Is Doc Savage in WHO GOES THERE?
Dr Hermes
In 1937, John W Campbell Jr wrote the short novel WHO GOES THERE?,
which was published in ASTOUNDING Magazine (a Street & Smith
publication, the same folks who brought us Doc Savage). Even those who
have never read this science-fiction classic have probably seen the
movies based on it, THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD and John Carpenter's
THE THING.
In Win Eckert's chronology of Doc on the Wold Newton site, our
hero is credited as being undercover as McReady in this story. I vaguely
recall this idea originated with Philip Jose Farmer but I can find no
reference to it. It may certainly be Eckert's original idea, and he
deserves credit for it.
By some strange coincidence, it just so happens that there is
a copy of WHO GOES THERE? at hand even as we speak, so let's investigate
the evidence.
First, I want to avoid any spoilers. Even if you've seen the
movies, this book is a minor masterpiece of suspense and tension. In
fact, WHO GOES THERE? gave me the creeps just now re-reading it. It
would be a shame to ruin it by discussing how things turn out. However,
it's safe to say "McReady" does nothing that Doc in disguise wouldn't
do. In fact, he is resourceful, brave and heroic enough to satisfy any
fan of the Man of Bronze.
"McReady was a figure from some forgotten myth, a looming bronze
statue that held life and walked. Six feet four inches he stood...he was
bronze- his great red-bronze beard, the heavy hair that matched
it...Even the deep-sunken eyes beneath heavy brows were bronzed."
(That bit about the bronzed eyes is suggestive)
Throughout the story, McReady is described as a 'bronze giant'
and a 'man of bronze', bigger and more powerful than anyone else at the
Antarctic station. He is the staff meteorologist, but someone asks him
"you were on your way to an M.D. when you took up meterology, weren't
you?"
There is one reference that makes it seems unlikely that this huge,
bronzed former medical student is our own Clark Savage Jr. and it's not
in the dialogue (where you could take the view Doc is falsifying a bit
as part of his disguise). Looking through the dispensary, we're told
"McReady had graduated twelve years ago, started for an internship, and
been diverted to meterology... More than half the drugs available were
totally unfamiliar to McReady." Now if you were determined to argue
around this, it's possible to propose that this reference is to the
guise "McReady" that Doc is playing. That point is a bit forced, but it
could be accepted.
Certainly, it would be satisfying to have Doc fighting this
terrifying alien invader. In his own series, the bronze man never
encountered a genuine extra-terrestrial and the way he manhandles the
Thing here shows our world would be in good hands. Like having Johnny
head the expedition in H P Lovecraft's AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS,
having Doc Savage go undercover to rescue the Earth is fitting.
Paul E. Jamison
> In 1937, John W Campbell Jr wrote the short novel WHO GOES THERE?,
> which was published in ASTOUNDING Magazine (a Street & Smith
> publication, the same folks who brought us Doc Savage). Even those who
> have never read this science-fiction classic have probably seen the
> movies based on it, THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD and John Carpenter's
> THE THING.
>
> In Win Eckert's chronology of Doc on the Wold Newton site, our
> hero is credited as being undercover as McReady in this story. I vaguely
> recall this idea originated with Philip Jose Farmer but I can find no
> reference to it. It may certainly be Eckert's original idea, and he
> deserves credit for it.
>
[snip the rest of an interesting discourse for bandwidth]
By a remarkable coincidence, I'm in the process of reading a copy of
the 1945 Healy & McComas anthology "Adventures in Time and Space",
which has this story in it. I haven't gotten to WHO GOES THERE? yet -
still lots of neat stuff to get thru first - but I'll keep this in mind when
I read it.
Paul E. Jamison
--
"There's more pressure on a vet to get it right.
People say 'It was God's will' when Granny dies,
but they get *angry* when they lose a cow."
- Terry Pratchett
Ben Poston
> Certainly, it would be satisfying to have Doc fighting this
> terrifying alien invader. In his own series, the bronze man never
> encountered a genuine extra-terrestrial and the way he manhandles the
> Thing here shows our world would be in good hands.
During the 24 issues of the DC Doc Savage run, the first few issues had doc
(along with his Russian counter-part...) dealing with an apparent alien
conspiracy that had been influencing the earth since Homo Sapian (that's us)
first appeared on the Earth.
