Constant readers could see this (almost Pinterestesque) post coming down the garden path...the various US and UK essentially-fiction magazines that would be on the newsstands in August, 1964...mostly cover-dated "September" but potentially a few stragglers, and some irregularly issued or quarterly or annual magazines that would have further-out dates. But this is a kind of pop-cultural anthropology which is dear to my heart, so I beg indulgence...and they can make quite a sight, even when (as with the crime-fiction magazines) hardly anyone tried too hard to make it pretty...
![]()
![]()
![]()
.![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
.jpg)
  |
| Highsmith's "The Snail Watcher" first appears; Malamud's "The Angel Levine" is a reprint. |
 |
 Goldsmith Lalli's ZD magazines could feature some weak fiction choices from time to time (along with quite a few brilliant ones), but the packaging was often self-sabotaging (and probably out of her control). |
 |
| Science Fantasy's covers would improve enormously the next year when Keith Roberts joined the staff... |
 |
| Henry James loved his horror. |
 |
| The UK version, with its cover revamp, almost looked like a romance title. |
 |
| The best image I could find of the relevant Short Story International issues... |
.
 |
| 1964 a good year for Miriam Allen deFord, clearly.. |
 |
| Actually, please Do miss Farnham's Freehold... |
 |
| One of Popular Library's several reprint bookazines with fiction taken from their parent Thrilling Group magazines...after several issues of Wonder Stories and before a western companion began in 1965. |
 |
| It's sad that among all the crime-fiction titles, the one trying hardest to grab the newsstand browser's attention with cover design is the "shudder" digest, essentially as much sado-porn as they could get away with. But probably they needed to grab that attention more than the others did... |
 |
| Very sadly, Chase with no budget, put together on the fly after a last-minute publisher switch, looks only a bit worse than does EQMM, and the other long-running digests look perfunctory at best. London didn't try, at all. |
 |
| The December issue, the closest to relevant I could find. |
And, of course, I'm cheating by leaving out all the "true" confessions and "men's sweat" magazines that were wholly fiction, or close enough...but I think I'll forgive myself...most images here are courtesy of Galactic Central's captures...