Pulp International

vintage and modern pulp fiction; noir, schlock and exploitation films; scandals, swindles and news

SQUASHED TOGETHER

Hello there, pumpkin. It's Halloween again.

Pumpkins are squashes, in case you ever wondered. And if you’ve ever wondered, we think Halloween is the most giving of U.S. holidays, because unlike Christmas your gifts go to strangers. We’ve cobbled together a collection of seasonal shots featuring Hollywood stars posing with jack-o’-lanterns, that yearly tradition we discussed a bit last year in another Halloween post. These pumpkins range from real, to plaster, to papier mâché, to paint, to shadows. There’s even a jack-o’-lantern house.

The stars are posted in the order of the keywords at bottom. Of special note are the last three: Peggy Ryan sitting on the identical pumpkin used by Ellen Drew for her Halloween shots (same prop department, we guess), Ava Gardner being her usual notable self, and finally, Gloria Saunders posed as if she’s about to let a scarecrow go doggy on her. Don’t judge us—you’ll think the same thing. Of all our previous posts along these lines, our favorite is at this link. Happy Halloween. Don’t eat too much candy.

Clara Bow, Myrna Loy, Barbara Bates, Yvonne De Carlo, Ann Rutherford, Betty Grable, Cyd Charisse, Etchika Choureau, Martha Vickers, Nancy Carroll, Ann Miller, Ida Lupino, Anita Page, Maila Nurmi, Myrna Dell, Alfred Hitchcock, June Pressier, Sandar Dee, Bunny Yeager, Mia Farrow, Audrey Totter, Peggy Ryan, Ava Gardner, Gloria Saunders

ENQUIRING MIND

Decades later the question is still being asked.

Did Yvonne De Carlo think Hollywood producers secretly hated women? Like most National Enquirer quotes we can’t confirm this one, but if she said this it’s a good example of how words out of context can take on unintended meaning. Today’s actresses express similar thoughts and their comments are feminist in nature, but De Carlo was not feminist. In interviews she spoke about how she believed that “men should stay up there and be the boss and have women wait on them hand and foot and put their slippers on and hand them the pipe and serve seven course meals—as long as they open the door, support the woman, and do their duty in the bedroom.”

In reality De Carlo was making a comment about being offered a narrow range of roles, as well as fewer of them as she neared forty years of age. A need for variety might explain why she acted almost as much on television as in movies, even during her peak years. Most television was shot in Los Angeles, so we aren’t sure if small screen work offered a respite from traditional Hollywood, but it’s still a noteworthy aspect of her career. And in the end she achieved her greatest popularity on the 1960s television show The Munsters. As for the Enquirer query, whether De Carlo said it or not, it’s a question that is still being asked all these decades later. We have plenty more National Enquirer in the website. Just click the keywords below. 

Los Angeles, National Enquirer, The Munsters, Yvonne De Carlo, television, tabloid

CROSSED UP

Bank heist goes every which way except the right way.

This year’s Noir City Film Festival opens with the 1949 heist drama Criss Cross. Based on a bestselling novel of the same name by Don Tracy, it’s the story of man played by Burt Lancaster who returns to Los Angeles after some years away to find that his ex-wife Yvonne De Carlo has hooked up with a local gangster. The exes rekindle their flame, but when it looks as if the gangster has caught them in the act Lancaster spontaneously cooks up a story about how he was putting together a plan to rob the armored car service for which he works.

Lancaster’s robbery idea is not only designed to deflect the gangster’s suspicion away from the affair, but to also fund the future he envisions with De Carlo when she and him run away. This scheme, which strains credulity, is probably one of the most obviously terrible ideas in the long, celebrated history of doomed ideas in film noir, but with good direction by Robert Siodmak, who had worked with Lancaster on The Killers, and good acting by all involved, the film concludes on the positive side of the effectiveness ledger. Numerous excellent Los Angeles exteriors, including at Union Station and on now mostly leveled Bunker Hill, make this noir an important time capsule as well, an aspect that increases its appeal. And an excellent musical number by Esy Morales & His Rhumba Band gives the proceedings a further boost. All in all, Criss Cross is a winner.

