Robert Bloch - Atoms and Evil

[sean]

First published 1962.

Corgi edition from 1977:

BLURB:

THIRTEEN TALL TALES OF CHILLING POSSIBILTY

We have heard about E.S.P. but the clash of a sceptical physical scientist and the psychic-sensetive admirer of his ugly daughter in Try This for Psis will exceed the most dreadful suspicions...

We have read of psychiatric methods, but Comfort Me, My Robot shows what might happen when psychotherapy is administered by and Adjustor...

We are accustomed to the visits of foreign ambassadors, but Block that Metaphor concerns a bizarre visitor with alien thought processes...

In Wheel and Deal the products on offer are 'Okay Used Females, One Owner' - part of the auto-erotic industry...

These and other disturbing fantasies await discovery in this mind-bending collection by Robert Bloch, inventor of a thousand possible tomorrows.


"Mincing daintily on thin legs, the White Rabbit scampered among the bodies..."
-R.B

A good solid collection, with perhaps more of a leaning towards SF than some of Bloch's other books. All the stories (with one exception from 1948) are the product of the 1950's, which is clear due to the cautionary nature of several of the stories concerned with individualism, intellectuallism and the Red Threat. Some great tales to be found here, all containing the humour and twists that Bloch is known for.

Try this for Psis
A psychic gets involved with the daughter of a scientist who is hell-bent on disproving the existance of all things ESP related. The resulting demonstration of the psychic's powers quickly degenerates into a drunken farce.

Comfort Me, My Robot
The role of psychiatrists is now taken by Adjustors, who work along the lines of allowing their patients to use robots in releasing tensions in carefully planned 'psycho-dramas' - for instance a man may relieve all his tension by murdering a robotic double of his wife.

Of course, this being Bloch, everything goes horribly wrong.

Talent
A mysterious orphan has an amazing talent for mimicry, especially when he takes his subjects from the silver screen. He is suspected of several film related deaths, but nothing too terrible occurs until he sees his first SF monster movie...

Great fun, this one.

The Professor Plays It Square
A professor and his assistant con a couple of card sharps using extra sensory powers.

Block That Metaphor
An alien ambassador, devoid of emotion and prone to take things literally, causes the innocent comment 'I wish I had her fingers' (directed towards a pianist) to have unpleasant consequences.

Nice and nasty.

Wheel and Deal
Robot ladies sold in an enviroment much like a used car lot. Plenty of rather lame jokes about bodywork and the like. A much better look at the love/ automobiles/women area can be found in Charles Beaumont's 'A Classic Affair'... but hell, there's room for both!

You Got To Have Brains
A lone nutter is building a spacecraft in an attic. It becomes apparent that you need brains to figure out how to power it. Literally.

You Could Be Wrong
Harry Jassop is becoming more and more aware about the non-reality of things he had presumed solid. From scripted quiz shows to presidential speeches, to news stories - and eventually his own surroundings and the people around him...

This is my favourite story from this collection. The moment where Harry snaps and stabs a friend in the head is great. He sees nothing but cog-wheels and sawdust inside... or does he?

Egghead
A 'jock' goes undercover to infiltrate objectionable elements in his college. Very 50's, very pointed.

Dead-end Doctor
Starts off with a play on what is reputedly one of the shortest SF stories ever written* and goes on to tell the tale of the last psychiatrist, who finds a new lease of life treating malajusted robots.

*It goes something like this: "The last man on Earth sat alone in his room. There was a knock at the door."
Another even shorter one is "...and the sun set slowly in the East..."

Change of Heart
A short shap traditional horror story. A man falls in love with a watchmakers daughter. After a brush with death, there is something different about her. Her heart ticks.

Edifice Complex
A rather naughty space pilot picks up a young lady and ventures to a planet where he happens to know that the natives pay in diamonds in return for sacrificial victims. Once there, they see only what appear to be empty huts, but the pilot still goes along with his plan, only to find he had got several of the details very wrong indeed.

Constant Reader
An entire planet is conscious, and defends itself by bringing to life various characters from some books onboard the spacecraft that lands on it.

Quite similar to an episode of the original 'Star Trek' series, this one.

[dem]

I'm surprised Almost Human and Girl From Mars didn't make it into this one as they always struck me as two of his most effective SF/ Horror cross-overs. Likewise:

Talent: (If, July 1960) Life's but a walking shadow - says the bard - but this Player was heard forever! Told in pseudo-documentary style. Orphaned Andrew Benson is the greatest mimic this world has ever known. His passion is the cinema and he can impersonate every actor or actress he's ever seen - even taking on their facial likeness - although his preference is for villains and monsters: Jack Palance in The Man In The Attic, the Bela Lugosi Dracula, Lon Chaney jr. in The Wolfman, all things Peter Lorre. By some strange coincidence, he's always there or thereabouts whenever a particularly grisly murder has been perpetuated ....

