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Has anybody read Armageddon 2419 A.D. - Philip Francis Nowlan? (Anthony/Buck Rogers)

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  • #1

    Has anybody read Armageddon 2419 A.D. - Philip Francis Nowlan? (Anthony/Buck Rogers)

    I picked this up at the local bookstore last week because I really like old b&w Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers films/serials (strewn together to make films), and somewhere in the first pages it says that it is a compilation of the first two Buck Rogers stories by the original author. Apparently his name was originally Anthony Rogers, but at some point with all the comic strips and film adaptations someone decided the name Buck Rogers would sell more. So I have no idea if it's any good, if this is considered classic sci-fi literature or if I have just heard the name because they happened to make so many different things out of it. As I'm sure is the case with a lot of you, I have a huge stack of books I'm getting around to at all times, so I was hoping to get some opinions from fellow MM fans so I could properly prioritize this one.

    Thanks for any help!
    "When the Eleatics denied motion, Diogenes, as everyone knows, came forward as an opponent. He literally did come forward, because he did not say a word but merely paced back and forth a few times, thereby assuming that he had sufficiently refuted them."
    - Sّren Kierkegaard
    Tags: Buck Rogers, Comics, TV shows
  • #2
    Buck Rogers has been around as a strip, since 1928.

    He's been portrayed on film and TV a few times.

    Buster Crabbe played the part in a Republic serial in the 1930s.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck_Rogers_%28serial%29


    In the Eighties, Gil Gerard played Buck, in a TV series in which the most popular character and arguably the best actor was a small robot called Twiki.


    Now there's a teaser trailer for a retro version supposedly being premiered some time this year.


    Buck Rogers, back to the future?

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    • #3
      I love that Buster Crabbe serial, I'd probably check out any new version they did too.

      But have you ever read the original stories from the original author? I'm trying to find out if they're considered classic sci-fi literature or if the comic strips and film serials just lend him name recognition that makes it seem that way.
      "When the Eleatics denied motion, Diogenes, as everyone knows, came forward as an opponent. He literally did come forward, because he did not say a word but merely paced back and forth a few times, thereby assuming that he had sufficiently refuted them."
      - Sّren Kierkegaard

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      • #4
        Beedeebeedee

        When I was young, I was fan of Buck Rogers : may be the only frog who like this space-opera.
        Papi

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        • #5
          Thanks for responding! Though I guess I should assume from the lack of activity in this thread that I just know the name Buck Rogers from the serials and the actual literature wasn't very groundbreaking...

          I guess?
          "When the Eleatics denied motion, Diogenes, as everyone knows, came forward as an opponent. He literally did come forward, because he did not say a word but merely paced back and forth a few times, thereby assuming that he had sufficiently refuted them."
          - Sّren Kierkegaard

          Comment

          • #6
            There's a Wikipedia page on Armageddon 2149 AD and there appears to be a Project Gutenberg Australia text file of it as well.

            Of course, I suspect that many people (myself included) assume that - like Flash Gordon - Buck Rogers originated as a comic strip rather than in prose. It seems you live and learn.
            _"For an eternity Allard was alone in an icy limbo where all the colours were bright and sharp and comfortless.
            _For another eternity Allard swam through seas without end, all green and cool and deep, where distorted creatures drifted, sometimes attacking him.
            _And then, at last, he had reached the real world – the world he had created, where he was God and could create or destroy whatever he wished.
            _He was supremely powerful. He told planets to destroy themselves, and they did. He created suns. Beautiful women flocked to be his. Of all men, he was the mightiest. Of all gods, he was the greatest."

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            • #7
              I've read Armageddon 2149 AD and think that it's a really good book. Part of the problem with Buck Rogers is that there are so many versions that it's hard to tell the good from the bad. This book was the original and I found it refreshing to see the original concept for Buck.
              Marv (Finarvyn)
              Eternal Champion fan since the 1970's
              Discovered D&D in 1975

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