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Collected Fiction
Henry Kuttner
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Jerry eBooks
Title Page
About Henry Kuttner
Pseudonyms
“Meet the Author” (March 1940)
“Meet the Author” (November 1940)
“Meet the Author” (March 1946)
“Meet the Author” (July 1946)
“PS’s Feature Flash” (November 1950)
Bibliography
Short Fiction Bibliography - Chronological
Short Fiction Bibliography - Alphabetical
Fiction Series
1936
BALLAD OF THE GODS
THE GRAVEYARD RATS
BALLAD OF THE WOLF
THE SECRET OF KRALITZ
IT WALKS BY NIGHT
1937
THE EATER OF SOULS
I, THE VAMPIRE
WE ARE THE DEAD
THE SALEM HORROR
RAGNAROK
THE BLACK KISS
RAIDER OF THE SPACEWAYS
THE JEST OF DROOM-AVISTA
H.P.L
WHEN THE EARTH LIVED
QUEST OF THE STARSTONE
THE CASE OF HERBERT THORP
THE BLOODLESS PERIL
1938
WORLD’S END
THE SHADOW ON THE SCREEN
HOLLYWOOD ON THE MOON
THUNDER IN THE DAWN (Part One)
THUNDER IN THE DAWN (Conclusion)
SPAWN OF DAGON
AVENGERS OF SPACE
THE DARK HERITAGE
DICTATORS OF AMERICA
DOOM WORLD
THE DISINHERITED
BEYOND THE PHOENIX
THE TIME TRAP
HANDS ACROSS THE VOID
THE STAR PARADE
1939
THE INVADERS
THE FROG
THE TRANSGRESSOR
CURSED BE THE CITY
BELLS OF HORROR
BEYOND ANNIHILATION
HYDRA
THE WATCHER AT THE DOOR
“TELEPATHY IS NEWS”
THE HUNT
THE CURSE OF THE CROCODILE
THE CITADEL OF DARKNESS
THE MISGUIDED HALO
ROMAN HOLIDAY
THE TRUTH ABOUT GOLDFISH
THE ENERGY EATERS
TOWERS OF DEATH
THE GRIP OF DEATH
SUICIDE SQUAD
WORLD’S PHARAOH
1940
THE LIFESTONE
WHEN NEW YORK VANISHED
THOTS ON THE WORLDSTATE
ALL IS ILLUSION
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
SCIENCE IS GOLDEN
THE SHINING MAN
50 MILES DOWN
THE SEVEN SLEEPERS
PEGASUS
DR. CYCLOPS
KNIGHT MUST FALL
IMPROBABILITY
THE MAD VIRUS
TIME TO KILL
THE ROOM OF SOULS
NO MAN’S WORLD
WORLD WITHOUT AIR
THE COMEDY OF ERAS
THE UNCANNY POWER OF EDWIN COBALT
THE ELIXIR OF INVISIBILITY
MAN ABOUT TIME
A MILLION YEARS TO CONQUER
REVERSE ATOM
THRESHOLD
1941
DRAGON MOON
BLOOD ON THE RIVER
THE GREEKS HAD A WORD FOR IT
REMEMBER TOMORROW
HERCULES MUSCLES IN
MEN DIE ALONE
THE LAND OF TIME TO COME
THUNDER JIM WADE
TUBE TO NOWHERE
THE DEVIL WE KNOW
TROPIC HELL
TREE OF LIFE
A GNOME THERE WAS
CHAMELEON MAN
RED GEM OF MERCURY
1942
DESIGN FOR DREAMING
THE BURNING CORPSE
LATER THAN YOU THINK
SILENT EDEN
THE INFINITE MOMENT
MASQUERADE
THE CRYSTAL CIRCE
DAMES IS POISON
FALSE DAWN
DEADLOCK
SECRET OF THE EARTH STAR
WAR-GODS OF THE VOID
THE TWONKY
COMPLIMENTS OF THE AUTHOR
THUNDER IN THE VOID
WE GUARD THE BLACK PLANET!
