Doc Savage His Apocalyptic Life

While one can quibble with Farmer relating Doc to every fictional character known to man, this book is a loving look at the character, his incredible 181 adventures and the Missouri author who wrote the bulk of his exploits. A pity it's not available in a more economical version for the general publ;ic -- you just have to decide if you to spend a little more for the original DOubleday edition or a little less for the Bantam reprint. Whichever you choose, a good addition to the shelf of any fan of the pulp heroes of the 1930's.

Doc Savage is one of those enduring pulp icons who will always have a cult following no matter how many years pass since his heyday. The creation of writer Lester Dent, Doc Savage was a combination private eye/crusading scientist/super hero who, with the help of his loyal assistant, managed to defeat some of the most evil threats that mankind has ever had to face. Certainly a bit corny but always a great deal of fun, the Doc Savage tales were always amongst the best of their type and, as the world continues to get more and more complicated, there's something wonderfully reassuring about entering into Doc Savage's world and discovering that evil can always be defeated by one bronze skinned genius. For this reason, Doc Savage continues to maintain a loyal fan base into the present day. One of these fans was the late science fiction writer Phillip Jose Farmer (creator of the Riverworld series and several other underground classics). Farmer wrote Doc Savage, His Apocalyptic Life as an obvious labor of love. While he goes out of his way to try to accurately document the mythos of Doc Savage (though some critics are correct when they point out that he sometimes draws conclusions that are far more Farmer than Dent), Farmer does so with a welcomed tone of uptmost (if still bemused) seriousness. Treating this book as not just a long fan letter but instead as an actual biography of an actual man, Farmer affords Doc Savage fans a dignity that others who have attempted to write about classic pulp icons haven't. The book to a certain extent acts as a sequel to Farmer's better known (but, to me, of lesser quality) Tarzan Alive. As in the Tarzan book, Farmer concludes with lengthy and imaginative geneaology in which he manages (with not too many excessive liberties taken with their established canons) to show that every pulp hero was in some way related. Along with Tarzan, Doc Savage is soon to be related to Bulldog Drummond, James Bond, Nero Wolfe, The Scarlet Pimpernil, Prof. Challenger, the Shadow, and just about anyone else you could think of. No, its not meant to be taken seriously but, like the original Doc Savage stories themselves, its still a lot of fun.

This book attempts to piece together a variety of authors work into a workable timeline.

I started this series of books when I was 10 yrs old. It was a great Mystery/Adventure series. For boys who liked "Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators" or "The Hardy Boys" this is the next step. Doc Savage is much like Batman, except he doesn't hide his identity and all the stories take place during the 30's and 40's. There are several sub-characters(Ham, Monk) who play practical jokes on each other, but when the chips are down they would give their lives for each other. I am currently attempting to find some of the old books to read to my 9 year old son.

whether a long time fan or if you've only recently discovered the Man of Bronze, this is a must have. While Farmer does take some liberties with (supposed) origins and fates of characters, neo- and longtime fans will find this book invaluable.