 Although science fiction ( sf ) had been published before the 1920s , it did not begin to <unk> into a separately marketed genre until the appearance in 1926 of Amazing Stories , a pulp magazine published by Hugo <unk> . After 1931 , when Miracle Science and Fantasy Stories was launched , no new science fiction magazines appeared for several years . In 1934 a science fiction comic strip following the adventures of superhero Flash Gordon appeared in newspapers and quickly became popular . In 1936 the strip spawned a movie serial in thirteen parts , also titled Flash Gordon . Late that year Harold Hersey , an experienced pulp magazine editor and publisher , decided to launch three new magazines based on comics . The first two were titled Dan Dunn Detective Magazine and <unk> Tommy Air Adventure Magazine ; these were launched in September and October 1936 respectively . The third was Flash Gordon Strange Adventures Magazine , which saw a single issue , dated December 1936 ; it was copyrighted by both Hersey and King Features , the syndicate that owned the copyright to Flash Gordon . Dan Dunn and <unk> Tommy produced one more issue each before Hersey closed down the venture . It is not known why only one issue of Flash Gordon Strange Adventure Magazine appeared ; poor sales figures from the other magazines may have been responsible , or Hersey may simply have run out of money , or possibly King Features , the owner of the copyright to Flash Gordon , only granted rights to Hersey for one issue , and withdrew from the venture after the first issue appeared . <unk> historian Everett Bleiler notes that Hersey did not mention the venture in his autobiographical <unk> Editor , published a year later , and adds that " given Hersey 's usual attempts to glorify himself and to <unk> his failures , this silence suggests a <unk> larger than usual " . 
