Four Aces Beat a Full House

Zine
Title:	Four Aces Beat a Full House
Publisher:	Almost Foolproof Press
Editor(s):	Ann Teitelbaum and Dar F
Date(s):	1987-1988
Series?:
Medium:	print zine
Size:
Genre:
Fandom:	Hardcastle and McCormick & Simon and Simon
Language:	English
External Links:
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Four Aces Beat a Full House is a mostly gen Simon and Simon and Hardcastle and McCormick anthology.

Some issues, such as issue one, however, had two explicit het stories and it required an age statement to order.

NOTE: The numbering system is somewhat mysterious. It makes a lot more sense when you know that the entire contents of the series was printed as the table of contents in each zine.

Series 1

Issue 1

Four Aces Beat a Full House 1 was published in November 1987 and contains 104 pages.

cover of issue #1

In a May 1987 letterzine, the editor wrote:

Four Aces Beat A Full House #1" is still on schedule for a late summer printing. (I don't know where the rumor started that it would be ready for MediaWest, but believe me, it was ONLY a rumor!) I am happy to add that Jean Kluge will be illustrating one of the stories—neato!!

• In Memory Locked by Joan Bass ("Missing six days, AJ finally turns up in a Napa Valley jail, beaten, assaulted, and with no memory of who he is or how he got there.") (Simon and Simon) (originally part of a Christmas gift exchange) (2)
• Kids by Ann Teitelbaum ("Upset at being called a 'momma's boy,' AJ turns to his big brother for advice.") (Simon and Simon) (102)

Issue 2

Four Aces Beat a Full House 2 was published in November 1987. It starts at page 105 and goes to page 187.

cover of v.1 n.2

• A French Connection by Brenda Anders ("AJ is asked to claim the body of the son of the French family he lived with as a high school exchange student, but when he gets to the morgue, he finds that Jean-Paul is not dead YET, but there are several people anxious to change that fact.") (originally part of a Christmas gift exchange) (Simon and Simon) (106)
• What I Did on My Summer Vacation by Teri White (Hardcastle and McCormick) (152)
• Burdens by Ann Teitelbaum (Simon and Simon) (186)

Issue 3

Four Aces Beat a Full House 3 was published in November 1987. It starts at page 190 and goes to page 264.

cover of v.1 n.3

• Ties that Bind by Michalina Pilcher ("AJ learns the old saying, "Be careful of what you ask for because you just might get it" is true when Rick moves out after a heated argument.") (Simon and Simon) (190)
• Ode to a Holiday Inn by Shirley Sipe (Hardcastle and McCormick) (208)
• Janet's Key by Betsy Barr ("Inspired by "Pirate's Key," this tale offers one explanation of how AJ and Janet came to the conclusion that 'marriage was not in the cards' for them.") (Simon and Simon) (216)
• The Great Kershaw by Melinda Reynolds ("While attending a dinner show featuring a hypnotist, the Judge becomes entranced and obeys the command to "fall in love with the first person you see," who just happens to be McCormick! And the fun is just beginning.") (Hardcastle and McCormick) (224)
• The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Joan Enright ("Inspired by "Who Killed the Sixties?," this story explores the affects of Rick's enlistment on all the Simon family members.") (Simon and Simon) (238)
• The Legacy by Melinda Reynold ("It's Hardcastle & McCormick" together again after Mark passes his bar exam and they open a law office.") (Hardcastle and McCormick) (244)
• Replay by Jean Thrower ("Inspired by "The Skull of Nostradamus," this story explores the repercussions suffered by AJ after having been buried alive in the coffin, triggering memories of the time he was trapped as a child, when he watched father die.") (Simon and Simon) (252)
• Past Sins, poem by Shirley Sipe (264)

Issue 4

Four Aces Beat a Full House 4 was published in November 1987. It starts at page 262 and goes to page 354.

cover of issue #4

It was "60% SS and 40% HM. No artwork, but plenty of gorgeous xeroxes."

