'The Murderous Madame Wong'

Another edition of Wide World from my modest collection.  This, the September 1964 issue, was the last to feature a cover painting.  For the remainder of its run it would use photo covers instead.  It also features a revised interior layout, which includes the abandonment of the old contents list divided up by the country or continent where the story takes place, in favour of more generic sub-headings, such as 'Adventure' or 'Social'.  Although the classifications seem somewhat arbitrary - the sole story under 'Social' this issue could just as easily have been filed under 'Crime'.  Indeed, one of the 'Adventure' stories, about the religious rituals of South American Indians which meld Christianity with local beliefs, would more comfortably sit under the 'Social' banner.  In spite of these attempts to modernise the publication in the face of declining sales, the actual contents were very much of a familiar mix: adventure on the high seas, 'bizarre' practices of foreign cultures, big game hunting and crime.  

With story titles like 'The Murderous Madame Wong', it might seem that the magazine (like the UK in general) was having difficulty in letting go of old imperialist attitudes.  But, in what the publishers doubtless saw as a step forward, rather than focusing on 'strange goings on' in the former Empire some of the stories based on alien cultural activities are set in Europe.  We have the Pamplona bull run and Sardinian vendettas in this issue, for instance.  Interestingly, in an apparent bout of self awareness as to how some of the subject matter might be perceived by sixties readers, this issue also features an (intentionally) humourous piece parodying the whole 'great white hunter' schtick which, even in this issue, was a staple of this and other men's adventure magazines.  There's a two page spread promoting the next issue, the first of a 'new look' Wide World, promising all manner of new content.  But it was all to be in vain as, less than a year later, the magazine would fold.