NIGHT OF GODS
PIGGY BANK
TOO MANY COOKS
1943
NOTHING BUT GINGERBREAD LEFT
TIME LOCKER
DE WOLFE OF WALL STREET
MIMSY WERE BOROGOVES
BLUE ICE
SOLDIERS OF SPACE
WET MAGIC
CLASH BY NIGHT
SHOCK
UNDER YOUR SPELL
BETTER THAN ONE
EARTH’S LAST CITADEL (First Installment of a Four-Part Serial)
OPEN SECRET
CORPUS DELICTI
NO GREATER LOVE
EARTH’S LAST CITADEL (Second Installment of a Four-Part Serial)
GHOST
READER, I HATE YOU!
EARTH’S LAST CITADEL (Third Installment of a Four-Part Serial)
GRIEF OF BAGDAD
THE WORLD IS MINE
EARTH’S LAST CITADEL (Final Installment of a Four-Part Serial)
PROBLEMS IN ETHICS
ENDOWMENT POLICY
THE PROUD ROBOT
CRYPT-CITY OF THE DEATHLESS ONE
GALLEGHER PLUS
MUSIC HATH CHARMS
THE IRON STANDARD
1944
TO DUST RETURNETH
A GOD NAMED KROO
TROPHY
SWING YOUR LADY
THE CHILDREN’S HOUR
THE BLACK SUN RISES
THE EYES OF THAR
HOUSING PROBLEM
WHEN THE BOUGH BREAKS
1945
DEATH WEARS A MASK
THE PIPER’S SON
BEFORE I WAKE . . .
BABY FACE
THREE BLIND MICE
THE CODE
THE LION AND THE UNICORN
PERCY THE PIRATE
CAMOUFLAGE
WHAT YOU NEED
LINE TO TOMORROW
SWORD OF TOMORROW
BEGGARS IN VELVET
1946
THIS IS THE HOUSE
THE FAIRY CHESSMAN (First of Two Parts)
THE FAIRY CHESSMAN (Conclusion)
WHAT HATH ME?
VALLEY OF THE FLAME
THE DARK ANGEL
WE KILL PEOPLE
THE CURE
THE DARK WORLD
RAIN CHECK
VINTAGE SEASON
ABSALOM
CALL HIM DEMON
THE LITTLE THINGS
I AM EDEN
TIME ENOUGH
1947
TOMORROW AND TOMORROW (First of Two Parts)
TROUBLE ON TITAN
JUKE-BOX
TOMORROW AND TOMORROW (Second of Two Parts)
PROJECT
WAY OF THE GODS
FURY (Part One of Three)
JESTING PILOT
LANDS OF THE EARTHQUAKE
THE BIG NIGHT
FURY (Second of three parts)
DREAM’S END
FURY (Conclusion)
ATOMIC?
DARK DAWN
LORD OF THE STORM
EXIT THE PROFESSOR
MARGIN FOR ERROR
THE POWER AND THE GLORY
1
948
DON’T LOOK NOW
EX MACHINA
PILE OF TROUBLE
THE MASK OF CIRCE
HAPPY ENDING
EXTRAPOLATION
1949
PRIVATE EYE
THE TIME AXIS
THE PRISONER IN THE SKULL
SEE YOU LATER
THE PORTAL IN THE PICTURE
COLD WAR
1950
PROMISED LAND
THE VOICE OF THE LOBSTER
EARTH’S LAST CITADEL (1950 abridged version)
AS YOU WERE
THE SKY IS FALLING
PARADISE STREET
CARRY ME HOME
THE ODYSSEY OF YIGGAR THROLG
GOLDEN APPLE
ANDROID
WE SHALL COME BACK
1952
THE WELL OF THE WORLDS
THE EGO MACHINE
1953
SATAN SENDS FLOWERS
A WILD SURMISE
THE VISITORS
HOME IS THE HUNTER
YEAR DAY
OR ELSE
HUMPTY DUMPTY
1954
WHERE THE WORLD IS QUIET
1955
TWO-HANDED ENGINE
HOME, THERE’S NO RETURNING
1956
RITE OF PASSAGE
1958
NEAR MISS
A CROSS OF CENTURIES
Henry Kuttner was born in Los Angeles, California on April 7, 1915, to Naphtaly Kuttner and Amelia.
