tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post1554097817545996638..comments2023-10-29T06:41:23.910-07:00Comments on Halfway There: Solved: The Barsoomian spaceship mystery!Zenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09058127284297728552noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-75476924106239803822012-04-16T21:15:41.263-07:002012-04-16T21:15:41.263-07:00I first read the Barsoom novels that were publishe...I first read the Barsoom novels that were published in paperback by Ace Books in the 1960s. It wasn't the entire series. Just the ones that were no longer under copyright. The Burroughs estate soon made arrangements with Ballantine for "authorized" editions. (A similar thing occurred with <i>Lord of the Rings</i>, too, which Ace published in non-copyright editions.) The Ace paperbacks of the Mars books featured effective cover art by Roy G. Krenkel, Jr.Zenohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09058127284297728552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-75075268551756878582012-04-16T21:01:55.582-07:002012-04-16T21:01:55.582-07:00I was amused when I figured out what all that &quo...I was amused when I figured out what all that "sixth ray", the ray of flight or whatever, was. The first ray had to be alpha rays which are just Helium nuclei. Burroughs was just being up to date. If the first ray could float lighter than air craft, surely the sixth ray could do it better and even do more.<br /><br />P.S. I read the books with the Frazetta covers. The men portrayed were as ridiculous anatomically as the women, but, hey, they're Martians,Kaleberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05283840743310507878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-61400418838867810892012-04-11T18:32:14.544-07:002012-04-11T18:32:14.544-07:00Goodness, Zeno, you have the oddest obsessions! B...Goodness, Zeno, you have the oddest obsessions! Being female, I long ago decided to ignore the covers on SF/Fantasy novels, since they often picture ridiculously proportioned women in equally ridiculous clothes. There may not be a shred of inappropriate flesh shown in the story itself, but the cover more than makes up for that.Karenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03079852628674185384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-58435106009542779322012-04-11T08:36:34.617-07:002012-04-11T08:36:34.617-07:00Must be something in Pasadena's water that nev...Must be something in Pasadena's water that never leaves the body. Sure am glad I went to college someplace sane ;-)Kathienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-85683221051561453922012-04-10T14:47:46.746-07:002012-04-10T14:47:46.746-07:00I remind my gentle readers that your host is a gen...I remind my gentle readers that your host is a gen-you-wine Caltech graduate and thus qualified to hold forth on topics nerdical.Zenohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09058127284297728552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-11664743538188763912012-04-10T10:02:59.840-07:002012-04-10T10:02:59.840-07:00Did I just wander onto the "Big Bang Theory&q...Did I just wander onto the "Big Bang Theory" set?Kathienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-21617277855219507952012-04-08T18:29:42.186-07:002012-04-08T18:29:42.186-07:00I suppose it's possible that someone said, &qu...I suppose it's <i>possible</i> that someone said, "Hey, Bob! Give us a cool spaceship!" But I guess that person got fired before Abbett got his marching orders on later installments of the Barsoom series, because #2 is the only one with a spacecraft on the cover—as I believe I pointed out.Zenohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09058127284297728552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15868947.post-18156442206218809972012-04-08T07:50:09.685-07:002012-04-08T07:50:09.685-07:00Interesting, and nice to know that your 50-year ol...Interesting, and nice to know that your 50-year old question has been solved. But how? Where did you learn that Abbett made a mistake in his cover art? As opposed to, perhaps he was instructed to go the spaceship route, because that's what was selling when the series was released.Gene O'Pedianoreply@blogger.com