves into the story behind noted boom towns of the old west. This time Robbins and Blakeslee tell us the tale of Weaverville, California—a gold rush boom town that made it and still stands today with a lot of it’s old 1850’s charm.

From the January 1951 issue of Pecos Kid Western it’s “The Roaring Towns: Weaverville, California!”

THE ROARING TOWNS: Weaverville, California
by Frederick Blakeslee and Jhan Robbins (Pecos Kid Western, January 1951)

THIS week we have a story by Franklin M. Ritchie. Ritchie only wrote aviation yarns and his entire output—roughly three dozen stories—was between 1927 and 1930, but Ritchie was not your typical pulp author—he was a lawyer who wrote pulp stories on the side to satisfy his yen for flying.

Jack Gorham flew in a trance. “Thirty hours to live!” he muttered, talking to himself under the roar of the motor and the fierce screaming of the wind in his wires. “That’s all a pilot has on the front!” And mechanically he fell into the formation. Swiftly they winged toward the front. The trenches zigzagged under them, and suddenly Gorham realized that he was over German territory, “Thirty hours to live!” he repeated to himself. . .

With a weird shrieking whir, the airplane streaked for earth like a flaming comet. The pilot’s chum turned yellow and fled, but—read it and see for yourself!

• Download “Thirty Hours to Live” (April 1929, Sky Birds)

As a bonus, here’s a letter from Franklin M. Ritchie that Flying Aces published in the March issue—the month before the issue this story ran.

BACK with the second of Frederick Blakeslee’s “The Roaring Town” featurettes. Blakeslee only produced three installments of his two-page illustrated looks into the boom towns of the Wild West in Pecos Kid Western. Authored by Jhan Robbins, the prolific western story author and editor of pulp magazines, and deftly illustrated by Blakeslee, the feature delves into the story behind noted boom towns of the old west. This time Robbins and Blakeslee tell us the tale of Soya, Texas—a town now lost to the sands of time.

From the September 1950 issue of Pecos Kid Western it’s “The Roaring Towns: Soya, Texas!”

THE ROARING TOWNS: Soya, Texas
by Frederick Blakeslee and Jhan Robbins (Pecos Kid Western, September 1950)

THIS week we have a short story by renowned pulp author Frederick C. Davis. Davis is probably best remembered for his work on Operator 5 where he penned the first 20 stories, as well as the Moon Man series for Ten Detective Aces and several other continuing series for various Popular Publications. He also wrote a number of aviation stories that appeared in Aces, Wings and Air Stories.

This week’s story features that crack pilot for World News Reel, the greatest gelatine newspaper that ever flashed on a silver screen—Nick Royce! Davis wrote twenty stories with Nick for Wings magazine from 1928-1931.

Hollywood comes calling at the World News Reel field when J. Harold Shaw and director arrive hoping the World News Reel pilots and cameramen can help them capture a dramatic stunt for the climax of their latest feature. Who’s j. Harold Shaw? Well, his pictures send thrills and chills up and down the prickley spines of a million girls. Right at that minute his likenesses were decorating the dresser-tops of adoring females from coast to coast. Many a dissatisfied wife thought of him as an ideal husband for herself. His face was certainly his fortune. Yes, sir, right then there wasn’t any more heroic hero in the whole flicker business than J. Harold. Needless to say, Nick took an instant dislike to Shaw—especially when he started to put the moves on his gal! From the February 1928 Wings, it’s Frederick C. Davis’ “Hero Stuff!”

Between earth and sky he hung, helpless in the useless parachute—until Nick Royce, sky-eater, jumped into space, a grim smile on his lips as he prayed for an even break!

• Download “Hero Stuff” (February 1928, Wings)

IT’S no secret that we’re big fans of the work of Frederick Blakeslee here at Age of Aces Books. He did the covers for all of Popular Publications’ big Air titles—Dare-Devil Aces, Battle Aces, Battle Birds, Fighting Aces, Dusty Ayres and his Battle Aces, and, of course, G-8 and his Battle Aces. In addition he did the interior art for Dare-Devil Aces, Battle Birds and Fighting Aces. Blakeslee also provided art for other titles as well—including a few special illustrative features. One of those features was “The Roaring Towns” for Pecos Kid Western magazine.

