Comics, Pulps, and Paperbacks: Why such a discrepancy in values? 25 25

[comicparadox]

On 10/6/2023 at 5:31 PM, OtherEric said:

This cover art was also used on the comic, Police Lineup #1.

 

[PopKulture]

I was going through a box of previously-unbagged books and, while most of them were underwhelming, I thought this one stood out:

Painted by Stanley Borack

Edited October 7, 2023 by PopKulture

[PopKulture]

A few more from that underwhelming box:

A super glossy Penguin and a credited Ray Johnson

[PopKulture]

A classic cover by Jonas (13th printing!) and some sleaze with quite the cover blurb:

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/7/2023 at 11:40 AM, Sarg said:

 

That cover is so ludicrously inappropriate for the story that it's hilarious. A greatly missed opportunity, IMO...if someone like say James Avati had been given the assignment, it may have been one of the classic paperback covers.

I couldn't disagree more but everyone see things with their own eyes

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:05 PM, PopKulture said:

this one stood out

Cover-filling Good Girls dancing on bars can do that to ya

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:41 PM, PopKulture said:

that underwhelming box

that box keeps looking better!

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:43 PM, PopKulture said:

A classic cover by Jonas (13th printing!) and some sleaze with quite the cover blurb:

That's a tough Beacon for sure (and quite a blurb) Lesbianism titles are probably the hottest (marketwise!) books lately, there's always a ton of competition for them and any I ever list for sale go quickly.

[PopKulture]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:16 PM, Surfing Alien said:

That's a tough Beacon for sure (and quite a blurb) Lesbianism titles are probably the hottest (marketwise!) books lately, there's always a ton of competition for them and any I ever list for sale go quickly.

Is it safe to say Beebo Brinker is the new Black Wings Has My Angel?  

[PopKulture]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:16 PM, Surfing Alien said:

That's a tough Beacon for sure (and quite a blurb) Lesbianism titles are probably the hottest (marketwise!) books lately, there's always a ton of competition for them and any I ever list for sale go quickly.

In that same box was a Vin Packer Gold Medal The Evil Friendship and the 50c Avon Queer Patterns. I’d trade them in a second for anything hard-boiled or noir, or early editions I don’t have from most of the big publishers.  

[Darwination]

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/7/2023 at 2:37 PM, PopKulture said:

In that same box was a Vin Packer Gold Medal The Evil Friendship and the 50c Avon Queer Patterns. I’d trade them in a second for anything hard-boiled or noir, or early editions I don’t have from most of the big publishers.  

PM me 

[frozentundraguy]

Recently S.A. posted a copy of Takeoff by Kornbluth. It reminded me I wanted to obtain a vintage copy in addition to the Armchair Fiction copy I already have.

I also acquired a copy of the 1953 Harlequin copy of "The Lost World" by Doyle.

 

Spoiler

The odd thing is the cover bares a resemblance to Classics Illustrated #15

 

[Darwination]

On 10/9/2023 at 2:50 PM, frozentundraguy said:

Recently S.A. posted a copy of Takeoff by Kornbluth. It reminded me I wanted to obtain a vintage copy in addition to the Armchair Fiction copy I already have.

I also acquired a copy of the 1953 Harlequin copy of "The Lost World" by Doyle.

 

  Hide contents

The odd thing is the cover bares a resemblance to Classics Illustrated #15

 

 

The "runner" on The Lost World cover has his hand hanging down with digits spread, sort of the way T-Rex claws are usually drawn.

[Sarg]

On 10/7/2023 at 12:43 PM, PopKulture said:

A classic cover by Jonas (13th printing!) and some sleaze with quite the cover blurb:

 

That's quite a cover for Jonas. He's quoted in "Paperbacks, USA" to the effect that the other paperback covers were pornography, but not his "symbolist" Signet covers. The above shows that even Jonas could not escape the editorial demand for cleavage, cleavage, cleavage! -- as Tom Waits would say.

