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

[OtherEric]

On 10/17/2023 at 10:18 AM, Darwination said:

My wife says she got Dr. Who in the afternoons on PBS in western Kansas in the 80s.  I got it on Friday nights only from KC, but they were good Friday nights

Giant salt shakers, horrifying.

It's really hard to explain just why giant salt shakers are so terrifying until you see them in action.  But they are.

My local station (KBTC) is currently in the middle of Invasion of the Dinosaurs on their rerun schedule, they're believed to be the only channel in the world that has kept continually running the classic series since the 90's.  (And their predecessor has been showing it since the 80s').

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/16/2023 at 6:10 PM, Sarg said:

The Fountainhead Signet PB is "rare"? That's surprising. It was a well-publicized best-seller in hardcover, so you'd normally assume that the paperback would be pretty common. I guess the size and cost (three times more expensive than a regular 25 cent PB) turned buyers off.

Not rare at all in general, in fact, the all-font covered later printings are pretty common as to be expected from a best seller, but the 1st printing with the full sized Avati painted cover very much so. It took me a couple of years to find this one and it is far from perfect. I gave up trying to upgrade it.

I think fat books, especially densely worded ones like this, took quite a few sittings to get through and suffered from more cover wear than a skinny volume that got devoured in one or two sittings.

[frozentundraguy]

I was looking for a lost copy of a Popular Library book when I checked the last possible box it could be in. I found the book, but also found that my record keeping wasn't quite up to date. Not a bad book to have a duplicate of though.

 

[PopKulture]

For the longest time, most of my paperbacks were randomly stored in the order I acquired them. I had the Dells and Pockets separate for years, and then I pulled out most of the Avons and Populars. Bantams were next, followed by Ace. Strangely enough, somehow Graphics were sort of self-segregating over the years… Well, recently I started to cull the Ballantines out, so I went through a box in storage that had mostly tall-format books, many of them sci-fi. When I’m done with the Ballantines, perhaps I’ll do Signets.

Edited October 20, 2023 by PopKulture

[Pat Calhoun]

This recent buy was somewhat expensive, but it really is an extravagant PB. Beyond delicious iconic cover and illustrated with many full-pagers and many partials. I'm guessing the William Gropper interiors came with the hardback first edition.

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/20/2023 at 10:57 PM, Pat Calhoun said:

This recent buy was somewhat expensive, but it really is an extravagant PB. Beyond delicious iconic cover and illustrated with many full-pagers and many partials. I'm guessing the William Gropper interiors came with the hardback first edition.

Now I need that. Would look great next to the Signet "Nightmare Alley"

 

[Surfing Alien]

Some quick Friday fun before I go out and have a little fun...

Operation Outer Space by Murray Leinster.  Signet S1346 1st Printing 1957

This Robert Schulz cover just oozes '50's Science Fiction. There is something about black cover Signets that makes them doubly attractive, because they look so space-like and are so tough to find in clean shape (Similarly the Signet "I Robot" by Asimov). This is the first copy I've ever had, looks super in hand.

 

[Pat Calhoun]

The Avati is wonderful, but I think of the 'Road Show' cover and it makes me imagine the Griffith Foxley ladies of 'Madball'...

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/20/2023 at 11:47 PM, Pat Calhoun said:

The Avati is wonderful, but I think of the 'Road Show' cover and it makes me imagine the Griffith Foxley ladies of 'Madball'...

Can't disagree with a single word right there. Thinking of what others there are 

Here's a great one. Different style cover but in the vein.

[Pat Calhoun]

[frozentundraguy]

I recently bought "Tomboy" by Hal Ellson. Published in 1951 the JD topic proved too irresistible for Dr. Frederic Wertham. He writes a glowing review for the book but also fires a brief volley at comic books.

I also have "Duke" and "Jailbait Street" with a cover by Ray Johnson is my fav of these three books.