Similar to his “Adventures Into The Unknown” feature that ran in several mystery magazines, “The Roaring Towns” was a two page feature focusing on a different Wild West frontier town each time. Blakeslee teamed with writer Jhan Robbins for the “The Roaring Towns.” Robbins was a Brooklyn-born writer who became an editor for pulp magazines like Big Book Western and Dime Mystery after WWII. With his wife June Stumpe he became a widely known for writing articles—one being nominated for a Pulitzer Prize—and later biographies.

Pecos Kid Western only ran for five issues, and, sadly, “The Roaring Towns” for only the first three of those. The first installment centers on boomtown of Jackson, Nevada which sprung up in 1871 with the discovery of silver. Over the next year, forty thousand prospectors mined more than five million dollars of silver out of dem thar hills.

THE ROARING TOWNS: Jackson, Nevada
by Frederick Blakeslee and Jhan Robbins (Pecos Kid Western, July 1950)

THIS week we have a story by H.P.S. Greene. Henry Paul Stevens Greene was a newspaper man who wrote aviation tales from the late 20’s to the early 40’s for magazines like Wings, Air Stories, Sky Fighters and, the magazine this story appeared in—Aces.

Billy King hated the French. A year in the Foreign Legion infantry, under hardboiled officers and non-coms, was mostly responsible. That was before the United States entered the war and Billy became eligible for transfer—a transfer that shot him right back into another French outfit again! It was in a cafe wallowing in his misfortune that Billy King wound up getting mixed up with a girl, an ex-king of Monravia. and a hairbrained scheme to snatch the mustaches of Captain von Grunow of the Imperial German Air Service! From the pages of the December 1931 Aces, it’s H.P.S. Greene’s “Kings Up!”

Take a Yank pilot soured on the world. A Paris mademoiselle. A strange gent with a monocle, and a red-nosed taxi hawk. Mix well with champagne, toss into tracer-torn sky—and watch for fireworks!

• Download “Kings Up” (December 1931, Aces)

“HAW-W-W-W-W!” That sound can only mean one thing—that Bachelor of Artifice, Knight of Calamity and an alumnus of Doctor Merlin’s Camelot College for Conjurors is back to vex not only the Germans, but the Americans—the Ninth Pursuit Squadron in particular—as well. Yes it’s the marvel from Boonetown, Iowa himself—Lieutenant Phineas Pinkham!

When Phineas “Carbuncle” Pinkham cracked up a Spad, it stayed cracked! Yes, Major Garrity was right. If Phineas had been twins, the Allies would have, been in the hands of receivers!

• Download “Too Good for Hanging” (March 1932, Flying Aces)

THIS week we have another story by the prolific O.B. Myer’s! Myers was a pilot himself, flying with the 147th Aero Squadron and carrying two credited victories and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Following up his first story last week, we have his second published story. “Pip” Preston brings down the great von Stangel. But von Stangel turns out to be an undercover agent…. From the pages of the January 31st, 1929 issue of War Stories it’s O.B. Myer’s “The Buzzard’s Guest!”

Either that lone Jerry was afraid to fight, or else he thought he was too good. But he needed a better excuse than either of those to run from a Yankee ace and get away with it.

• Download “The Buzzard’s Guest” (31 January 1929, War Stories)

Somewhere in France

With another story by O.B. Myers we have another letter from the front reprinted in O.B.’s hometown paper the MOUNT VERNON ARGUS. This one isn’t by O.B. though, it’s from a fellow Mount Vernonite who ran into old Myers as they called him in France who offered to take him for a ride!

Published in the MOUNT VERNON ARGUS, May 25th, 1918:

Following is an extract from a letter received by his parents from Corporal Valentine Treyvoux from “Somewhere in France”:

Well, I’ve got a bit of real news that may be of interest. Your boy is “flying very high these days’’ I bumped into another old Mount Vernonite, old Oscar Myers, who is first lieutenant in the aviation. We sat around and talked for awhile and he said if the weather was fine the following day he would give me the flight or fright of my life. You can bet I was Johnny Thomson on hand—and up we went. Holy smoke! I thought for sure I was straight on my way to meet St. Peter. The earth soon faded beneath us and I found myself passing as Myers called it, through cloud banks. Gee! but it sure was a funny feeling. We dropped down a few hundred feet, about 600 or 700 and gradually mother earth hove into view. Then he thought he would pull a few stunts as he called it, and so he looped the loop, glided, banked and a few others which I forgot in the excitement and then we made a beautiful volplane to the sod. Well, I Just can’t begin to explain or express the feeling one has while in the air, or while doing some of those things, but one thing I can say is this. Before going up we were strapped into the seats with a big strap across our chest and when doing the loop, the machine is turned completely upside down and there we were out of our seats and lying flat on this belt face to earth. Boy, oh boy! that’s the only time I said good-bye to friends so dear, to home and mother in fact everything, but it was only for a moment for he again righted her and it was over. I’ve given you but a vague description, Mother and Dad, but I guess you can get some idea as to what we did. Just as soon as I have a chance again and it’s a fine day, I’m going to bring Mac over and the three of us are going up.

I sure do envy old Myers that’s what we used to call him, but now it’s Lieutenant Myers.

Have Just been called so will close for a while.

Your boy who is always thinking of you. —VAL.

THIS week we have a story by the prolific O.B. Myer’s! Myers was a pilot himself, flying with the 147th Aero Squadron and carrying two credited victories and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. The story this week is the first Myers had published in the pulp! Printed in the pages of the January 1929 issue of War Birds, it’s “No Heroes Allowed.”

“Pop” was training these fledglings of his to be careful. He didn’t want any heroes whose medals and extra breeches are sent home through the mail.

• Download “No Heroes Allowed” (January 1929, War Birds)

A Letter from O.B.

As a bonus we have a letter O.B. wrote home to his folks during The Great War that was shared in his hometown paper, the MOUNT VERNON ARGUS. The letter was written on October 11th, the day after he lost two of his pals—Lt. Wilbert White who went down and Billy Brotherton who failed to return from his solo flight. Events described in “No Heroes Allowed” seem reminiscent of events in O.B.’s letter.

Published in the MOUNT VERNON ARGUS, November 13th, 1918:

Dr. S Oscar Myers, of this city, has received the following letter under date of October 11, at the front, from his son First Lieutenant O.B. Myers, of the aviaition section:

“Not only do things happen pretty fast around here, but they happen so fast that you can’t keep your letters even with ’em. Enough comes off most every day to fill an ordinary epistle, but for that very reason, one can’t write every day, nor anywhere near it. Here goes to tell something about yesterday, anyway.

The things which seem to stand out most prominently are that I participated—more actively this time—in shooting down a Hun, and that two pilots from my flight—my ‘buddies,’ as we call ’em—were lost.

Three of us. “White-ee,” Ken Porter and myself, went out on a voluntary patrol about noon; we found a single two-seater way up high just over the lines and attacked. Ken Porter waited to one side to look out for others or to come to our assistance if necessary; White dived first and fired a few bursts, but his guns jammed and he drew off. Then I dived on him and fired quite a burst; just as I dove past his tail and started to pull around on him again, I noticed that the right gun was Jammed. Then the motor quit going (found later than an air pressure lead from the gas tank had broken off), and I noticed that one of the sheet metal handhole covers on the side of the hood had come off and wrapped itself around one of the wires. That made me think that the motor had been hit (I had seen the boche observer shooting at me and his tracer bullets going past as I was diving on him) so I kept right on diving out of the fight, and eventually glided back and made a landing about five kilometres behind our lines. Ken Porter reported that he saw the Hun falling, apparently out of control, directly after and took a few shots at long range, but couldn’t follow him down because others were approaching. So I think my bullets were the ones that got him this time, all right. It took me all the afternoon to get a telephone call through to the aerodrome, to get a car sent up after me, and when I got back about 9:30. I found that White had gone out on another patrol later In the afternoon, got into a fight and ran head-on into a Hun, both going down out of control completely, of course, Besides that, Brotherton, the other chap from our flight went over on a strafing trip, alone and never came back. The tough part is that ’White-ee.” having been on the front here for several months, was slated to be sent back to the states—his orders were on the way through in fact. Also, he is married and has two children at home. He was about 27, I think. We go right on though: only made one patrol today, but that was on account of the punk weather. My machine Is being carried in from the field where I lit; was unbroken, but couldn’t possibly take off there, as it was full of barbed wire.

Mail is still conspicuous by Its absence. It’s getting too dark to write—I’ll send love instead.

