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SMB Noir

For the Fans of Hardboiled, Pulp & Gumshoe Art

Back in 2013, our tumblr site was started and ran until 2018, when they decided it was too "adult" - too lurid, supposedly. We followed the exodus to newtumbl and four years of dedication vanished in June of 2023. That work was not only new posts but upgrades of hundreds of old tumblr posts as well. So far, there has been no way to rescue those posts, so this will be the third version of this project. And, I'll warn you in advance, I may slip in covers that are not crime or mystery but just because I like the artwork. Enjoy!

April 2026
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For altered posts, choose the category "Updated"

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All rights to this ongoing project are reserved by the owner.

Category: original art

cover art by Delos Palmer

Feature Detective Cases, November 1941
Oil on canvas, 31 x 23 in.
Not signed

[updated 5/6/24]

Posted on March 14, 2024May 6, 2024Categories Hardboiled, magazine, original art, pulp, true crimeTags delos palmer, feature detective casesLeave a comment on cover art by Delos Palmer

cover art by Lou Marchetti

Gouache on board, 22.5 x 10.5 in.
Not signed
Robert Schlick, Tonight It’s Me, Pyramid Books #G-248, 1957

Posted on March 14, 2024March 13, 2024Categories Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulpTags dame, gouache on board, lou marchetti, lurid, pyramid paperback, smokingLeave a comment on cover art by Lou Marchetti

July 1943 issue ~ cover art by Milton Luros

July 1943

cover art by Milton Luros

[image updated 10/9/24]

better image than previously posted

Posted on March 13, 2024October 9, 2024Categories crime fiction, espionage fiction, Hardboiled, magazine, mystery, original art, pulp, updatedTags brass knuckles, carl rathjen, crack detective magazine, david x. manners, milton luros, nazi spy, original art, third degreeLeave a comment on July 1943 issue ~ cover art by Milton Luros

cover art by Lyman Anderson

Oil on board, 31 x 21in., signed lower left
January 1934, Alibi, premiere issue

[cover image updated 5/31/25]

Posted on March 12, 2024May 31, 2025Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, magazine, mystery, original art, pulp, updatedTags alibi magazine, blood trail, h.l. gates, lyman anderson, original art, samuel hopkins adamsLeave a comment on cover art by Lyman Anderson

cover art by Robert Maguire

Gouache on board, 13 x 20-3/8 inches (33.0 x 51.8 cm) (sight)
Not signed

Posted on March 12, 2024March 12, 2024Categories british pulp, crime fiction, Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulpTags cold ward, dame, femme fatale, gouache on board, hank janson, international intrigue, original art, robert maguireLeave a comment on cover art by Robert Maguire

February 1936 issue ~ cover art by Norman Saunders

cover art by Norman Saunders

February 1936

[updated 3/8/24 with the original art]

Posted on March 11, 2024March 8, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, magazine, mystery, original art, pulp, updatedTags black book detective, david redstone, john l. tiernan, norman saunders, original art, orrin hollmer, richard b. sale, richard e. wormserLeave a comment on February 1936 issue ~ cover art by Norman Saunders

cover art by Rafael DeSoto

“Velma’s Predicament”, Detective Tales magazine cover, September 1944
oil on board, 14-1/4 x 10-1/4 inches

Posted on March 7, 2024May 26, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, magazine, mystery, original art, pulpTags detective tales magazine, donald g. cormack, edward j. donovan, francis k. allan, fredric brown, handcuffs, original art, rafael desoto, ray bradbury, robert turner, scarLeave a comment on cover art by Rafael DeSoto

April 1937 issue ~ cover art by Harwood Forsgren

April 1937

cover art by Harwood Forsgren

[image updated 6/18/24]

[cover art added 8/9/25]

Posted on March 7, 2024August 9, 2025Categories Hardboiled, magazine, original art, pulp, true crime, updatedTags dagger, harwood forsgren, inside detective magazineLeave a comment on April 1937 issue ~ cover art by Harwood Forsgren

1959 Bedside Book paperback original

gouache on illustration board, 12″x18″

artist unknown!

Posted on March 7, 2024January 2, 2024Categories original art, paperback, pulpTags bart frame, dame, lurid, sleazeLeave a comment on 1959 Bedside Book paperback original

August 1936 issue ~ cover art by H.J. Ward

cover art by H.J. Ward

August 1936

better image than previously posted

Posted on March 6, 2024January 30, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, magazine, mystery, original art, pulp, spicyTags colby quinn, h.j. ward, original art, shoulder holster, spicy detective stories, stockings, woman with a gunLeave a comment on August 1936 issue ~ cover art by H.J. Ward

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