Philip Francis Nowlan

The main character and the narrator in Armageddon 2419 A. D. is Anthony Rogers, who later appears in the various comic strips, radio shows, and film serials that follow as "Buck Rogers". Rogers recounts the events of the "Second War of Independence" that precedes the first victory of Americans over Hans, in which he plays an important role. Born in 1898, he was a veteran of the Great War (World War I) and was by 1927 working for the American Radioactive Gas Corporation. He was investigating reports of unusual phenomena in abandoned coal mines near Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania.

THE ORIGINAL "BUCK ROGERS" SF CLASSIC! By Philip Francis Nowlan. "Armageddon - 2419 A. D." - Buck, a victim of accidental suspended animation, awakens five hundred years later to discover America groaning under the tyranny of the villainous Han, ruling from the safety of their armored machine-cities. Falling in love with one of America's new warrior-women, Wilma Deering, Rogers soon become a central figure in using newly-developed scientific weapons - disintegrators, jumping belts, inertron, and paralysis rays - to revolt against the Han. "Airlords of Han" - He and beloved, warrior-woman Wilma Deering, must lead a desperate a battle to the finish against a superior foe - using futuristic weapons such as disintegrators, jumping belts, inertron, paralysis rays, and atomic torpedoes. The climatic conflict features a special effects battle of ships and rays that would challenge even today's greatest filmmakers to reproduce successfully on film.

We have rarely printed a story in this magazine that for scientific interest, as well as suspense, could hold its own with this particular story. We prophesy that this story will become more valuable as the years go by. It certainly holds a number of interesting prophecies, of which no doubt, many will come true. For wealth of science, it will be hard to beat for some time to come. It is one of those rare stories that will bear reading and re-reading many times. This story has impressed us so favorably, that we hope the author may be induced to write a sequel to it soon.-- from an editorial note in Amazing Stories, August 1928A sequel to Armageddon 2419 A. D. called The Airlords of Han was published in the March 1929 issue of Amazing Stories. In the 1960s, Nowlan's two novellas were combined by editor Donald A. Wollheim into one paperback novel, titled Armageddon 2419 A. D.

We have rarely printed a story in this magazine that for scientific interest, as well as suspense, could hold its own with this particular story. We prophesy that this story will become more valuable as the years go by. It certainly holds a number of interesting prophecies, of which no doubt, many will come true. For wealth of science, it will be hard to beat for some time to come. It is one of those rare stories that will bear reading and re-reading many times. This story has impressed us so favorably, that we hope the author may be induced to write a sequel to it soon.-- from an editorial note in Amazing Stories, August 1928A sequel to Armageddon 2419 A. D. called The Airlords of Han was published in the March 1929 issue of Amazing Stories. In the 1960s, Nowlan's two novellas were combined by editor Donald A. Wollheim into one paperback novel, titled Armageddon 2419 A. D.

Set in the 25th century, Armageddon-2419 A. D. follows the adventures of Anthony Rogers, an American mining engineer who falls into a state of suspended animation due to exposure to a radioactive gas. Rogers awakens nearly five centuries later to find himself in a world where America has been transformed into a technologically advanced society ruled by the totalitarian Han, an Asian empire. Rogers becomes a key figure in the resistance against the Han, using his ingenuity and knowledge of 20th-century warfare to fight against oppression and tyranny. The novel is known for its imaginative depiction of future technology, including advanced weaponry, flying ships, and futuristic cities.