Not only does 2018 mark the centennial of the armistice that ended The First World War, it is also the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Grand Master of Science Fiction Philip José Farmer. Beginning on Thursday evening, July 26, and running through Sunday, July 29, PulpFest 2018 and its partner, FarmerCon 100, will honor both the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I AND the century mark of Philip José Farmer. We’ll be celebrating at the beautiful DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Pittsburgh – Cranberry, just outside Pennsylvania’s Steel City.
Few people think of Philip José Farmer as a pulp writer, but he was a child of the pulps and launched his career in the pulps. Born January 26, 1918 in North Terre Haute, Indiana, Farmer grew up in Peoria, Illinois. He spent much of his childhood reading everything he could find from the classics through the pulps.
Farmer’s interest in the rough-paper magazines of his youth would lead him to pen two biographies about pulp characters — TARZAN ALIVE: A DEFINITIVE BIOGRAPHY OF LORD GREYSTOKE and DOC SAVAGE: HIS APOCALYPTIC LIFE during his career. He would also author official Doc Savage and Tarzan novels: ESCAPE FROM LOKI, and THE DARK HEART OF TIME. Interestingly enough, both stories were set in the year of their author’s birth — 1918.
ESCAPE FROM LOKI concerns a sixteen-year-old Clark Savage as a prisoner-of-war during the First World War. Sent to the escape-proof German prison camp of Loki, the young Savage meets the five men who would later join him in his global fight against evil in the years following the war.
Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan is the protagonist of THE DARK HEART OF TIME. Set in the fall of 1918, the story has Tarzan searching for his beloved Jane. It is set between Burroughs’ TARZAN THE UNTAMED and TARZAN THE TERRIBLE. With trackers harassing him — sent by an American billionaire who believes the jungle lord holds the secret of immortality — the ape man’s trail leads to the City of God and the Crystal Tree of Time.
Join us on Saturday, July 28, at 9:10 PM as Paul Spiteri moderates a discussion with Christopher Paul Carey and Win Scott Eckert about “The Dark Heart of Loki: Philip José Farmer Visits 1918.” Carey will discuss the hidden secrets of ESCAPE FROM LOKI and THE DARK HEART OF TIME. He will also have on hand his forthcoming book, THE GRANDEST ADVENTURE: WRITINGS ON PHILIP JOSÉ FARMER, featuring several essays on ESCAPE FROM LOKI. Eckert’s focus will be his introduction to the new Meteor House edition of TARZAN AND THE DARK HEART OF TIME. The new volume will be released at PulpFest 2018/FarmerCon 100.
Enjoy this great panel and a ten-dollar discount off the daily admission to Confluence. It’s taking place the same weekend as summer’s AMAZING pulp con! All you have to do is show your PulpFest badge at the door to Pittsburgh’s long-running science fiction, fantasy and horror conference.
What better way to celebrate the 100th birthday of Philip José Farmer than by registering for Pulpfest 2018/FarmerCon 100? The Science Fiction Grand Master will be one of the main themes of the conventions, with plenty of programming about Farmer and his work. Also planned is a rare gallery showing of original art by acclaimed writer-illustrator Mark Wheatley, plus the conventions’ Guest of Honor — Joe Lansdale — the author of over forty novels, numerous short stories, and the introduction to THE BEST OF PHILIP JOSÉ FARMER. You can join both conventions by clicking the Register for 2018 button on the PulpFest home page. And don’t forget to book a room at the DoubleTree while you’re visiting the PulpFest site. They’re going fast!
(Stay tuned to pulpcon.org. On Friday, May 25, we’ll tell you about the very special plans of Mark Wheatley — cover artist for the Meteor House edition of TARZAN AND THE DARK HEART OF TIME. Authored by Hugo Award winner, Nebula Grand Master, and author of the incredible Riverworld saga, Philip José Farmer, Meteor House will be premiering the new edition of TARZAN AND THE DARK HEART OF TIME and THE PHILIP JOSÉ FARMER CENTENNIAL COLLECTION at this year’s convention. We hope to see you in Mars!)
