Discover and Read the Best of Twitter Threads by @PulpLibrarian

In the 1970s the cost - and size - of calculators tumbled. Business tools became toys; as a result prestige tech companies had to rapidly diversify into other products - or die!

This is the story of the 1970s great calculator race...

Compact electronic calculators had been around since the mid-1960s, although 'compact' was a relative term. They were serious, expensive tools for business.

So it was quite a breakthrough in 1967 when Texas Instruments presented the Cal-Tech: a prototype battery powered 'pocket' calculator using four integrated circuits. It sparked a wave of interest...

"Tired of reality? Escape into the world of role-playing games!" In particular one whose own history is a wild mix of battle, quests and the fickleness of fortune.

This is the story of Dungeons & Dragons...

The history of Dungeons & Dragons and its parent company TSR is complex, like the game. It's full of feuds, schisms, colourful characters, chance happenings and fabulous riches. Again, like the game. So where to begin?

Pulp fiction - especially Robert E Howard, Michael Moorcock and Fritz Lieber - was a huge influence on Dungeons & Dragons: monsters, spells, magic armour and complex class systems all feature in it, derived from the ultimate ur-text - Lord of the Rings.

Time once again for our occasional series "Women holding model aircraft!" This is still a thing btw...

Bi-curious? RC Modeler, February 1979.

You know those anxiety dreams where you appear in public without your trousers... RC Modeler, September 1979.

Time for our occasional series "forgotten pulp genres." Today it's hot rod pulp!

Hot rods - souped-up old vehicles for street, dirt or drag racing - saw a surge in popularity after WWII as returning GIs turned their attention to the thrills of high-speed cars.

And it wasn't long before the pulps began to pay attention, especially if hot rods could be teamed up with teenage delinquency and girls!

It was the mild psychostimulant that nobody bought, until a 'new' disorder led to a new market for amphetamines: troubled kids. Was it a cure or a curse? Was there really a disorder in needs of treatment? The arguments still rage.

This is the story of Ritalin...

Methylphenidate was first synthesized in 1944 by chemist Leandro Panizzon. He named the drug after his wife Rita, who used the ne drug 'Ritalin' to manage low blood pressure. Apparently it also improve her tennis game.

Ritalin is a  psychostimulant, increasing the activity of the central nervous system.The availability of norepinephrine and dopamine in the CNS is increased, speeding up brain activity including in brain areas responsible for concentration and executive decision making.

It is claustrophobic: the sound of your own breathing mixes with the fear of asphyxiation.

It is impersonal: only the eyes peering through the sockets betray any humanity.

It is totemic: the sum of our fears, and for some - their desires.

This is the story of the gas mask...

Whilst the spacesuit is the symbol of progress, the gas mask is the sign of the apocalypss. In popular culture it signifies that science has turned against us. Nothing good is happening if people are in respirators...

The first chemical masks were work by Venitian plague doctors: a bird-like mask, the beak stuffed with lavender, matched with full length coat and hat. It was a terrifying sight - the grim reaper come to apply poultices to your tumours.

Time once again for our occasional series "Women with great hair fleeing gothic houses!"

Today it's an Avon Satanic Gothic special...

Lord Satan, by Louisa Bronte. Avon Satanic Gothic, 1972.

The forgotten Brontë sister...

Vengeance Of The Cat Goddess, by Jennifer Stephens. Avon Satanic Gothic, 1973.

As much as you love your cat it will eat your corpse...

What shall we tweet about tomorrow: gas masks or Burt Reynolds? Poll below...

Tomorrow we should tweet about

You've got less than five hours to vote! Tomorrow shall we tweet about gas masks or Burt Reynolds? Currently it's a dead heat...

Scroll up for the Twitter poll ⬆️

What do Batman, Spiderman, Bettie Page, Madonna and women wrestlers have in common? Well I'll tell you: they all feature in the life of today's featured pulp artist.

Today I look back at the career of "the father of fetish" Eric Stanton...

