Thoughts on the Big 85 Weirdmongers from "Weird Tales"

"Weird Tales" magazine has released its reader selected list of the top eighty five most influential weird storytellers and artists of the last eighty five years, in anticipation of the publication's eighty fifth anniversary. Their special anniversary issue, featuring this list and further details, will be hitting stores any time now. After running down the list available at the link above on their website and blog, it's immediately obvious the strange compilation contains the expected, but more than a few surprises as well.

• The Usual: H.P. Lovecraft, Ray Bradbury, Clive Barker, Stephen King, Thomas Ligotti, M.C. Escher, and Salvador Dali, among others, easily win well deserved spots. Curiously, some of the titans of weird fiction like Algernon Blackwood and Arthur Machen are absent, but perhaps this is because a good segment of their best weird work was written prior to the 1923 cut off date. All in all, it's hard to dispute the place of successful weird literary figures and famous, innovative artists. The readership of "Weird Tales" continues to be savvy and intelligent enough to recognize the powerful influence exercised by fantasist demi-gods like Lovecraft and Bradbury, cult legends like Ligotti, as well as the commercial powerhouses of Stephen King and Clive Barker.
• The Startling: The selection of several more "mainstream" literary types and alternative art/media figures is a slightly jarring, but not unpleasant surprise. William S. Burroughs, Kurt Vonnegut, Hunter S. Thompson, and even Dr. Seuss are listed. This is surprising, since none of these writers are known for the explicitly dark and supernatural bend common in many weird greats (Lovecraft or Clark Ashton Smith, for instance). On the other hand, it doesn't take much strain to see why they readily take their place alongside the more "traditional" weirdmongers. Burroughs, Vonnegut, and Thompson changed subsequent writing practices forever, and their subject matter often diverged from the that of previous authors and post-modern contemporaries. Dr. Seuss' bizarre world remains popular for children because of its sheer strangeness. Additionally, the selection of Art Bell, Bjork, and Rod Serling are unexpected pluses. More than anything, it shows the clear evolution of the weird influence into new mediums and sensory realms. Art Bell and Rod Serling, prolific radio and television personalities renowned for their gatekeeping and discussion of the outre, rightly achieve their freakish plaques from the weird community at last. Bjork and a few other musicians on the list are possibly the boldest selection of all, since these are extreme contemporaries whose aggregate influence on the rest of the weird remains to be seen. And, as in most cases, musical preferences tend to bring out the most petty and fierce combativeness.

Not satisfied with this list or want to laud the innovative minds of the "Weird Tales" readership and editors? The magazine's staff invites commentary over at their blog article about this subject. Interestingly, the eighty fifth anniversary issue will include fuller descriptions of all eighty five personalities on the list. One per day will also be covered in more detail on the website, a welcome contribution to further understanding these selections.

-Grim Blogger