Los Angeles, Criss Cross, Burt Lancaster, Yvonne De Carlo, Robert Siodmak, Dan Duryea, Don Tracy, Esy Morales, poster art, cinema, cover art, literature, film noir, movie review

BOATLOAD OF QUESTIONS

This particular Gondel is filled with unidentified passengers.

Back in 2010 we showed you some covers of the West German movie magazine Gondel, named of course after Venice’s famed banana-shaped boats. Which is fitting because Gondel later began to dedicate itself to a completely different type of banana shape by turning into a porn magazine. You see, because a banana and an erect penis are both… er… filled with potassium… *someone turns on a blender behind the bar* Anyway, it was in the 1970s when Gondel shifted gears, and theirs wasn’t an uncommon evolution among magazines around that time, as we’ve talked about before regarding the men’s adventure publication Male.

Above you see the front of an issue that hit newsstands this month in 1958, and below are the interiors. The cover model is credited as Marlon Rota, as you can see by looking at masthead page where it says “titelfoto,” but no person so named ever appeared in movies. It’s possible her name is spelled wrong, because others are, but we checked similar names such as Marilyn Rota and Marlene Rota and came up blank. It’s also possible she’s just too obscure to register on the internet. So that’s another of History’s Little Mysteries™.

There are others. Inside the issue you get full-page shots of, top to bottom, Anne Heywood, Merry Anders, Rita Pizzy, Clark Gable with Jean Kay, Maggie McGrath, Elga Andersen, Nuccia Morelli, Yvonne de Carlo with Robert Morgan, unknown, Margarete Neumann, Linda Cristal, Karin Himboldt, Joan Collins, unknown, Pascale Roberts, Belinda Lee with unknown, Annie Gorassini, Anne Heyworth, Mamie Van Doren, unknown, and Arlene Dahl. Got any idea who the mystery passengers are? Let us know, and meanwhile check out the Gondel covers at this link.

West Germany, Gondel, Anne Heywood, Merry Anders, Rita Pizzy, Clark Gable, Jean Kay, Maggie McGrath, Elga Andersen, Nuccia Morelli, Yvonne De Carlo, Robert Morgan, Margarete Neumann, Linda Cristal, Karin Himboldt, Joan Collins, Pascale Roberts, Belinda Lee Annie Gorassini, Anne Heyworth, Mamie Van Doren, Arlene Dahl, Gene Kelly, cinema

TAKE YOUR PIC

All celebrities great and small.

We’ve featured Pic magazine only once before, but not because it was an unimportant publication. Quite the opposite—we’ve seen issues as early as 1936 and as late as 1958, making it both a Depression and World War II survivor, presumably no easy feat and certainly a run indicative of sustained popularity. Early issues seemed focused on sports, but it soon broadened to include celebrities. It was launched by Wagner Publications of New York City, and this issue appeared in June 1952 with a cover featuring actress Suzan Ball placing a crown on the head of Akton Miller, a man Pic had chosen as its Hot Rod King. Inside you get a raft of Hollywood stars, including photos of Yvonne De Carlo in Uruguay, Marilyn Monroe, Janet Leigh, and Joan Vohs, shots of New York Giants manager Leo Durocher and his beautiful actress wife Laraine Day, and some nice boxing pictures. There’s also an interesting feature on the day’s top vocalists (with African-Americans notably excluded), and a profile of crooner Tony Bennett. 

But it’s Suzan Ball’s story we’re interested in today. Her path to show business was so typical of the period as to be almost banal—she was spotted in a Santa Maria, California newspaper after winning a cake baking contest. Universal-International scouts thought she looked a bit like Jane Russell, so they swept her up, shuttled her down Highway 101, signed her to a contract and began selling her as a hot new Tinseltown commodity, proclaiming her the New Cinderella Girl of ’52. Soon the influential columnist Hedda Hopper took up the refrain, naming her one of the most important new stars of 1953, thus ensuring that year would belong to Ball.