Kuttner grew up in relative poverty following the death of his father. As a young man he worked for the literary agency of his uncle, Laurence D’Orsay, in Los Angeles before selling his first story, “The Graveyard Rats”, to Weird Tales in early 1936.
In 1940 Kuttner married fellow writer C.L. Moore, whom he met through the “Lovecraft Circle”, a group of writers and fans who corresponded with H.P. Lovecraft.
Kuttner was known for his literary prose and worked in close collaboration with his wife, C.L. Moore. They met through their association with the “Lovecraft Circle”, a group of writers and fans who corresponded with H. P. Lovecraft. Their work together spanned the 1940s and 1950s and most of the work was credited to pseudonyms, mainly Lewis Padgett and Lawrence O’Donnell. Both freely admitted that they collaborated in part because his page rate was higher than hers. In fact, several people have written or said that she wrote three stories which were published under his name.
L. Sprague de Camp, who knew Kuttner and Moore well, has stated that their collaboration was so seamless that, after a story was completed, it was often impossible for either Kuttner or Moore to recall who had written what. According to de Camp, it was typical for either partner to break off from a story in mid-paragraph or even mid-sentence, with the latest page of the manuscript still in the typewriter. The other spouse would routinely continue the story where the first had left off. They alternated in this manner as many times as necessary until the story was finished.
Among Kuttner’s most popular work were the Gallegher stories, published under the Padgett name, about a man who invented high-tech solutions to client problems (including an insufferably egomaniacal robot) when he was stinking drunk, only to be completely unable to remember exactly what he had built or why after sobering up. These stories were later collected in Robots Have No Tails. In her introduction to the 1973 Lancer Books edition, Moore stated that Kuttner wrote all the Gallegher stories himself.
In 1950 he began studying at the University of Southern California, graduating in 1954. He was working towards his master’s degree but died of a heart attack on February 3, 1958 in Los Angeles, California, before it was completed.
PSEUDONYMS
Edward J. Bellin
Paul Edmonds
Noel Gardner
Will Garth
James Hall
Keith Hammond
Hudson Hastings
Peter Horn
Kelvin Kent
Robert O. Kenyon
H. Kuttner
Henry Kuttner, Jr.
C.H. Liddell
Scott Morgan
Lawrence O’Donnell
Lewis Padgett
Woodrow Wilson Smith
Charles Stoddard
Bertram W. Williams
MEET THE AUTHOR
Autobiographical Note
By HENRY KUTTNER
Author of “When New York Vanished”
SOMEHOW the life of a writer is seldom as interesting or adventurous as the stories he writes. I know that’s true with me, even though I’ve spent most of my life in California, where practically anything can happen. I was born in Los Angeles, to my intense satisfaction, and as a moppet spent most of my time sleeping under the counter of my father’s bookshop. I absorbed sunshine and orange juice in vast quantities. Then I moved to San Francisco and absorbed fog, which I have loved ever since.
I attended the toughest school in Frisco, near Hayes Valley, and acquired several medals for various useless things, as well as a great many black eyes. Returning southward, I finished high-school and decided to join the Navy. I was persuaded not to do so. Instead, I went to work.
I’ve worked in a hardware store, on a cement gang (which has nothing to do with a chain gang), in a book-shop and in a literary agency. At present I’m a free-lance writer, and have given up the sunshine of California for the so-called climate of New York.
Habits? I dislike neckties and prefer scarfs. I like big, roomy shoes. I’m a chain smoker when I’m writing, and once I’ve started a yarn I seldom halt till it’s finished. Other stimulants slow down my work, though black coffee is helpful sometimes. I am passionately fond of peanut-butter and bacon sandwiches. And I like overstuffed chairs.
I dislike driving, but nevertheless go on long, arduous jaunts in my jaloppy. I seldom am able to sleep until I’ve read at least one book a night.
Writing “When New York Vanished” was a lot of fun, and I hope it will give the readers of Startling Stories a few pleasurable moments!