Eric Stanton was born in New York in 1926. His childhood was marred by many illnesses, and confined to bed he learnt to draw by tracing comic books. He was fascinated by strong Amazonian women like Sheena, Queen of the Jungle and soon began creating similar cartoons.

After high school Stanton joined the Navy in 1944, putting his skills to use in drawing aircraft recognition cartoons. Post-war he got a job with cartoonist Gordon 'Boody' Rogers, creator of Babe: Amazon Of The Ozarks.

As it's #BookLoversDay today I'll be sharing a few books that I love.

'De gustibus non disputandum est...'

The Usborne Pocketbook Haunted Houses: Ghosts & Spectres (1979). Genuinely terrifying stories for over-curious children! #BookLoversDay

The Stainless Steel Rat, by Harry Harrison. Sphere Science Fiction, 1978. Cover by Peter Elson. A genuine pleasure to read. #BookLoversDay

"Imperial Battleship, halt the flow of time!"

Today in pulp I look back at a 1978 Italian-made B-movie that ram-raided the Star Wars franchise mercilessly, with the help of a Bond girl, a Von Trapp and a very young David Hasselhoff.

This is the story of Star Crash...

In 1977 Italian horror director Luigi Cozzi thought he might make a 'space opera'. As Star Wars hadn't yet opened in Italy he drew inspiration from Alan Dean Foster’s novelization for his plot. He then pitched the idea at Cannes and began gathering finance for a film.

The film he came up with - Star Crash - is certainly an opera. The Emperor of the Universe is looking for his son Simon, who has disappeared after an encounter with the evil Count Zarth Arn, who is building a planet-destroying giant space station.

Today in pulp I look back at a tech-noir classic that pushed the boundaries of early CGI as well as using more traditional animation and post-production skills. Get your light cycle ready...

...this is the story of Tron!

"TRON" is a debugging command in some versions of BASIC and stands for TRaceON. It sounds cool and geeky. Unsurprisingly the 2010 Tron movie sequel didn't use its complementary command: "TROFF"

The original Tron movie was released in 1982, four years after Disney's earlier film The Black Hole had established the studio's emerging interest in sci-fi. However Tron had been in development since 1976 and was initially pitched as a traditional animated motion picture.

As it's #NationalPlayDay I thought I'd count down my Top 10 amazing toys from yesteryear. Batteries not included...

Top pulp toy #10: The "Illya K Special" secret lighter cap gun from Ideal (1965). This needs a health warning...

Top pulp toy #9: the Meccano Eagle Transporter (1978). Riveting stuff!

Time for some #business motivational tips from the 1920s. They certainly got to the point back then...

1920s business tip #1: don't hit the client!

1920s #business tip #2: nobody ever got rich by writing cheques

He is  X-RAY-3, the best agent in the Psychoanalytic Special Department. He battles supernatural crime and mad scientists. His books have sold over 20 million copies, making him the most successful horror detective in the German-speaking world.

His name is Larry Brent....

Larry Brent and the other agents of the Psychoanalytic Special Department lead the worldwide fight against crimes of supernatural or unusual origin. Their base is under the Tavern On The Green pub in New York's Central Park, if you're ever in the area.

Larry Brent is quite a cool hero: he drives a Lotus Europa, uses a Smith & Wesson lazer gun and has a secret communicator ring. It's all vital kit in the battle against his corrupt demonic adversaries!

In 1989 the BBC killed off #DoctorWho. The corporation said the series was being 'rested'; the fans suspected it was dead as an Adric. But then an unlikely saviour emerged to carry #DrWho through the wilderness years.

This is the story of the Virgin New Adventures...

Both Michael Grade and Jonathan Powell, BBC Directors in the 1980s, disliked #DoctorWho. They felt it was outdated, violent and cheap-looking. Ratings were awful, exacerbated by terrible scheduling. Relations with producer John Nathan-Turner had also hit rock bottom.

Grade had already paused the series in 1985, and insisted Colin Baker leave the show in 1987. By 1989, with Nathan-Turner ready to leave and script editor Andrew Cartmel already gone, Jonathan Powell pulled the plug on the whole thing.