• Bad Karma by Lizabeth S. Tucker ("Yes, it's THAT story! Paroled after serving seven years for murdering his wife and her lover, Louri Nourollahi decides the best way to get revenge against Hardcastle by getting Mark. Contains graphic sex and violence.") (Hardcastle and McCormick) (262)
• To Initiate a Virgin by Tracy ("Tired of Rick always accusing him of playing things too safely, AJ allows himself to be picked up by a strange woman who has decided the youngest Simon would be the perfect man with whom to fulfill some fantasies. Contains explicit sex.") (Simon and Simon) (320)
• Murphy Was an Optimist by Judy Darnell, Liz Tucker, and Teri White (Hardcastle and McCormick) (336)
• Heart of a Warrior by Regenia Marracino ("Colonel Stark, from the episode "Tanks for the Memories," returns, determined to make a soldier out of AJ, even if he has to kill him to do it.") (Simon and Simon) (354)

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  inside pages from issue #4

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  inside pages from issue #4

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  inside pages from issue #4

Issue 5

cover of v.1 n.5

Four Aces Beat a Full House 5 was published in November 1987. It starts at page 390 and goes to 480.

• Rage Against the Dying by Linda Wood ("An alternative universe story inspired by "Do Not Go Gentle..." which explores the affects of Hardcastle's illness on he and Mark, assuming the lab had NOT screwed up the lab results.") (Hardcastle and McCormick) (390)

Series 2

Issue 1

Four Aces Beat a Full House 1 was published in published in October 1988.

• The Chosen by Regenia Marracino (80 pages)
• Payback by Robbie Sturm (Hardcastle and McCormick)

Issue 2

Four Aces Beat a Full House 2 was published in published in October 1988.

• The Hidden Light by Shirley Sipe (Hardcastle and McCormick) (73 pages)
• In Sunshine or In Shadow by Joan Enright (7 pages)
• Mixed Doubles by Dar F

Issue 3

Four Aces Beat a Full House 3 was published in published in October 1988.

• Blue Morning, Blue Day by Lizabeth S. Tucker (Hardcastle and McCormick) (31 pages)
• First Kill by Alison Wilson (23 pages)
• Thoughts on a Hot Afternoon by Shirley Sipe (10 pages)
• The Link by Jean Thrower

Issue 4

Four Aces Beat a Full House 4 was published in published in October 1988.

• Horse of a Different Color by D.D. Brischke (Hardcastle and McCormick) (71 pages)
• Vampire Summer by Michalina Pilcher (Simon and Simon) (16 pages) Winner of a 1989 FanQ.
• Simon's Family Album by A.G. Steyn

Issue 5

Four Aces Beat a Full House 5 was published in published in October 1988.

• The One I'll Never Be by Linda Wood (Hardcastle and McCormick) (40 pages)
• Words Not Spoken by Sandra Basham (36 pages)
• A Matter of Trust by Connie Daniels (Hardcastle and McCormick) (7 pages)
• Then...and Now by A.G. Steyn

Issue 6

Four Aces Beat a Full House 6 was published in published in October 1988. It contains 78 pages. It starts at page 449 and goes to page 528.

cover of v.2 n.6

• Return to Terror by Lizabeth S. Tucker (Hardcastle and McCormick) (15 pages)
• Dancing in the Dark by Nancy James and Christine Jeffords (Simon and Simon) (49 pages)
• What Are Friends For? by Ellen Faris (Hardcastle and McCormick) (14 pages)

Issue 7

Four Aces Beat a Full House 7 was published in published in October 1988. It contains 82 pages.

• Time Out by Brenda A. (Simon and Simon) (57 pages) (winner of a 1989 FanQ).
• My Son's Girlfriend by Alison Wilson (Hardcastle and McCormick) (17 pages)
• In The Beginning by Kathie Hart (Simon and Simon) (8 pages)