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Colossus (collection)
Encyclopedia
Colossus: The Collected Science Fiction of Donald Wandrei is a collection of science fiction
stories by author Donald Wandrei
. It was released in 1989 by Fedogan & Bremer
in an edition of 1,000 copies.Many of the stories originally appeared in the magazines Weird Tales
, Astounding Stories, The Minnesota Quarterly, Thrilling Wonder Stories and Leaves.
as early as 1965. However, it remained unpublished into the 1980s. Phil Rahman and Dr. Dennis Weiler approached the Wandrei estate with the hopes of publishing the collection. While no manuscript nor proposed contents could be found, Rahman and Weiler went forward and published a collection using the same title as the unpublished Arkham House collection. It was the first book published by Fedogan & Bremer
.
In 1999, in honor of their 10th anniversary, Fedogan & Bremer issued a second edition of the book (ISBN 1-878252-45-3). The second edition contained an updated introduction, replaced the note by Philip J. Rahman with a newly discovered preface that Wandrei had done for an unpublished collection, and added two stories in place of the bibliography. A gallery of photographs was also added.
containing the ending of the story as Wandrei originally wrote it. The chapbook also included an introduction by D. H. Olson and was published in an edition of 75 copies. The book was given to those who pre-ordered the 1999 edition of Colossus.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
stories by author Donald Wandrei
Donald Wandrei
Donald Albert Wandrei was an American science fiction, fantasy and weird fiction writer, poet and editor. He wrote as Donald Wandrei. He was the older brother of science fiction writer and artist Howard Wandrei...
. It was released in 1989 by Fedogan & Bremer
Fedogan & Bremer
Fedogan & Bremer is a weird fiction specialty publishing house founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1985 by Philip Rahman and Dennis Weiler. The name comes from the nicknames of the two founders when they were in college....
in an edition of 1,000 copies.Many of the stories originally appeared in the magazines Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
, Astounding Stories, The Minnesota Quarterly, Thrilling Wonder Stories and Leaves.
1989 edition
- Editors’ Note, by Philip J. Rahman
- Introduction, by Richard L. TierneyRichard L. TierneyRichard L. Tierney is an American writer, poet and scholar of H. P. Lovecraft. He is the coauthor of a series of Red Sonja novels, featuring cover art by Boris Vallejo. Some of his standalone novels utilize the mythology of Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos.-Youth:Tierney was born in Spencer, Iowa...
- "The Red Brain"
- "The Holiday Act"
- "Something from Above"
- "Raiders of the Universes"
- "A Race Through Time"
- "Farewell to Earth"
- "Colossus"
- "Colossus Eternal"
- "The Atom-Smasher"
- "The Blinding Shadows"
- "Life Current"
- "The Whisperers"
- "Murray’s Light"
- "Earth Minus"
- "Finality Unlimited"
- "Infinity Zero"
- "Black Fog"
- "The Crystal Bullet"
- "On the Threshold of Eternity"
- "A Trip to Infinity"
- "Requiem for Mankind"
- Selected Bibliography, by D. H. Olson
Publication history
Colossus was originally announced as a forthcoming publication by Arkham HouseArkham House
Arkham House is a publishing house specializing in weird fiction founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to preserve in hardcover the best fiction of H.P. Lovecraft. The company's name is derived from Lovecraft's fictional New England city, Arkham. Arkham House...
as early as 1965. However, it remained unpublished into the 1980s. Phil Rahman and Dr. Dennis Weiler approached the Wandrei estate with the hopes of publishing the collection. While no manuscript nor proposed contents could be found, Rahman and Weiler went forward and published a collection using the same title as the unpublished Arkham House collection. It was the first book published by Fedogan & Bremer
Fedogan & Bremer
Fedogan & Bremer is a weird fiction specialty publishing house founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1985 by Philip Rahman and Dennis Weiler. The name comes from the nicknames of the two founders when they were in college....
.
In 1999, in honor of their 10th anniversary, Fedogan & Bremer issued a second edition of the book (ISBN 1-878252-45-3). The second edition contained an updated introduction, replaced the note by Philip J. Rahman with a newly discovered preface that Wandrei had done for an unpublished collection, and added two stories in place of the bibliography. A gallery of photographs was also added.
Farewell to Earth—The Original Ending
The editor of Astounding Stories did not like the ending for the story "Farewell to Earth" that Donald Wandrei had originally written and Wandrei was forced to change it. Fedogan and Bremer published a chapbookChapbook
A chapbook is a pocket-sized booklet. The term chap-book was formalized by bibliophiles of the 19th century, as a variety of ephemera , popular or folk literature. It includes many kinds of printed material such as pamphlets, political and religious tracts, nursery rhymes, poetry, folk tales,...
containing the ending of the story as Wandrei originally wrote it. The chapbook also included an introduction by D. H. Olson and was published in an edition of 75 copies. The book was given to those who pre-ordered the 1999 edition of Colossus.