It was the biggest manhunt in Britain: police, the press, aeroplanes, psychics all tried to solve the disappearance. In the end nobody really knew what happened. It was a mystery without a solution.

This is the story of Agatha Christie's 11 lost days...

By 1926 Agatha Christie's reputation as a writer was setting to grow. Her sixth novel - The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - had been well-recieved and she and her husband Archie had recently concluded a world tour. But all was not well with the marriage.

In April 1926 Agatha Christie’s mother died. Christie was very close to her: she had been home-schooled and believed her mother was clairvoyant. The shock of her sudden death hit the author hard.

Finally tonight... my Top 5 home #computer games from 1983! All were worth the 6 minute3 load time...

At No 5: Jetpack, from Ultimate Play The Game (1983). Assemble your ship and go!

At No 4: Snooker, from Visions Software Factory (1983). Always fun to play while waiting for the real thing to begin...

In February 1974, whilst recovering from dental surgery, something profound and inexplicable happened to author Philip K Dick that changed his life forever. Was it an illness, a psychotic reaction, or something truly mystical?

This is the exegesis of Philip K Dick...

Philip K Dick was both prolific and influential. In his youth he came to the conclusion that, in a certain sense, the world is not entirely real and there is no way to confirm whether it is truly there.

By the end of the 1960s Philip K Dick had published over 40 novels and stories, as well as winning the 1963 Hugo Award for The Man In The High Castle. But he still struggled financially...

I see The Guardian is harshing on Wuthering Heights. For shame: that book launched one of the most under-rated and empowering genres of literature - Women With Great Hair Fleeing Gothic Houses!

Gothic romance is one of the most popular paperback genres of all time, and far from simplistic or formulaic. It's a blend of mystery, sensualism, non-conformity and the supernatural. It's also one of the few genres where women protagonists stand front and centre.

Essentially gothic romance concerns a relationship between a young woman and an old house. She may have inherited it, married into it or sought refuge in it. But slowly a sinister echo of the past is magnified by its walls, and in horror she must try and overcome it...

"Fear is the mind-killer," but movie production is a close second. Today in pulp I look back at a fabulous flawed movie based on a well-loved epic story. No, not Condorman...

...this is the story of David Lynch's Dune.

Dune is an epic story: conceived by Frank Herbert after studying the Oregon Dunes in 1957 he spent five years researching, writing, and revising it before publication. He would go on to write a further five sequels.

Dune is a multi-layered story and a hugely immersive novel. It's about a future where the mind rather the computer is king, aided by the mysterious spice melange. It also has more feuding houses than Game of Thrones.

Today in pulp I look back at one of the most influential and outrageous illustrators of the 1970s, whose work defined the Italian fumetti horror scene.

This is the story of Emanuele Taglietti...

Emanuele Taglietti was born in Ferrara in 1943. His father worked as a set designer for director Michaelangelo Antonioni, often taking Emanuele with him on set.

In the 1960s Taglietti moved to Rome, where he studied stage design. He began a successful career as an assistant art director, working for Federico Fellini and Marco Ferreri.

Time once again for our occasional series Forgotten Pulp Genres. Today I'm looking at... sexy space pulp!

It wasn't long after man first went into orbit that people* began asking the obvious question: how do you have sex in space?

(*particularly the French)

Well, near-earth orbit nookie is a difficult thing apparently. It's hard enough getting a Soyuz to dock with the ISS, let alone anything else...

Today in pulp I look back at the career of prolific pulp horror legend Guy N Smith. Stand by for werewolves, crabs, locusts and many other baffling beasties running amok...

To say Guy N Smith is prolific is an understatement: he has over a thousand short stories and magazine articles published, as well as writing for countryside magazines and promoting pipe smoking. Quite a busy guy...

Guy N Smith's mother was historical novelist E.M. Weale. He published his first story aged 12 and write 55 more before he turned 17. At his father's insistence he went into banking as a career, before moving into the shotgun trade.