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{{short description|1950s US science fiction magazine}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}

{{Infobox magazine
| title = Infinity Science Fiction
| image_file = Infinitysf.jpg
| image_caption = Cover of the first issue; artwork by Robert Engle
| firstdate = {{Start date and age|1955|11}}
| finaldate = {{End date|1958|11}}
| country = United States
| editor = [[Larry T. Shaw]]
| publisher = Royal Publications
| language = English
|image_alt = A veiled woman holding hands with an alien}}

'''''Infinity Science Fiction''''' was an American [[science fiction magazine]], edited by [[Larry T. Shaw]], and published by Royal Publications. The first issue, which appeared in November 1955, included [[Arthur C. Clarke]]'s "[[The Star (Clarke short story)|The Star]]", a story about a planet destroyed by a [[nova]] (an exploding star) that turns out to have been the [[Star of Bethlehem]]; it won the [[Hugo Award for Best Short Story|Hugo Award]] for that year. Shaw obtained stories from some of the leading writers of the day, including [[Brian Aldiss]], [[Isaac Asimov]], and [[Robert Sheckley]], but the material was of variable quality. In 1958 [[Irwin Stein]], the owner of Royal Publications, decided to shut down ''Infinity''; the last issue was dated November 1958.

The title was revived a decade later by Stein's publishing house, [[Lancer Books]], as a paperback anthology series. Five volumes were published between 1970 and 1973, edited by [[Robert Hoskins]]; a sixth was prepared but withdrawn after Lancer ran into financial problems at the end of 1973.

==Publication history==

American science fiction (sf) magazines first appeared in the 1920s with the launch of ''[[Amazing Stories]]'', a [[pulp magazine]] published by [[Hugo Gernsback]].<ref>Stableford (1993), pp. 25–26.</ref> The beginnings of science fiction as a separately marketed genre can be traced to this time,<ref>Nicholls & Clute (1993), pp. 483–484.</ref> and by the end of the 1930s the field was undergoing its first boom. World War II and its attendant paper shortages led to the demise of several titles,<ref name=":5">Edwards & Nicholls (1993), pp. 1066–1069.</ref> but by the late 1940s the market began to recover.<ref name=":5" /> From a low of eight active magazines in 1946, the field expanded to twenty in 1950, and dozens more commenced publication over the next decade.<ref name="AshleyV3_323">Magazine publishing dates for the period are tabulated in Ashley, ''History of the Science Fiction Magazine Vol. 3'', pp. 323–325.</ref> ''Infinity Science Fiction'' was launched in the middle of this publishing boom.<ref name=":0">Ashley (2005), pp. 73–74.</ref>

In 1954, Irwin and Helen Stein started a publishing company, Royal Publications, and launched two magazines, ''Celebrity'' and ''Our Life'', edited by [[Larry Shaw (editor)|Larry Shaw]]. Shaw left to edit a [[Hot rod|hot-rod]] magazine; when they started ''Infinity'' the following year he returned to Royal to become the editor. The first issue of ''Infinity'' was on newsstands in September 1955, with a November cover date.<ref name=":0" /> The Steins also launched ''Suspect Detective Stories'', a crime magazine, the same month, and gave it to Shaw to edit, but converted it to science fiction after five issues, retitling it ''[[Science Fiction Adventures (1956 magazine)|Science Fiction Adventures]]''.<ref>Ashley (2005), p. 165.</ref>

At the end of the 1950s, Irwin Stein decided to start two media-related magazines, ''Monster Parade'' and ''Monsters and Things'', to take advantage of the new interest in horror and science fiction movies.<ref name=":1">Ashley (2005), pp. 186–187.</ref> ''Science Fiction Adventures'', which had been suffering from poor sales, was cancelled; the last issue was dated June 1958, and ''Infinity''<nowiki/>'s last issue followed in November.<ref name=":1" /><ref>Ashley (2005), p. 330.</ref><ref>Ashley (2005), p. 338.</ref> To save money over the last two issues Stein made a deal to acquire some lower-priced material and took over story selection from Shaw.<ref name=":4" />