I don't like the ending much but it's great fun getting there.

Egghead: (Fantastic Universe, July 1958). Proof that Bloch could do thoughtful, angry and even dispense with the tiresome 'witty' pun endings when he was of a mind to. First published in 1958 and set ten years in the future. Dick reckons he should be in the running for College President after his brave infiltration of Professor Gotkin's motley collection of beatniks and non-conformists, rebels against the sterile consumer society for which they've been conditioned. The gallant Dick prefers to call them by the Government-approved terminology. "Eggheads .... Communists ... Traitors ..." Thanks to his commendable efforts, these despicable subversives are easily rounded up and imprisoned.

[allthingshorror]

1962 (Fawcett Gold Medal)


The Corgi cover is again by John Holmes.

[dem]

John Holmes

Prompted by Nigel Taylor's excellent article, Bloch Universe, in Paperback Fanatic #35, figured it was time to give Atoms & Evil another go. As mentioned, on first acquaintance it did very little for me, but that was many moons ago, tastes change, etc. Two stories in, pretty much as I suspected. Sci-fantasy/ satire played for laughs.

Try This for Psis: (MFSF Oct. 1956). Dr. Angus Welk, masterbrain Uni professor, is a confirmed sceptic in all things paranormal, so it really won't do when Nora, his allegedly "ugly" daughter ("But in an era which bows down before the busts of Monroe, Loren, Lollobrigida and Ekberg, she possessed certain other attributes which might be considered outstanding."), falls for Frank Tallent, the most gifted of Professor Seine's psychics. To complicate matters further, the professor has volunteered Frank to demonstrate his abilities in Welk's laboratory. Can Frank bring himself to deliberately blow the challenge? Has Nora a secret plan? Will true love conquer all?

Wheel And Deal: It is THE FUTURE, as usual. The world's population has been conveniently pruned by two-thirds due to war, and man has belatedly come to realise that auto-mobiles ain't such hot shit after all. What he should have been manufacturing all these years is designer women, tailored to satisfy each customer's unique specification. Happy Harrigan, self-styled 'King of the Auto-Erotics' is doing very nicely out of the industry, thank you.

[dem]

You Got to Have Brains: (Fantastic Universe, Jan. 1956). They call him 'Mr. Goofy' on account of his eccentricities which include lugging around stray pieces of scrap iron and pondering brainy mathematical equations. Even Stakowsky the landlord is wary of the puny little boffin on account of Mr. Goofy pulling a massive chiv on him when he tried to bully him in a drinking den. One night Mr. Goofy confides his secret to Jack the barman. He's constructed the world's first brain-powered spaceship and will be shortly leaving for the moon.

Dead-End Doctor: (Galaxy, Feb. 1956). Dr. Howard Anson is the last psychiatrist in a world which no longer requires his specialist knowledge. Like the majority of the human race, he is as good as obsolete. Robots man the armed forces, robots clock in at the factories, robots perform all the household chores. Why would the lovely Sue want to marry a man with no purpose in life? Just when all seems lost, a mechanical man undergoes a psychotic episode and trash-cans a number of his colleagues. Dr. Anson is back in business!

[dem]

You Could Be Wrong: (Amazing Stories, March 1955). While Harry Jessop was away doing his patriotic duty, somebody eradicated the America he knew and loved, replaced it with a cheap knock off. Everywhere he looks he finds evidence of this elaborate fraud. His wife, Marge, tactfully suggests he see a doctor, but then she would say that seeing she's as phoney as the rest. Likewise, once-buddy, Ed 'I'm your pal' Myers, is such a blatantly inferior replica of the man he knew, Harry wonders how the louse has the nerve to call around. Have the Government tested some kind of smart bomb on their own people? Is it them Commies? He can't rule out an alien invasion. It's enough to make a man take up arms ....

Change of Heart: (Arkham Sampler, Autumn 1948). Ulrich Krumm, a clockmaker of genius escaped war-torn Europe to start over in New York. The old man is alone in the world save for Lisa, his obligatory beautiful daughter, who he jealously guards from the society of even the most well intentioned of men. Men like Dane. Lisa loves Dane but rejects his marriage proposal out of loyalty to her father. She implores him to wait, Ulrich won't last forever, but Dane accepts a promotion and ups sticks to Detroit. He continues to write her, but Lisa never replies. When the whisper reaches him of her death, Dane returns to NY to discover that the rumour wasn't strictly 100% accurate .... Well told, but another case of if you've not guessed the ending within the opening paragraphs, you've not read enough of this junk.