It was then that her train to stardom jumped the tracks. She injured her leg performing a dance number in East of Sumatra, and later in the year had a car accident and hurt the leg again. Treatment for those two injuries led to the discovery of a cancerous tumor. Soon afterward she fell and broke the limb, and when doctors decided they couldn’t remove the tumor they instead took the entire the leg. That was in January 1954. Ball soldiered on in her show business career with an artificial leg, starring in Chief Crazy Horse, though she lost fifteen pounds during the production, and later playing nightclub dates and appearing on television shows. In July 1955 she collapsed while rehearsing for the show Climax, whereupon doctors discovered the cancer had metastasized and spread to her lungs. A month later she died at age twenty-one. We have about fifty scans below.

Uruguay, California, Santa Maria, Universal-International, Pic Magazine, New York Giants, Joan Vohs, Marilyn Monroe, Leo Durocher, Laraine Day, Chief Crazy Horse, Hedda Hopper, Suzan Ball, Joe Louis, Coley Wallace, Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles, Clarence Henry, Bob Satterfield, Tony Bennett, Kat Starr, Patti Page, Doris Day, Mary Ford, Rosemary Clooney, Johnnie Ray, Yvonne De Carlo, Peggy Dow, Debbie Reynolds, Janet Leigh, John Wayne, Toni Arden, Eddie Fisher, Tony Martin, Dizzy Dean, Joanne Dru, Alan Abel, Sally Forrest, Esther Williams, Ava Gardner, boxing, tabloid

A LITTLE BIT SCHWEIZER

There are at least a few things the Swiss aren’t neutral about.

We ran across some issues of a German language magazine called Das Schweizer, which means “The Swiss,” and indeed, the publication originates from Switzerland. We thought only the French, Germans and Dutch produced magazines during the 1940s and 1950s that combined celebrity, photography, fine art, and eroticism. We stand corrected. Above is the cover of Das Schweizer #139, circa 1954, with Yvonne De Carlo, and interior pages featuring Brigitte Bardot looking especially hot, plus Joan Collins, Romy Schneider and others. You also get the great art of Paul Peter, and just for good measure we pulled a couple of scans from another Das Schweizer that had the cover and most of the photo pages cut out, but two more Peter art pieces left behind. Apparently whoever mutilated that issue didn’t see the value in his work. Hah! Philistines. Anyway, since we can’t make a decent post of that one, we added its Peters below (that just sounds wrong, doesn’t it?). We can’t tell you anything about Paul Peter because his name is pretty much ungoogleable, if that’s even a word, however we’ll keep digging for facts on him and eventually something will turn up. It always does. 

Switzerland, Das Schweizer, Yvonne De Carlo, Brigitte Bardot, Joan Collins, Romy Schneider, Audrey Hepburn, Paul Peter, magazine art

PURE BEAUTY

Everyone loves a Parade.

Since we were just talking a couple of days ago about websites where it’s possible to download vintage magazines, we thought we’d shine the spotlight on two more. Vintage Girlie Mags and Dad’s Stash, which are basically alter egos of each other, both have full scans. The main difference is vintagegirliemags gives away the scans for free, while dads-stash charges a minimal amount for downloads. The May 1950 issue of Beauty Parade you see above is available at the latter site, though ours didn’t come from there. The cover art on this issue is by the great Peter Driben, and inside you get Yvonne de Carlo, Denise Darcel, Ann Sheridan, Lana Turner, and page after page of other beauties. Many scans below for your Friday enjoyment.

Beauty Parade, Peter Driben, Yvonne De Carlo, Denise Darcel, Ann Sheridan, Lana Turner, Adele Jergens, Jeanne Crain, magazine art

DAS KAPITAL

Maybe we’d understand the principal if we spoke the language.

