JOHN POLLACK – BRITISH PULP FICTION AT
ASH RARE BOOKS
43 HURON ROAD
LONDON SW17 8RE
UNITED KINGDOM

London : United Anglo-American Book Co., [ca.1948]. First British edition. Brilliant but clumsy and absent-minded doctor divines from some Rorschach tests that someone is about to be killed and that another guest of nurse Judy Ford will be the murderer. An interesting debut murder mystery from the American film producer and maker of Agatha Christie movies in the UK. Originally published by Knopf in New York in 1946.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 176pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers, presumably by John Pollack; a little wear and some minor creasing; short split at foot; a few internal spots and some mild tanning, but a very good copy of a scarce production. No copy of this edition found in any major library worldwide.

£50

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London : Edwin Self, [ca.1951]. First edition. “Bart Barnarto grew up on the sidewalks of the East side of New York. He learned the facts of life in a hard and vicious school – and writes as he has lived – brutally, truthfully and without fear of the public enemies whose evil lives he exposes” – an early Barnato title published from Edwin Self’s original Grays Inn Road address. Barnato (occasionally Barnarto) was a house-name dreamed up for his stable of writers by Self when he set up independently in 1951: most of the titles appear to have been written by the very much London-born Albert Edward Garrett (1917-1968).
Crown 8vo (19cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – probably by John Pollack; a few nicks, creases and small marks; tiny chips to spine; rear cover defective – lacking most of its upper half; staples a little rusted; text lightly tanned; slight scuffs to last leaf, but a passable copy. No copy traced in any major library worldwide.

SOLD

London : Kaye Publications, [ca.1950]. First edition. “Heading San Francisco’s racket bosses was Jamie Riggs – Jamie and Pal Joey, the kid he had trained to think his way, and the guy he trusted with his shirt. These were the two closest pals in the game – until the night of the big fight when it didn't suit Jamie any longer”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). [iv],9-116pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – brunette spills from limo in a design by John Pollack (1918-1985); slight wear and nick at head; some wear and splitting at foot; scuff and tear tape-repaired on upper wrapper; staples rusting; some edge-spotting, but a reasonable copy. Only the Bodleian copy located in the major UK libraries.

SOLD

London : Hamilton & Co. (Stafford), [1951]. First edition. “I got biggity once, when I figured I was a real night club baron. I quit rum and coke and started using a little champagne. Well, I guess it had no link-up really, but before I knew where I was choppers [tommy-guns] were blasting around me”. Later published in the USA as “Dope Doll” by “Steve Harrigan”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 158,[ii]pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a sparkling design by John Pollack; somewhat worn, creased, nicked and slightly chipped; spine a little chipped and discoloured at head, and lacking most of the final 5cm (two inches) at foot, with the loss of several letters; text very lightly tanned and slightly creased, but a serviceable copy of a desirable title. Only a single copy (Bodleian) located in major libraries worldwide.

SOLD

London : Hamilton & Co. (Stafford), [1951]. First edition. “I got more trouble from just looking at that dame than a worm can find in a pool full of rainbow trout”. Later published in the USA as “Sin is a Redhead” by “Steve Harrigan”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 144pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – unsigned but probably by John Pollack; small chip at foot; some marking, creasing and mild fraying; staples rusted; a few internal marks and creases, but a good copy. Only a single copy (Bodleian) located in the major UK libraries.

SOLD

London : Robert Hale, (1954). First edition. Staff writers for a monthly crime magazine investigate the strange disappearance of an unknown showgirl in small town America.
Crown 8vo (20cm). Original black boards, blocked and lettered in red; some spotting of endpapers and edges; text a little tanned, but a very good and sound copy in the original dust-jacket by John Pollack (1918-1985) – the jacket with light wear, a few marks and short nicks, with some spotting and creasing to flaps, but also very good. Small bookseller’s label of a Cape Town bookshop and contemporary ownership inscription of A. D. Webb.

£25

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London : Robert Hale, (1956). First paperback edition. Staff writers for a monthly crime magazine investigate the strange disappearance of an unknown showgirl in small town America. Originally published in 1954.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 160pp. Original pictorial wrappers – a typical blonde by John Pollack (1918-1985); slight rubbing, creasing and wear; text a little tanned, but a good copy. No copy of this edition located in any major library.

£15

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London : Robert Hale, (1955). First edition. “The world is made up of smart guys who get rich and suckers who stay poor” – Harry Griffin decides to hijack an aircraft and steal a collection of industrial diamonds.
Crown 8vo (20cm). 250,[ii]pp. Original black boards, blocked and lettered in red; front endpaper tanned, but otherwise a very good copy in the John Pollack dust-jacket – the jacket with a small mark and a short tear at head, and a few slight marks to the rear panel, but with only minimal wear and also very good.

