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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!

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Tag: signet paperback

cover art by Robert Maguire

1955 Crown hardcover

November 1956 Signet reissue

cover art by Robert Maguire

4th with Kansas City private eye Johnny April

3rd print March 1964

[both property of the host]

Posted on August 31, 2024August 16, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, paperback, pulpTags johnny april, kansas city, mike roscoe, private eye, robert maguire, signet paperback, woman with a gunLeave a comment on cover art by Robert Maguire

The Lover x 2

1959 Signet

1969 Horwitz paperback

Posted on August 4, 2024April 3, 2026Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, paperback, pulp, spicyTags australian pulp, carter brown, horwitz paperback, signet paperbackLeave a comment on The Lover x 2

cover art by Robert McGinnis

February 1969 Signet paperback original

cover art by Robert McGinnis

background is his version of Robert Motherwell’s Elegy to the Spanish Republic No. 70, 1961

Posted on July 30, 2024April 12, 2026Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulpTags abstract expressionism, carter brown, hollywood fiction, robert mcginnis, robert motherwell, signet paperbackLeave a comment on cover art by Robert McGinnis

cover art by Robert Maguire

Oil on board, 27 x 16.5 in.
Signed lower left

This illustration appeared on the cover of Lionel White’s crime noir novel, To Find a Killer, Signet Books #1241, 1955

Posted on July 28, 2024July 3, 2024Categories Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulpTags lionel white, oil on board, robert maguire, signet paperbackLeave a comment on cover art by Robert Maguire

cover art by Harry Schaare

Oil on board, 19.25 x 14.25 in. (sight)
Signed lower right

Murder for Madame by Adam Knight, Signet #920, 1952.

pseudonym of Lawrence Lariar

[updated 6/23/25, corrected 4/3/26]

Posted on July 28, 2024April 3, 2026Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulp, updatedTags adam knight, harry schaare, lawrence lariar, oil on board, signet paperbackLeave a comment on cover art by Harry Schaare

cover art by Barye Phillips

1960 paperback original by Horowitz in Australia and Signet in the US

cover art by Barye Phillips

Posted on June 24, 2024June 15, 2024Categories Hardboiled, paperback, pulpTags barye phillips, carter brown, dame, signet paperbackLeave a comment on cover art by Barye Phillips

cover art by Robert Abbett

cover art by Robert Abbett

1946 Farrar Strauss hardcover

November 1960 Signet paperback, third printing

the first novel by these cousins, a stand-alone murder mystery

Posted on April 13, 2024February 23, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, original art, paperback, pulpTags dame, original art, robert abbett, showgirl, signet paperback, smoking, stripper, wade millerLeave a comment on cover art by Robert Abbett

1952 Signet reissue – cover art by Lu Kimmel

May 1952 Signet paperback, first printing

5th novel, a stand-alone thriller

cover art by Lu Kimmel

Posted on December 28, 2023December 14, 2023Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, paperback, pulpTags bound, mickey spillane, signet paperback, thrillerLeave a comment on 1952 Signet reissue – cover art by Lu Kimmel

1965 Signet edition ~ cover art by Robert McGinnis

1965 Signet edition

cover art by Robert McGinnis

Posted on December 25, 2023December 1, 2023Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, paperback, pulpTags al wheeler, carter brown, christmas crime, dame, femme fatale, police procedural, pulp art, robert mcginnis, signet paperbackLeave a comment on 1965 Signet edition ~ cover art by Robert McGinnis

1966 Signet reissue

1966 Signet reissue

Posted on December 25, 2023April 4, 2024Categories crime fiction, Hardboiled, paperback, pulpTags christmas crime, henry kane, negligee, peter chambers, private eye, pulp art, signet paperback, wreathLeave a comment on 1966 Signet reissue

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