White Trash has the most amusing cover art. Reminds me of Appalachia. :) Apparently men of all niches read these... posted by wantwit at 1:05 AM on March 12, 2008
That really is cool. The vintage web design is also a nice touch. I haven't seen a site like that since about 1996. posted by psmealey at 1:57 AM on March 12, 2008
No Virgins in Cham Ky?? I can't wait to hear some Amazon reviews on that one. posted by tinkertown at 2:38 AM on March 12, 2008
Very Good. I like this. posted by ratla at 3:04 AM on March 12, 2008
For boys whose dads read as a pastime, these were the next step up the ladder from the Sears catalog back in the 50's. posted by Enron Hubbard at 5:12 AM on March 12, 2008
I was disappointed that "Lady Wrestler" has nothing to do with Andy Kaufman. posted by Eideteker at 5:25 AM on March 12, 2008
A cover illustration depicting an attractive young woman, usually in skimpy or form-fitting clothing, and designed for (mild erotic interest)[sic].
The original quote from Richard A. Lupoff ends "...and designed for erotic stimulation." I have no idea why Henzel chose to (adapt) it the way he did. posted by languagehat at 6:34 AM on March 12, 2008
I am completely in favour of gun molls. Also I love the subtlety: A Dame called MURDER. They italicized murder there in case you missed it. posted by GuyZero at 7:43 AM on March 12, 2008
This site is great fun. I love the "horizontal secretary" and the "trailer tramp"--what a great resource for trashy sock puppet names! posted by misha at 7:49 AM on March 12, 2008
Ugh. Yeah. And by Dashiel Hammett no less. Suddenly I'm embarrassed to have The Thin Man and The Maltese Falcon on my bookshelf... posted by regicide is good for you at 8:38 AM on March 12, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]
The "Dead Yellow Women" cover is misleading; it's a short story in the Continental Op series. If the cover looked like this, it would not fit the theme of the pulp covers site. It's worth noting that the "Dead Yellow Women" book has been out of print since 1947, and the original story was written in 1929.
The "Dead Yellow Women" short deals with a Chinese servant murder and investigation, and is handled with the same brutal wordplay that Hammett gives to everyone in the Continental Op series. It uses the lurid, descriptive words of the time; they now seem stereotypical, but I don't find them to be objectionable when taken in context. The story has Chinese characters with stereotypical elements (bound feet, almost-inscrutable wisdom and elocution), rather than straight stereotypes.
I don't feel ashamed to read them at all. posted by JDC8 at 9:13 AM on March 12, 2008
Dead Yellow Women
What. The. Mother. Fuck?
Ugh. Yeah. And by Dashiel Hammett no less.
What, you just discovered that prevailing racial attitudes in the US sixty or eighty years ago (the story "Dead Yellow Women" was published in 1925) didn't live up to current best practice? Yes, Asians were routinely called "yellow" back then; is that really enough reason to dismiss any writer who used it? Robert L. Gale's Dashiell Hammett Companion says "'Dead Yellow Women' has been rightly praised for its careful construction, skillful plot, and accurate depiction of Chinatown's rabbit-warren layout, and also for a combination in the Op's narration of graphic detail and cynical humor." And William F. Wu in The Yellow Peril: Chinese Americans in American Fiction, 1850-1940, while not absolving him from participation in the general attitudes, says Hammett was far better than most, showing clear respect for his Asian characters. But feel free to throw his books out, if one "shocking" story title is more important than the best mystery writing any American has produced. posted by languagehat at 9:21 AM on March 12, 2008 [2 favorites has favorites]
On non-preview: what JDC8 said (except we seem to have a disagreement about when the story was published). posted by languagehat at 9:22 AM on March 12, 2008
On non-preview: what JDC8 said (except we seem to have a disagreement about when the story was published)
Yes, I must have misremembered the publication date of the story. posted by JDC8 at 9:30 AM on March 12, 2008
Languagehat, the post is about A cover illustration depicting an attractive young woman, usually in skimpy or form-fitting clothing, and designed for (mild erotic interest)
I can understand Yellow Women being of erotic interest (the same fetish exists to this day) but dead ones especially? I grew up in Finland in the 80's, so my knowledge of the sexual mores of 1920's America is not profound, but being erotically aroused by dead people (gender and race notwithstanding) seems a little weird to me. Hence my surprise. Not a critique of the content of the book, as I have no basis of judging it. posted by slimepuppy at 9:44 AM on March 12, 2008
Being born in the 1960's, I have a fascination with things beforehand. I heard from an antique dealer once that people tend to be enamored of things the decade or two before they were born, some sort of imaginary nostalgia that it was so much better "back then."
