The Gully Foyle Saga

Alfred Bester is rightly regarded as one of the major figures in the history of American science-fiction, establishing his reputation with two landmark novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination.

Along with such contemporaries as Robert A. Heinlein and Philip K. Dick, Bester demonstrated that science-fiction was capable addressing serious themes in a mature, 'adult' fashion, far-removed from the rockets 'n' robots cliches which had, until then, typified most readers' perceptions of the genre.

The Australian illustrator, Stanley Pitt, for his part, is held in equally high esteem for his breathtaking artwork on the comic strips, Silver Starr in the Flameworld, followed by Captain Power, both of which debuted in Australian newspapers in the mid-to-late 1940s.

While firmly rooted in the 'space opera' traditions of pulp science-fiction writing, both these comics showcased Pitt's sumptuous style, which caused more than a few critics to remark that Pitt, more than anyone, was the true artistic successor of Alex Raymond, the creator of Flash Gordon.

While the works of Alfred Bester and Stanly Pitt may, artistically-speaking, seem to have little in common, it was the single-minded passion of Stan's younger brother, the writer & illustrator, Reg Pitt, who helped bring these talents together in an ambitious project to adapt Bester's novel, The Stars My Destination, into a newspaper comic strip.

The saga behind the Pitt brothers' comic strip project, titled Gully Foyle, is as compelling as the book upon which it was based. Now you can discover the true story behind this long-lost work, by reading my exclusive feature story, Gully Foyle: The Best Science-Fiction Comic You'll Never Read. (Gully Foyle cover image courtesy of Richard Rae.)