Bleekman’s Planet by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg Episode #409
Robert Silverberg | August 29, 2025-
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Bleekman’s Planet by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg Episode #409
Robert Silverberg
BLEEKMAN’S PLANET
Episode #409 · Written by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg · Narrated by Scott Miller
A retired Interstellar Policeman arrives on Bleekman’s Planet looking for peace, only to discover a corrupt regime waiting to claim him as property. With one arm, a sharp mind, and a lifetime of training, he becomes the last person the Governor should have tried to cross.
Mac Thornwald, a decorated Interstellar Policeman forced into retirement after losing his left arm, believes he has finally found peace on a small, out-of-the-way world called Bleekman’s Planet. But he barely steps off the shuttle before discovering that the planet is ruled by brutality, corruption, and a governor whose authority rests on fear rather than law. Within minutes, Thornwald is stripped of his belongings, beaten, and thrown into a cell on trumped-up charges.
His escape is only the beginning. As Thornwald limps through the dark streets and hostile corridors of Velliston, he uncovers the truth: the governor controls the entire world through his monopoly on thylomine, a miracle drug harvested from the local narkos trees. Anyone who resists him disappears. Anyone who obeys him becomes part of his private empire. Thornwald’s only advantages are his training, his iron will, and the prosthetic arm locked away in his confiscated trunk. Getting it back sets the stage for a confrontation that neither Thornwald nor Bleekman’s Planet will ever forget.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Randall Garrett was one of science fiction’s most inventive storytellers, known for clever plots, sharp humor, and stories that mixed adventure with political intrigue. His sense of pacing and talent for crafting ingenious protagonists made him a staple of the magazines throughout the 1950s and 60s. Robert Silverberg, early in his career at the time of this story, would go on to become a towering figure in the field—winning Hugos, Nebulas, and the respect of generations of readers with his dazzling imagination and remarkable range.
When Garrett and Silverberg teamed up, the result was fast-moving, tightly engineered storytelling with an unmistakable snap. Stories like Bleekman’s Planet highlight their gift for turning a seemingly simple setup into an escalating crisis rich with tension, character, and inventiveness. Thornwald’s struggle on a lawless frontier world showcases both authors at their early best—energetic, confident, and brimming with classic science fiction spirit.
LISTEN TO THE STORY
Listen to Bleekman’s Planet by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg, — a gripping vintage science fiction short story of frontier justice.
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ROBERT SILVERBERG SHORT STORIES
Robert Silverberg is one of the most prolific and influential figures in twentieth-century science fiction. Beginning his career in the 1950s pulp magazines, he quickly became known for his remarkable productivity and range, writing adventure-driven space tales as well as thoughtful, character-centered stories.
Over the decades, Silverberg's work evolved from fast-paced planetary adventures to more introspective fiction that explored psychology, memory, identity, and cultural change. His ability to move between large-scale speculative ideas and intimate human conflicts made him a defining voice of vintage science fiction.
These stories from his early and mid-career years showcase the energy, imagination, and narrative control that helped establish him as a central figure in the field.
- The Day The Monsters Broke Loose by Robert Silverberg
- Postmark Ganymede by Robert Silverberg
- Planet of the Angry Giants by Robert Silverberg
- Hero From Yesterday by Robert Silverberg
- The Mystery of Deneb IV by Robert Silverberg
- Monsters That Once Were Men by Robert Silverberg
- The Alien Dies at Dawn by Robert Silverberg
- Bleekman's Planet by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg
- Six Frightened Men by Robert Silverberg
- Never Trust A Thief! by Robert Silverberg
- Rescue Mission by Robert Silverberg
- The Guest Rites by Robert Silverberg
- The Inquisitor by Robert Silverberg
- The Monsters Came by Night by Robert Silverberg
- The Thing Behind Hell's Door by Robert Silverberg
- An Enemy of Peace by Robert Silverberg
- Solitary by Robert Silverberg
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RANDALL GARRETT SHORT STORIES
Randall Garrett brought sharp wit and restless intelligence to classic science fiction.
Garrett loved taking a single bold idea and following it to its logical breaking point. Sometimes that meant a man burdened with knowledge no one else could bear. Sometimes it meant memory stripped away without warning. Sometimes it meant time itself treated like something that could be stolen, traded, or weaponized. His stories move quickly, but beneath the pace is a precise, almost playful mind testing the limits of logic.
In collaboration with Robert Silverberg, Garrett also proved he could build vivid alien worlds filled with political tension and uneasy alliances. Even when the setting is distant, the conflicts feel immediate and personal.
The stories below showcase Garrett’s range — high-concept speculation, clever reversals, and characters forced to confront consequences they never anticipated.
ABOUT THE LOST SCI-FI PODCAST
The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast is the most listened-to vintage science fiction podcast in the world. Ranked the #1 Science Fiction Podcast in 43 countries and heard in more than 190 countries, the show has surpassed 4.2 million listens.
Each episode features carefully selected stories from the Golden Age of science fiction, professionally narrated. Timeless storytelling the way it was meant to be heard.
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