The Wonder Stories series of titles were founded by Hugo Gernsback, who is credited with creating the first magazine entirely devoted to science-fiction, "Amazing Stories" first published April 1926. Unfortunately, three years later Gernsback's publishing company was forced into bankruptcy, and he lost control of the title.
Undaunted, Gernsback soon published three new pulp magazines: Air Wonder Stories, Science Wonder Stories and Science Wonder Quarterly.
Before he launched, Gernsback mailed letters announcing the new magazines. The lists he used bore an uncanny resemblance to the subscription lists of Amazing Stories, which due to the bankruptcy were no longer his property!
Over the next seven years Gernsback's Wonder Stories appeared in various guises, but always with his claim that the reading of science fiction held great educational benefits giving "the pupil a fundamental knowledge of science and aviation."
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The first edition of Air Wonder Stories followed hot on the heels of Science Wonder Stories.
The July issue making it to the newsstands 5 June 1929. Again Hugh Gernsback was the editor-in-chief and David Lasser the editor.
Lasser appears to have been given the job by Gernsback mainly due to his degree from MIT, as he had no editing experience and also no prior interest in science fiction.
The title would run for eleven issues before the merger with Science Wonder Stories.
Apparently not content with his monthly issues of Science and Air Wonder Stories, Hugh Gernsback very quickly launched Science Wonder Quarterly. The first issue was published in the Fall of 1929.
This quarterly companion only ran for 3 issues due to the merger of monthly Science Wonder and Air Wonder titles.
But, it would continue under the new name of Wonder Stories Quarterly.
Wonder Stories began its run in June 1930, the result of merging two titles Science Wonder Stories and Air Wonder Stories.
Although the reason for this amalgamation is uncertain, it was probably due to a variety of reasons:
• The owner Hugo Gernsback needed to create space for a new title Aviation Mechanics magazine
• Poor sales of both titles led to a need for an economy scale
• Air Wonder Stories was too small a niche genre
• Science Wonder Stories implied a "scientific periodical rather than a fiction magazine"
In 1936 Gernsback sold Wonder Stories to Ned Pines, who renamed it Thrilling Wonder Stories. This title then ran for nearly twenty years until the final issue at the end of 1955.
After merging the monthly Air and Science Wonder Stories into Wonder Stories, quite logically Hugo Gernsback also renamed Science Wonder Stories Quarterly to Wonder Stories Quarterly. There was no Air Wonder equivalent.
The title lasted eleven issues, but was scrapped early in 1933.
David Lasser was the editor of all the Wonder titles, but in July 1933 Gernsback "let him go". Lasser was replaced as editor by a 17 year old rookie, Charles Hornig. He had just the one Wonder Stories title to manage, but especially considering his age he did a great job!
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The Wonder Stories series of titles were founded by Hugo Gernsback, who is credited with creating the first magazine entirely devoted to science-fiction, "Amazing Stories" first published April 1926. Unfortunately, three years later Gernsback's publishing company was forced into bankruptcy, and he lost control of the title.