Originally appeared in Startling Stories, March 1940
MEET THE AUTHOR
Time-Traveling
By HENRY KUTTNER
Author of “A Million Years to Conquer” and Many Other Scientifiction Novels and Stories
TIME-TRAVELING stories have always interested me, since the days of Eando Binder’s “Dawn to Dusk” and Francis Flagg’s “Machine Men of Ardathia.” Wonder how many readers can remember those tales, published in the not-so-very-long-ago when science-fiction was still new?
I can, very well. I read my first s-f magazine on a ferry crossing San Francisco Bay—and still recall the wallop I got out of it. The ferries aren’t running any longer. The Bay Bridges have supplanted them. Similarly, science-fiction has changed in fifteen years, and, for my money, I’d say that it has improved. At first it depended chiefly on a single fantastic idea, to which characterization, atmosphere, and suspense were too often sacrificed.
Editors have become more hard-boiled in the last few years. They’re apt to tell a writer, “This might have gone over in the Twenties, but readers expect something more nowadays—a complete, well-rounded story.” That’s true, and I think it’s all to the good.
In my opinion, Wells’ “Time Machine” remains the best time-traveling yarn ever written. Nevertheless, I’ve written stories on this theme in the past, and shall in the future. “A Million Years to Conquer” is such a tale. In it I tried to do several things.
First, to contrast the science of the future with the color and glamor of the past—to mingle inextricably cold science and naturally-developed milieux, just as they are mingled in real life. It seemed to me that a story set entirely in the future is two-dimensional and somewhat pallid unless it has its roots in the past. It is difficult to create a new world and make it convincing if the reader has the feeling that the place was made out of nothing by the author. Cities and civilizations must grow, and people must build them,
live in them, and die in them. If we were set down in a metropolis of a thousand years to come, we would certainly have the feeling of a background of centuries—a tradition.
Secondly, I wanted to contrast two men of varying types, both with giant intellects, but one—Ardath—with a tradition and a civilization behind him, the other Terrestrial in origin, but lacking in humanity because he developed abnormally through mutation. And that, perhaps, is the theme of “A Million Years to Conquer.” The roots of the future are in the past. We are too apt to forget that. Though we may look forward, we should remember to look behind us as well, for we can learn much by the pattern of history. So my thesis, I think, is that growth, to be most effective, must be normal. If this be true, not even the gap of light-years in space and a million years in time need cause alienage. Ardath, the being from—Outside—was to me as warmly human as any Earthman.
I guess that’s all. This is supposed to be an autobiographical note, but I’ve given my life history more than once in these pages, so I shall refrain from going into detail again. I might mention briefly that my favorite hobby is beating dogs and small children, that I type with my toes, and that whenever I reread my stories in print I get sick. Nevertheless, I hope readers will enjoy “A Million Years to Conquer.”
Originally appeared in Startling Stories, November 1940
Meet the Author
WITH characteristic modesty, author Keith Hammond, whose brilliant novel, VALLEY OF THE FLAME, takes up the bulk of this issue, attempts to state that there is little which is novel in the yarn. We, the editors, do not agree nor, we hope sincerely, will any of you readers.
While there is no such thing as a new idea, novelty should be ever present in development and presentation of any story to enable it to avoid the damnation of staleness or triteness. Certainly, VALLEY OF THE FLAME contains enough original thought and style to make it a standout in scientification. For fantastic concept and logical explanation—the bases of all good tales, Hammond’s story is tops.
I always feel that a writer’s story should be more interesting than his life. However—here’s the dope. I’m Eurasian; born in Soerabaya; American citizen now; San Francisco is my headquarters; I’m an antiquarian. Write as a hobby. I own sixteen cats, or, rather, they own me. I’m five feet ten inches, weigh a hundred and sixty odd, dark hair, and a silver plate in my skull under it, relic of some work I did in the Near East about five years ago.
When E. Hoffman Price and I get together we either play bridge or go duck hunting in the tulle marshes toward Sacramento. Or else we talk writing. As I said, I write as a hobby, and prefer fantasy to any other type. My favorite authors are Ed Hamilton, Murray Leinster, and Henry Kuttner. And that’s enough about Keith Hammond, I think.