The Far Side of the Bell-Shaped Curve

Form: Short story

Year: 1982

Publication history:

• 1982 : Omni March 1982 (m) ,
• 1984 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (hc) , Science Fiction Book Club, 243 pp., 1642
• 1984 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (hc) , Arbor House
• 1985 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (hc) , Gollancz (UK), 284 pp., 03544-7
• 1985 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (pb) , Bantam, 317 pp., ISBN 0-553-25077-9
• 1987 : Det brokiga cocktailpartyt (pb) , Korpen (Sweden), ISBN 91-7374-186-8 (in Swedish tr. Erik Andersson)
• 1989 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (pb) , Gollancz (UK), 284 pp., 04622-8
• 1989 : Pavane au fil du temps (pb) , J'ai lu (France), 352 pp., ISBN 2-277-22631-9, 2631 (in French "L'apogée de la courbe en cloche" tr. Pierre K. Rey)
• 1999 : Pavane au fil du temps (pb) , J'ai lu (France), 352 pp., ISBN 2277226319, 2631 (in French "L'apogée de la courbe en cloche" tr. Pierre K. Rey)
• 2000 : The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party (ol) , Peanut Press

On the Contents page of Omni Magazine, this story is listed as "The Dangers of Time Travel", though the correct title appears above the story itself.

A story Silverberg refers to as "tricky and difficult" in the Conglemoroid Introduction. Reichenbach is a time traveler from some year after 2187, jaunting to the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, where he meets Ilsabet, a fellow time traveler. They fall in love and jaunt through the ages, visiting the great moments of history (mostly disasters), until old-fashioned jealousy rears its ugly head. Given the facts surrounding the story "In Another Country" I'm sure Silverberg is well aware of the similarity of this scenario with CL Moore's classic "Vintage Season".

Apparently, the original publication in Omni listed the story as "The Dangers of Time Travel" in the table of contents.