How to Be a Buck Rogers Fan

Buck Rogers first appeared as the hero of two novellas written by Phillip Francis Nowlan early in the twentieth century, but branched out into a radio serial, comic strip and television show. The original works generated public interest in science fiction and space exploration. Follow these steps to be a true Buck Rogers fan.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Read the stories that began the epic. "Amazing Stories" magazine first published the novellas by Phillip Francis Nowlan. "Armageddon 2419 A.D." was published in August of 1928 and "The Airlords of Han" was published in March of 1929. These stories are now available in "Wings Over Tomorrow: The Collected Science Fiction of Phillip Francis Nowlan" published by Wildside Press. You can buy these from Amazon.
2. Collect the comic strip. In 1929, John Flint Dille, the president of the National Newspaper Service Syndicate commissioned Phillip Francis Nowlan to create a comic strip with artist Richard Calkins. The comic strip was published in more than 400 newspapers at one point in time and ran consecutively from 1929 until 1967. There are a few newspapers that still publish new Buck Rogers strips.
3. Listen to the Buck Rogers radio series. Buck Rogers expanded his fan base with a radio series that began in 1932. The series was aired four times per week and was on the air until 1947. You can listen to the series on the Buck Rogers website.
4. Watch the television series. The Buck Rogers website offers a DVD collection of the television series that aired from 1979 to 1981. The collection from Universal Studios is called "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: The Complete Epic Series."
5. Become a die-hard fan. The Buck Rogers phenomenon has covered almost all areas of the media. If you want to be a die-hard fan you need to research the early eras and collect memorabilia. One little known fact is that the first artist to draw Buck Rogers was Frank R. Paul who did the artwork for "Amazing Stories."