Category: pulp

The Moving Target x 13

THE FIRST LEW ARCHER

1949 Knopf hardcover – cover illustration by Bill English

first in the long-running and deservedly respected Lew Archer series by Kenneth Millar, aka Ross Macdonald. After using his father’s name as the pen name for this novel, he was forced by John D. MacDonald to alter it for future novels, and Ross Macdonald was born.

March 1950 Pocket paperback, first printing

cover painting by Harvey Kidder

British 1951 Cassell hardcover

1954 Pan reissue – cover by Sax

better image than previously posted

1959 Pocket reissue, third printing – cover art by Jerry Allison (owner’s copy)

1966 Fontana movie tie-in edition

British 1971 Fontana reissue

1974 Bantam reissue

1977 Bantam reissue – cover art by Mitchell Hooks

British 1978 Fontana reissue

1984 Bantam reissue – cover art by James Marsh

1998 Vintage/Black Lizard reissue

1990 Warner edition – cover art by Gary Kelley (owner’s copy)

[updated 9/6/25, 8/27/26]

April 1950 issue ~ cover art by Norman Saunders

April 1950 issue

cover art by Norman Saunders

better image than previously posted

Robert Martin, “Sheath Your Claws, Hellcat” (Jim Bennett)

R.M.F. Jones, “Holiday for a Harpy”

Scott O’Hara, “Blood on the Midway”

Robert Turner, “It’s Time to Squirm”

John Bender, “Rock-a-Bye Killer”

Tedd Thomey, “All Burned Up”

Alvin Yudkoff, “Derelict’s Dereliction”

[updated 5/8/25]

September 1940 issue ~ cover art by Rafael DeSoto

September 1940 issue

cover art by Rafael DeSoto

~ Cleve Adams, “That Certain Feeling”, ‘Engelhardt & Dewey, Car 97, LA setting’, 2nd of 6 stories in BM

~ W.T. Ballard, “Pictures for Murder”, 22nd of 27 stories with ‘Bill Lennox, troubleshooter for Consolidated Films’, 34th of 43 stories in BM

~ William E. Brandon, “Danny, Once the Rat”, ‘police-stoolie & Nazi spies’, 3rd of 7 stories in BM

~ Dale Clark, “Killer in the Wind”, 2nd of 28 with house dick Mike O’Hanna story, at San Alpa Resort hotel, 4th of 32 stories in BM

~ John Lawrence, “Death in the Pluperfect”, 1st of 2 stories with ‘Ace McGuire, Broadway squad, 1st-person narrator’, 7th of 14 stories in BM

~ Robert Reeves, “Dog Eat Dog”, Cellini Smith and RR’s debut, 1st of 3 parts that will be published as the novel No Love Lost in 1941, reprinted in Dead and Done For: The Complete Black Mask Cases of Cellini Smith (Steeger, 2020), 1st of 12 appearances in BM

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