50 Pulp Cover Treatments of Classic Works of Literature
Guns, Broads, Beefcake, Literariness
Last month at CrimeReads, Rebecca Romney looked at a few classic detective novels that had, at one time or another, gotten makeovers as sexy pulps—because as we all know, the easiest way to sell something is to make it look salacious (whether it actually is or not). But it isn’t only great detective novels that have gotten the pulp treatment. Classic works of literary fiction have existed as pulps from the very beginning of pulp—the new paperback publishers of the 1940s and 50s printed them right along with classic crime and some genuinely lowbrow (and sometimes quite lurid) new novels, often commissioning the very same artists to design their covers. Below, I dug up a few of these pulpified classics (not including the Pulp! The Classics imprint)—many of which I found through the excellent resource Pulp Covers. Some are true pulp covers—with overtly sexy women and tantalizing movie-esque taglines—while others are just amusingly lowbrow mass market treatments of highbrow novels. Either way, they’re even better than you’d expect.
Signet Book #840, 1951. Cover art by Mitchell Hooks
Pocket Books Cardinal Edition, 1952
Bantam, 1953. Cover by Charles Binger.
Signet #794, 1951. Cover art by James Avati.
Berkley Books G-119
Bantam Books #8, 1945
Bantam Giant A1091
1953. Cover by James Avati.
Bantam Book #717, 1949. Cover art by Ken Riley
Signet Giant, 1954
Signet Book #834, 1952. Cover art by Stanley Meltzoff.
WDL Books
Ivy Books
Bantam Book #315, 1949
Cover by James Avati.
Berkley Books G-30
Ace Double, 1956
New English Library, 1969
Signet Book #632
Pyramid Royal #16, 1958. Cover art by Harry Schaare.
Lion Books
Pan Books M39
Panther Books
Signet Books #937, 1952. Cover Artist: James Avati
Signet Book #1001, 1951. Cover by James Avanti.
Bantam F2879, 1965.
Pocket Books, Cardinal Edition, 1955. Cover art by Tom Dunn.
Bantam Books, 1949. Cover by C.C. Beall.
Pocket Books, Cardinal Edition; Cover art by John Alan Maxwell.
Popular Library, 1955
Pocket Books #123, 1941. Cover Artist: Sol Immerman; movie tie-in with Spencer Tracy
Signet D1628, 1959.
Paperback Library, 1965
Ballantine, 1965. Cover art by Mozelle Thompson.
Lion Books #143, 1953.
Pan Books, 1963.
Pan Books, 1968.
Dell Books #681, 1953. Cover Artist: Griffith Foxley
Signet Books, 1949
Four Square Books, 1958. Tie-in edition for film starring Yul Brynner.
Signet Book #733, 1949. Cover art by James Avati.
Signet Books 671, 1948 (3rd printing, 1951). Cover art by Robert Jonas.
Ballantine Books, 1988.
Signet Books #1087, 1953. Cover by James Avati.
Signet Books, 1952
Signet Books, 1949
Signet Book #610, 1950. Cover art by Bill Gregg.
Avon Books, 1953.
Signet, 1960.
Signet Giant S798, 1954. Cover Artist: Alan Harmon
