The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast - Vintage Sci-Fi Short Stories

The castaway was a wanted man — but he didn’t know how badly he was wanted! The Shipshape Miracle by Clifford D. Simak, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.Today we go back in time only 60 years ago to the pages of If Worlds of Science Fiction Magazine in January 1963. Turn to page 32 for The Shipshape Miracle by Clifford D. Simak…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, The Tarks were attacking, the bosomy princess was clinging to him in terror, and Harold Smith realized he was at the end of his plot-line. What a dilemma! And what an opportunity!! The Blonde From Barsoom by Robert F. Young.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletterhttps://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/sharePlease participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Perhaps you’re read how Everest has now been climbed? But have you heard of Planetary Survey? Here’s the real truth about it. Everest has been climbed twice. Everest by Isaac Asimov, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.We receive a lot of suggestions and we listen to what you have to say. The idea to add super short stories was yours, we’ve done longer stories too, based on your suggestions. Today we bring you the shortest story we’ve ever featured, all by itself, because you asked for it. And if you’ve noticed that we’ve been narrating a plethora of stories by Isaac Asimov lately, well, you’ve asked for that too!Universe Science Fiction Magazine began publishing in June 1953, its third issue is dated December 1953 and features a short story about Mt. Everest. Edmund Hillary became the first person to climb the gigantic mountain just a few months before this story was printed. Let’s turn to page 30 for Everest by Isaac Asimov…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, The castaway was a wanted man — but he didn’t know how badly he was wanted! The ShipShape Miracle by Clifford D. Simak.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Walter Sills labored for years as an unknown laboratory worker—but at fifty he makes his great discovery! Fame, riches are to be his fate—until interference looms up in the form of a few unlikeable characters — and Nature herself! The Magnificent Possession by Isaac Asimov, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.Future Fiction Magazine published its first issue in November 1939, two issues later in July 1940 the new science fiction magazine featured stories by Dennis Clive, John Coleridge and Neil R. Jones on the cover, but didn't mention Isaac Asimov. Of the 7 authors in that issue, the 20 year old Asimov would have a career that outlasted and outshined all the others. Today’s story can be found on page 71, The Magnificent Possession by Isaac Asimov…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Perhaps you’re read how Everest has now been climbed? But have you heard of Planetary Survey? Here’s the real truth about it. Everest has been climbed twice. Everest by Isaac Asimov, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exiles on Mars face a barren future until Leonard Mark brings a glimpse of freedom. The Visitor by Ray Bradbury, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.Another new 5 star review on Apple Podcasts. This one was written by Jedi1Josh who says, “Great Podcast. I’d like to hear more super short stories. Also is there any chance of doing an episode where you read All You Zombies by Heinlein?”Thanks for your review and requests Josh. We are working on another episode featuring super short stories. As for All You Zombies, to the best of my knowledge that story is not in the public domain so we can’t record it. Sorry to disappoint.We would love it if you’d leave us a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts if you think we deserve it. And we love to hear from you. Send us an email, scott@lostscifi.com.We’ve narrated a few Ray Bradbury stories and shared them on the podcast and I liked all of them, but I LOVE this one. From the yellowed and tattered pages of the November 1948 issue of Startling Stories our story can be found on page 131, The Visitor by Ray Bradbury…I narrated The Visitor not only because it was written by Ray Bradbury, it’s more than that, the idea that greed and envy can mess up a good thing is such a simple but meaningful concept, and a great lesson. I searched for a long time and I couldn’t find this story available anywhere which is another reason I narrated The Visitor.Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Walter Sills labored for years as an unknown laboratory worker—but at fifty he makes his great discovery! Fame, riches are to be his fate—until interference looms up in the form of a few unlikable characters — and Nature herself! The Magnificent Possession by Isaac Asimov, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Like all her other plants from far-off worlds, Aunt Amy hoped the Venusian Rambler would win a prize. It hoped so too. Flowering Evil by Margaret St. Clair, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.American fantasy and science fiction writer Margaret St. Clair makes her debut on the podcast today. She was born in Hutchinson Kansas in 1911. Her father, US Representative George Neeley died when she was 7, but left her and her mother well provided for. A decade later she and her mother moved to California and after graduating from the University of California she married writer Eric St. Clair.She first tried her hand at detective and mystery stories before finding her passion writing fantasy and science fiction. Almost all of her more than 120 short stories appeared in pulp magazines in the 1940s and 1950s.Back in the summer of 1950 if you had 20 cents you could have gotten your hands on today’s story, which appeared in Planet Stories magazine. Let’s head over to page 30 for, Flowering Evil by Margaret St. Clair…Why did I narrate Flowering Evil? One word, three letters, one syllable, fun! There are some authors that write stories that are easy to narrate and when you find one, you narrate it. I also chose to share this story because I have been searching for more stories written by women. There are more on the way.Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Exiles on Mars face a barren future until Leonard Mark brings a glimpse of freedom. The Visitor by Ray Bradbury, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiPlease participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A fallen satellite of the Planet Venus is the lure which leads three hunted beings to the mysterious island of smiling death! The Moon That Vanished by Leigh Brackett, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode. The Moon That Vanished marks the debut of the woman known as "The Queen of Space Opera.” Born in Los Angeles in December 1915 Leigh Douglass Brackett wasn’t just an author. Hollywood director Howard Hawks was so impressed by her novel No Good From a Corpse that he had his secretary call in "this guy Brackett" to help William Faulkner write the script for the 1946 movie The Big Sleep starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. She was one of the screenwriters for the 1959 John Wayne movie Rio Bravo which also starred Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson.And she wrote the first version for a little movie, “Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back”. She died soon thereafter and because it was an unfinished script her draft was revised and none of her ideas made it in the final script. Her Science Fiction career began in 1940 when she wrote the short story Martian Quest. She would write short stories, novels and screenplays, with time off every now and then, until her death from cancer at the age of 62.We’ll find our story in the October 1948 issue of Thrilling Wonder Stories magazine, turn to page 13 for, The Moon That Vanished by Leigh Brackett…Why did I choose this story? Leigh Brackett has been on my radar for some time now and I wanted our first Brackett story to be a good one. She did write many short sci-fi stories but this one, as you know by now, is a little longer. For me The Moon That Vanished was a roller coaster ride with exotic locations and descriptive phrases far beyond most of the shorter stories we’ve narrated so far. I loved it and there will be more stories by Leigh Brackett on the podcast.Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, yet another story written by a woman, Like all her other plants from far-off worlds, Aunt Amy hoped the Venusian Rambler would win a prize. It hoped so too. Flowering Evil by Margaret St. Clair, That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Sign up for our newsletterhttps://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/sharehttps://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiPlease participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It is a tough decision to make—whether to give up your life so you can live it over again! Hall of Mirrors by Fredric Brown, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode. We will admit that we have neglected our Facebook page, and our Twitter profile in the past but not anymore. You have encouraged us to promote The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast so you could share what we’re doing. We have committed the time and energy to communicate and interact with you on both platforms and we would appreciate it if you would.You can follow us on our Facebook page and Twitter by clicking on the links in the description.Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheLostSciFiPodcastTwitter https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fihttps://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Fredric Brown is a favorite of ours and many of his stories are super short, for example Earthmen Bearing Gifts which is only 6 minutes long, The House which is just over 7 minutes, and Blood which is less than 3 minutes long. By the way there are 3 super short Fredric Brown stories at the beginning of a previous episode titled 8 Super Short Sci-Fi Stories. Today’s story is a little longer. It first appeared in the December 1953 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction beginning on page 88, Hall of Mirrors by Fredric Brown… Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiNext on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, A fallen satellite of the Planet Venus is the lure which leads three hunted beings to the mysterious island of smiling death! The Moon That Vanishedby Leigh Brackett. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Martians were weak, sensitive, a dying race, frail and impotent before the superiority of master Earthmen. Only in the sly and mentally skillful game of Duchal might sons of the red planet emerge gloriously from their shells. Alien Equivalent by Richard R. Smith, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode. Thanks to Rob who sent us an email telling us that the Feedspot website has a list of the 100 Best Sci-Fi podcasts and we’re not only on the list but The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast comes in at #2. Thanks for letting us know Rob!The author of today’s story Richard R. Smith is making his debut on our podcast. Like many, he is one of those vintage sci-fi authors we know very little about. He wrote about 25 short stories, almost all of them from 1954 to 1958 and he used a few pseudonyms. He wrote erotic novels using the name Ann Taylor.