Paperback 769: God's Little Acre / Erskine Caldwell (Penguin 581)

Paperback 769: Penguin 581 (1st ptg, 1946)

Title: God's Little Acre
Author: Erskine Caldwell
Cover artist: jonas

Yours for: $13


Best things about this cover:

• Do love the peephole covers. Though usually we get to peep at something sexy. Or at least living.
• It's an oddly tepid cover, given how strongly Caldwell's work was associated with sex. Future Caldwell covers will be … less discreet, to put it mildly.
• I believe that to be the smallest outhouse that has ever been painted.

Best things about this back cover:

• Stock photo, lifted from "Generic White Man" entry in Encyclopedia Americana. 
• "Graduating from neither," ha ha. "He sampled your so-called 'higher education' and decided 'fuck this—I'ma pick cotton!"
• That is weirdest way in which anyone's pro football career has ever been introduced. "He was truly fuckable, like a football player, which he was once. Probably. Somewhere."
• Damn, looks like a dog hair got on the scanner platen. Sorry about that.

Page 123~

"Saying he's going to vote for me and doing it when the time comes is as far apart as the land and the sky." 

It's like when Martin beat Bart for class president on "The Simpsons." Everyone said they supported Bart, but only two people voted: Martin and Martin's running mate Wendell.  So Martin won.

Amazing discovery of the day—this book reprints, at the very end, the ruling by the Magistrate's Court of the City of New York, clearing Viking Press (this book's original publisher) from charges of obscenity brought against it by the People of the State of New York at the instigation of The New York Society for the Suppression of Vice. Based on this information, the oddly sexless cover instantly becomes either more perplexing or more understandable, depending on how you look at it. I have only ever seen this legal opinion-reprinting in the backs of sleaze paperbacks, specifically those published by in the late '50s and early '60s by Sanford Aday, who has his own repeated run-ins with the law. As the opinion reprinted here makes clear, God's Little Acre was defended by many scholars and writers on its literary merits. Harder to argue for said merits when the title of your book is Sex Life of a Cop (as it was in Aday's own trial). Anyway, very cool to discover this much-more-mainstream precedent for self-justifying end matter.

~RP

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Paperback 689: The Left Hand of Satan / Mark Lucas (Saber Books SA-88)

Paperback 689: Saber Books SA-88 (PBO, 1964)

Title: The Left Hand of Satan
Author: Mark Lucas
Cover artist: Uncredited (he did a *lot* of late Sabers...) [Bill Edwards]

Yours for: $30


Best things about this cover:

• The only thing that explains the hilariously amateurish quality of this painting, with its complete disdain for perspective (how tall *is* that man?!), is that it was painted by the left hand of Satan, and Satan is right-handed.
• Don't look too long at that headboard—it will confuse you and while you are thus addled Satan will steal your soul (presumably with his left hand).
• Nick is not a plausible mate for anyone, let alone either of those ladies. 
• "I finished painting your hallway ultra-bright yellow, ma'am, I just ... oh, excuse me, ma'am, I didn't know you had company. I'll go clean your gutters now. OK? OK." [backs out slowly].
• This is post-Sanford Aday Saber. Instead of interesting, politically-minded, sexually-provocative sleaze, we now just get sleaze for sleaze's sake, i.e. dull porn. Seriously, his publishing empire went Hilariously downhill after his obscenity conviction. 

Best things about this back cover:

• "Ordained minister"—so you know this shit is going to be Filthy.
• How is anyone "born with unconventional standards"? Predilections, sure, I guess, but "standards?" Those can't be inborn. Those are culturally determined. This has been "Overthinking It," with Rex Parker. See you next week.
• "The school of Lesbians and male homosexual students is growing"—Class Sizes Are Limited, So Enroll Now!
• Never in a million years would *Aday* have published a book with this faux-moralizing judgmental crap on the back. He veered toward sympathy and understanding, where this ... ugh. "Your kids are in danger! Read this porn to find out how!"
• Who green-lighted this back cover concept. "It'll have the color gradients of Fire!" "Will it be legib...?" "Shhhh .... FIRE!"

Page 123~

"This is what I was thinking about, when I was trying to go to sleep. How could I go to sleep when every muzzle in my body was begging for you?" 

"The word is muscle, baby, and when I get started with you, you won't be able to say scat," Nick said, taking her into his arms.

Ever muzzle in my gut wants to say scat to this guy.