We have no idea what’s going on in this 1950 issue of the West German magazine Das Ronke because German is not one of our languages. What are major stars doing paired with various automobile brands? Nein idea. Are they ads? Possibly. We’ve seen American stars used in foreign ads before. But ads imply legitimacy, so why are there naked women in the magazine? We ask because you would think, especially in 1950, no Hollywood actress would wish to be associated with a smut publication, especially one that has broken the magical pubic hair rule that at the time defined obscenity. It’s all destined to remain a mystery to us until we find ourselves a German somewhere. We’ll try the nearest pub and get back to you on this later. 

West Germany, Das Ronke, Volkswagen, Joka, Margaret Lockwood, Yvonne De Carlo, Wanda Henrix, Olga San Juan, Jane Russell, nudity, magazine art

FILM FESTIVAL

Every star who mattered made an appearance.

Assorted Festival magazines, published in France, circa 1940s, 1950s. Cover stars from top left are: Arlette Poirier, Susan Hayward, Yvonne de Carlo, Magali Noel, Jaqueline Brion, Alida Valli, Jane Russell, Victoria Shaw, Lana Turner, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbara Bates, Marilyn Monroe, Micheline Francey, and Barbara Stanwyck.

France, Festival Magazine, Arlette Poirier, Susan Hayward, Yvonne De Carlo, Magali Noël, Jaqueline Brion, Alida Valli, Jane Russell, Victoria Shaw, Lana Turner, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbara Bates, Marilyn Monroe, Micheline Francey, Barbara Stanwyck, cinema
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HISTORY REWIND

The headlines that mattered yesteryear.

1916—Richard Harding Davis Dies

American journalist, playwright, and author Richard Harding Davis dies of a heart attack at home in Philadelphia. Not widely known now, Davis was one of the most important and influential war correspondents ever, establishing his reputation by reporting on the Spanish-American War, the Second Boer War, and World War I, as well as his general travels to exotic lands.

1919—Zapata Is Killed

In Mexico, revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata is shot dead by government forces in the state of Morelos, after a carefully planned ambush. Following the killing, Zapata’s revolutionary movement and his Liberation Army of the South slowly fall apart, but his political influence lasts in Mexico to the present day.

1925—Great Gatsby Is Published

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby is published in New York City by Charles Scribner’s Sons. Though Gatsby is Fitzgerald’s best known book today, it was not a success upon publication, and at the time of his death in 1940, Fitzgerald was mostly forgotten as a writer and considered himself to be a failure.

1968—Martin Luther King Buried

American clergyman and civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., is buried five days after being shot dead on a Memphis, Tennessee motel balcony. April 7th had been declared a national day of mourning by President Lyndon B. Johnson, and King’s funeral on the 9th is attended by thousands of supporters, and Vice President Hubert Humphrey.

1953—Jomo Kenyatta Convicted

In Kenya, Jomo Kenyatta is sentenced to seven years in prison by the nation’s British rulers for being a member of the Mau Mau Society, an anti-colonial movement. Kenyatta would a decade later become independent Kenya’s first prime minister, and still later its first president.

1974—Hank Aaron Becomes Home Run King

Major League Baseball player Hank Aaron hits his 715th career home run, surpassing Babe Ruth’s 39-year-old record. The record-breaking homer is hit off Al Downing of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and with that swing Aaron puts an exclamation mark on a twenty-four year journey that had begun with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro League, and would end with his selection to Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame.

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BRAZIL UNDERGROUND

Edições de Ouro and Editora Tecnoprint published U.S. crime novels for the Brazilian market, with excellent reworked cover art to appeal to local sensibilities. We have a small collection worth seeing.

FLUENT IN VIOLENCE

Walter Popp cover art for Richard Powell's 1954 crime novel Say It with Bullets.

IN HOT WATER

There have been some serious injuries on pulp covers. This one is probably the most severe—at least in our imagination. It was painted for Stanley Morton's 1952 novel Yankee Trader.

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