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

[Surfing Alien]

On 1/14/2023 at 6:06 PM, OtherEric said:

A couple digests from the local store today.

Anybody recognize the cover artist on The Girl From UNCLE?

You know how much I love the Attack of the Giant Fonts on the cover art 😆 But still think the actual image is awesome. Would love to know who did it...

[frozentundraguy]

Been a little slow for PB's for me lately, but I have a few new acquisitions to share.

Didn't notice it when buying these books, but girls dressed in red predominate.

 

 

 

[Surfing Alien]

Happy to get some Friday fun again Got in another box of high grade paperbacks. Some real cool ones in this batch, here's a few. I'll try to post a few more over the weekend. These are pretty incredible in-hand.

 

Gold Medal 366, The Woman is Mine by Harry Whittington. Cover art by James Meese.

 

Ace D-17 Shakedown by Roney Scott. Cover art by Norman Saunders

Backed with The Darkness Within by Walter Ericson aka Howard Fast

 

Gold Medal 277 Flight to Darkness by Gil Brewer. Cover art by Barye Phillips

 

Beacon B174 Affairs of a Beauty Queen by Orrie Hitt.

 

Dell 9200 Ubik by Philip K. *Spoon* Cover by Jeff Jones. An impossible black cover. The collection actually has some real nice books reaching into the late 1970's.

 

Harlequin 167 Love Me and Die by Day Keene. Another Harlequin in impossible shape. There's been 4 or 5 of them so far in the collection.

 

 

[Surfing Alien]

Some more of the vintage goodness...

Tough to find this one in any shape. Many were crushed in foxholes.

 

Ace D-129 The Dangling Carrot by Day Keene backed with Silenced Witnesses

 

Ace D109 Mambo to Murder by Dale Clark backed by I See Red by Sterling Noel (Cover by Harry Barton)

 

Gold Medal 691 Fire in the Flesh by David Goodis. Cover by Barye Phillips

 

Avon 344 The Chinese Parrot by Earl Derr Biggers. Cover by Raymond Johnson. The colors on this copy are eye-popping.

 

Ace G-637 The Ganymede Takeover by Philip K. "Spoon" and Ray Nelson. Cover by Jack Gaughan

 

Popular Library 134. The Case of the Crumpled Knave by Anthony Boucher. Rudolph Belarski's first cover for Popular Library. This one is always encountered with lamination peel so this is pretty exceptional.

 

Dell 553 The Mark of Zorro by Johnston McCulley. Cover art by Robert Stanley. I've had quite a few copies of this one over the years and very tough without creasing.

 

I'll post some more as time permits. I have several hundred more like these on the way.

Edited January 21, 2023 by Surfing Alien

[OtherEric]

Hit the Half Priced Books today.  A handful of paperbacks, particularly love the Wally Wood cover on the Clement.  The MacDonald is a 2nd print:

 

[OtherEric]

This was the more interesting find, though:  Carter Brown digests from Australia.  Which I had no idea existed before I saw them today, I couldn't resist at $3 each:

[Surfing Alien]

On 1/21/2023 at 10:02 PM, OtherEric said:

This was the more interesting find, though:  Carter Brown digests from Australia.

They were an international sensation. I think they were printed in many countries. I'd really like to try collect the Signets with the Barye Phillips and Robert McGinnis covers but there are soooo many, I'm afraid to start because I might not be able to stop 

[Surfing Alien]

For all the minty books in this collection, some of my biggest joy is getting hold of nice, but not mint copies of some very tough books. They may not exist mint.

No Wings on a Cop by Cleve Adams. Handi Books 112. Cover by Privatello. You just never see some of these late number Handi Books at all

Walt Disney Tells the Story of Pinocchio, Whitman 556.

Anyone who has been around since the early days of vintage pb collecting knows this is virtually impossible in any kind of higher grade. They were obviously destroyed for the most part by children. 
While this copy has some of the inevitable loss of the cheap lamination, it appears unread with no readers crease. I've only seen one other copy like it in 40+ years.

