The Three Planeteers, Startling Stories Jan 1940 Cover
Two bulbous-headed green aliens in glowing spacesuits pilot a massive golden spacecraft, their hollow dark eyes fixed forward. Below, tiny human figures scatter across a desert landscape dwarfed by the ship's hull. Dramatic foreshortening and an eerie cold-light halo effect heighten the menace of the extraterrestrial crew. This cover illustrates Edmond Hamilton's 'The Three Planeteers,' the featured complete novel in this January 1940 issue of Startling Stories.
The vision of two large-headed green alien pilots commanding a colossal spacecraft over a helpless human population is peak Golden Age pulp ambition — grand in scale and unapologetically alien. The glowing suit-halos and cold skin tones show genuine compositional daring for a 1940 cover.
“NOVEL OF THE FUTURE CO[MPLETE] STARTLING STORIES 15¢ JAN. N WANTED TO FEATUR[ING] THE THR[EE] PLANETEER[S] By EDSON HAM[ILTON] A THRIL[LING] PUBLICA[TION] Doug Knaphride MILES Zod TRADE THI[S] Doug Knapheide BENJAMIN FRAN[KLIN]”
