Today I chat with Henry Franke, organizer for this year’s Edgar Rice Burroughs Fest (ERBFest), one of the mini-cons that are a part of PulpFest this year.
Henry Franke (standing, right) with Marvel Comics’ Stan Lee, Awesome Con, 2017
Henry G. Franke III is a longstanding Edgar Rice Burroughs fan who has written about Burroughs and his works with book introductions, forewords, afterwords, articles, and interviews. He has also spoken about Burroughs at numerous conventions and fan gatherings. He has served three times as the Official Editor of the Edgar Rice Burroughs Amateur Press Association and since 2010 has been the Editor of The Burroughs Bibliophiles, the nonprofit literary and educational society devoted to ERB and his works, and which publishes The Burroughs Bulletin journal and The Gridley Wave newsletter. (Henry served in the U.S. Army for over 31 years, then for 10 years as a U.S. Army government civilian.)
Hi Henry! Thanks for taking some time to chat!
Thanks, Anthony. I am always happy to talk about Edgar Rice Burroughs and The Burroughs Bibliophiles.
This year, ERBFest is returning to be a part of PulpFest. Can you tell me how ERBFest came to be associated with PulpFest, and how (or if) it differs at all from various other Edgar Rice Burroughs fan events throughout the year?
Edgar Rice Burroughs Fest (ERBFest for short) was originally meant to be a one-shot “sub-convention” in 2021 to fill a void for ERB fans who might want to gather in-person that year. As we were starting to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, PulpFest was back as an in-person convention in 2021, but neither of the regular ERB fan get-togethers was scheduled. These were The Burroughs Bibliophiles’ Dum-Dum convention and the ERB Chain of Friendship (ECOF) Gathering.
So Mike Chomko, who programs PulpFest, approached me with the idea of an ERB fan component to PulpFest. The general model was FarmerCon, the annual convention for the author Philip José Farmer, which had aligned itself with PulpFest several years earlier. Ironically, because of the pandemic, FarmerCon was virtual-only in 2021.
I got with some key ERB fans on what to name this event. The final decision was “ERBFest” for “Edgar Rice Burroughs Fest.” We worked out already-planned and new panels and presentations that would be aligned with ERBFest. ERB, Inc. was now participating in PulpFest, so they were incorporated in ERBFest. I had hosted an ERB art show at PulpFest in 2019, and had offered to host another one for ERBFest. In order to reduce the chance of infection with people gathering in confined spaces, however, we decided against it.
I created an ERBFest program booklet as a giveaway, since there was no registration fee for this “sub-convention.” Artist Mark Wheatley had worked up a logo for the event, and that general design has inspired subsequent logos.
It is fitting that the convention hotel is located in the Borough of Mars.
In 2023, perhaps, Mike Chomko asked me again about hosting another ERBFest – or at least a number of Burroughs fans who had attended the 2022 PulpFest suggested another ERBFest. This was in part because no regular ERB fan convention had been held in the East for a number of years. First, I asked key FarmerCon people if they would be okay with another ERBFest and the possible competition between sub-conventions. They said they had no issue with this. I also spoke face-to-face with two members of the Board of Directors of The Burroughs Bibliophiles the last day of that PulpFest, and they thought it was a good idea. So I gave Mike Chomko my okay to host another ERBFest, with the caveat that I would not host an ERBFest any time that a regular ERB convention was held in the East, in order to avoid competition.
So I have hosted an ERBFest in 2023 and 2024 and will do so again in 2025. Each of these has had a theme, along with a special item created as part of PulpFest and linked to themes.
2023 – (1) centennial of the establishment of ERB, Inc; (2) 100th anniversary of the first publication of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ The Moon Maid (in Argosy All-Story starting with the weekly issue cover-dated 5 May 1923). A special envelope was created, which was then postmarked by the Moon, VA, Post Office on 5 May 2023. I also hosted an ERB Art Show.
2024 – centennial of the first-edition hardcover book, The Land That Time Forgot. A special envelope was created, then postmarked by the Dinosaur, CO, Post Office on 14 June 2024, 100 years after the official release of the first-edition book.