I used to keep a Sig Hauser under a blanket on my dressing room chair. I never used it, of course, but it was there. I could barely pull back the slide to load the thing and my handling and aim were chancy, at best. But I had an MA-15 in the other room just in case (I was told that if someone heard the cocking sound they would go away very quickly). Now, I only have a Japanese scimitar folding knife in my jewelry box. And a baby nightstick on my keychain and a couple of big knives in the car console and a little knife on my keychain as well (for utilitarian purposes only). It's all legal here.
But great pictures. I'm not very well versed in the quotes, etc., but I love the old-fashioned pics. posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 10:10 AM on March 12, 2008
Fucking. Awesome. I think I know which one I'll need as either a tattoo or a hood decal some day. posted by EatTheWeak at 10:17 AM on March 12, 2008
I can understand Yellow Women being of erotic interest (the same fetish exists to this day) but dead ones especially? I grew up in Finland in the 80's, so my knowledge of the sexual mores of 1920's America is not profound, but being erotically aroused by dead people (gender and race notwithstanding) seems a little weird to me. Hence my surprise. Not a critique of the content of the book, as I have no basis of judging it.
Fair enough; your quarrel is with the cover art (and the guy who included it on a quasi-fetish site), not with Hammett. Sorry for lumping you in with regicide is good for you, who used your comment as a springboard for an attack on the author. posted by languagehat at 11:08 AM on March 12, 2008
Apparently, backwoods hussies are chronic splay-kneed slouchers. posted by redsparkler at 12:34 PM on March 12, 2008
I think its funny how weird pictures like these strike me. Its so strange to see a woman with a BMI over 18 dolled up as the cultural standard of sex goddess-ness, without it being some sort of reactionary morbidly obese woman looking sexy (not that there's anything wrong heavier women looking hawt, its just interesting to see average women too). posted by fermezporte at 2:18 PM on March 12, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]
"I used to keep a Sig Hauser under a blanket on my dressing room chair. I never used it, of course, but it was there. I could barely pull back the slide to load the thing and my handling and aim were chancy, at best. But I had an MA-15 in the other room just in case (I was told that if someone heard the cocking sound they would go away very quickly). Now, I only have a Japanese scimitar folding knife in my jewelry box."
Oh, good heavens. Firstly, chances are you had a Sig Sauer handgun, as far as I know there is no such thing as a Sig Hauser. Could be wrong. But, then you go on to say you had an MA-15 in the other room - perhaps you mean AR-15? Again, there is no MA-15. Also, Scimitars are not Japanese and they certainly are not folding knives.
I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Keep on truckin!
By the way, Smiths and Weston make reliable 15 shot clip fed revolvers. I'd look into those. The pump action really scares away intruders! posted by Sukiari at 2:48 PM on March 12, 2008
OK, I've stopped laughing long enough to type this. Wait... I have to get the print-out of "She Tried To Be Good" out of view.... Ah, there. Thank you for the links! posted by Kronos_to_Earth at 7:47 PM on March 12, 2008
What, you just discovered that prevailing racial attitudes in the US sixty or eighty years ago (the story "Dead Yellow Women" was published in 1925) didn't live up to current best practice?
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posted by wantwit at 1:05 AM on March 12, 2008