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/From Planet Stories Magazine in the summer of 1955, our story can be found on page 53, Alien Equivalent by Richard R. Smith… Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share Twitter - https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiNext on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, It is a tough decision to make—whether to give up your life so you can live it over again! Hall of Mirrors by Fredric Brown, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The slovenly wub might well have said: Many men talk like philosophers and live like fools. Beyond Lies the Wub by Philip K. Dick, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode. Another 5 star review on Apple Podcasts, this one from Archoneponymous who says, “Great Narration. This podcast has excellent stories told well.” Thank you Archoneponymous!This 5 star review is from the Podcast Addict app, posted by Jesse Willis, “I UNRESERVEDLY RECOMMEND THE LOST SCI-FI PODCAST. Host and narrator Scott Miller is an excellent audiobook narrator. His choice of stories is top tier. There are new episodes twice a week, all episodes are complete and unabridged audiobooks! His is the best new podcast of the 2020s.”Wow! Thanks Jesse!Your reviews are one of the reasons our podcast continues to grow, so thank you, and if you haven’t already given us a 5 star review, we would love it if you would, if you think we deserve it of course.Leber8tr bought us $25 worth of coffee and had this to say, “Great story telling! Thank you for hours and hours of audio entertainment.” Thank you Leber8tr! There’s a link in the description if you’d like to contribute.We are thankful for you. Please don’t ever forget that.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVMerch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/There was no fanfare when this story was released since nobody knew who Philip K. Dick was at the time. It wasn’t the first story he had written but it was the first story that was ever published in a science fiction magazine. Let’s open the pages of the July 1952 issue of Planet Stories Magazine to page 69 for Beyond Lies the Wub by Philip K. Dick… You can’t ever go wrong narrating a story by Philip K. Dick, who remains the most popular author on our podcast with Ray Bradbury and Isaac Asimov gaining ground. Clever and fun are the words I would use to describe Beyond Lies the Wub. I narrated the story simply because I enjoyed it and it was written by PKD. Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiNext on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Martians were weak, sensitive, a dying race, frail and impotent before the superiority of master Earthmen. Only in the sly and mentally skillful game of Duchal might sons of the red planet emerge gloriously from their shells. Alien Equivalent by Richard R. Smith, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Having mastered probability lanes, man found an indefinite number of Earths—and everyone could have a planet all to himself, if he wanted. But there was one joker in the deal… Living Space by Isaac Asimov, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode. Thanks to YouTube listener Sackanutz who recently bought us $10 worth of coffee, “Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving!” We did and thank you. There’s a link in the description if you’d like to buy us a coffee. It is greatly appreciated.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/scottsVTis the season for gift giving for a lot of people around the world. Why not get something for yourself from our store. We’ve got t-shirts and hoodies, beer mugs, coffee mugs and more. There are four designs to choose from and there’s a link in the description if you want to take a look. Merch - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/Here’s the answer to our trivia question, Who authored the 1869 short story that introduced the first known fictional description of a space station? The answer, Edward Everett Hale who wrote “The Brick Moon.”Our story can be found in the May 1956 Science Fiction Magazine. You’ll find the sci-fi goodness on page 3. Living Space by Isaac Asimov… Why did I narrate this story? Two words, Isaac Asimov. We receive a lot of requests for Asimov’s stories and we do everything we can to keep our listeners happy. Although the idea of one family living on an entire planet seems farfetched it does seem like a request some people would make on an overcrowded earth if technology made it possible. This story has the feel of Philip K Dick’s The Man in the High Castle in some ways and the government lying to its citizens, while it may be infuriating, isn’t anything that comes as a shock. I enjoyed narrating Living Space and I hope you enjoyed listening to it.Sign up for our newsletter https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/266431/102592606683269000/share https://twitter.com/lost_sci_fiNext week on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, another Philip K. Dick story by request, The slovenly wub might well have said: Many men talk like philosophers and live like fools. Beyond Lies the Wub by Philip K. Dick, that’s next week on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. Please participate in our podcast survey https://podcastsurvey.typeform.com/to/gNLcxQlk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.