Hiram Richardson is an outstanding Western Arts painter, whose work is often displayed in art shows and galleries all across the West. But Richardson began his art career just like so many other artists of his generation by producing book cover art. Lots and lots of book cover art. In fact, he's probably still producing some today. And why not? It's a great way to make a living if you can get it. And Richardson definitely gets it.
After growing up on a ranch in the mountains of Colorado, Richardson went on to study at the American Academy of Art in Chicago and the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. He entered the paperback field in 1976, and has since worked for nearly every major publisher that there is, from Avon to Harlequin to Penguin to Zebra. He's also produced jacket art for hardcover publishers such as Delacorte, Doubleday, Random House and Viking.
Our journey begins in 1982 with Bold Legend, the earliest cover produced by Hiram Richardson that I own. Fawcett Gold Medal was the publisher of this paperback original, as well as being the first publisher to give Richardson a cover commission back in 1976.
Gordon D. Shirreffs (1914-1996) wrote more than 80 Westerns, with four of them, including Rio Bravo, adapted to motion pictures. His early work was published exclusively in pulp magazines, and he is noted for being one of the few authors to transition successfully from pulps to paperbacks. Shirreffs was also a bagpipe musician and ran a hobby shop in Granada Hills during the 1950's. He was a recipient of the Owen Wister Award, given by the Western Writers of America for "a living individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the American West."
"When mountain man Quint Kershaw married the beautiful heiress Lupita de Vasquez, he became master of two vast New Mexico estates-- and one of the most important men in the territory. But Quint stayed a tough frontiersman at heart. Then the United States invaded New Mexico, attempting to claim it for an expanding America, and Quint Kershaw was the man they hired to help them. Lupita, fiercely loyal to her Spanish ancestry, was furious. She denied Quint her body, then her love. Yet there was only one decision he could make-- for he was an American. He would fight for his country-- and he would fight also to recapture his dark beauty of a wife... "
As dubious as it may sound to those who have been critical of Jeffrey Archer and his sometimes controversial life, Richardson can lay claim to being the first artist to actually illustrate his work in paperback in the United States. Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less was first published by Fawcett Crest in 1981; my copy is the 1982 2nd printing. Archer originally wrote his debut as a means of avoiding bankruptcy. Apparently, the ploy worked. He has since gone on to publish 27 novels, each one more successful than his first one, with another potential bestseller coming out later this year.
"We have had our money stolen by a very clever man who is an expert in share fraud. We are not knowledgeable about stocks and shares, but we are all experts in our own fields. Gentlemen, I therefore suggest we steal it back... "
Here's an attractive cover by Richardson, effectively promoting the novel's romance and its foreign intrigue. The Face of Danger by Regina Ross was published in paperback by Avon in 1982. Not much can be said about its author, May Mackintosh, mostly because not much is known about her. However, she is credited with writing 8 similarly themed novels, 2 of them under her Ross pseudonym.
"When she was just a child, Paula Martin saw her mother arrested and her scientist father shot down by the Czech Secret Police. Paula escaped through the American Embassy. Now, sixteen years later, a British ambassador and his wife want Paula to return with them to Prague... Caught between her terror of the past, and her growing love for a young American playboy with motives she doesn't suspect, Paula Martin is plunged into a terrifying trap... and is soon the unwitting pawn in a superpower confrontation."
I bought this paperback even though it was marred by an ink-pen, because Richardson's wraparound montage was simply too stunning to pass up. The Pagan Land was published by Fawcett Gold Medal in 1982.
Thomas Marriott is a pseudonym used by Thomas (Tom) F. R. Barling (1937-), an English novelist and children's book illustrator, who wrote 14 novels, all of which are either crime, espionage or adventure. Tom Barling also illustrated several children's books as well as graphic YA adaptations of The Last of the Mohicans, Treasure Island, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Ivanhoe, Dracula and Frankenstein.
"We Will Trek!" With these bold words, an unforgettable journey begins-- the story of a momentous adventure through the sprawling wilderness on nineteenth-century South Africa. There was Matthew, at nineteen, in love with a woman he could never possess. He had learned much about life-- but little about love. Cord, He let nothing stand in the way of his consuming desire to conquer everything-- and everyone-- in his path. And then there was Kit, with flaming red hair and haunting velvet eyes. A Daring woman ahead of her time-- a woman who loved with a passion nothing could deny. In search of a homeland, they risked their lives. In quest of love, they found desire that only bred more desperate conflict."
