The Radio Man

An Earth Man on Venus

By: Ralph Milne Farley

Narrated by: Rob Vlock

When electrical engineer and radio enthusiast Myles Cabot attempts to transport matter via radio wave, he finds himself transported from his home in Boston to the planet Venus, where he is captured by the Formians, a race of antlike creatures.

After learning of the Cupians, a human-like race that is subservient to the Formians, Cabot escapes and falls in love with the Cupian princess Lilla. Using his in-depth knowledge of Earth science and technology, Cabot leads the oppressed Cupians in a revolt against their Formian masters.

This 1924 "sword and planet" science fiction novel is sure to be a hit with fans of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter and Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court.

Public Domain (P)2022 Rob Vlock

Harvard man dreams of a world where he's the hero

In summary, a man experimenting with advancing television technology in the mid-1920s accidentally teleports himself to Venus, where he discovers multiple intelligent societies, including that of ant-men. Slowly, he learns their language, which is tied to radiowaves, and integrates himself into their societies, By the end, he is able to build a giant gun and fire a message back to Earth to explain his adventures and life on Venus.

I'm guessing the author, R. M. Farley, went to Harvard, as his main character, and some others, are "Harvard men". The story is not very compelling in and of itself, but isn't bad either. It is kind of intriguing to understand what people may have speculated about the other planets in the 1920s. With a fair amount of luck, the protagonist tackles various challenges and wins over the heart of a beautiful fairy-like princess using his intellect, innovations, and chivalry, which, I think, idealizes the author's definition of heroism/manhood.