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

[sfcityduck]

10 hours ago, Randall Dowling said:

You guys really make this thread special!  I've learned so much from the various posts that everyone has contributed.  Just wanted to say thanks, all around!  

Agreed!

[moonpool]

Edited January 15, 2021 by moonpool
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[Surfing Alien]

Loving the Avon Digests and been learning a lot about the early artists by working with Bruce Brenner and others on identifying Ray Johnson's covers and life story. We're thinking his break into Avon was as a freelancer through Ann Cantor Studios and Phillips & Troeger Studios who were credited with a couple of his early covers in the copyright office. So we're also trying to find info on these studios. I realized i'm coming up on my 1000th post so I think i'll celebrate by posting my copies of a potpourri of Ray's prime paintings of pouty princesses 

Here's a dozen. I'm trying to post these roughly in order. His earliest appearances for Avon/Diversey/Eton was around 1949

[Surfing Alien]

For the 1K post, here's the next dozen of Ray's finer Avons. Seeing all together how many (and different genre) top writers he got picked for, it's obvious he sold a ton of books for Avon.

Edited January 15, 2021 by Surfing Alien
remove extra pic

[OtherEric]

Today’s pickups at the local store;

[Randall Dowling]

Lots of awesome books, guys and gals!  I'm posting this as a preview of a much longer post to follow tonight.

It's a been a good day!  

[Surfing Alien]

A couple of arrivals. Finally found another pristine copy of Torture Garden to replace the one that got crushed in the mail a few months ago. Not too many surrealist torture covers in the field.

And an amazing upgrade of this Bergey Pop classic. They always seem to have creases but none on this unread copy

[OtherEric]

11 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

And an amazing upgrade of this Bergey Pop classic. They always seem to have creases but none on this unread copy

Nice!  I have a copy but mine is pretty rough.

I personally prefer this eye-popping cover to the Bergey, but am happy to have both.  The PKD is uncredited but it's tentatively attributed to Valigursky.

[Randall Dowling]

So, today I went down and picked up another tranche of books from Greg and the gang at Dreamhaven Books in Minneapolis.  I really enjoy chatting with those guys as they are another big repository of fandom history and knowledge of all things comics/pulps/books/magazines.  It very much feels like the fun I used to have going into comic books stores and record stores in the 70s and 80s!

Anyway, I left with a nice little stack of fun.  Let's start with the digests!  

This Falcon digest looks like it was printed yesterday.  By far the freshest of these digests that I've ever seen!

And a classic title that's tough to find in nice shape

And this last Falcon has a cover that's just classic!

Then there was this wonderful little title with a George Gross cover.  The woman on the cover seems friendly.

And this Venus title shows a young lady with a man.  The man seems confident that he knows what happens next...

And a couple of Croydons (Restless Wife came from Dreamhaven, Man Hungry Widow came in the mail).

 

Not a bad day!  

[Randall Dowling]

And then there were the paperbacks.  I've been all over the collecting map, lately.  The big boy of the group is clearly Queen of Blood.  It's signed 4x by the author- Charles Neutzel, the cover artist- Robert Bonfils, Ackerman, and Earl Kemp (the editor).  This was a monster addition to the collection!

And I finally acquired this excellent title by the great Cornell Woolrich (William Irish)

and another by Woolrich

And an early Dell Mapback and a Graphic Library.

It was a day's haul!  

 

[moonpool]

For those interested, a partial picture of "The Book Room".

[damonwad]

On 1/16/2021 at 5:55 PM, OtherEric said:

Nice!  I have a copy but mine is pretty rough.

I personally prefer this eye-popping cover to the Bergey, but am happy to have both.  The PKD is uncredited but it's tentatively attributed to Valigursky.

The OA sold a few months ago on Heritage.

https://fineart.ha.com/itm/ed-valigursky-american-1926-2009-eye-in-the-sky-paperback-cover-1957-oil-on-board-18-x-11-3-/a/8027-71106.s?ic4=OtherResults-SampleItem-071515&tab=ArchiveSearchResults-012417

[Surfing Alien]

12 hours ago, moonpool said:

For those interested, a partial picture of "The Book Room".

Very nice. I'd like to show that to my wife to bargain for such a nice space for my books but she'd say I have to keep it that neat and my current space is a mess

 

[OtherEric]

Two from the local store today.  The second one is my first Lion:

[Surfing Alien]

4 hours ago, OtherEric said:

Two from the local store today.  The second one is my first Lion:

In the top line of Dell mystery covers imho. Just a great composition. Watch out with Lions... they are compelling!

Speaking of John D. MacDonald, here's a nice new pickup. The Popular edition is said to be much scarcer than the Gold Medal 1st. It's a very skinny book so I understand why it would be tough in high grade.

 

 

[OtherEric]

4 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

In the top line of Dell mystery covers imho. Just a great composition. Watch out with Lions... they are compelling!

Speaking of John D. MacDonald, here's a nice new pickup. The Popular edition is said to be much scarcer than the Gold Medal 1st. It's a very skinny book so I understand why it would be tough in high grade.

 

 

I wish I had more John D. MacDonald early editions than I do... and I've got a respectable number.  I'm probably better off in terms of having pulps with his work, though.

[Surfing Alien]

10 minutes ago, OtherEric said:

I wish I had more John D. MacDonald early editions than I do... and I've got a respectable number.  I'm probably better off in terms of having pulps with his work, though.

You've made a dent in those!

[Surfing Alien]

A good day for Blondes with cigarettes

Obtained a pretty sick copy of a top George Gross cover for Ecstasy Novels

 

And a very classic cover "Hard Boiled" Venus Book.

 

 

I've never had either of these, which means I've been looking for them forever  

 

[Randall Dowling]

41 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

A good day for Blondes with cigarettes

Obtained a pretty sick copy of a top George Gross cover for Ecstasy Novels

 

And a very classic cover "Hard Boiled" Venus Book.

 

 

I've never had either of these, which means I've been looking for them forever  

 

Awesome pickups, SA!!  I have Hard Boiled but the Private Life of a Street Girl just went on my list.  

[Surfing Alien]

46 minutes ago, Randall Dowling said:

Awesome pickups, SA!!  I have Hard Boiled but the Private Life of a Street Girl just went on my list.  

"Hard Boiled" is one I always knew as a classic, I'm pretty sure it was pictured in one of the guides, "Private Life" wasn't on my radar until I saw one in an ebay auction a while back that attracted a lot of bidding.