Captain Future

Third issue featuring Earle K. Bergey's debut art for the title.

Famous close-up portrait cover by Bergey, 1941 Winter.

Although sometimes mistakenly attributed to science fiction writer Edmond Hamilton, who indeed authored most of the Captain Future stories, the character was created by Better Publications editors Mort Weisinger and Leo Margulies during the 1st World Science Fiction Convention in 1939.[1] [2]

The original character was published by Ned Pines' Thrilling/Standard/Better publications company. A different Captain Future was published in Pine's Nedor Comics line.

The stories were published in American pulp magazines from 1940 to 1951, featuring bright-colored cover illustrations by Earle K. Bergey and two fellow pulp artists. Captain Future's originating adventures appeared in his eponymous magazine, which ran from 1940 to 1944, coinciding with World War II. Bergey painted twelve of the seventeen Captain Future covers, and all ten subsequent Startling Stories covers under which additional Captain Future novels and novelettes were published. Of note, Bergey's art for Captain Future, beginning with the third issue, marks the start of his groundbreaking work in the fields of science fiction and fantasy illustration.

While the first four issues of the Captain Future pulp are subtitled, "Wizard of Science," the remaining thirteen issues bear the header, "Man of Tomorrow," shifting focus to the humanity of the titular hero, whose given name is Curtis Newton. A brilliant scientist and adventurer, Newton roams the solar system as Captain Future—solving problems, righting wrongs, and vanquishing futuristic supervillains. Published by Better Publications, an imprint of the expansive Thrilling Group of pulps, Captain Future gave readers the only explicitly science fiction and fantasy pulp hero in the history of American pulps.

The series contains a number of assumptions about the solar system which are outlandish by modern standards but which still seemed plausible, at least to the general public, in the time the stories were written. All of the planets of the solar system, and many of the moons and asteroids, are suitable for life, and most are already occupied by humanoid extraterrestrial races. The initial adventures take place in the planets of the solar system but later stories (after the character invents the "vibration drive") take the hero to other stars, other dimensions and even the distant past and almost to the end of the Universe. For example, they visit the star Deneb, which is the origin of Earth humans, as well as many other humanoid races across the Solar System and beyond.

The series was originally set in 1990; as the series progressed, Hamilton quickly stopped using exact dates (except as "in the past" as in the voyages of the astronauts who first landed on most of the other planets of the Solar System), sticking with a series continuity. In later stories, if the date was asked or revealed, it was done so discreetly.

Iconic Captain Future cover from Startling Stories January 1950, painted by Earle K. Bergey.

The series begins when genius scientist Roger Newton, his wife Elaine, and his fellow scientist Simon Wright leave planet Earth to do research in an isolated laboratory on the moon, and to escape the predations of Victor Corvo (originally: Victor Kaslan[3]), a criminal politician who wished to use Newton's inventions for his own gain. Simon's body is old and diseased and Roger enables him to continue doing research by transplanting his healthy brain into an artificial case (originally immobile—carried around by Grag—later equipped with lifter units). Working together, the two scientists create an intelligent robot called Grag, and an android with shape-shifting abilities called Otho. One day, Corvo arrives on the moon and murders the Newtons; but before he can reap the fruits of his atrocity, Corvo and his killers are in turn slain by Grag and Otho.

The deaths of the Newtons leave their son, Curtis, to be raised by the unlikely trio of Otho, Grag, and Simon Wright. Under their tutelage, Curtis grows up to be a brilliant scientist and as strong and fast as any champion athlete. He also grows up with a strong sense of responsibility and hopes to use his scientific skills to help people. With that goal in his mind, he calls himself Captain Future; Simon, Otho and Grag are referred to as the Futuremen in subsequent stories. Other recurring characters in the series are the old space marshal Ezra Gurney, the beautiful Planet Patrol agent Joan Randall (who provides a love interest for Curtis), and James Carthew, President of the Solar System whose office is in New York City and who calls upon Future in extreme need.

Captain Future faces many enemies in his career but his archenemy is Ul Quorn, who is the only recurring villain in the series and appears in two different stories. He is part Martian — therefore called the Magician of Mars — but also the son of Victor Corvo, who murdered the Newtons. Quorn is a scientist whose abilities rival those of Captain Future.

Captain Future, Startling Stories and Amazing Stories magazines

Captain Future

A tall, athletic and handsome man with red hair, Captain Future was born on the moon as Curtis Newton. After the death of his parents, he was trained by Professor Simon, Otho and Grag in all scientific and athletic pursuits necessary to fight crime and injustice across the solar system.

Prof. Simon Wright

A human brain living in a transparent, nuclear-powered life support case, with tentacle-mounted optics. He is Captain Future's mentor and chief consultant in scientific matters.

Grag and Otho

Grag is a seven-foot-tall metallic robot; Otho is a white-skinned android. Both were created by Roger Newton with artificial intelligence and human emotions to be friends and helpers to mankind. Grag and Otho have a friendly rivalry in the stories. Grag is big and strong, but not very bright, while Otho is quick-witted, agile, and (with the aid of a special chemical) able to radically alter his physical appearance.

Eek and Oog

Grag and Otho's pets, respectively. Eek is a moonpup, a canine-like creature which does not need air to survive and consumes soft metals for food. Oog is an amorphous creature called a mimic, an artificially created pet that can change its shape as Otho does. Both are telepathic, and are very attached to their respective master.

Joan Randall

A beautiful female agent of the Planetary Police on Earth, with brunette hair (blonde hair in the anime series). While she and Curtis share a mutual romantic attraction, their respective duties and Curtis' social awkwardness prevent them from taking their relationship to a significant depth.

Marshall Ezra Gurney

A high-ranking veteran officer in the Planetary Police.

Ul Quorn

Son of Victor Corvo, the man who murdered Captain Future's parents. While a scientific genius, he has chosen to use his intellect for evil purposes.

Johnny Kirk

A young orphan boy and a dedicated fan of the Futuremen. During his debut appearance in "The Magician of Mars", he impresses Captain Future with his determination to become one of his crew, and is later entrusted to Joan and the Planetary Police to be trained as a future crewmember. He appears in the anime series in an expanded role and under the new name Ken Scott.

Calling Captain Future is notable for naming three (then undiscovered) moons of Pluto as Charon, Styx, and Cerberus after mythological characters associated with the Greek god Pluto; by chance (?), all three names were later used for moons of Pluto (although Cerberus was given the Greek spelling).

• Captain Comet

• The Site of Captain Future (in French)
• Haffner Press, publisher of The Collected Captain Future hardcover books
• Edmond Hamilton on Captain Future
• Robert Weinberg's Captain Future page
• Futuremania, The Captain Future Fan Site (in German)
• Captain Future bibliography at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Captain Future (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Captain Future at IMDb
• Captain Future Convention 2010( 20th Birthday event of Curtis Newton Captain Future)