~RP

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Paperback 688: Never to Belong / James Williams (Fabian Z-135)

Paperback 688: Fabian Z-135 (PBO, 1960)

Title: Never to Belong
Author: James Williams
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: $50 (actually, Not for Sale — don't think I'm ready to part with this one)


Best things about this cover:

• Pristine book from my favorite sleaze paperback publisher—Sanford Aday (publishing out of Fresno CA before eventually being convicted of trafficking in obscenity) was always trying to be sensational with the sexual themes of his books. He published a lot of stuff dealing with homosexuality, cross-dressing, miscegenation, etc., some it written by women authors, black authors, etc. He Was So Unusual. As I've told you before, he used the pages of his books to wage a battle against censorship—not just in the themes of the novels he published, but in the little essays and clippings he'd include in the backs of his books detailing court victories he or others had won against the government. In this book, he has forgone much of that back matter but still has a little note to his readers asking for feedback and proclaiming, "we are going to keep on giving you what you want to read as long as it is within our power to do so." He probably knew his publishing days were numbered. I just love the idea of waging a one-man battle for sexual openness and tolerance using only the medium of ... the sleaze paperback. He's kind of my hero.
• Not sure I've seen the word "mulatto" on a cover before. Remember when we subcategorized black people based on skin color?! Good times.
• Love the way the woman's skirt flies up. Fabian cover paintings are not generally known for their, uh, quality, but I like the suggestion of motion here. 
• Also, bald dude's face is Priceless.

Best things about this back cover:

• Awkwardest ellipsis ever.
• This is surely the greatest book ever about mule-skinning, whatever that is. Ooh, turns out a mule-skinner is just someone who drives mules, also called a "muleteer" (hmmm, this puts "Mouseketeer" in a whole new light) or "arriero."
• Crossword folks will be excited by this new cluing possibility for MAE.
• "High-towning it" is a great phrase I would like to bring back. I shall use it every time I'm determined to raise me a whole bunch of hell.

Page 123~

Louisiana was a rough place for a colored man to get into trouble with the law.

Hashtag understatement.

~RP

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Paperback 483: The Gay Detective / Lou Rand (Saber SA-18)

Paperback 483: Saber Books SA-18 (PBO, 1961)

Title: The Gay Detective
Author: Lou Rand
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: $100

Best things about this cover: 

• Not sure how legible the cover copy is, so I'll transcribe: "Francis and Tiger [!!!!!!!!!!!! ... ?] had found out what they needed to know. The trick now was to get the nude Vivien out of the bathhouse [!] and to safety."
• Of all Vivien's failed attempts to get a man, this one was perhaps the most spectacular.
• The bathhouse employed the most strapping and vigilant head lice police the world had ever known.
• Come on, even the queerest of the queer aren't going to be able to stomach that much pink.

Best things about this back cover:

• Have we seen Saber get biblical before!? This is perhaps my favorite of Sanford Aday's responses to the legal harassment his business was suffering in the late-50s / early 60s. 

Page 123~

The man is—we heard many times—a muscular masochist and confines his pleasures to young and attractive men.

"We heard many times" — that's what happens when you keep asking witnesses to "tell us the one about the muscular masochist again!"

~RP

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Paperback 474: The Third Bedroom / Brenda Baker (Fabian Z-136)

Paperback 474: Fabian Z-136 (PBO, 1960)

Title: The Third Bedroom
Author: Brenda Baker
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: $19

Best things about this cover:

• There were three things Brad loved more than anything else: bright yellow dress shirts, mirrored walls, and women covered in fondant.
• These curtains make me laugh every time I look at this book. It's like the artist just pawned off the design concept on Mrs. Jenkins' 1st grade art class.
• That woman is either a yoga master or has dislocated her shoulder. You try putting your elbow behind your head. Go ahead, I'll wait.
• The mirror symbolizes Brad's dual identity: the gentleman, and the slightly more boring gentleman.

Best things about this back cover:

• Feel the sadness.
• Fabian (and Saber and Vega) had lots of legal troubles due to the highly sexual and controversial content of many of their books. Publisher Sanford Aday and partner Wallace de Ortega-Maxey would eventually be convicted in U.S. District Court (in Western Michigan) of trafficking in obscenity. Almost all Fabian, Saber, and Vega books in the late 50s / early 60s have legal news as part of their end material. For instance, this book contains a report on the publisher's own recent court victories, and a long discussion of recent legal victories for booksellers all over the country. This is yet another reason I love the Aday paperbacks, cheesy and low-rent as they are: they defied the moral hypocrisy of their day and challenged the legal system in ways that (ultimately) mattered. You're not going to have much problem getting some high-minded literary professional into court to defend "Ulysses." Good luck getting the same guy to defend "Sex Life of a Cop."