But, considering the DC series had doc transported to modern time (at that
point, the late 80s), its debatable if its part of the continuity.
tphile
Before MoB when they first started work on the Fortress of Solitude
It might explain the blue dome material since it is unusual that Doc
didn't use it anywhere else
tphile
ANIM8Rfsk
hero is credited as being undercover as McReady in this story. >>
So Kurt Russell played Doc in the movie version?
Cool!
AHenry7261
group and have made small contributions to his excellent site. AFAIK the
identification of MacReady with Doc is
Win's original idea.
Andrew
Dr Hermes
Thank you for clarifying that Win Eckert did in fact come up with
that idea. Credit should go where it is due. Looking through Farmer's
book again (wish it had an index as TARZAN ALIVE did), I can't find any
reference at all to WHO GOES THERE?
so I will remove that clause from my review.
A nice effect of this is that I have now enjoyed re-reading one of the
most suspenseful science-fiction stories every written, and hopefully
others who have seen this post have also dug out a copy and spent a few
tense hours at that Antarctic outpost.
dennis hager
suspect. Albert Tonik proposed it in "A Doc Savage Adventure Rediscovered"
in DOC SAVAGE CLUB READER #4 published in 1978.
Rick Lai picked up this idea and credited Tonik in his chronology, BRONZE
SHADOWS (1992).
BTW, I like to think Monk Mayfair appears as a supporting character
(incognito, of course) is Edmond Hamilton's weird fantasy novel, THE LAKE OF
LIFE.
----------
In article <16369-3BF...@storefull-261.iap.bryant.webtv.net>,
Dr Hermes
----Accordingly, I think I should add a note to this review on my site
crediting Tonik.
Are Rick Lai's chronologies available except on that CD-Rom
gizmo? (I'm still looking for 8-track tapes in stores, which should
give you some idea of how cutting edge I am). Didn't he also do one
for Fu Manchu?
Sometimes it's saddening to think of all the thousands of
fanzines on the pulps, comics, radio shows and so on that were only
published in tiny numbers of copies and have mostly evaporated over
the years. I have a very vague memory of a mimeographed fanzine called
BRONZE SHADOWS that was edited by a man named Fred Cook. This was in
1966 or so, and I believe he was based in Chicago.Does anyone have any
copies of this, or any information?
dennis hager
should indicate how personally out of touch with the pulp community these
days. Ah, the perils of a heavy workload.)
Rick put out a chronology on both Doc Savage and the Shadow, both published
by Fading Shadows (the ECHOES folks) in the early to mid-1990s. They may
still have copies. He also did a short one for the Avenger in Echoes #70 (I
think). He had plenty of chronology articles in fanzines like ECHOES,
NEMESIS INC., and PULP COLLECTOR.
He is, for my money, the best chronologist. No offense to Farmer--I enjoy
DOC SAVAGE: HIS APOCALYPTIC LIFE--but Lai REALLY thought about the
historical and literary aspects of the time. I mean, did you know Doc solved
the disappearance of then well-known Judge Crater in DEVIL ON THE MOON (he
spotted Dent's oblique references) or that Doc played a hidden role in THE
ISLAND OF FU MANCHU?
Man, just thinking about those fun articles is enough to jazz me up for
another couple of Doc novels.
----------
In article <e0812bf9.01111...@posting.google.com>,
John W. Leys
Rick Lai's Shadow & Avenger chonologies (and I think the Fu Manchu one
as well) can be accessed in *.pdf format through the "Chronology
Central" page of Win Eckert's Wold Newton site at
http://members.aol.com/yingko9/Central.htm There's also a link to a page
where you can order the CD-Rom that contains Lai's Doc Savage
chronology.
I haven't seen the Doc Chronology yet, but Lai's Shadow and Avenger
pieces are excellent.
--
Shalom!
John W. Leys
"When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps
to be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams -- this may be
madness. To seek treasure where there is only trash. Too much sanity
may be madness. And maddest of all, to see life as it is and not as
it should be."
- From 'The Man of La Mancha' by Dale Wasserman
ANIM8Rfsk
as well) can be accessed in *.pdf format through the "Chronology
Central" page of Win Eckert's Wold Newton site at
http://members.aol.com/yingko9/Central.ht >>
great url, thanks!