And if that wasn’t enough…

For all his many published stories, O.B. Myer’s didn’t really have any series characters. The few recurring characters he did have in the pages of Dare-Devil Aces, we’ve collected into a book we like to call “The Black Sheep of Belogue: The Best of O.B. Myers” which collects the two Dynamite Pike and his band of outlaw Aces stories and the handful of Clipper Stark vs the Mongol Ace tales. If you enjoyed this story, you’ll love these stories!

THIS week we have another story by Franklin M. Ritchie. Ritchie only wrote aviation yarns and his entire output—roughly three dozen stories—was between 1927 and 1930. Today we have another one from the lawyer who wrote pulp stories on the side to satisfy his yen for flying. From the May 1929 issue of Sky Birds, Ritchie gives us a tale of Lieutenant Hank Durant.

Hank Durant, flying instructor of Issoudun, A.W.O.L., was up in an unarmed observation training ship—the American battery was firing short of the Big Bertha—his radio dynamo was shot—but getting the Big Bertha meant more to him than just fighting!—There was Betty Kramer’s admiration for one thing and there was Phil Marcel to settle with for another!

• Download “In The Clouds” (May 1929, Sky Birds)

WHEN Flying, the new weekly paper of all things aviation, started up in England in 1938, amongst the articles and stories and photo features was an illustrative feature called “Heroes of the Air.” It was a full page illustration by S. Drigin of the events surrounding how the pictured Ace got their Victoria Cross along with a brief explanatory note. Today’s full page illustration is not an installment in that series, but rather tells the story of how Flight-Lieutenant G.E. Jackson won the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Russian born Serge Drigin became a successful illustrator in the UK in the 1920s with his work regularly appearing in such British magazines as The Detective Magazine, Modern Boy and Chums. He is probably best known for his startling covers for Scoops, Air Stories, War Stories, Fantasy and others in the 30s.

From the 30 July 1938 issue of Flying:

HIGH COURAGE ON THE FRONTIER

The Distinguished Flying Cross has been awarded to Flight-Lieutenant G.E. Jackson, of No.5 (Army Co-operation) Squadron (India), for gallantry in action on April 14th last. A party of about a hundred South Waziristan Scouts were cut off and surrounded by 500 tribesmen. With ammunition down to five rounds per man their desperate plight was noticed by Flight-Lieut. Jackson, who, flying low through a hail of bullets, dropped by parachute four loads of ammunition each of a thousand rounds to the besieged, who, however, would also need Very lights to repulse night attacks. Having no parachutes left, Flight-Lieut. Jackson improvised one from a tablecloth and string, and with this succeeded in getting a Very pistol and 40 cartridges to the Scouts, who were thus enabled to hold out until they were relieved. This spirit does more to win wars than all the ponderous perorations in Parliament.

THIS week we have a the fourth and final tale of the Cuckoo’s Nest from the prolific pen of Alexis Rossoff. The Cuckoo’s Nest stories ran in War Birds in 1930. The Cuckoo’s are an outfit a lot like Keyhoe’s Jailbird Flight—a group of hellions who found themselves afoul of military rules who have been given another chance to die fighting rather than rot in a Blois cell.

The High Command through an agent of Germany’s powerful all-seeing intelligence system, had received the disturbing information of the Cuckoos arrival at the Front. The Cuckoos were forever offering themselves as an obstacle for Germany’s militaristic iron heel to stumble upon. This time the High Command, with much at stake, would tolerate no failure. The ultimatum had been sent out—“Crush the Cuckoos. Destroy them.” But the blackbirds of the A.E.F. were going to take the fight to the enemy and barge in where good little pilots were afraid to fly. They would stop Germany’s entire Air Force and put an end to Baron Phantomas’ reign of terror!

Each day that ghost plane threw its challenge at the Cuckoos. Their guns eagerly ripped the skies for the man who wasn’t there. Mystery wings all but rode them out of the sky until that day when they learned the secret carried to them on the wings of death!

• Download “Baron Phantomas” (November 1930, War Birds)

THIS week we have a story from the pen of the Navy’s own Allan R. Bosworth. Bosworth wrote a couple dozen stories with Humpy & Tex over the course of ten years from 1930 through 1939, mostly in the pages of War Aces and War Birds. The stories are centered around the naval air base at Ile Tudy, France. “Humpy” Campbell, a short thickset boatswain’s mate, first class who was prone to be spitting great sopping globs of tabacco juice, was a veteran seaplane pilot who would soon rate two hashmarks—his observer, Tex Malone, boatswain’s mate, second class, was a D.O.W. man fresh from the Texas Panhandle. Everybody marveled at the fact that the latter had made one of the navy’s most difficult ratings almost overnight—but the answer lay in his ability with the omnipresent rope he constantly carried.