£40

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London : Robert Hale, (1959). First paperback edition. We don’t know why the lovely Lucille wants so badly to learn to drive; why the blood-stains on the Cadillac are on the wrong side; or why the patrol officer was run over on a lonely beach road. Originally published the previous year under the “Raymond Marshall” pseudonym.
Foolscap 8vo (17cm). 190,[ii]pp. Original pictorial wrappers – a blonde and a candle by John Pollack (1918-1985); some very minor rubbing and wrinkling; tiny hole in lower wrapper, but overall a very good copy. No copy of this edition located in any major library.

£10

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London : Robert Hale, (1959). First paperback edition. Starlet strangled to death in a hotel lift at the Cannes Film Festival. Originally published in 1958.
Foolscap 8vo (17cm). 192pp. Original pictorial wrappers – a typical blonde by John Pollack (1918-1985); lightly worn and slightly split; diagonal crease to upper cover; text a little tanned but a serviceable copy. No copy of this edition located in any major library.

£10

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London : Robert Hale, (1959). First paperback edition. American journalist in Rome is asked to look after his boss’s daughter – she ends up dead in Sorrento and he has no alibi. First published under the “Raymond Marshall” pseudonym in 1956.
Foolscap 8vo (17cm). 192pp. Original pictorial wrappers – a John Pollack blonde; chip at foot of spine; some mild wear; text a little tanned, but a good copy. No copy of this edition located in any major library worldwide.

£10

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London : Museum Press, [1955]. First edition. Charles Fawcett has invented something very special, but his plans unravel – Richard Maidment, a.k.a. Mr Pilgrim, to the rescue. A mystery with “all the speed, wit and technical excellence of the Americans, Michael Cronin ... can infuse as much glamour into his (British) lovelies as even Mr. Goldwyn could wish for” (London Evening News).
Crown 8vo (20cm). 192pp. Original black boards, blocked and lettered in silver; internally a poor copy – lacking front free endpaper; outer leaves stained; text marked and creased; tape repair to final leaf; but a serviceable reading copy in a distinctive dust-jacket by John Pollack (1918-1985) – the spine of the jacket rubbed and nicked, but substantially complete and otherwise in good order. Inked shelfmarks to half-title and front flap of jacket.

£15

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London : Scion, (1951). First edition. “Right then Marcelle was doing a good job of intoxicating me, sitting there in a Bikini that wouldn’t have made a moth’s hors d’oeuvre, singing a smoochy ditty in a voice that would have been a swell contralto if there hadn’t been so much gin in it”. Murder and mayhem in New Orleans.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 112pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack; some wear; wrappers a little creased and fingered; some internal marks, creases and spots, but a reasonable copy. Just a single copy (Bodleian) located in major libraries worldwide.

£50

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London : Modern Fiction, [1949]. First edition. “When Jinx Engels got a glim of the blonde in the mink coat in the foyer of the Blue Orchid he stopped dead on the sidewalk and took another gander through the plate-glass swing doors. It was Marilou all right. Then his grey matter side-stepped and took an eight-year flash-back. He remembered her when last he had seen her ...”. McKeag with a lively early title in the “Griff” series.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 159,[i]pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack; some light wear; a few nicks; some inked marking to front wrapper; rear wrapper a little nicked and frayed, but still overall a very good copy. Just a single copy (British Library) located in major libraries worldwide.

£75

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London : Modern Fiction (London), [1951]. First edition. Diane repents of her hasty marriage in a wartime suburb – the chapters tell the tale: loveless marriage, on the verge, marriageless love, bitter parting, out of her past, unwilling wife, silken sin, the goad of loneliness, the way of transgression, conquest, gathering clouds, betrayed, the choice – aftermath. “Translated from the French” claims the cover – a statement even less accurate than the mis-spelling of McKeag’s nom-de-plume as “Rene Larouche” on the title-page.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 136pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers in a stylish design by the reliable John Pollack (1918-1985) – woman vamping a car-driver in a stock French setting; some wear to extremities; minor creasing and marking; price faintly over-stamped on upper wrapper; a few internal nicks, creases and a chip; one leaf a little proud, but overall a not unappealing copy. Only the British Library copy located in any of the major UK libraries.

