The Birth of Buck There were no ray guns before Buck Rogers.
There was no reason for any. For although tales of science
fiction were not new in the late 1920s when the first Buck comic
strip was published, space stories had not yet produced a
popular character whose exploits and equipment could be widely
or profitably marketed. Anthony "Buck" Rogers was born in August
of 1926 in an early edition of the pulp magazine, Amazing
Stories. Introduced in the story "Armageddon 2419" by Philip
Nowlan, Rogers was an air force officer who lapsed into a coma
and awakened in the 25th century where he found America in ruins
and the world dominated by Mongolians from inland China. Quickly
discovering the marvels of this future world, including anti-
gravity belts, rocket pistols, and space ships, Rogers and his
cohorts, the lovely Wilma Deering and the intrepid scientist Dr.
Huer, set out to fee the world and battle evil and injustice. At
about this same moment, the editors of the National Newspaper
Service began looking for