The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast - Vintage Sci-Fi Short Stories

For one hundred and fifty years, Columbus Norton has lived untouched by disease while the world outside studies him like a miracle trapped behind glass. But when a single visitor awakens a longing no experiment can control, the man who helped humanity live longer must decide whether freedom is worth dying for. The Incubator Man by Wallace West. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Andrew sent us an email recently: “Loving all the new stories. I’ve noticed there’s been a new episode every day for the last several weeks. Please keep it up!” Thanks for noticing, Andrew. Our goal is to keep releasing a brand-new story every day for as long as possible.If you have requests, comments, or suggestions, we’d love to hear from you. Send an email to scott@lostscifi.com.This is the first time we’ve featured a story by author Wallace West. Wallace George West was born in Walnut Hills, Kentucky, in 1900. Between 1927 and 1967 he published more than 60 short stories and four novels.Today’s story was only his second published work. It appeared in Weird Tales magazine in October 1928 on page 535, The Incubator Man by Wallace West…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Factory workers race to meet impossible wartime production demands while hidden enemies move through the endless machinery of a spinning city in space. One man notices a detail no one else catches, and suddenly millions of lives depend on whether he acts before the shift ends. Factory In The Sky by Basil Wells.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

A lawman tracks a violent fugitive to a forgotten planet where no court can reach them and no backup will ever arrive. When the outlaw realizes the detective has no intention of dragging him home, he faces a punishment far worse than a prison cell. Star Chamber by H. B. Fyfe. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Did you know we take requests? If there is ever a story you would like to hear send us an email. We take requests and are always happy to hear from you, send your email to scott@lostscifi.com.Author H. B. Fyfe has been on the podcast only once previously with, Fee of the Frontier, episode #26 which was released on July 19th, 2022. Open your copy of Amazing Stories for March 1963 to page 114, Star Chamber by H. B. Fyfe…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, For one hundred and fifty years, Columbus Norton has lived untouched by disease while the world outside studies him like a miracle trapped behind glass. But when a single visitor awakens a longing no experiment can control, the man who helped humanity live longer must decide whether freedom is worth dying for. The Incubator Man by Wallace West.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

A desperate young executive discovers that his office safe has become a doorway to the future, and every exchange leaves him richer than before. But when impossible money starts circulating through New York banks, Peter Merton realizes the people on the other side may not care what happens to him once their experiment is finished. Peter Merton’s Private Mint by Harlan Ellison. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.You can never have enough Harlan Ellison. Unfortunately, very few of his stories have entered the public domain, and after today’s episode there is only one more Ellison story left for us to feature. You’ll hear that final story in the coming weeks.If you went searching for a Harlan Ellison story in the October 1956 issue of Fantastic, you wouldn’t find one. Unless, of course, you knew that Ellison sometimes used the pen name Lee Archer. Open your copy of Fantastic to page 74, Peter Merton’s Private Mint by Harlan Ellison…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, A lonely wanderer escapes years of darkness and silence only to find that the world beyond his refuge recoils from him in terror. Every step toward warmth and companionship pulls him closer to a revelation that no living soul could endure unchanged. The Outsider by H. P. Lovecraft.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

Quintus Maugham built a machine meant to serve him perfectly, but each improvement left him more uneasy in his own home. When a robot begins answering commands in ways its inventor never intended, one man must decide whether he created a servant—or surrendered something far more dangerous. The Maugham Obsession by August Derleth. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.August Derleth has appeared on the podcast twice before, first with “Birkett’s Twelfth Corpse,” followed by “A Traveler in Time.”Today’s story first appeared in the June-July issue of Fantastic Universe in 1953 on page 107, The Maugham Obsession by August Derleth…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, A desperate young executive discovers that his office safe has become a doorway to the future, and every exchange leaves him richer than before. But when impossible money starts circulating through New York banks, Peter Merton realizes the people on the other side may not care what happens to him once their experiment is finished. Peter Merton’s Private Mint by Harlan Ellison.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

The last great city on Earth lives for one purpose: building whatever forgotten machines can still be reconstructed from the ruins of a dead world. When a Research Builder uncovers a mysterious diagram unlike anything ever found before, one reckless decision threatens to repeat the catastrophe that destroyed civilization the first time. The Builders by Fox B. Holden. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.This is the first time we’ve featured a story by Fox B. Holden. He was born in Rochester, New York, in 1923, and like many science fiction fans of his era, he eventually decided to try writing stories of his own.Between 1945 and 1956, nineteen of his stories appeared in a variety of science fiction magazines.From Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy in February 1951 on page 128, The Builders by Fox B. Holden.…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, Quintus Maugham built a machine meant to serve him perfectly, but each improvement left him more uneasy in his own home. When a robot begins answering commands in ways its inventor never intended, one man must decide whether he created a servant—or surrendered something far more dangerous. The Maugham Obsession by August Derleth.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

