Flying Aces (magazine)
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''Flying Aces'' was a monthly American periodical of short stories about
aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
, one of a number of so-called "flying pulp" magazines popular during the 1920s and 1930s. Like other
pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the Pulp (paper), wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their ...
s, it was a collection of adventure stories, originally printed on coarse, pulpy paper but later moved to a slick format. The magazine was launched in October 1928 by Periodical House, Inc. It featured stories written and illustrated by known authors of the day, often set against the background of World War I. Later issues added non-fiction aviation articles, as well as articles and plans for model airplanes. The latter became more prominent, and eventually the magazine was renamed '' Flying Models'', and catered exclusively to aeromodeling hobbyists.


Historical context

The period from the late 1920s through the 1930s is considered the heyday of pulp fiction, and pulps were at the peak of their popularity. Over 200 magazines were published monthly, reaching an audience of 10 million readers,Weil. p. 8 with the most successful titles selling up to a million copies per issue. Pulp fiction publishers employed unprecedented levels of
market segmentation In marketing, market segmentation or customer segmentation is the process of dividing a consumer or business market into meaningful sub-groups of current or potential customers (or consumers) known as ''segments''. Its purpose is to identify pr ...
for their titles, exploring every popular category, including love stories, western stories, detective stories, and mystery stories. Publications were highly specialized, with each category having its own set of magazines, readers, and reader expectations. This period also coincided with the golden days of aviation, highlighted by feats such as Lindbergh's solo flight across the
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
and the first extensive use of airplanes in combat in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. Pulp publishers sought to capitalize on public interest in flying, which was influenced by stories of World War I flying aces, particularly
Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker (born Edward Rickenbacher, October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...
'' and
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...
' 1930 production of '' Hell's Angels'', an epic, mega-budget movie featuring more than 100 pilots and dozens of planes, glorifying World War I American air aces. The movie led to numerous similar films, and a plethora of aviation-oriented pulp magazines followed.Schreiner, p.91


Content

The magazine’s
genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...
was air adventure stories, some set against a war background, written by well-known authors such as
Lester Dent Lester Dent (October 12, 1904 – March 11, 1959) was an American pulp-fiction writer, best known as the creator and main writer of the series of novels about the scientist and adventurer Doc Savage. The 159 Doc Savage novels that Dent wrote ove ...
, Donald E. Keyhoe, Joe Archibald, and Arch Whitehouse. With the exception of Keyhoe and Whitehouse, who was with the RAF in World War I, the authors had no personal knowledge of flying. The cover art featured dramatic air battle scenes painted by notable commercial artists of the day, such as
Alex Schomburg Alexander A. Schomburg, born Alejandro Schomburg y Rosa (; May 10, 1905Alejandro Schomburg Y Rosa
.


Kerry Keene/The Griffon

44 Griffon stories were published between 1935 and 1942. Altus Press reprinted some of them in 2010.


Publication history

The magazine was launched in October 1928 by Periodical House, Inc. It was initially published in a 7x10” format, with more than 100 pages per issue, and sold for 15 cents per copy. In November 1933, the magazine moved to the so-called "slick" format — an 8½x10" format printed on glossy paperSchreiner, p. 130 and began featuring full-sized plans for model airplanes in every issue. Issue size was reduced to 74 pages. The magazine was published on a monthly basis. In addition to adventure stories, non-fiction aviation articles and aviation news were added, as were modeling articles. The magazine’s tagline became "Fiction, Model Building, Fact — Three Aviation Magazines in One."


Impact and historical significance

Many American pilots who took part in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
grew up during the 1930s enthusiastically reading flying pulps such as ''Flying Aces'', and were captivated by the adventure stories, an experience that no doubt played a part in their decision to become military aviators themselves. Joseph W. Rutter, a pilot in the
Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
in 1944, recalls this vividly in his book ''Wreaking Havoc: A Year in an A-20'', as does ''First Blue'', the biography of Roy Marlin Voris, World War II ace and two-time commander of the
Blue Angels The Blue Angels, formally named the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, are a Aerobatics, flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.. Blue Angels official site. Formed in 1946, the unit is the second oldest formal aerobatics ...
. Many have noted the uncannily accurate way that stories in ''Flying Aces'' predicted the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
as well as the locations of other air battles of the
Pacific Theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
.


Fan club

In addition to the magazine, the publishers created a fan club for readers. Members were organized into regional "squadrons," and were offered flying-themed stationery, stickers, and even uniforms mimicking those in use by the United States Army Air Forces. The club arranged meetings between readers and notable military and commercial pilots, both American and foreign. Some of the "squadrons" originated by the magazine have lived on, as clubs for modeling enthusiasts. The Flying Aces Club, a model airplane club dedicated to free-flight models, takes its name from the magazine and its old clubs. A Flying Aces Club squadron in
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
has named its airstrip 'Pinkham Field' in honor of the fictional Phineas Pinkham.Carr, p. 173


References


Bibliography

*''Aviation's Great Recruiter'', Herm L. Schreiner, Kent State University Press, 2005 *''Harlan Ellison: The Edge of Forever'', Ellen Weil, Gary K. Wolfe, Ohio State University Press, 2001 *''Science-Fiction: The Gernsback Years : A Complete Coverage of the Genre Magazines ... From 1926 Through 1936'', Everett Franklin Bleiler, Richard Bleiler, Kent State University Press, 1998 *''Sports in the Pulp Magazines'', John A. Dinan, McFarland, 1998 *''Yesterday's Faces: Glory figures'', Robert Sampson, Popular Press, 1983 *''American Aviation Historical Society journal'', v14-15, 1969, American Aviation Historical Society *''Wreaking Havoc: A Year in an A-20'', Joseph W. Rutter, Texas A&M University Press, 2003 *''Reflections of Pearl Harbor'', K. D. Richardson, Praeger Publishers, 2005


External links


''Flying Aces''
at
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flying Aces (Magazine) Fiction about aerial warfare Defunct aviation magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1928 Magazines disestablished in 1945 Pulp magazines Pulp series pop Monthly magazines published in the United States