Lost Transmissions: The Secret History of Science Fiction and Fantasy

Some interesting morsels are set in the matrix. This retrospective is divided by medium - books, movies, architecture, art and design, music, fashion, fandom/pop culture. Books and movies contain much more of lost works than the other areas, where, with the exception of games, it seems assumed that SFF aspects of the culture are created lost. I grew a bit tired of the main author's voice and her citing of her co-author. Also, the blatantly heterosexual fiction by women writers of the late-mid 20th century who have faded away don't rate any mention.

A surprisingly interesting look at the historical influences on the genre of science fiction. The book examines unpublished works, the influence on and of art, writing, film, music, design and gaming. The book features many wonderful images and interviews with writers and artists. A must for fans.

No matter your level of interest in sci-fi, you’ll find things to love in this expansive, generous book. Articles explore the hidden corners of sci-fi and expose its effects on the broader culture (and vice versa). And would it be crass to mention that it would make a great gift for someone who lives sci-fi? Well, it would.

Essays were grouped by media type, but they were pretty disjointed otherwise.

As somebody who doesn't listen to much mainstream music, essays about music you've never heard are pretty lame.

But I got a few recs out of it. Not bad, just not great.

FYI Review: This anthology contains the following and
contributors
- Foreword, Jeff Vandermeer
LITERATURE
- Kepler's Proto-Science Fiction Manuscript Somnium and Its Legal Consequences
- How Jules Verne's Worst Rejection Letter Shaped Science Fiction...for 150 Years
- Jane Webb Loudon's The Mumnyl: A Tale of the Twenty-Second Century,Christie Yant
- Early Feminist Utopias, from Gilman's Herland to Rokeya's Sultana's Dream
- The "Timeless Green Kingdoms" of George MacDonald
- Robert W. Chambers, Lesser-Known Father of Weird Fiction
- The Inklings: A Friendship that Changed Fantastic Literature Forever
- Henry Dumas's Foundational Afrofuturism, John Jennings
- The Author of the Narnia Books Worked on a Mega-Creepy Time Travel Story...Probably
- The show more Weird World of Marvyn Peake's Gormenghast
- The New Wave and New-Metal Men: The Almost Forgotten Brilliance of David R. Bunch
- The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe
- Harlan Ellison's Legendary Lost Anthology
- The Otherworldly Visions of Philip K. Dick
- The Empress of the Sensual: Kathy Acker, Nick Mamatas
- On Viriconium: Some Notes Toward an Introduction, Neil Gaiman
- The Salvage Yard: Real-Life Experiences Revisited in Science Fiction, Darran Anderson
- The Dark Fairy Tales of Angela Carter
- Funny Fantasy's Myth Conceptions, David Barr Kirtley
- It's a Man's, Man's, Man's Apocalypse, Grady Hendrix
- Foreword to John Shirley's City Come a-Walkin,William Gibson
- An Interview with John Shirley
- An Interview with Thomas Olde Heuvelt
- An Interview with Karen Joy Fowler
FILM AND TELEVISION
- Le Voyage dans la Lune, The First Science-Fiction Film Ever Made
- Metropolis: The Long Shadow of the Never Seen
- A Decidedly Un-Lucas-Like Production
- The Enduring Creations of Ralph McQuarrie
- The Death Star's Architect: Concept Artist John Berkey
- Stars Wars vs. Battlestar Galactica: The Legal Battle Over Space Opera's Look
- "The Spice Must Flow": Iterations of Dune
- "The Tourist": The Alien Sex Film Noir We Deserve
- The Unicorn-Like Creations of Moebius, Concept Artist, Meg Elison
- How WarGames Changed American Military Policy
- The Alien III(s) That Might Have Been
- Behold, the Science-Fiction Cosmic Horror of Phase IV, Paul Tremblay
- A Boy and His Goblin: E.T.'s Creepy Origin Story
- The Overlooked Genius of Space Island One, Charlie Jane Anders
- The (Very) Secret Adventures of Jules Verne, Emily Asher-Perrin
- James Cameron's Explorations of the Watery Depths On-Sceen and in Rel Life
ARCHITECTURE
- Hugh Ferriss: Draftsman, Theorist, Gotham Visionary
- Dreams in the Desert: The Utopian Vision of Paolo Soleri
- Reality Ahead of Schedule: The Designs of Syd Mead, Matthew Kressel
ART AND DESIGN
- Weird Tales Regular, Pulp Illustraator Virgil Finlay
- The Surrealist Stylists of Richard M. Powers, Stephen Sonneveld
- The Dreamy Atmospheres of Painter Paul Lehr
- Space and Science-Fiction Artist David A. Hardy
- Psychedelic Master Bob Pepper
- A New Realism: Contemporary Cover Artist Michael Whelan
- On Fantasy Maps, Lev Grossman
MUSIC
- Science-Fiction Storytelling in the 1960s and '70s, Set to Music
- Astro Black,Nisi Shawl
- The Who's Lifelong Search for the "One Note"
- Sweet Bye and Bye and Speculative Fiction in Musical Theatre, John Chu
- X-Ray Spex, Poly Styrene, and Punk Rock Science Fiction, Annalee Newitz
- Weezer's Songs from the Black Hole
- Speculative Music of the New Millennium
- The Timeless Brilliance of Deltron 3030, Mark Oshiro
- The Science-Fiction Soundscapes of Porcupine Tree
- Metropolis Meets Afrofuturism: The Genius of Janella Monae, Lashawn M. Wanak
FASHION
- Plenty of Pockets: Fashion in Feminist Utopian SFF, Penny A. Weiss & Brennin Weiswerda
- The Fashion Futurism of Elizabeth Hawes and Rudi Gernreich, Ekaterina Sedia
- David Bowie's Futuristic Fashion, Meg Elison
- Textile Arts Are Worldbuilding, Too, Jeannette Ng
- Savage Beauty: Alexander McQueen, Genevieve Valentine
FANDOM AND POP CULTURE
- The Surreal Potential of the World's Most Mysterious Manuscript
- Celebrity Robots of the Great Depression, Selena Chambers
- The Historical and Literary Origins of Assassin's Creed
- Jack Kirby, the King of Comics
- Valerian, the Popular French Comic Series that Inspired a Generation
- Beyond D&D: Lesser-Known Fatasy Role-Playing Ganes, Frank Romero
- Warhammer Fantasy Role-play: A Grim World of Perilous Adventure, Molly Tanzer
- Kentaro Miura, Grandmaster of Grimdark Jesse Bullington
- The Ambitions of BioForge
- The Massive Artificial Landscape of Tsutomu Nihei's Blame!
- Raelism: The Space-Age Message of the Elohim, Robert Levy
- CyberCity: Hackers, Virtual Reality, and the Games of War
- On the Internet, No One Knows You Aren't a (Gay) Wizard: A Ode to Fan Fiction, K.M. Szpara
- The Time of the Mellon Chronicles, Sylas K. Barrett
- An Interview with Hugh Howey show less