COWBOY illustrations

I've never been a fan of Louis L'Amour books, but my father has a big stack of them given to him by the wife of a deceased friend. I think over the years dad has probably read all of them, but has no interest in me buying more of them. These days he's a big fan of Craig Johnson's Longmire series, a pseudo western. When my dad finishes reading a book he always hands it to me, no matter if I'm interested in it or not. I am the repository of books. I still say that anyone could walk into my home and find at least one book they'd like to read.

These three books were stuck in a paper bag of books I'd taken off a bookshelf when some new windows were installed last year. Yes, it's taken me this long to get the bookshelf back in place and start sorting the books. This time I'm going through and picking out stuff that will not go back on the shelf. Mind you, it's hard for me to get rid of a book. I love books, but then I'd have to since I make my living creating them.


1979 edition. Click on image to see it larger. 

What first struck me about one of these is how much one face looks like a friend's husband. Now, that would seem highly unlikely, except for the fact that he was an actor who did appear in several westerns. So maybe, just maybe, the illustrator was working from a photo of him. I've sent the image along to my friend to see what she thinks.


1985 edition. Click on image to see it larger. 

No information is ever given about the illustrators of these books, which to me is a shame. Just a brief callout on the copyright page would be nice. I'd like to be able to compare images they've done. It sort of boggles the mind how many illustrations have been done for paperbacks since their inception. Artists cranking out one cover after another, but still giving their best. A lot was riding on these illustrations, no pun intended. Point of purchase sale was the most important element behind what finally got chosen. Did the illustration capture something that would make a buyer stop and become a reader?


1979 edition. Click on image to see it larger. 

Will I toss these books as I put the shelves back together? Probably not. I'll never read them, but I do like the covers.

JOHN WAYNE gives it a big thumbs up!

Even if you've never read the book, you're probably familiar with the title Hondo, even if you've never seen the movie.

What's interesting about this cover is how long this illustration by James Dwyer  (1898-1973) was used. From what I can find, the image was first used on a paperback in 1953. The copy I have I think came from the late '60s or early '70s. That's pretty rare for an image to last through that many editions. Click on the links to see other Hondo covers and to read the brief information about Dwyer.

The film adaptation came out in 1953, the same year this illustration was first used. 

Hondo is a Warnercolor 3D Western film made in 1953, starring John Wayne, directed by John Farrow. The screenplay is based on the July 5, 1952 Colliers short story "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour. The book Hondo was a novelization of the film also written by L'Amour, and published by Bantam Books in 1953. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

Interesting that the book wouldn't have happened had there not been a movie attached. So this book, with Wayne's praise, could loosely be considered a movie tie-in book.

Here's the poster from the movie from Wikipedia.

I'm sure it's just me, but whenever I hear the name John Wayne I first think of him standing silhouetted in the doorway at the end of The Searchers. My next thought is, well...perhaps not one you come up with. One of my very favorite movies, Smoke Signals.

DAVID BLOSSOM'S Louis L'Amour Cover

My father had a friend who was Cherokee. The man loved to read and watch Westerns; a passion they shared. After he passed, his widow called dad and asked if he'd like to have a box of Louis L'Amour paperbacks. Dad is never one to jump to a "yes", so I said it for him. He frowned at me, but enjoyed reading all of the books.

I'll be featuring some of the covers. They date mainly back to the 1970s.

This cover was done, I believe, by David J. Blossom (1927-1995), son of Earl Blossom (1891-1970).

He was born in Chicago, Illinois but lived most of his life on the east coast, growing up in Rye, New York and Weston, Connecticut. He lived in Westport and Southport, Connecticut until 1963, when he moved with his family to Weston, where he lived until his death in 1995. 



He worked at Young & Rubicam as an art director (for the Ford Motor Company and Pan American Airways accounts) until moving to Weston, CT when he became a freelance illustrator. (SOURCE: AskArt)

He was known for illustrating Romance and Western covers.



Click here and here to see examples of Romance book covers; specifically nurses. And click here to see other examples of this cover as movie tie-in paperbacks.

FIDDLEFOOT by Luke Short

Apparently a "fiddlefoot" is a drifter. Learn something everyday, no matter how useless.

AND THE WIND BLOWS FREE by Luke Short

I'm certainly not the only one who gets annoyed when they see women sitting, doing nothing, looking scared when some sort of a fight is taking place. I mean, grab a rock and hit one of them on the head. Hit someone with your whip. Quit playing helpless! Drives me nuts in movies and tv. While the dame is hiding in the corner, my eyes are scouring the room for weapons. Grab the lamp. Find a heavy book. DON'T JUST SIT THERE! DO SOMETHING!

I've never been fond of the "oh poor pitiful helpless me" school of women. I'm guessing the woman in this book might not be someone I'd like.




Click on image to see it larger.

Again, nothing about the cover illustrator.

WAR ON THE CIMARRON by Luke Short

Luke Short was a gunslinger.

Luke Short was a writer.

There were two men named Luke Short. Did the second take the pen name hoping for name recognition?

This edition was published in 1950.




Click on images to see them larger.

As to the illustrator of the cover? No idea.