Page 123~

I fully believed then that God spoke to me, but it was like when your conscience tells you something, you're not too sure of what it means. But I calmed down rather quickly, and after I had taken my seat upon the divan I took a cigarette and lit it.

And ye, verily, God said unto her, "Betty ... you must go to Flavor Country."

~RP

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Paperback 461: Imposed Rebellion / James Williams (Fabian Z-127)

Paperback 461: Fabian Z-127 (PBO, 1959)

Title: Imposed Rebellion
Author: James Williams
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: $55

Best things about this cover:

• Bill had told Bess that he was far too old to enjoy a game of "got-your-nose!" but Bess would not be denied.
• The right hand says "passions" but the left hand says "stabby."
• I don't mean to be judgmental, but ... those really aren't appropriate swamp-trysting shoes.
• "I said, 'Watch me pull a quarter out of your ear!?' Why won't you hold still and let me play my games, Bill!?"
• Possibly the worst title every conceived by humankind.

Best things about this back cover:

• Wow, they really don't want to tell us about this book.
• "Sergeant ... Sergeant ... the camera's over here, Sergeant."
• As this graphic suggests, Sergeant Williams is from Mirror-Image Nevada, which can be found in the alternate universe that also contains "Okinowa."

Page 123~

The joke was a little over Duce's head, but he laughed loud and long. Leola took a sip of her drink and crossed her legs. She had heard some of the best. She cut Duce off.

Such were the mad antics at the Strange Name Support Group.

~RP

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Paperback 400: Emotional Jungle / Ann Freeman (Fabian Z-143)

Paperback 400: Fabian Books Z-143 (PBO, 1961)

Title: Emotional Jungle
Author: Ann Freeman
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: not for sale


Best things about this cover:

• That lamp shade is epic.
• Who's up for some awkward, joyless, pasty sex? Anyone?
• "So ... you like pink, I guess, huh?"
• The first ever meeting of the Jaundiced Hair support group is about to begin.
• I don't buy that he is "slipping into her room." He has the distinct look of someone backing slowly toward safety.

Best things about this back cover:

• Love how Sanford Aday (publisher of Fabian Books) uses this quotation from Romans (on many of his books from this era) as a big middle finger to his censorious detractors. During this period he was adding anti-censorship material to the back matter of his books. This one has a one-page screed against censors and the several pages of Supreme Court and other legal decisions supporting the freedom of speech, and particularly the freedoms of book publishers and sellers. It's a fascinating (completely invisible, these days) intervention into the discussion of what counts as obscenity and what the government's role toward alleged obscenity ought to be.

Page 123~

"Gwen, I'm sorry abut the other day."
"Forget it. We all have days like that."

He added: "No, really. I had no right to tell you you had hair like an Oompa Loompa. That was totally uncalled for. I could have just kept backing silently out of the room..."

~RP

Paperback 399: Sex Life of a Cop / Oscar Peck (Saber Books SA-11)

Paperback 399: Saber Books SA-11 (unknown ptg, 1967)

Title: Sex Life of a Cop
Author: Oscar Peck
Cover artist: Uncredited

Yours for: Not For Sale (I'm hoping to write about this book / publisher some day...)


Best things about this cover:

• Wow, that's some sex life. I'll just assume the cop is banging a hooker just off-screen, or in the very ample back seat.
• This cover is uninteresting, but the book and its history are fascinating. Well, the book is trashy and poorly written (from what I've looked at), but that didn't matter to the State of Michigan when they tried and convicted its publisher, Sanford Aday, for trafficking in obscenity. 25 year sentence, $25K fine. No idea what happened after that, but I really want to find out ... Aday's late-'50s / early '60s sleaze publishing empire (run, improbably, out of Fresno, CA, my home town) is endlessly fascinating to me. The books are almost uniformly terrible, sometimes comically so, but they are also endearing in their constant, often painfully earnest attempts to broaden the scope of public sexual discourse. Lots of books about "deviant" sexuality, incl. transvestism, homosexuality, almost all of which combine titillation with sympathetic portrayal. Promoting understanding and tolerance for non-traditional sexuality through the dissemination of ... trashy fiction? Yes. Brilliant.

Back cover just has a logo, so, straight to p. 123

Page 123~

He drove down the alley to Third Street, then turned west toward Main and he had a satisfied feeling of being lucky to get to teach the attractive girl reporter the ropes of police work. And "the ropes" was exactly what he'd like to teach her.

Ha ha, "the ropes," get it? Because ... because ... uh oh. Get Out Of The Car, Lady! (I won't tell you what actually happens—it doesn't involve ropes, but I really Really wish I hadn't just read it. [Shudder])

~RP

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