A routine military assignment drops Hannibal Pryor onto a forgotten world where the people have built a life no crowded empire could understand. With a planet-killing weapon already on its way, Pryor must decide whether duty still matters when the price is an entire civilization. Testing by Sam Merwin Jr. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Yesterday The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast became the #1 science fiction podcast in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 36th country where we hit #1. Today we moved to the top of the charts in Brazil! That’s country #37!Thank you to our new and long time listeners in Brazil, and all of you around the world for everything you do to support us.We enjoy narrating stories by Sam Merwin Jr., so he’s back, with a story from March 1956. Published on page 110 in Fantastic Universe Magazine, Testing by Sam Merwin Jr.…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, The last great city on Earth lives for one purpose: building whatever forgotten machines can still be reconstructed from the ruins of a dead world. When a Research Builder uncovers a mysterious diagram unlike anything ever found before, one reckless decision threatens to repeat the catastrophe that destroyed civilization the first time. The Builders by Fox B. Holden.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

The first photographs taken on Jupiter reveal towering shapes that watch the explorers’ ship through the mist. Inside the sealed cabin, the crew realizes too late that the creatures outside already know they are there. The Vibration Wasps by Frank Belknap Long. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.Thanks to our listeners in Bosnia and Herzegovina for making The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast the #1 science fiction podcast in your country!That makes 36 countries where we’ve reached #1. We’re incredibly grateful for you and every listener around the world who presses play, shares the show, and keeps vintage science fiction alive. You made this possible, and we can’t thank you enough for your support.If you are Lost Sci-Fi Premium member we will have two episodes for you tomorrow. Our Premium members listen to every story with no commercials and get exclusive bonus episodes too, all for less than 17 cents a day. Get the details at https://lostscifi.com/premium or click on the link in the description.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/Our story two days ago, Message from Venus by Russ Winterbotham came from the short lived sci-fi magazine Comet, in January 1941. Today’s story was in that same publication on page 82, The Vibration Wasps by Frank Belknap Long…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, A routine military assignment drops Hannibal Pryor onto a forgotten world where the people have built a life no crowded empire could understand. With a planet-killing weapon already on its way, Pryor must decide whether duty still matters when the price is an entire civilization. Testing by Sam Merwin Jr.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener

A reporter spends ten years chasing evidence that certain men do not stay dead, only to discover that every attempt to expose them pushes him closer to losing his own mind. When the last piece of proof vanishes before his eyes, Dane Phillips faces a far worse possibility than failure. Dead Ringer by Lester Del Rey. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast continues to grow rapidly thanks to you. Sharing the podcast with your friends, leaving 5 star ratings on Spotify and Apple Podcasts are just a few of the ways you continue to help us grow like never before. We recently hit #2 in Sweden, #4 in the UK and #6 in the US which are the highest ranking we have ever achieved in those countries.Thank you! We have narrated one great sci-fi story after another written by Lester Del Rey. And there are more to come. Today’s tale was published in Galaxy Science Fiction in November 1956 on page 36, Dead Ringer by Lester Del Rey…Next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, The first photographs taken on Jupiter reveal towering shapes that watch the explorers’ ship through the mist. Inside the sealed cabin, the crew realizes too late that the creatures outside already know they are there. The Vibration Wasps by Frank Belknap Long.👉 💎 Lost Sci-Fi Premium - https://lostscifi.supercast.com/☕ Buy Me a Coffee - https://lostscifi.com/coffee===========================🎧 Newsletter - https://lostscifi.com/free/Facebook - https://lostscifi.com/facebookYouTube - https://lostscifi.com/youtubeX - http://Lostscifi.com/xInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostscifiguyBluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/lostscifipodcast.bsky.social👕 Merchandise - https://lostscifi.creator-spring.com/===========================❤️ ❤️ Thanks to Our Listeners Who Bought Us a Coffee$200 Someone$100 Tony from the Future$75 James Van Maanenberg$50 MizzBassie, Anonymous Listener$25 Fintan Quigley, Curious Jon, David Bell, Steve, Miriam, Someone, Someone, Eaten by a Grue, Jeff Lussenden, Fred Sieber, Anne, Craig Hamilton, Dave Wiseman, Bromite Thrip, Marwin de Haan, Future Space Engineer, Fressie, Kevin Eckert, Stephen Kagan, James Van Maanenberg, Irma Stolfo, Josh Jennings, Leber8tr, Conrad Chaffee, Anonymous Listener$15 Every Month Someone$15 Steve, Someone, SueTheLibrarian, Joannie West, Amy Özkan, Someone, Carolyn Guthleben, Patrick McLendon, Curious Jon, Buz C., Fressie, Anonymous Listener$10 David, Anonymous Listener$5 Every Month Eaten by a Grue$5 Tammy, Owen, Bruce, Someone, TLD, David, Denis Kalinin, Timothy Buckley, Andre'a, Martin Brown, Ron McFarlan, Tif Love, Chrystene, Richard Hoffman, Anonymous Listener