The sixth issue of ‘The “New” Howard Reader, from the autumn of 1999. Another issue filled with Howard-content. Published by Joe & Mona Marek. Cover art by Robert P. Barger. “The Vultures of Wahpeton” includes a facsimile of the artwork originally used in Smashing Novels Magazine, both alternative endings Howard wrote, and the editor’s notes that were included in the magazine version of the story.
The newsletter opens with a cover feature about a Christmas card from Robert E. Howard, sent to Clark Ashton Smith on December 30, 1933. It details the publication journey of Howard’s first Conan story, “The Phoenix on the Sword,” emphasizing its origins as a rewrite of an unpublished Kull story, “By This Axe I Rule!”.
A New Game for Costigan. The original typescript lists the author as “Patrick Ervin”, a pseudonym REH used in connection with his Dennis Dorgan stories. Otis Adelbert Kline and later agents retained the original typescript (titled “A New Game for Dorgan”), and it was eventually donated to Cross Plains Library. In OAK’s logs the title is originally “A New Game for Costigan”, then “Costigan” is struck out and “Dorgan” is written above it, along with “Patrick Ervin”.
Sailor Costigan and the Destiny Gorilla. Featuring Steve Costigan.
Alternate titles: SAILOR DORGAN AND THE DESTINY GORILLA and THE DESTINY GORILLA.
Featuring Dennis Dorgan but was originally a Costigan story. Since Howard also had ‘The Shadow of the Vulture’ in the same issue, they used the pseudonym, Patrick Ervin. Alternate title ‘Alleys of Singapore’. First published in Magic Carpet Magazine, January 1934. Howard wrote the story in May, 1933.
In the synopsis for “Sailor Costigan and the Turkish Menace,” Steve Costigan lands in the bustling city of Singapore and inadvertently gets entangled in a case of mistaken identity and crime. As Steve walks down a back street at night, he witnesses a robbery where a bulky man assaults another man and steals his briefcase. Steve chases the assailant but loses him in the maze of dark alleys.
“Night of Battle” the synopsis. See “Night of Battle”, the full story for more details.
“Daughters of Feud,” set in the mountain school of Whiskey Run, unravels amidst the backdrop of a long-standing feud between the Kirby and Pritchard families. Braxton Brent, a new and unexperienced schoolmaster, witnesses a fierce brawl between Joan Kirby and Ann Pritchard, leading to his intervention. The fight reveals the simmering hatred and complexities of mountain customs to Brent, challenging his ideals and forcing him into a position that tests his authority and adaptability to the harsh realities of Whiskey Run.
Guns of Khartum.
The 1st draft of Murderer’s Grog. One of Howard’s spicy stories was later published under the name Sam Walser. Featuring Wild Bill Clanton.