2025 – (1) ERB’s 150th birthday (1 September 1875); (2) the centennial of the first-edition hardcover book, The Cave Girl.
Over the years, even before the focus of ERBFest, many PulpFest attendees joined The Burroughs Bibliophiles, so that today a significant portion of our membership has come from PulpFest.
What can Burroughs fans expect in terms of programming at this year’s ERBFest at PulpFest?
Panels and presentations on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. In fact, the first programming is an ERBFest panel Thursday evening. I am also hoping that ERB fans with meet up with me on Thursday afternoon and late Saturday evening for informal bull sessions (I hope to give out a few door prizes). And there will be another ERB Art Show, set for Friday and Saturday.
Come by the ERBFest table, which will be next to the PulpFest registration tables outside the dealers room, sign in, and pick up a free ERBFest packet that will include a program booklet and six Venus art prints signed by artist Richard Cox. Here is the full ERBFest schedule; note that all programming outside of the dealers room is FREE and does not require a PulpFest registration fee.
Thursday, 7 August
4:00 – 6:45 pm — “ERB Palaver and Pizza at ERBFest” in the DoubleTree hotel lounge. ERB fans meet at 4:00 pm to talk. Expect door prizes. Note that PulpFest has pizza served free at the Ember & Vine for PulpFest attendees, starting at 5:00 pm.
6:55 – 7:40 pm — ERBFest panel, “Edgar Rice Burroughs and the Male Ideal” (Bernice Jones and Cathy Wilbanks)
9:25 – 10:10 pm — ERBFest presentation, “Tarzan: Lord of the Merchandising Jungle” (Jim Beard)
Friday, 8 August
11:30 am – 1:30 pm — Art Show, “Edgar Rice Burroughs, Master of Adventure,” with works inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs (hosted by Henry G. Franke III in the Chestnut Room)
2:30 – 3:25 pm — ERBFest panel, “The Universe According to Edgar Rice Burroughs” (Christopher Paul Carey, Cathy Wilbanks, Chris L. Adams, Win Scott Eckert, and Henry Franke)
8:35 – 9:20 pm — ERBFest panel, “The Masters of Tarzan Illustration” (Mark Wheatley and Douglas Klauba)
Saturday, 9 August
11:30 am – 1:30 pm — Art Show, “Edgar Rice Burroughs, Master of Adventure,” with works inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs (hosted by Henry G. Franke III in the Chestnut Room)
7:40 – 8:25 pm — ERBFest presentation, “Ray Bradbury, Burroughs’ Disciple” (Garyn Roberts)
11:35 pm – ?? am — ERBFest: “Barsoomian Bull Session” — Socialize and discuss ERB in the hotel lounge by the Ember & Vine. Expect door prizes.
You are a lifelong Burroughs fan, I know. When did you first encounter Burroughs’ work, and how did it affect/influence you?
While I had probably seen some Tarzan movies when I was very young, what made a real impression on me were the Dell Comics and then Gold Key Comics’ “Tarzan” comic books, which I saw when we were in Germany in the early 1960s (my father was in the U.S. Army). I even read the three-part “John Carter of Mars” mini-series reprinted by Gold Key. I then read a number of the Whitman hardcover editions of Tarzan novels. At the time the name “Edgar Rice Burroughs” on the covers of the comic books and Whitman books did not click. I finally realized that there was a writer named Edgar Rice Burroughs who had not only created of Tarzan of the Apes but also a long list of stories set on Mars and other worlds when I saw a full-page order form for Ballantine Books in a Gold Key “Tarzan” comic book in 1969 while we were in Okinawa. My father placed an order, and those books with covers by Dick Powers and Bob Abbett were my 1969 Christmas present. I read two a day during the holiday break. We moved to Copperas Cove, TX, in 1971, where the family went to a local bookstore every Saturday. This was when the second ERB paperback boom kicked in, and I acquired nearly every book published by Ballantine and Ace Books. Those were good years. I got to know ERB the man with Irwin Porges’ authorized biography, published in 1975 and given to me for Christmas that year. Over the years, ERB’s story and his creations became windows into 20th-century American popular culture media, including pulps, newspaper serializations, radio shows, and more. ERB gave me a personal focus outside of the long hours of Army service. I became the Official Editor of the ERB Amateur Press Association in 1994, which prompted me to attend my first ERB fan convention.
