Walter M. Baumhofer Pulp Art Masters (Paperback)

by John P. Gunnison (Author), Walter M. Baumhofer (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A master at building suspense through figure, perspective, and color, Rudolph Belarski dazzled the newsstand browser with pictorial headlines of vital action scenes pertaining to the interior story. In doing so, he sold magazines and books to a drama-craving audience, and propelled publishing's mass markets, thus infiltrating American minds with the trends and fashions of pop culture. His remarkable versatility as an artist can be seen in the range of his published work in pulp magazines, his exciting paintings appearing on the covers of Thrilling Mystery, Wings, and War Birds, as well as The Phantom Detective, Mystery Book, Argosy, and Western Round-Up.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Adventure House (July 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1886937761
• ISBN-13: 978-1886937765
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 8.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #397,479 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Have, August 2, 2004

By	Timothy Hewitt (Columbia, SC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Fans of pulp magazines and the art that graced them will find this, the first volume in the proposed "Pulp Art Masters" series a must have. This oversized paperback volume presents roughly 350 color cover reproductions, arranged by the various genres Belarski's illustrated (detective, air war, weird menace, etc.). The book is nicely laid out with annotations of various detail and worth along the outside edge of each page. The color reproduction is rich and sharply focused and clean up of the original pulp covers (many of which were no doubt flaked, creased, torn and otherwise marred) is masterful. In fact, the images reproduced here are probably the best these cover painting have ever looked. This is a wealth of pulp history and a great beginning for a series that is supposed to eventually include volumes devoted to Walter Baumhofer (illustrator of the Doc Savage covers) and George and Jerome Rozen (illustrators of The Shadow and Wu Fang among others). Great volume. Greater series (if all goes as planned).

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Action-packed, eye-catching covers of (in)famous "pulp", November 13, 2003

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Compiled and edited by John P. Gunnison, Belarski: Pulp Art Masters is an superbly organized and presented artbook showcasing the distinctive work of Rudolph Belarski, a commercial artist best known for his action-packed, eye-catching covers of (in)famous "pulp" magazines. Numerous covers presented in full-color, each with a very brief yet insightful caption concerning the scene, hallmark this eye-catching collection especially recommended for fans of the uniquely captivating appeal of pulp magazine art of a yesteryear American popular culture.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book on Walter Baumhofer's work, March 3, 2009

By	Michael R. Brown (Boca Raton, FL) - See all my reviews

I'm not sure why the copy and other reviews are for another book.

This book is the 2nd in the Pulp Art Masters series, and focuses on Walter Baumhofer, NOT Belarsky.

For most people (like myself), Walter Baumhofer is best known as the first cover artist for Doc Savage, setting the style used for the Doc covers.

This large size book focuses on the pulp cover art of Baumhofer (he later moved into the more lucritive commercial art field afterwards). The book is divided into 3 parts.

The first part focuses on the earlier years, when he worked for smaller publisher's like Hersey's Magazine Publications and the like. The second part focuses on his work at Street & Smith. Its this section that is most important to me, as its when he did the Doc Savage covers, as well as covers for many of S&S's western titles like Pete Rice. My only disappointment is that there are 4 Doc covers he did that wheren't included. And I would have liked to see them a bit larger.

The third and final section is on his work at Popular Publications. Strangely, the only pulp hero cover he did for Popular was the first cover of The Spider. The rest being various weird menace and adventure covers.

The reproduction of the artwork is great, tho it would be nice if they were larger. The info is also good. The focus is really more on the art.