Selección Terror: Broma de Carnaval

This pulp magazine issue contains "Broma de carnaval" (Carnival Prank) by Ralph Barby, a horror-tinged mystery story set in Miami. The narrative opens with a grotesque scene—a spectral, phosphorescent face with a putrid, corpse-like appearance advancing toward a young woman aboard a small vessel, wielding a wooden mace before the lantern extinguishes in darkness. The story then shifts to introduce Red Freeman, a Harvard graduate student and university instructor: a rebellious, red-haired intellectual driving a modest vintage Volkswagen. Invited to a carnival-themed yacht party at Miami's docks, he mingles with costumed guests including a woman dressed as Joan of Arc from Connecticut. They banter about culture, ambition, and literature while searching for contacts like travel agent Melvin Sullivan and playwright Arthur Miller among the masked revelers. The narrative captures the party's atmosphere—champagne, dancing, elaborately costumed guests including Cleopatra and Florence Nightingale—before the OCR text becomes increasingly garbled.