In 1961, Irwin Stein and [[Walter Zacharius]] founded Lancer Books,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Grimes|first=William|date=March 7, 2011|title=Walter Zacharius, Romance Publisher, Dies at 87|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/business/media/08zacharius.html|url-status=live|access-date=June 12, 2011|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150424014804/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/business/media/08zacharius.html}}</ref><ref name=":3">Ashley (2007), pp. 135–139.</ref> and in 1963 Shaw was hired to be Lancer's editor; he was replaced by Robert Hoskins in 1968.<ref name=":3" /> Hoskins tried to persuade Stein to restart ''Infinity'', but their financial projections implied it would require a circulation of 50,000 to be profitable; Stein thought this unlikely for a magazine but possible for a paperback anthology series. The first in the series, ''Infinity One'', appeared in January 1970, and four more appeared over the next three years, ending with ''Infinity Five'' in 1973. A sixth volume was prepared for publication but Lancer went bankrupt in November of that year.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6">Ashley (1985), pp. 789–790.</ref> The book was cancelled, and Hoskins returned the manuscripts to the authors.<ref name=":6" />

==Contents and reception==

[[File:Cover of Infinity Science Fiction February 1957.jpg|left|thumb|Cover of the February 1957 issue, by Ed Emshwiller|alt=Three people in a spaceship in zero gravity]]

Shaw knew the science fiction field well, and was friends with many established writers,<ref name=":8" /> so he was occasionally able to acquire good stories.<ref name=":0" /> The first issue included "[[The Star (Clarke short story)|The Star]]", by [[Arthur C. Clarke]], about a planet destroyed by a [[nova]] (an exploding star): the light from the nova was seen from Earth as the [[Star of Bethlehem]]. A sequel, by [[Betsy Curtis]], appeared in the June 1956 issue.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">Ashley (2005), p. 143.</ref> "The Star", which won the [[Hugo Award for Best Short Story|Hugo award]] for that year's best short story,<ref name=":0" /> had originally been submitted to ''[[The Observer]]'' in the UK for a short-story contest, but did not win any of the prizes.<ref name=":2" /> It was rejected by several publishers in the US before Shaw bought it; Clarke recorded that ''[[The Saturday Evening Post]]'' turned it down on the grounds that it was "blasphemous".<ref>McAleer (2013), p. 114.</ref>

[[Harlan Ellison]]'s first science fiction sale, "Glowworm", appeared in the second issue,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Clute|first=John|date=May 12, 2020|title=Authors : Ellison, Harlan : SFE : Science Fiction Encyclopedia|url=http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/ellison_harlan|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200814153708/http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/ellison_harlan|archive-date=August 14, 2020|access-date=June 12, 2020|website=sf-encyclopedia.com|publisher=Gollancz}}</ref> and Shaw was able to publish much early work by [[Robert Silverberg]].<ref name=":4" /> Notable stories included "Dio" by [[Damon Knight]]<ref name=":4" /> and "Who Can Replace a Man?" by [[Brian Aldiss]].<ref>Ashley (2005), p. 148.</ref> Shaw was able to obtain material by established writers such as [[Isaac Asimov]], [[Robert Sheckley]], [[Lester del Rey]], [[Algis Budrys]], and [[Jack Vance]], though in the opinion of science fiction historian Joseph Marchesani these stories were in many cases not among the authors' best work.<ref name=":4" /> Shaw was unhappy with the last two issues, for which Stein had taken over editorial duties, and Marchesani comments that the quality of those issues was "depressing to say the least".<ref name=":4" />

Knight provided a book review column,<ref name=":0" /> and a good deal of the material in his critical collection ''In Search of Wonder'' initially appeared in ''Infinity'';<ref name=":7">{{Cite web|last=Edwards|first=Malcolm|date=August 24, 2017|title=Culture : Infinity Science Fiction : SFE : Science Fiction Encyclopedia|url=http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/infinity_science_fiction|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200814080040/http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/infinity_science_fiction|archive-date=August 14, 2020|access-date=June 12, 2020|website=sf-encyclopedia.com|publisher=Gollancz}}</ref> Knight left to edit ''[[If (magazine)|If]]'' in 1958, and Silverberg took over the book reviews for the last three issues.<ref name=":4" /> Shaw also included a column titled "Fanfare" as a regular feature, which reprinted material from [[science-fiction fanzine]]s.<ref name=":4" /> The artwork for the first issue's cover was provided by Robert Engle, but all the remaining covers were painted by [[Ed Emshwiller]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Summary Bibliography: Robert Engle|url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?48081|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614163817/http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?48081|archive-date=June 14, 2020|access-date=June 14, 2020|website=www.isfdb.org}}</ref><ref>Weinberg (1988), p. 105.</ref>