Richardson's cover art for the 4th paperback printing of Madonna Red replaced the original 1977 1st printing cover art, but both illustrations still prominented the novel's instrument of death, a silencer equipped Luger pistol. Bantam published this edition in 1983. James Carroll, a former priest, has to date written 12 novels (Madonna Red being his debut), and 8 non-fiction books. His most recent work was published just three years ago. He was also a popular column writer in the Boston Globe for 23 years, from 1992 to 2015, with over 1000 columns to his credit.
"Juneau. A code name without a face. A cool, political executioner who has never missed. And now he's somewhere in Washington waiting to strike again. Soon it will be zero hour. And from the White House to the Vatican, all hell is about to explode."
This fellow appears to have been a top model for Richardson; he was featured on all 5 Heller novels that Richardson illustrated, and on several other paperbacks he did as well. The Turn-Out Man, Volume 5 of 8 in Frank Roderus's Heller series, was published in paperback by Bantam in 1985.
Frank Roderus (1942-2015) is considered to be one of the finest Western writers of all time. He wrote anywhere between 300 and 400 novels, most under various pseudonyms (including scores of Longarms under the house name Tabor Evans). He was a two-time winner of the Spur Award, and a recipient of the Western Fictioneers Lifetime Achievement Award. The Heller's were an unusual outing by Roderus in that they were modern day crime stories, with his hero Carl Heller astride a motorcycle instead of a horse.
"They were young, not much older than girls. Maybe not so innocent, but certainly unprepared for being 'turned out' into the sleazy hell of a prostitution and no-limits porno playground in Reno. There, tender flesh commanded the highest buck, but a young life was cheap. Heller never cast himself as the raging protector of virgin purity, but when a 'clean' brothel owner hired him to wipe out the greedy bastard who was preying on the unsuspecting underage, Heller willingly sunk himself into the dark, slimy underground. Whores, drugs, blood-soaked profits, the whole girl-trade pipeline made Heller sick. Trying to shut it down could get him snuffed."
Richardson cleverly incorporated a samurai sword into his cover montage, a key ingredient in Marc Olden's big city thriller, Giri. Bantam published this paperback in 1984.
Marc Olden (1933-2003) wrote 38 crime novels; 9 are in his Narc series, 8 are in his Black Samurai series (condensed into a film starring karate specialist Jim Kelly), 4 are in his Harker File series and the remaining 17 are standalones. His most lauded work is perhaps Poe Must Die, a mystery that pairs Edgar Allan Poe with Pierce James Figg, an English bare-knuckle fighter and master swordsman.
"Giri: Japanese for loyalty. For one American it comes to mean some thing else, something infinitely more lethal. A crazed mass murderer is terrorizing New York, his victims the target of a strange and deadly form of Oriental Blood sacrifice. Detective Sergeant Decker, a cop with a potent understanding of the martial arts, is put on the killer's trail. At once he is enmeshed in a network of betrayal and murderous deception that stretches from Saigon's serpentine alleyways to Manhattan's diamond markets to the vast seething underworld of Paris. His only hope for survival lies in the arms of an exotic Japanese beauty-- a woman from whom the twin arts of death and desire are endlessly entwined. A woman with a desperate, burning passion for giri that leads Decker into an ancient quest for vengeance as razor-sharp as a Samurai's sword."
Richardson's painterly dustjacket art for Let A Soldier Die (Delacorte Press, 1984), is actually a full wraparound, of which I, unfortunately, don't have a complete image of anymore. William E. Holland, a practicing civil engineer and lawyer, apparently wrote only 3 novels, but considering how awesome they all are it's disappointing that he hasn't tried writing a fourth.
"Let A Soldier Die is a searing story of war, of war machines and the men who fly them, and of one brilliant young flier grown old before his time in the valleys of death. Sitting in his helicopter above Vietnam's green fields, the man known to his friends as the Bear never has to touch the people he's killing, or even think of them as human. Never, that is, until the day a group of GIs wander into a fire zone, and find themselves on the wrong end of the awesome firepower of US gunships. Bear and his companions have to retrieve the wounded and the dead. Because of that day, Bear begins to hesitate. And in a war where nothing is ever certain, that hesitation can-- and eventually does-- kill men and women Bear knows, loves and respects."
