‘The Shadowed Circle Compendium’

I have been getting the excellent pulp fanzine The Shadowed Circle, which is focused on The Shadow, since it came out as a crowdfunding effort. There are six issues so far, with a seventh coming soon.

More recently, again through a crowdfunding effort, they have put out The Shadowed Circle Compendium, collecting the best articles from the first seven issues, along with some new pieces. I finally got my copy, and it’s also available on Amazon.

This volume is 8.5- by 11-inches in size, with 180 pages, many in color.

As I have reviewed the first six issues, I’m not going to repeat the reviews I’ve done, but focus on the new items here. The table of contents nicely marks where each article first appeared.

We get an editorial by Steve Donoso, a forward by pulp historian Will Murray, and an introduction by Michael Uslan.

As to the new items, from Steve Donoso, we get input from a wide range of people on what their top seven Shadow works to bring to a desert island (not all are pulps). This article is a throwback to several I’ve seen in the fanzines of top fans giving their top X stories of The Shadow, Doc Savage, etc. In addition to the new people, Will Murray provides input from past folks like Robert Sampson and Robert Weinberg.

As a fan of pulp fanzines, of which I have many, but still looking, Steve Donoso provides a look at The Shadow in them. Sadly, ones like Agents of The Shadow and Shadow Secret Society, I do not have. And I am missing several issues of Bronze Shadows. Maybe someday I’ll get lucky.

We get an interesting two-page spread called “The Lost Shadow Dossier.” It gives information like The Shadow’s agents, his various aliases, locations, and officials he worked, along with where they first appeared.

Another good article is on the essential Shadow reference materials, almost all of which I’ve reviewed here. I am only missing Robert Sampson’s The Night Master, which I wish someone would reprint. I look forward to Will Murray’s upcoming third Shadow reference book.

And the last original item is an index of all The Shadow pulp novels in pulp order, also noting authorship and what Sanctum Books’ volume they appeared in. Thankfully, they also mention Walter Gibson‘s post-pulp novel and short stories.

As for reprints from The Shadowed Circle, we get articles on The Shadow’s New York, the inspiration for Burbank, info on the early movies of The Shadow, the attempted TV series, and many more.

Maybe as the fanzine continues we’ll get a second Compendium? I look forward to the next issue as I am a subscriber. I encourage others to do the same, as you also get some extras. This one will go on my shelf with my other references.