 

[Darwination]

I started this post by scanning this Popular edition with a nice cover by Rafael DeSoto, pulp stalwart

 

But then I saw pics of this one when I was looking for publication info, a 1952 edition in the Giant line:

Cover art taking up the whole page?  Much preferred.

And girls on the back cover? yass

But the spine shot is what shook me

The "Giant," then, refers to the thickness of the book?  Were all of the Popular Giants thick?  (do excuse all this, total pb newb even if I do know some of the artists from pulps, mags, and comics and the authors sometimes from even more distinguished locales lol).  It looks like they aren't so thick later on?

Some others I like from the line (and lord help me, I've started a folder of paperback covers in my files, most of these haven't been named yet, just snagged from Flickr)

 

Another DeSoto, I'd pick up a nice copy of this one.  Back cover's good too.

Sigh, stop me now, here's a bunch more.  Here's S.A.'s guy,  a couple by Raymond Johnson.  The second one gets a solid "woof"

 

 

 

 

lmao "BOOKS OF PROVEN MERIT" right under the darling leaning against the lamppost.  Raymond Johnson again. Very similar to a Matt Baker St. John Giant Diary Secrets cover that's very much in demand.  Looks like the Baker came first. But when you borrow, borrow from the best

I think it's taken me this long to realize why I like the paperback covers so much.  THERE IS A GIRL ON EVERY COVER

 

Ha, and a Saul Bellow masterpiece in paperback form, I'm very attracted to the mix of high and low with a book like this.

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Darwination

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/11/2023 at 11:31 PM, Darwination said:

I started this post by scanning this Popular edition with a nice cover by Rafael DeSoto, pulp stalwart

 

But then I saw pics of this one when I was looking for publication info, a 1952 edition in the Giant line:

Cover art taking up the whole page?  Much preferred.

And girls on the back cover? yass

But the spine shot is what shook me

The "Giant," then, refers to the thickness of the book?  Were all of the Popular Giants thick?  (do excuse all this, total pb newb even if I do know some of the artists from pulps, mags, and comics and the authors sometimes from even more distinguished locales lol).  It looks like they aren't so thick later on?

Some others I like from the line (and lord help me, I've started a folder of paperback covers in my files, most of these haven't been named yet, just snagged from Flickr)

 

Another DeSoto, I'd pick up a nice copy of this one.  Back cover's good too.

Sigh, stop me now, here's a bunch more.  Here's S.A.'s guy,  a couple by Raymond Johnson.  The second one gets a solid "woof"

 

 

 

 

lmao "BOOKS OF PROVEN MERIT" right under the darling leaning against the lamppost.  Raymond Johnson again. Very similar to a Matt Baker St. John Giant Diary Secrets cover that's very much in demand.  Looks like the Baker came first. But when you borrow, borrow from the best

I think it's taken me this long to realize why I like the paperback covers so much.  THERE IS A GIRL ON EVERY COVER

 

Ha, and a Saul Bellow masterpiece in paperback form, I'm very attracted to the mix of high and low with a book like this.

 

 

The Giants did refer to the thickness. They are very cool books with many DeSoto and Johnson GGA covers. The whole period of the mid 50's where Popular included new paintings on the back covers as well as the front, is very cool. Some of those back covers are even signed while very few front covers were!

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/11/2023 at 11:31 PM, Darwination said:

THERE IS A GIRL ON EVERY COVER

This sold hundreds of millions of paperbacks to the Greatest Generation in the late 40's -60's, who had painted ladies on their tanks, planes and bombs throught WW2, to remind them what they were fighting for 

From my somewhat limited experience as a seller now, it's still sells more than any other item variable 

[OtherEric]

There's still a couple low hanging fruit out there, but overall it's getting harder and harder to find issues I need:

 

Edited October 13, 2023 by OtherEric
Wrong image

[OtherEric]

From the local store today, a couple of MAD books and reading copies of a couple books I've got much nicer copies of: