Thursday, October 24, 2013

Paperback 714: The Violent Hours / Frank Castle (Gold Medal 554)

Paperback 714: Gold Medal 554 (PBO, 1956)

Title: The Violent Hours
Author: Frank Castle
Cover artist: Lu Kimmel

Yours for: $14

GM554

Best things about this cover:
  • "Hi, Murder? Hi! I was wondering, if you weren't too busy, maybe you'd like to come over for some love? .... You would!? Great! I'll put on something red and light a candle. See you soon!"
  • There is a whole subgenre of cover art that involves Girls Spilling Over The Edges Of Beds. Here's one. I know I've seen Many, many more.
  • This position offers Optimal Breast Viewing but does pretty terrible things to every other part of the body. Her hair looks like a wasp's nest.

GM554bc

Best things about this back cover:
  • "Ooh, it's half past murder. Time to look in my pants again!"
  • "Sheeted."
  • "Webb Grayburn" is not a name that inspires confidence. Sounds like a guy who owns an above-ground pool dealership.
  • OK, it's mostly text, but I still love the asymmetrical, crayon-like design with the whimsical, face-free clock hands. 
  • The book comes pre-distressed, so the actual wear and tear around the edges of the book fits right in with the book's original aesthetic.

Page 123~

It became so quiet in the room that the distant clatter of a teletype became loud.

It's not the most elegant sentence, by a longshot, but I do like the aural experience it provides.

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Tumblr]

4 comments:

Keir said...

Someone referred to as "the ancient enemy" sounds rather intriguing.

Anonymous said...

So, if the clock is right, then half-passed murder is 2:05, making murder 1:35 - the same time Jimmy Fallon goes off the air.

Coincidence?

Pat said...

Who knew "the Punisher" wrote crime novel between killing gangsters.

Nick Jones (Louis XIV, the Sun King) said...

I made that exact same joke when I wrote about this book back in 2011. Great minds...

When is the Punisher not the Punisher?

Actually that post is worth a look for an alternate British take on the cover.