 

[Surfing Alien]

Going through some Lion Books. If there's one series I might try to be a completist on, it's the Lions. Considering the relative rarity, and with so many classic PBO's and the great cover art by Martin Goodman's artists from his pulp/MAM stable. They're pretty irresistible.

 

[PopKulture]

On 10/21/2023 at 10:36 AM, Surfing Alien said:

Going through some Lion Books. If there's one series I might try to be a completist on, it's the Lions. Considering the relative rarity, and with so many classic PBO's and the great cover art by Martin Goodman's artists from his pulp/MAM stable. They're pretty irresistible.

 

First of all:  

Secondly:  Did you cut your own backing boards?? I’ve done that for a few books, but so often, the back covers are worth keeping visible.  As my previous post above suggests, I’ve been playing with my Ballantines as well as later Bantams and so many of them have great back covers and wraparound art. I do, however, understand the collector’s first directive to protect the books, especially the minty ones.  

[Robot Man]

On 10/21/2023 at 5:47 AM, frozentundraguy said:

I recently bought "Tomboy" by Hal Ellson. Published in 1951 the JD topic proved too irresistible for Dr. Frederic Wertham. He writes a glowing review for the book but also fires a brief volley at comic books.

I also have "Duke" and "Jailbait Street" with a cover by Ray Johnson is my fav of these three books.

 

How many of you depraved individuals own these sick books?  

[frozentundraguy]

Don't own any of those, but have a few more in a similar vein.

 

[Darwination]

On 10/21/2023 at 11:30 AM, Robot Man said:

How many of you depraved individuals own these sick books?  

I was admiring a nice copy of Jailbait just the other day.

The only one I own

I wonder how many of these Spillane books got printed when he was hot, holy moly

[OtherEric]

Some pickups at the local Half Price Books today, with great Jones covers:

[OtherEric]

The airport I work at has a Little Free Library outside the kids play area.  So I've started grabbing cheap copies of The Wizard of Oz when I go to used bookstores, and drop them off in the library, since it has been one of my favorite books ever since I was a little kid.  After I put the last one in, I realized that I should start scanning the covers, since there's just an amazing diversity of versions out there.  So we'll start with the one I got today.  This one is particularly sentimental, because it's the version I had when I was a little kid.  (My sister still has that copy, she assumed custody of the childhood paperbacks once I started building my collection of vintage Oz hardcovers.)

[damonwad]

On 10/20/2023 at 7:57 PM, Pat Calhoun said:

This recent buy was somewhat expensive, but it really is an extravagant PB. Beyond delicious iconic cover and illustrated with many full-pagers and many partials. I'm guessing the William Gropper interiors came with the hardback first edition.

I haven't seen this one before and it's now on my list too. Here's another Road Show (1961) about carny life, but different book and author and Mannix's very interesting autobiography of his time as a carny (including being a sword swallower and fire eater). And to tie in to OtherEric's Oz post, the Mannix Wiki page shows him as being one of the founders of the Munchkin convention.

 

[Surfing Alien]

On 10/21/2023 at 11:42 AM, PopKulture said:

First of all:  

Secondly:  Did you cut your own backing boards?? I’ve done that for a few books, but so often, the back covers are worth keeping visible.  As my previous post above suggests, I’ve been playing with my Ballantines as well as later Bantams and so many of them have great back covers and wraparound art. I do, however, understand the collector’s first directive to protect the books, especially the minty ones.  

I did cut those. I've made the decision, that since most of my better books are now stored vertically in cabinets, rather than stacked in tubs, that it's wise to put backing boards on them. If there's any space on the shelf the books can lean and get out of square, and then there's the corners. Even stacked in tubs, it's so easy for a high grade book to get a dinged corner from just moving around and "poof" there's goes that perfect book you searched for years to find with sharp corners   So I am sacrificing the instant gratification of looking at the back cover, but for the greater health of the book and my peace of mind. Plus they look very neat with a nice custom board