Paperback 1176: Dirty Harry: Duel For Cannons / Dane Hartman (Warner Books 90-793)

Paperback 1176: Warner Books 90-793 (PBO, 1981)

Title: Dirty Harry #1: Duel For Cannons 

Author: Dane Hartman (pseud. for god knows who)

Cover artist: No idea

Condition: 7/10

Value: $20

[Encinitas, CA, Aug. 2026]

Best things about this cover: 

• "Do you remember the Alamo? Well, do ya, punk!?"
• Look admittedly I know nothing about guns but would you hold a .44 Magnum in front of your face like that, so close to your eye.? I understand they can have kind of a kick. Oh, sorry, it looks like it has "manageable recoil," so go ahead Clint, press it to your face, shoot those Texans, I'm sure it's fine.
• His hair looks very ... salon. Like, there's definitely product in there. Doesn't look "dirty" at all, tbh. And his cheekbones. Don't get me started. To die for.

Best things about this back cover: 

• Ah, stickers on a paperback. Someone is going to burn in paperback hell, I see...
• That MEN OF ACTION BOOKS logo is ... ornate. I guess men of action use guns with sights? Or periscopes? That's the only "action" I'm getting from this logo. Doesn't seem very ... active ... but I do like the font design. (Men of action probably don't care about font design.)
• "Blazing byways" should've set off some editor's "Alliteration Overkill" detector.

Page 123~

    Almost of its own volition, the .44 Magnum was out and in his hand.

First of all, replace ".44 Magnum" with "his dick" and it's pretty funny. Second, I would absolutely pay to see an animated Dirty Harry movie where the gun is a separate character. "Let's kill, Harry. Kill kill kill. Make them dead! Full of lead!" "Whoa, whoa, easy there, Maggie" (she's called "Maggie")

~RP

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Paperback 1175: For Bond Lovers Only / ed. Sheldon Lane (Dell 2672)

Paperback 1175: Dell 2672 (PBO, 1965)

Title: For Bond Lovers Only

Editor: Sheldon Lane

Cover artist: [photo of Ursula Andress]

Condition: 8.5/10

Value: $12

[acquired in Encinitas, CA, Aug. 2026]

Best things about this cover: 

• Sale Forbidden to Non-Bond Lovers! Yes, she's very sexy, but put the book down and leave the store immediately, you impostor. You know you haven't seen Thunderball!
• The title appears to be a play on For Your Eyes Only, which at this point (1965) had not been made into a movie. It was merely the title story of a short story collection (1960), meaning you really *would* have to be a Bond Lover to appreciate the (admittedly weak) wordplay.
• I like how Andress is wearing a shirt. "If, uh, we could get a little more skin, Ms. Andr-" "Fuck you, it's cold, just take the picture!" "Yes, ma'am." (actually, it seems this photo was actually taken by Bunny Yeager, so the dialogue was probably more professional / less objectifying)

Best things about this back cover: 

• There should not be a comma after "elegant." I want to love the man as much as you want me to love him, but ... punctuation!
• If they're "girls" (and they're always "girls"), shouldn't he be a "girlizer"?
• I get what they're doing with "bedridden" but it makes him sound sickly.

Page 123~

    "Bond is a dangerous man," said Chandler. "Dangerous to his enemies. Dangerous to himself. In real life, I suppose Bond would not last more than twelve months. His enemies would combine to see that.

    "Philip Marlowe, now—he'll probably end his days in a street accident. The American crime syndicate would never really go out of their way to bump him off. He's not dangerous enough to them."

~RP

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