Nathaniel Schachner (January 16, 1895 – October 2, 1955), who published under the names Nat Schachner and Nathan Schachner, was an American writer, historian, and attorney, as well as an early advocate of the development of rockets for space travel. A prominent author of historical works on figures from America's Revolutionary Era, Schachner also was a regular contributor to the genre leading up to and during the early years of what came to be referred to as the Golden Age of Science Fiction (c. 1938–1946).[1]

Nat Schachner c.1930

Best known for his biographies of American historical figures such as Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, and as the creator of the Grandfather paradox, Schachner began his writing career contributing short stories to leading "pulp magazines" that specialized in science fiction, horror, mystery, and adventure genres. During the heart of the Great Depression, he contributed more than fifty stories to magazines such as Astounding Stories, Terror Tales, Horror Stories, Dime Mystery Magazine, and Fantastic Adventures. He then turned to writing historical non-fiction and fiction, gaining recognition for his prodigious research.

Schachner, a practicing attorney, was a founder and officer of the American Interplanetary Society, which pioneered liquid fuel rocketry in the United States in the early 1930s.[2] Later known as the American Rocket Society, the organization eventually became part of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a professional society in the field of aerospace engineering that today has nearly 30,000 members world-wide.[3]

Bibliography

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Historical works

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  • Aaron Burr: A Biography. New York: A.S. Barnes & Co., Inc. 1937.
  • The Mediaeval Universities. New York: A.S. Barnes & Co., Inc. 1938.
  • Alexander Hamilton. New York: D. Appleton-Century Company, Inc. 1946.
  • The Price of Liberty: A History of the American Jewish Committee (PDF). New York: The American Jewish Committee. 1948.
  • Thomas Jefferson: A Biography. New York: Thomas Yoscloff. 1951.
  • The Founding Fathers. New York: Putnam. 1954.

Short stories and novelettes

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Following is a listing of Schachner's short fiction as published in magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. The links provide access to either the stories or information on them from the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.

  • "In 20,000 A.D.!, Wonder Stories, September 1930, co-author: Arthur L. Zagat
  • "The Song of the Cakes", Oriental Stories, Autumn 1930, co-author: Arthur L. Zagat, Information
  • "The Dead-Alive", Weird Tales, April-May 1931, co-author: Arthur L. Zagat
  • "The Death-Cloud, Astounding Stories of Super-Science, May 1931, co-author: Arthur L. Zagat
  • "The Orange God", Astounding Stories, October 1933, pseudonym: Walter Glamis
  • "The Dragon of Iskander", Fantastic Stories of Imagination, April 1934, Information
  • "Marble Murderer", Dime Mystery Magazine, July 1934, Information
  • "Monsters of the Pit", Terror Tales, November 1934, Information
  • "They Dare Not Die", Terror Tales, January 1935, Information
  • "Thirst of the Ancients", Terror Tales, February 1935, Information
  • "Death Takes a Bride", Terror Tales, March 1935, Information
  • "Death Teaches School, Terror Tales, April 1935, Information
  • "Satan's Antechamber", Thrilling Mysteries, April 1935, Information
  • "The Devil's Brewers", Terror Tales, May 1935, Information
  • "Hospital of the Damned", Horror Stories, June 1935, Information
  • "Railroad to Hell", Terror Tales, June 1935, Information
  • "Creatures of the Dusk", Terror Tales, July 1935, Information
  • "Intra-Planetary", Astounding Stories, October 1935, pseudonym: Chan Corbett
  • "I Am Not God", Part 1 of 2, Astounding Stories, October 1935
  • "I Am Not God", Part 2 of 2, Astounding Stories, November 1935
  • "Entropy", Astounding Stories, March 1936
  • "A Feast for Hell's Angels", Terror Tales, May 1936, Information
  • "Ecce Homo", Astounding Stories, June 1936, pseudonym: Chan Corbett
  • "The Devil's Night Club", Dime Mystery Magazine, June 1936, Information
  • "Death Unmasks at Midnight", Horror Stories, June-July 1936, Information
  • "Pacifica", Astounding Stories, July 1936
  • "Wedding Night of the Damned", Terror Tales, November-December 1936, Information
  • "Cauldrons of the Damned", Horror Stories, December 1936-January 1937, Information
  • "Beyond Infinity", Astounding Stories, January 1937, pseudonym: Chan Corbett
  • "The Plague of Evil Love", Terror Tales, June 1937, Information
  • "Children of Murder", Dime Mystery Magazine, October 1937, Information
  • "Governess for the Mad", Terror Tales, January-February 1938, Information
  • "Factory for Death", Dime Mystery Magazine, September 1938, Information
  • "The Flowering Corpses", Dime Mystery Magazine, October 1938, Information
  • "The Corpses' Christmas Party, Horror Stories, December 1938-January 1939, Information
  • "Parade of the Tiny Killers", Terror Tales, January 1939, Information
  • "Welcome Mr. Death, Strange Detective Mysteries, January-February 1939, pseudonym: Chan Corbett, Information
  • "Merchant of Screaming Death, Strange Detective Mysteries, January-February 1939, Information
  • "Terror of the Corpse Balloons", Strange Detective Mysteries, March-April 1939, Information
  • "The Corpse Clinic", Strange Detective Mysteries, May 1939, Information
  • "The Great Grey Hounds of Death", Strange Detective Mysteries, May-June 1939, pseudonym: Chan Corbett, Information
  • "City Under the Sea", Fantastic Adventures, September 1939, Information
  • "Cold", Astounding Science Fiction, March 1940
  • "Master Gerald of Cambray", Unknown Fantasy Fiction, June 1940, Information

Notes

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  1. ^ Nichols, Peter; Ashley, Mike. "Golden Age of SF". sf-encyclopedia.com. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  2. ^ Winter 1984, pp. 80–81.
  3. ^ "AIAA Statement on Northrop Grumman's Successful CRS-18 Launch". aiaa.org. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 16, 2022.

References

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