The Seventh Victim (XMIN)

In the future, warfare has been averted by creating a cathartic, public outlet for violence. People who feel the need to kill are issued a license to target a specific victim, with the understanding that the killer will, in turn, serve as a potential victim after their allotted hunt is over.

This short story first appeared in Galaxy in 1953. It served as the inspiration for an Italian film, The 10th Victim, or La Decima Vittima, starring Marcello Mastroianni and Ursula Andress. In 1966, Sheckley novelized the film and then later wrote a few sequels, Victim Prime (1987) and Hunter Victim (1988). The movie is entertaining; highly stylized and futuristic, if a bit goofy, and its novelization is also worthwhile. If you ever wondered where the idea for those machine-gun bras came from in Austin Powers, look no further.

X Minus One #91
The Seventh Victim
6 Mar 1957
19570306(091)_XMIN_TheSeventhVictim.mp3
Arthur Hughes, Frank Maxwell, Ian Martin, Irv West, Lawson Zerbe, Robert Sheckley (author), Teri Keane, Fred Collins (announcer), Ernest Kinoy (adaptor), Kenneth MacGregor (director), William Welch (producer)