You are also on the Board of Directors of The Burroughs Bibliophiles, which publishes a wonderful magazine dedicated to all things ERB. Tell me about the history of the organization and your involvement in it.
Edgar Rice Burroughs approved Vern Coriell’s request to publish an ERB fanzine in 1947. This was titled The Burroughs Bulletin, and it has been in print ever since. ERB had also approved the idea of an official fan organization, although it was not formed until September 1960. Called The Burroughs Bibliophiles, it adopted The Burroughs Bulletin, plus the new newsletter, The Gridley Wave, both edited by Coriell. In the early years, the Bibliophiles met for a luncheon or banquet called the Dum-Dum (the name ERB gave to gatherings of the Mangani great apes in the Tarzan novels) during the World Science Fiction Convention. Later, a multi-day annual convention separate from the WorldCon was adopted. Last year the name of the convention was changed to the “Edgar Rice Burroughs Convention” (ERBCon). George T. McWhorter took over as Editor for the Bibliophiles. The Bibliophiles was incorporated in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and then as a literary and education society was designated a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization by the Internal Revenue Service.
When George McWhorter wanted to retire as Editor and Treasurer, I wound up being selected as Editor and Treasurer as his replacement. When George decided not to continue serving as a Board Director, I was elected to fill his position.
How does one go about joining The Burroughs Bibliophiles?
Anyone interested in learning more about us or joining straightaway can go to our website (http://www.BurroughsBibliophiles.com) and download the membership form, or contact me at BurroughsBibliophiles@gmail.com and request a copy of the membership form in pdf or Word formats. The current regular membership period is two years. A member living in the U.S. pays $35 for dues, with the benefits of four issues of the Bulletin (only published) in paper and 24 digital issues of our monthly newsletter, The Gridley Wave, in pdf format. Paper copies of The Gridley Wave require an additional charge of $20 for the two-year period. Members living in Canada pay a higher dues amount, as do members living outside the U.S. and Canada. Dues payments can be made by check, money order, or PayPal/
If you join during PulpFest, you will receive a free back issue of The Burroughs Bulletin.
Note that besides our webpage we have a Facebook page and a YouTube channel. We plan on releasing more special publications under our House of Greystoke imprint.
Enquiring minds want to know: What would your dream ERB-related project be, if you could choose one book/movie/TV project to happen?
For some time now I have championed an adaptation of Tarzan at the Earth’s Core as a theatrical film or a streaming miniseries. Unfortunately, we may be too late because of the recent Godzilla/King Kong movies. Another approach with adapting this novel would be partnering with another franchise, notably the Predator, in line with the 1990s Dark Horse Comics miniseries, Tarzan vs Predator at the Earth’s Core. Unfortunately, we may be too late because of the new Predator movie. Even a pairing with King Kong has to deal with the preemption of the Godzilla/King Kong mashups.
What other ERB fan events do you have coming up in 2025?
Since 2025 is the 150th anniversary of ERB’s birth, there have been a number of events this year. Two significant events coming up are:
-- The British ERB Society’s (BERBS) visit to Greystoke Castle in the United Kingdom on 1 September, ERB’s 150th birthday.
-- The 2025 ERB Chain of Friendship (ECOF) Gathering in Willcox, Arizona, from 25 to 28 September, at the Willcox Elks Lodge. The formal dedication of the ERB 7th Cavalry Historical Monument at the Willcox Southern Pacific Railroad Depot is set for 27 September.
Thanks again, Henry, for taking some time to chat! See you at PulpFest shortly!
Readers, it is not too late to register for and attend Pulpfest 2025 (THE pulp magazine-focused convention in the Northeast) and the other three conventions it hosts: FarmerCon (dedicated to the works of Philip Jose Farmer), ERBFest (dedicated to the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs) and DocCon (dedicated to all things Doc Savage related). Check out the Pulpfest website for registration and hotel information!