The title page of the first anthology, ''Infinity One'', said it was "a magazine of [[speculative fiction]] in book form", but it did not include the nonfiction sections or review columns that appeared in most magazines, printing nothing but fiction and some brief introductory material.<ref name=":6" /> ''Infinity One'' reprinted Clarke's "The Star", but that was the only reprint Hoskins used in the series.<ref name=":3" /> The same volume included [[George Zebrowski]]'s first story, "The Water Sculptor of Station 233".<ref name=":6" /> Silverberg and [[Barry N. Malzberg|Barry Malzberg]] had stories in each of the five volumes, and other contributors included established names such as [[Poul Anderson]], [[Gordon R. Dickson]], and [[Clifford D. Simak]], along with newer writers such as [[Edward Bryant|Ed Bryant]] and [[Dean R. Koontz]].<ref name=":3" />

Assessments of ''Infinity'' by science fiction historians vary. [[Mike Ashley (writer)|Mike Ashley]] describes ''Infinity'' as "essentially an adventure magazine aiming at a juvenile readership",<ref>Ashley (2005), p. 162.</ref> and Marchesani calls Shaw "an editor of the middle echelon".<ref name=":4" /> Malcolm Edwards considers it "one of the most interesting of the flood of new sf magazines in the early and mid-1950s".<ref name=":7" /> In Edwards' opinion it became "one of the leading sf magazines of its period".<ref name=":8">Edwards (1981), p. 541.</ref> David Kyle describes it as "exceptional",<ref>Kyle (1977), p. 144.</ref> and writer and critic Algis Budrys calls ''Infinity'' "Larry Shaw's short-lived but immortal magazine".<ref>Budrys (1987), p. 23.</ref> Edwards assesses the anthology series as "competent but not outstanding".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Edwards|first=Malcolm|date=December 2, 2011|title=Culture : Infinity : SFE : Science Fiction Encyclopedia|url=http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/infinity|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614150311/http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/infinity|archive-date=June 14, 2020|access-date=June 14, 2020|website=sf-encyclopedia.com|publisher=Gollancz|ref=none}}</ref>

==Bibliographical details==

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:center; float:right; margin-left:1em;"
|+Issues of ''Infinity Science Fiction'' showing volume/issue number
|-
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Year
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Jan
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Feb
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Mar
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Apr
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | May
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Jun
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Jul
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Aug
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Sep
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Oct
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Nov
! scope="col" style="width: 2em;" | Dec
|-
! scope="row" | 1955
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1/1
|
|-
! scope="row" | 1956
|
| 1/2
|
|
|
| 1/3
|
| 1/4
|
| 1/5
|
| 1/6
|-
! scope="row" | 1957
|
| 2/1
|
| 2/2
|
| 2/3
| 2/4
|
| 2/5
| 2/6
| 3/1
|
|-
! scope="row" | 1958
| 3/2
|
| 3/3
| 3/4
|
| 3/5
|
| 3/6
|
| 4/1
| 4/2
|
|-
| colspan="13" style="font-size:90%; text-align:left;" | Larry Shaw was editor throughout.
|}

The magazine was published by Royal Publications, and was edited by Larry Shaw for all twenty issues. The first issue was dated November 1955; the schedule varied, with a bimonthly period from June 1956 to Jun 1957, followed by an attempt to keep to a six-weekly schedule for over a year. At the time it was cancelled in October 1958, Shaw was hoping to switch to a monthly schedule.<ref name=":4" />

The volume numbering was regular, three volumes of six numbers each and a final volume of two numbers.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Issue Grid: Infinity Science Fiction|url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/seriesgrid.cgi?20697|website=www.isfdb.org|publisher=Internet Speculative Fiction Database|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130225085421/http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/seriesgrid.cgi?20697|archive-date=February 25, 2013|access-date=May 25, 2020}}</ref> All issues were digest-sized, 128 pages, and priced at 35 cents.<ref name=":4">Marchesani (1985), pp. 352–355.</ref>

