“Ah, what a declining era,” sighed Pendragon, “wherein breasts are more important than magic.”
“Breasts have always been more important than magic,” said Vampirella.
Such were the sarcastic-but-technically-true words of author Ron Goulart in the 1976 novel Vampirella: Deadwalk, one of the many horror, science fiction, fantasy, and pulp novels he penned during his long career; the sci-fi comic strip Star Hawks (cocreated with artist Gil Kane), William Shatner’s TekWar novels (which Goulart ghostwrote), and the nonfiction history The Great Comic Book Artists are just three of his best-known projects.
Goulart passed away at the age of 89 on January 14 in Ridgefield, Connecticut, but I didn’t learn of it until the New York Times published a lengthy obituary this past Friday.
In my own nonfiction history From the Stars…a Vampiress: An Unauthorized Guide to Vampirella’s Classic Horror Adventures (published by StarWarp Concepts), I devoted a chapter to examining the six Vampirella novels he wrote in the 1970s: Bloodstalk, On Alien Wings, Deadwalk, Blood Wedding, Deathgame, and Snakegod.
They were fast-paced, enjoyable adventures that adapted comic stories originally written by Archie Goodwin, T. Casey Brennan, and Flaxman Loew, expanded upon and heavily flavored with the style of pulp writing that Goulart excelled in, with Vampi a worldly, tough-as-nails leading lady who was more than a match for every villain she faced. Unfortunately, the books have been out of print since then, so you’ll have to track down copies online if you want to check them out.
Safe journeys, Mr. Goulart, and thanks for all the wonderful work!