SOLD

Leicester : Beacon Publishing Co., (1951). First edition. “She had marriage – she wanted love” – “The great screen lover, in his search for the perfect mate for a temperamental genius like himself, chooses the young and lovely wife of a doctor”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). (192)pp. Original pictorial wrappers in a design by John Pollack; externally a poor copy – the wrappers worn and tattered, but barring a few spots and some mild tanning, sound and serviceable within. A reasonable copy of an extremely scarce title – just one copy (British Library) located in major libraries worldwide.

£20

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London : Brown, Watson, [1951]. First edition : the title-page of this Dutch printed production is mysteriously blank. “The night it happened was one of those cold bleak nights with the wind screaming through the trees, and if you had any sense you were stuck round the fire with a book, or curled up on a divan with a bottle of rye, a packet of weeds and a blonde. Being sensible, I was doing the latter!” – cosy scene interrupted by best friend being found hanged.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 126,[ii]pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – an eye-catching design in green polka dot – unsigned but probably by John Pollack; small chip and some splitting to spine; some light creasing and mild soiling; staples lightly rusted; a few internal spots and faint creases; a good copy of one of the most attractive of the Brown Watson publications. Only the British Library copy located in the major UK libraries.

SOLD

Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, (1949). First edition. Private-eye Shaun O’Malley’s partner gets killed. Enter Elvira, “a girl with a nice figure, a nasty mind, and a husband too fond of the booze” – but Louisa’s pretty smart too.
Crown 8vo (18cm). 126,[ii]pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a lively design by John Pollack (1918-1985); American price sticker on upper wrapper; “Printed in England” stamp on title-page; minor wear at tips; slight vertical crease to upper wrapper; small spot to lower wrapper; half-title browned at foot; slight tear to one leaf, not reaching text, but overall a very good copy. Just two copies (Bodleian and British Library) located in major libraries worldwide.

£50

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Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, [1950]. First edition. The beautiful Carole comes calling on private-eye Shaun O’Malley.
Crown 8vo (18cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – brunette at the bar by John Pollack (1918-1985); American price sticker on upper wrapper; “Printed in England” stamp on title-page; wear at tips; neatly repaired short tear to spine and upper wrapper; text a little tanned, but a better than average copy. Just two copies (Bodleian and British Library) located in major libraries worldwide.

£50

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London : Brown Watson, [1950]. First edition. Corpse disappears, redhead comes looking – “She was a red-head and I got a pash for that kind. Red-heads with green eyes. That adds up to my sort of homework ...”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). (128)pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – red lips, red shoes, scanty green garment – an unsigned design, but possibly by John Pollack (1918-1985); minor wear at tips, with a short nick at foot; a few slight crease, with more pronounced diagonal crease to upper wrapper; staples rusting; internally a few minor marks and slight nicks, but overall a very good copy. Only the British Library copy located in any of the major UK libraries.

SOLD

Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, (1950). First edition. Pretty stranger leaves her bag behind – then she’s dead.
Crown 8vo (18cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack; spine worn; upper wrapper a little chipped, creased and frayed; inked price revision on upper wrapper; staples rusted; text lightly tanned; a serviceable copy. Only a single copy (Bodleian) located in the major UK libraries.

SOLD

Cleveland : Kaywin Publishers, (1952). First American edition. Private eye Nick Cranley “up to his big ears again in luscious lovelies and trigger-happy hooligans”. First published in England in 1949.
Crown 8vo (18cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a stylish design by John Pollack; spine worn and slightly split; small chips to upper wrapper; larger chips and some mild creases to rear wrapper; text tanned, with some light creasing, but overall a good copy. Just one copy (Bowling Green State) of this edition located in major libraries worldwide.

£30

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Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, [1950]. First edition. A Nick Cranley tale – Nick waits for a redhead and is mistakenly given a large envelope.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack; some wear at extremities; some light creasing; revised price deeply pencilled on upper wrapper; a few edge-spots; staples rusting; text a little dusty in a few places; a good copy. Only a single copy (Bodleian) located in the major UK libraries.

SOLD

Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, (1949). First edition. Mrs Cranley has become suspicious.
Crown 8vo (18cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack (1918-1985); some chipping to spine; some creasing; slight nick to lower wrapper; a few slight marks and spots; staples rusting, but a good copy.

SOLD

Stoke-on-Trent : Archer Press, [1950]. First edition. Nick Cranley hunts down a boyfriend for ten dollars a day and a few stolen moments – “beautiful dames and ugly corpses”.
Crown 8vo (19cm). 128pp. Original pictorial stapled wrappers – a design by John Pollack (1918-1985); some wear at head; some creasing; a couple of edge-spots; staples a little rusted, but overall still a very good copy. Only a single copy (Bodleian) located in the world’s major libraries.

£75

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