[pmpknface]

On 1/22/2023 at 3:02 PM, Surfing Alien said:

For all the minty books in this collection, some of my biggest joy is getting hold of nice, but not mint copies of some very tough books. They may not exist mint.

No Wings on a Cop by Cleve Adams. Handi Books 112. Cover by Privatello. You just never see some of these late number Handi Books at all

Walt Disney Tells the Story of Pinocchio, Whitman 556.

Anyone who has been around since the early days of vintage pb collecting knows this is virtually impossible in any kind of higher grade. They were obviously destroyed for the most part by children. 
While this copy has some of the inevitable loss of the cheap lamination, it appears unread with no readers crease. I've only seen one other copy like it in 40+ years.

Damn kids....

[Surfing Alien]

Sinner's Shroud by Tony Angelo. Archer Books NN (NN#56 according to Warren Guide) 1950. Cover art by Reginald Heade.

This was in the high grade collection. It's not high grade but the central image is clean and I know from experience that this is one of the rarest Archer Books and was not in any warehouse finds. I haven't seen one for sale since I started collecting again over 5 years ago and there's only 2 pictures of it at all on the internet, one at the Pulp Trader checklist site and one at the Classic Crime Fiction site.  I'm overjoyed to have one, especially since it is also a "Femme Fatale" cover. You gotta love a gal with a garter gun!

[OtherEric]

Today's mail call:

 

[Surfing Alien]

A satisfying art history day today. I contacted Heritage about the mis-attribution of the cover of Intimate Confessions #1 to Everett Raymond Kinstler in their current auction and explained the reasoning as to why it was Raymond Johnson and not Kinstler, who painted the cover to Avon paperback #222, which was the basis for this cover.

They changed the description to credit Raymond Johnson and said they were changing their default description. I am going to ask for clarification whether that means that he'll be credited in the description for all copies that come up going forward. If so I am going to see if they will give the credit for the 4 other known Avon/Realistic comic covers that were reprinted from Johnson paperback covers. It would be a small win in a big world but Kinstler has all the credit he needs, I mean the guy went on to be a Presidential portraitist! So giving back the rightful credit on one of the most famous romance comic covers to a great artist who, for whatever reason, toiled in obscurity would be a small bit of justice and exposure for Johnson to the larger hobby.

https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/romance/intimate-confessions-1-avon-1951-cgc-gd-20-off-white-to-white-pages/a/40216-81187.s

Edited January 24, 2023 by Surfing Alien

[ThothAmon]

Bedsheet size pulps are my favorite and this is a great example, albeit later than most. 

 

[ThothAmon]

On the other end of the spectrum but this seems to be one of the tougher Blue Ribbon Digests to find. 
 

[FoggyNelson]

Like looking at this thread ✔️👍 it great seeing so many cool cover I never knew existed❤️👍

[Surfing Alien]

I don't believe there were any pulps in this collection but plenty of digests (and listed in Bookery's pulp guide so..... almost!). I know these are right up the alley of @OtherEric

These two issues are both breakouts in the guide. May 1956 for the John D. MacDonald story and October 1956 for the Harry Whittington.

 

[OtherEric]

Only one paperback in today... but it is, if not a huge pickup, at least a fairly big one. 

[Randall Dowling]

On 1/25/2023 at 11:14 PM, OtherEric said:

Only one paperback in today... but it is, if not a huge pickup, at least a fairly big one. 

Awesome book with a classic cover.  Great pickup, OE!!  

[OtherEric]

Actually, since I've now got the whole set in vintage (if not necessarily the earliest) editions, let's go ahead and show them off.  All but "The Little Sister" are first Pocket (or, in the case of Playback, Cardinal) printings:

[Surfing Alien]

On 1/26/2023 at 12:14 AM, OtherEric said:

Only one paperback in today... but it is, if not a huge pickup, at least a fairly big one. 

Sweet Paul Stahr cover. One of the "must haves" of vintage paperback collecting and that is a nice grade for this title. They're usually thrashed. What's the HRN on that one? I have a nice copy but it's not the first printing.