The anthology series were all edited by Robert Hoskins and appeared once each year from 1970 to 1973, except for 1972, during which ''Infinity Three'' and ''Infinity Four'' both appeared.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Summary Bibliography: Robert Hoskins|url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1248|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191216105039/http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1248|archive-date=December 16, 2019|access-date=June 12, 2020|website=www.isfdb.org|publisher=Internet Speculative Fiction Database}}</ref> The first anthology was priced at 75 cents; the remaining four were 95 cents.<ref name=":6" />

==See also==
* [[List of science fiction magazines]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book|last=Ashley|first=Michael|title=The History of the Science Fiction Magazine Vol. 3 1946–1955|publisher=Contemporary Books, Inc|year=1976|isbn=0-8092-7842-1|location=Chicago|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last=Ashley|first=Mike|title=Science Fiction, Fantasy and Weird Fiction Magazines|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=1985|isbn=0-313-21221-X|editor-last=Tymn|editor-first=Marshall B.|location=Westport, Connecticut|pages=789–790|chapter=Infinity|ref=none|editor-last2=Ashley|editor-first2=Mike}}
* {{cite book|last=Ashley|first=Mike|url=https://archive.org/details/transformationsv0000ashl|title=Transformations: The Story of the Science Fiction Magazines from 1950 to 1970|publisher=[[Liverpool University Press]]|year=2005|isbn=0-85323-779-4|location=Liverpool|ref=none|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book|last=Ashley|first=Mike|title=Gateways to Forever: The Story of the Science-Fiction Magazines from 1970 to 1980|publisher=[[Liverpool University Press]]|year=2007|isbn=978-1-84631-003-4|location=Liverpool|ref=none}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Budrys|first=Algis|date=March 1987|title=Books|journal=The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction|volume=72|issue=3|pages=14–20|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last=Edwards|first=Malcolm|title=The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction|publisher=Granada|year=1981|isbn=0-586-05380-8|editor-last=Nicholls|editor-first=Peter|location=St. Albans, UK|pages=541|chapter=Shaw, Larry T.|ref=none|orig-year=1979}}
* {{cite book|last1=Edwards|first1=Malcolm|title=The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction|last2=Nicholls|first2=Peter|publisher=St. Martin's Press|year=1993|isbn=0-312-09618-6|editor-last=Clute|editor-first=John|location=New York|pages=1066–1071|chapter=SF Magazines|ref=none|editor-last2=Nicholls|editor-first2=Peter}}
* {{cite book|last=Kyle|first=David|title=A Pictorial History of Science Fiction|publisher=Hamlyn|year=1977|isbn=0-600-38193-5|location=Feltham, UK|ref=none|orig-year=1976}}
* {{cite book|last=Marchesani|first=Joseph|title=Science Fiction, Fantasy and Weird Fiction Magazines|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=1985|isbn=0-313-21221-X|editor-last=Tymn|editor-first=Marshall B.|location=Westport, Connecticut|pages=352–355|chapter=Infinity Science Fiction|ref=none|editor-last2=Ashley|editor-first2=Mike}}
* {{cite book|last=McAleer|first=Neil|title=Sir Arthur C. Clarke: Odyssey of a Visionary|publisher=Rosetta|year=2013|isbn=978-0-8092-3720-3|location=New York|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last2=Clute|first2=John|title=The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction|publisher=St. Martin's Press|year=1993|isbn=0-312-09618-6|editor-last=Clute|editor-first=John|location=New York|pages=483–484|chapter=Genre SF|ref=none|editor-last2=Nicholls|editor-first2=Peter|last1=Nicholls|first1=Peter}}
* {{cite book|last=Stableford|first=Brian|title=The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction|publisher=St. Martin's Press|year=1993|isbn=0-312-09618-6|editor-last=Clute|editor-first=John|location=New York|pages=25–26|chapter=Amazing Stories|ref=none|editor-last2=Nicholls|editor-first2=Peter}}
* {{cite book|last=Weinberg|first=Robert|title=A Biographical Dictionary of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=1988|isbn=0-313-24349-2|editor-last=Weinberg|editor-first=Robert|location=Westport, Connecticut|pages=101–105|chapter=Emshwiller, Edmund Alexander|ref=none}}

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[[Category:Magazines established in 1955]]
[[Category:Magazines disestablished in 1958]]
[[Category:Defunct science fiction magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Science fiction magazines established in the 1950s]]
[[Category:1955 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Science fiction magazines]]

Infinity Science Fiction - Revision history

imported>Kku: link speculative fiction