Humpy & Tex find themselves down in the ocean after deflecting a torpedo with a bomb. Unfortunately, the devious Krauts find them and seize on this as an opportunity to use the I-30 as a means of destroying any destroyer that may come looking for the duo! “Seagull’s Luck” by the Navy’s own Allan R. Bosworth is from the pages of the March 1931 War Aces.

Humpy and Tex couldn’t decide about an insignia for their crate until a U-Boat commander showed them the hot spot—and how to fill it. Then paint and Heinies got spattered all over the Channel.

• Download “Seagull’s Luck” (March 1931, War Aces)

WHEN Flying, the new weekly paper of all things aviation, started up in England in 1938, amongst the articles and stories and photo features was an illustrative feature called “Heroes of the Air.” It was a full page illustration by S. Drigin of the events surrounding how the pictured Ace got their Victoria Cross along with a brief explanatory note.

Russian born Serge Drigin became a successful illustrator in the UK in the 1920s with his work regularly appearing in such British magazines as The Detective Magazine, Modern Boy and Chums. He is probably best known for his startling covers for Scoops, Air Stories, War Stories, Fantasy and others in the 30s.

From the 6 August 1938 issue of Flying:

MAJOR LIONEL REES ENGAGED IN A DOG-FIGHT ON JULY 1st, 1916

MAJOR, as he was then, Lionel Rees won the V.C. on July 1, 1916. He was 32 years of age, older than most officers in the Royal Flying Corps at that time. It was through a mistake that he came to win the V.C., for what he took to be British machines were in reality German. He had been on a reconnaissance flight when he saw what he thought was a squadron of British bombing machines returning home. Being in a single-seat fighter, the D.H.2, he decided to escort them home, but when he approached them he saw that they were about ten enemy aircraft; all of them scouts. One left the formation to engage him, but within a short time was behind its own lines in difficulties. Major Rees was wounded in the thigh, but he continued to fight until his ammunition was exhausted, when he returned home. It seems probable that the award of the V.C. was made not for this one act alone, but that his gallant career was taken into consideration. Happily, he survived the war and retired from the R.A.F. in 1931 with the rank of Group Captain.

WHEN Flying, the new weekly paper of all things aviation, started up in England in 1938, amongst the articles and stories and photo features was an illustrative feature called “Heroes of the Air.” It was a full page illustration by S. Drigin of the events surrounding how the pictured Ace got their Victoria Cross along with a brief explanatory note.

Russian born Serge Drigin became a successful illustrator in the UK in the 1920s with his work regularly appearing in such British magazines as The Detective Magazine, Modern Boy and Chums. He is probably best known for his startling covers for Scoops, Air Stories, War Stories, Fantasy and others in the 30s.

From the 30 July 1938 issue of Flying:

CAPT. J.A LIDDEL WINNING THE V.C. IN BELGIUM, JULY 23rd, 1915

On July 23rd, 1915, Captain J.A. Liddel, V.C., was making a long range reconnaissance patrol over the area around Ostend and Bruges. At that time he was in No.7 Squadron and flying an R.E.5. In order to get plenty of information he had to fly very low, with the result that he came under a great deal of anti-aircraft fire. He managed to escape the shrapnel for a little time, but he was eventually wounded in the thigh. He fainted, but the flow of cool air revived him and he took control of his machine once more, and in spite of the agony he was suffering from his wounds he continued his reconnaissance. He could have landed at once and received medical attendance, but he preferred to remain in the air, although shrapnel was now bursting around him more ferociously than before. At last, his work finished, he turned for home. On landing he was hurried to hospital where, unhappily, he died from his wounds one month later. Notification of the award was made in the London Gazette on August 3rd, 1915, with the following words: “The difficulties overcome by this officer in saving his machine and the life of his passenger cannot be readily expressed, but as the control wheel and throttle control were smashed, and also one of the undercarriage struts, it would seem incredible that he could have accomplished what he did.”