AE35Unit
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I just mooched a copy of this book,hope to receive it soon,but the interesting thing I just found is according to Fantastic Fiction the first third of this novel formed the basis of the original movie Alien! Anyone confirm this?
AE van Vogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
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Ian Whates
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
My understanding is that this was never proven -- although it was certainly claimed at the time of the movie's release and the makers of the film settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. Certainly there are major similarities between one section of the book and the idea of Alien, no question.
There are those, including a few highly regarded SF figures such as Damon Knight, who have always insisted that van Vogt can't write. Personally, I'm a big fan: fabulous ideas and hectic pacing. Always fun to read and Space Beagle is a good one.
Incidentally, as well as the connection to Alien, this is also strongly rumoured to have been a major inspiration for the original Star Trek.
Not bad for one book!
My understanding is that this was never proven -- although it was certainly claimed at the time of the movie's release and the makers of the film settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. Certainly there are major similarities between one section of the book and the idea of Alien, no question.
There are those, including a few highly regarded SF figures such as Damon Knight, who have always insisted that van Vogt can't write. Personally, I'm a big fan: fabulous ideas and hectic pacing. Always fun to read and Space Beagle is a good one.
Incidentally, as well as the connection to Alien, this is also strongly rumoured to have been a major inspiration for the original Star Trek.
Not bad for one book!
AE35Unit
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
I've not read much von Vogt but what I have read I've enjoyed! The book The Far Out Worlds of... is a great book!
I've not read much von Vogt but what I have read I've enjoyed! The book The Far Out Worlds of... is a great book!
AE35Unit
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Yes i do believe that one's on my wishlist. I also have Slan to read sometime.
Try also The World Of Null-A...
Yes i do believe that one's on my wishlist. I also have Slan to read sometime.
clovis-man
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
There is certainly a very strong parallel between the story of Ixtl in the Space Beagle and the Dan O'Bannon scenario for Alien. I had heard that there was a settlement made to obviate the need for copyright litigation and I can certainly see why.
But all that aside, it's a great read and the other stories contained in it are worthwhile as well.
There is certainly a very strong parallel between the story of Ixtl in the Space Beagle and the Dan O'Bannon scenario for Alien. I had heard that there was a settlement made to obviate the need for copyright litigation and I can certainly see why.
But all that aside, it's a great read and the other stories contained in it are worthwhile as well.
Ian Whates
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Yes, defintely the Null-A books: his best ever, I reckon, and it's also worth checking out the two Empire of Isher books, The Weapon Shops of Isher and The Weaponmakers.
Not to mention the Empire of the Atom duology, Rull, Silkie, Ptath, Diamondia and a dozen or more others... sigh... heady days, heady days.
It's worth adding that in "Far Centaurus" and "Film Library" van Vogt also produced a couple of the genre's all-time great short stories.
The former was the first SF story in which mankind set out to colonise the stars in generation starships only to arrive and discover that technology had overtaken them and humans had leapt past and colonised the target worlds while they were still in transit. An idea which has, of course, been revisited many times since.
Yes, defintely the Null-A books: his best ever, I reckon, and it's also worth checking out the two Empire of Isher books, The Weapon Shops of Isher and The Weaponmakers.
Not to mention the Empire of the Atom duology, Rull, Silkie, Ptath, Diamondia and a dozen or more others... sigh... heady days, heady days.
It's worth adding that in "Far Centaurus" and "Film Library" van Vogt also produced a couple of the genre's all-time great short stories.
The former was the first SF story in which mankind set out to colonise the stars in generation starships only to arrive and discover that technology had overtaken them and humans had leapt past and colonised the target worlds while they were still in transit. An idea which has, of course, been revisited many times since.
AE35Unit
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AE35Unit
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Thanks for those recommendations Ian. I need some more proper SF like this!
it's also worth checking out the two Empire of Isher books, The Weapon Shops of Isher and The Weaponmakers.
Not to mention the Empire of the Atom duology, Rull, Silkie, Ptath, Diamondia and a dozen or more others... sigh... heady days, heady days.
It's worth adding that in "Far Centaurus" and "Film Library" van Vogt also produced a couple of the genre's all-time great short stories..
Thanks for those recommendations Ian. I need some more proper SF like this!
J-Sun
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
It's a fixup comprised of
1939-07 Astounding Black Destroyer (his first published SF story that made him an instant star)
1939-12 Astounding Discord in Scarlet (the Alien bit)
1943-08 Astounding M-33 in Andromeda
1950-05 Other Worlds War of Nerves
These were all, IIRC, completely unrelated stories that were rewritten to form major segments of the "novel". Great stuff, if not the most seamless plotting with the deepest characterization, naturally.
I personally think the Alien issue is a bit of stretch. I can see why they settled out of court, because there are similarities, but I think it would have been a tough case for both sides to argue.
It's a fixup comprised of
1939-07 Astounding Black Destroyer (his first published SF story that made him an instant star)
1939-12 Astounding Discord in Scarlet (the Alien bit)
1943-08 Astounding M-33 in Andromeda
1950-05 Other Worlds War of Nerves
These were all, IIRC, completely unrelated stories that were rewritten to form major segments of the "novel". Great stuff, if not the most seamless plotting with the deepest characterization, naturally.
I personally think the Alien issue is a bit of stretch. I can see why they settled out of court, because there are similarities, but I think it would have been a tough case for both sides to argue.
J-Sun
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Oh crap - I forgot to reply to this: in addition to the other great stuff mentioned also at least get Mission to the Stars, aka The Mixed Men.
Of his collections, I have Masters of Time (but had to get the two stories separately in tiny volumes of Masters of Time (1967 Macfadden) and The Changeling (1967 Manor)) and Away and Beyond, Destination: Universe, Monsters (containing "War of Nerves"), The Worlds of A.E. van Vogt, and M 33 in Andromeda (containing "Discord in Scarlet" and "M 33 in Andromeda"). To get "Black Destroyer", I think you need something like Isaac Asimov Presents the Great SF Stories 1 (which is where I have it) because I don't think it was ever collected separately in a van Vogt book. Anyway - so those and maybe some others are actual collections, vs. fixups and novels and are also recommended.
Oh crap - I forgot to reply to this: in addition to the other great stuff mentioned also at least get Mission to the Stars, aka The Mixed Men.
Of his collections, I have Masters of Time (but had to get the two stories separately in tiny volumes of Masters of Time (1967 Macfadden) and The Changeling (1967 Manor)) and Away and Beyond, Destination: Universe, Monsters (containing "War of Nerves"), The Worlds of A.E. van Vogt, and M 33 in Andromeda (containing "Discord in Scarlet" and "M 33 in Andromeda"). To get "Black Destroyer", I think you need something like Isaac Asimov Presents the Great SF Stories 1 (which is where I have it) because I don't think it was ever collected separately in a van Vogt book. Anyway - so those and maybe some others are actual collections, vs. fixups and novels and are also recommended.
AE35Unit
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Thank you for the recs JSun!
Thank you for the recs JSun!
dask
dark and stormy knight
Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
In 1981 Southern Illinois University Press published "A Facsimile of the July 1939 issue" in hardback with ads, illustrations, everything, even the original cover on the dust jacket. That's where I read "Black Destroyer" and remember thinking at the time that it didn't resemble Alien at all having read about Van Vogt's legal complaint. It's a great book to have and still around; I saw a copy in a used book store earlier today. It also appears in the monumental ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE edited by Raymond J. Healy and J. Francis McComas.
In 1981 Southern Illinois University Press published "A Facsimile of the July 1939 issue" in hardback with ads, illustrations, everything, even the original cover on the dust jacket. That's where I read "Black Destroyer" and remember thinking at the time that it didn't resemble Alien at all having read about Van Vogt's legal complaint. It's a great book to have and still around; I saw a copy in a used book store earlier today. It also appears in the monumental ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE edited by Raymond J. Healy and J. Francis McComas.
clovis-man
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
It was the "Discord in Scarlet" tale that was the basis of the Alien flap. See this web site if you're not worried about spoilers:
A. E. Van Vogt's Ixtl
"The Black Destroyer" was the story about another critter, Coeurl. Van Vogt liked to name his bug eyed monsters.
It was the "Discord in Scarlet" tale that was the basis of the Alien flap. See this web site if you're not worried about spoilers:
A. E. Van Vogt's Ixtl
"The Black Destroyer" was the story about another critter, Coeurl. Van Vogt liked to name his bug eyed monsters.
J-Sun
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Welcome!
That would be cool to have.
Good catch - I have that one, too, but forgot it was in there. He has three stories in there, with "Asylum" and "The Weapons Shop", tied for the most along with Lewis Padgett (C.L. Moore and Henry Kuttner) and Heinlein (and Heinlein's name only appears twice, since "By His Bootstraps" is as by Anson MacDonald).
Welcome!
That would be cool to have.
Good catch - I have that one, too, but forgot it was in there. He has three stories in there, with "Asylum" and "The Weapons Shop", tied for the most along with Lewis Padgett (C.L. Moore and Henry Kuttner) and Heinlein (and Heinlein's name only appears twice, since "By His Bootstraps" is as by Anson MacDonald).
AE35Unit
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Thats interesting because M33 in Andromeda is noted as a novel in itself. Looks like he expanded various stories into their own novels!
Thats interesting because M33 in Andromeda is noted as a novel in itself. Looks like he expanded various stories into their own novels!
Ian Whates
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Re: AEvonVogt's Voyage of the Space Beagle
Van Vogt was famous for doing 'fix-ups', for taking several of his own short stories, usually thematically linked or featuring common characters, and combining them with a little rewriting here and there, to create a novel.
Space Beagle is one example of that and there are plenty of others. When I first started reading SF I loved his stuff -- he was one of the most entertaining and exciting writers of all -- and devoured as much as I could get hold of, reading nearly 40 of his books in all.
Yes, some of these were fix-ups, but so what? They were still inventive, exciting, and great reads
Van Vogt was famous for doing 'fix-ups', for taking several of his own short stories, usually thematically linked or featuring common characters, and combining them with a little rewriting here and there, to create a novel.
Space Beagle is one example of that and there are plenty of others. When I first started reading SF I loved his stuff -- he was one of the most entertaining and exciting writers of all -- and devoured as much as I could get hold of, reading nearly 40 of his books in all.
Yes, some of these were fix-ups, but so what? They were still inventive, exciting, and great reads
clovis-man
Prehistoric Irish Cynic
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