#one on the things that influenced dnd and one that's other shit ppl might be into

[hardestgrove]

Useful Publications and Media from the 80s 1: The Paranormal/Occult

Just compiling some things to use in fanfic, either as reference material or just as things to mention for flavor text. Largely focusing on US publications/media or things I think are fairly big name or would relatively easy to get in the US in the 1980s. 

This is a long post so I’m just gonna cut it here there’s no better place to put it lol

BOOKS

obviously not all the books about these topics published at the time but it’s a mix of what I could fine and what I knew was a big deal.

The Anatomy of the Occult by Raymond Buckland. Pub. 1980

Inside Voodoo: Black Magic, Zombies, Prophecy, Telepathy, and the Supernatural by Marcus Bach. Pub. 1968

A Treatise on Cosmic Fire by Alice A. Bailey. Pub. 1989

The Book of Ceremonial Magic by Arthur Edward Waite. Originally called The Book of Black Magic and of Pacts.  It was first published in a limited run in 1898, and distributed more widely under the title The Book of Ceremonial Magic in 1910.  It is an attempt to document various famous grimoires, explain the history behind them, discuss the theology contained therein, and to synthesize many famous grimoires into one system.

The Book of Ceremonial Magic/The Book of Black Magic and of Pacts by Arthur Edward Waite was originally called  It was first published in a limited run in 1898, and distributed more widely under the title The Book of Ceremonial Magic in 1910.  It is an attempt to document various famous grimoires, explain the history behind them (refuting many of the legends surrounding them), discuss the theology contained therein (e.g. raising the question why good angels would be summoned to kill an enemy), and to synthesize many famous grimoires into one system.

The Book of Lies by Aleister Crowley. Pub. 1912-3.

Cosmic Trigger I: The Final Secret of The Illuminati by Robert Anton Wilson.Pub. 1977. (the other 2 are written in the 90s)

Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen. Pub. 1974.

Dictionary of Occult, Hermetic and Alchemical Sigils, written by Fred Gettings. Pub. 1981.

Dreaming the Dark: Magic, Sex, and Politics by Starhawk. Pub.1982.

Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions by James Randi. Pub. 1980.

Hostage to the Devil: The Possession and Exorcism of Five Contemporary Americans by Malachi Martin. Pub. 1976.

Initiation into Hermetics by Franz Bardon. Pub. 1956. Eng Trans. 1962.

The Magical Revival by Kenneth Grant. Pub. 1972.

Mastering Witchcraft: A Practical Guide for Witches, Warlocks and Covens by Paul Huson. Pub. 1970.

Mysteries of the Unknown is a series of books about the paranormal, published by Time-Life Books from 1987 through 1991.

The Occult: A History by Colin Wilson. Pub. 1971.

The Other Side by Bishop James Pike with Diane Kennedy. Pub 1968.

The Perfect Matrimonyor The Door to Enter Into Initiation by Samael Aun Weor. It was first published in 1950 then revised and amplified in 1961.

The Secret Lore of Magic by Idries Shah. Pub. 1957.

Spirits, Stars, and Spells: The Profits and Perils of Magic by L. Sprague de Camp and Catherine Crook de Camp. Pub. 1966.

Publications

Anabiosis/Journal of Near-Death Studies - a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal devoted to the field of near-death studies. Founded in 1982 originally called Anabiosis then got a name change in 1987.

The Equinox (subtitle: The Review of Scientific Illuminism) - a periodical that served as the official organ of the A∴A∴, a magical order founded by Aleister Crowley (although material is often of import to its sister organization, Ordo Templi Orientis). Begun in 1909, it mainly featured articles about occultism and magick, while several issues also contained poetry, fiction, plays, artwork, and biographies. The last issue was published in 1998.

Fate - a U.S. magazine about paranormal phenomena. Fate was founded in 1948. Fate magazine is the longest-running magazine devoted to the paranormal.

Journal of Parapsychology - a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal covering research on psi phenomena, including telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition, and psychokinesis, as well as human consciousness in general and anomalous experiences. It was established in April 1937.

The Society for Psychical Research (UK) body of publications:

Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research First published in 1882 as a public record of the activities of the SPR, the Proceedings are now reserved for longer pieces of work, such as Presidential Addresses, and are only occasionally published.The current editor is Dr David Vernon.

Journal of the Society for Psychical Research The Journal of the Society for Psychical Research has been published quarterly since 1884. It was introduced as a private, members-only periodical to supplement the Proceedings. It now focuses on current laboratory and field research, but also includes theoretical, methodological and historical papers on parapsychology. It also publishes book reviews and correspondence. The current editor is Dr David Vernon.

Psi Encyclopedia The Psi Encyclopedia is a collection of articles and case studies about psi research, involving the scientific investigation of psychic phenomena. A bequest of Nigel Buckmaster enabled the foundation of the encyclopedia.

UFO Magazine - an American magazine that was devoted to the subject of  unidentified flying objects (UFOs), the extraterrestrial hypothesis (ETH), as well as paranormal and Fortean subjects in general. Founded in 1986, when defunct in 2012.

The New Equinox was a Ritual Magic publication founded in the mid-1970s by Ray Sherwin whose main interest at that time was the magic of Aleister Crowley. It was published between 1976 and 1979.The magazine was based in East Morton in Yorkshire.Tony Venables was joint editor for a few issues. Peter J. Carroll, who later went on, with Ray Sherwin, to found the Illuminates of Thanateros, was a regular contributor. 

Other media

Coast to Coast AM america’s leading paranormal radio show to this day. Tackles everything from aliens to Big Foot to ghosts. Founded 1988