Edifice Complex: (Escapade, Feb. 1958). Wayne, a deeply unpleasant individual, has learned of a diamond mine within a curious, elongated brown hut on Vergia IV. All that stands between him and incalculable wealth are a mysterious cannibal clan rumoured to keep vigil over this man-trap. Wayne needs to lay on a distraction. To this end, he waylays a drugged-out good time girl to keep the natives amused while he get his hands on those lovely sparklers! Unfortunately for him, the hut is not what it seems. Revived by Hugh Lamb in Star Book Of Horror 2.

[dem]

W. E. Terry

Comfort Me, My Robot: (Imagination, Jan. 1955). In a few centuries a man may solve his marriage difficulties simply - via homicide! It is the future as usual. Psychiatrists have been replaced by 'Adjustors,' and murder within marriage is virtually unheard of. Should either party feel aggrieved, they simply take out their frustration on a cloned replica of their partner, leaving the flesh and blood original unharmed. These 'psychodramas' have saved many an adulterer's life - before an Adjuster with a roving eye embarks on a fling with client Henson's wife ...


The Professor Plays It Square: (Argosy, Sept. 1957, as The Egghead Plays It Square). On his first visit to the Cash Inn, bent poker players Bugsy Roach and Knuckle-Nose Mahoney clean out Professor Ladislaus Glockenspiel of Parnell Uni for his $11,000 savings. Alas for them, that initial loss is part of the old shrewdie's brilliant strategy to raise funds for his parapsychology department. On his next visit he brings along the star pupil.

Dead-End Doctor: (Galaxy, Feb. 1956). The rise of the robot spells the end of the psychiatrist, leaving Dr. Howard Anson in a bind. He'll not apply for a permanent with Sue Porter unless he can find a purpose in life; the prospect of accepting a vice presidency of something from her loaded old man is not an option. Fortunately, a robot working on her father's space project malfunctions, attacks its fellow automatons with an axe. Anson now has his function, and Bloch, his punning punchline.

[dem]

Constant Reader: (Universe Science Fiction, June 1953). Dale liked to read, so he brought along books - nice, safe books. A sentient, shape-shifting planet repels invaders from Earth by drawing inspiration from reading matter brought along by one of the crew. Consequently, the astronauts are picked off by Lilliputians, Cyclops and certain inhabitants of Wonderland (again). It's the tiniest consolation, but their horrible fate could have been even grislier had Dale been a fan of Poe or Lovecraft.

Block That Metaphor: (Galaxy, Oct. 1958). In dealing with Mechs, "Guard your tongue" was the worst advice - they would obligingly guard it for you!. Unfailingly courteous extra-terrestrial Vorm arrives on Earth to sign a trade deal amidst angry anti-robot protests. Vorm is a synthetic-human-mechanical hybrid with a variety of snazzy nasal attachments to befit every conceivable occasion, peaceful or hostile. One has to be careful what they say around Vorm as his are a humourless people who take everything literally. Such, tragically, is the case when Borden the diplomat makes a complimentary remark about girlfriend Margaret's piano playing.

[andydecker]

Nice illustration work. Thanks for sharing. A reminder of a sadly dead era.

In the past I never did like the SF-Bloch or the parodistic Bloch. I know this type of story has a lot of fans, but to make fun of sf is like shooting fish in a barrel. I avoid it if I can. Maybe this is the reason I was so surprised when his early serious work was kind of rediscovered by Chaosium and others.

Now on re-reading above I guess I have to think about it. I mean, all (or most) of his movie-work for Amicus was very tongue in cheek, which was a big part of its appeal.

[dem]

Jan 21, 2020 19:47:51 GMT andydecker said:

In the past I never did like the SF-Bloch or the parodistic Bloch. I know this type of story has a lot of fans, but to make fun of sf is like shooting fish in a barrel. I avoid it if I can. Maybe this is the reason I was so surprised when his early serious work was kind of rediscovered by Chaosium and others.

Now on re-reading above I guess I have to think about it. I mean, all (or most) of his movie-work for Amicus was very tongue in cheek, which was a big part of its appeal.

I'm not sure he's "making fun" of SF, certainly no more so than he often did horror. Egghead, in particular, strikes me as very sombre. Atoms & Evil is not my pick of the Bloch short story selections, but I enjoyed it more than anticipated. Many are horror/ murder/ crime stories given an SF makeover. Block that Metaphor is a grisly conte cruel. You Could be Wrong features yet another of his beloved psycho's. You Got to Have Brains sees a bullying landlord messily deprived of his. It's not all blood and guts. Professor Plays it Square, for example, turns the table on two career cardsharps, while Dead-End Doctor is essentially a sweet little love story - admittedly with added renegade robot.