“Army Girl,” by Whit Harrison

Army Girl, by “Whit Harrison,” aka Harry Whittington (Paperback Library, 1962). The Florida-born Whittington (1915-1989) was a prolific author of both crime fiction and western fiction, who wrote under a variety of pseudonyms. A few of his books have been brought back into print by Stark House Press, but not yet Army Girl.

Cover artwork by Harry Schaare. His original artwork for this softcover novel can be enjoyed below. An earlier edition of Army Girl, published by Venus Books (and with a front illustration by Rudolph Belarki) can be seen here.

“This Is for Keeps,” by George Joseph

This Is for Keeps, by George Joseph (Popular Library, 1958). Men’s magazines historian Robert Deis says that Joseph “worked as a lawyer in New Zealand for 40 years. On the side, he wrote hundreds of short stories and a number of fiction and non-fiction books.” Among Joseph’s other works were the novels When the Rainbow Is Pale (1962), Take Any City (1970), Trial and Error (1979), and the non-fiction study By a Person or Persons Unknown (1982), which showcases unsolved New Zealand homicides.

Cover artwork by Harry Schaare.

Because I Needed a Brewer Fix …

A Taste for Sin, by Gil Brewer (Berkley, 1961).
Cover illustration by Harry Schaare.

What Did You Say Your Name Was Again?

(Above) Kim, by Robert Colby (Monarch, 1962), with a cover illustration by Harry Schaare.

More often than not, Killer Covers’ gallery posts are developed through meticulous, time-consuming research into a specific author or theme. But every once in a while—as was the case with this post, for instance, as well as this one—they are born of happenstance. That’s again what led to today’s offering.

While working on an unrelated piece for CrimeReads, I noticed that a surprising quantity of classic paperback fronts in my computer files bore the single names of women. It’s likely this doesn’t demonstrate an appalling lack of imagination on the part of their authors or publishers, but rather a wish to focus the reader’s attention on a female protagonist, be she benevolent and magnanimous or (as in most examples shown here) conniving and concupiscent. Emphasizing only a character’s so-called Christian name might make her, and any novel about her, easier to remember. It’s the same principal that leads so many contemporary celebrities to adopt abbreviated appellations: Cher, Beyoncé, Björk, Bono, Usher, Jewel, Morrissey, Madonna, Oprah, and Seal, to mention just a few.

When it comes to attention-seeking paperback novels, it doesn’t hurt, either, that a sole-moniker title should be coupled with captivating artwork. That’s certainly true of the books showcased in this post. Artists represented include not only Harry Schaare, but also Rudy Nappi (Lulie), Barye Phillips (Clemmie, Popular Library’s Bedelia), William Teason (Dell’s Bedelia), Rafael DeSoto (Louisa), Robert Maguire (Concha), Paul Rader (Connie, Carla, Lana), Charles Frace (Candy), Hans Helweg (Claudelle), Al Wagner (Clio), Roger Hall (Panther’s Julie), and Harry Barton (Nina, Vicki).

Click on any of these images to open an enlargement.

Because I Needed a Disney Fix …

The Hangman’s Tree, by Dorothy Cameron Disney (Bantam, 1951). Cover illustration by Harry Schaare.

READ MORE: “Not What You'd Expect from a Disney,” by TomKat (Beneath the Stains of Time).

Now We Are 12: “The Pleasure in Women”

Part of a series celebrating Killer Covers’ first dozen years.



The Pleasure in Women, by “Ted Lee,” aka Herbert Leavy (Monarch, 1962). Cover art by Harry Schaare. If you’d like to read the back-cover copy, you can do so here.

Killer Covers at 10: “November Reef”

A decade in business, 12 months’ worth of paperback fronts.



November Reef, by Robin Maugham (Monarch, 1964). As The New York Times explained in its obituary of this British author, Robert Cecil Romer Maugham, 2nd Viscount Maugham of Hartfield (1916-1981) “was the nephew of the novelist and short-story writer [W.] Somerset Maugham, and the oldest son of the first Viscount Maugham, a former Lord High Chancellor.”
Cover illustration by Harry Schaare.