John Saul's Brainchild wasn't the only horror novel that Richardson produced cover art for, but it's the only one I've come across in my used bookstore browsing. Bantam published Brainchild in paperback in 1985: my image is of the hardcover book club edition. John Saul has been credited with writing 37 horror and suspense novels thus far. Most have been bestsellers including his famous first one in 1977. His latest was published in 2009, and he is now long overdue for another one.
"La Paloma... once home to a proud Spanish heritage... now a thriving modern community high in the California hills... where a boy named Alex is about to become the instrument of a terrible, undying vengeance... ALEX NEEDS A MIRACLE. Alex Lonsdale was one of the most popular kids in La Paloma. Until the horrifying car accident. Until a brilliant doctor's medical miracle brought him back from the brink of death. NOW ALEX HAS COME BACK. He seems the same. But in his eyes there is a terrible blankness. In his heart there is a coldness. And if his parents, his friends, his girlfriend could see inside his brain, if they could see his dreams, they would be terrified. NOW THE PEOPLE MUST DIE. One hundred years ago in La Paloma a terrible deed was done; a cry for vengeance pierced the night. In dark and secret places in La Paloma that evil lives still, that vengeance waits. Waits for Alex Lonsdale. Waits for the BRAINCHILD."
This is an unusual cover concept from Bantam: Lou Glanzman designed the outlining silhouette of Rex Stout's detective Nero Wolfe sitting in his roller-chair while Hiram Richardson produced the actual illustration that filled the silhouette. Other Wolfe books from Bantam followed suit but used different artists such as Peter Caras, Joe DeVito, Paul Lehr and Lew McCance. Most, like Richardson, signed their work, but a few did not, leaving some covers unidentified. Three Doors to Death was published in paperback in 1985. It consists of three novellas: Man Alive, Omit Flowers, and Door to Death. I've read just one book by Rex Stout, who apparently has legions of fans, and it was good, but not great, in my opinion. Still, I'll give him another go-- his stellar reputation deserves no less.
"An unscrupulous beauty murdered in a greenhouse full of orchids... A high fashion show where murder calls the turn... A young millionaire who couldn't keep his hands off a pretty neck... A triple course of murder and mystery starring the great Nero Wolfe."
By the mid-1980's Richardson had become pretty adept at producing cover art for various men's adventure series. The Dragon Slayings, the sixth and final volume of The Protector, was published by Pinnacle in 1985. The author, Rich Rainey, was himself pretty adept at writing those men's adventure series. He penned all of the Protectors and dozens of Mack Bolan's (which number in the hundreds). He also wrote at least four entries in the long running series SOBs (Soldiers of Barrabas), and lord only knows what else that's out there.
"Mitchell Cavanaugh, a Soviet-trained American psychic, has decided to go into business for himself. Infiltrating US psy-war projects, he finds the top psychics, turns them or kills them. To the US government it looks like Russia has launched a psy-war first strike. It's reason enough to turn loose the Protector, Alex Dartanian-- supreme hitman for ICE (Inner Court Exterminations). But before Dartanian can off the deadly mind-bender, his own brain gets washed in a psychic storm. It's going to take everything he's got to break Cavanaugh's death-dealing grip-- and ICE him for good!"
Richardson's montages always seemed to set the mood; note the different looks by the two protagonists. This reprint of the Joseph Wambaugh's 1984 non-fiction book, Echoes in the Darkness, was published by Bantam in 1987. Joseph Wambaugh, a three time winner of the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Allan Poe Award and a recipient of its prestigious Grand Master Award, is said to have interfered in the real life murder case that he based his book upon by allegedly bribing a chief investigator to suppress evidence that may have exonerated a suspect. The suspect was ultimately found guilty, and probably was, but then later a federal appeals court overturned his conviction. A wretched affair, all told, by everyone involved.
Earl Patrick Murray published at least 40 books about the American West before passing away in 2003 at the age of 53. He taught classes at Montana State University, conducted writing workshops, and was an active member of the Western Writers of America, earning a Spur Award nomination for his novel, Song of Wovoka. His Mountain Sheriff series, an interesting blend of the Old and New West, didn't WOW me all that much when I first read them, but the covers by Hiram Richardson sure did. That's not to say I didn't like the stories because I
did, if memory serves me correct. But read each synopsis for yourself and see if they're worth pursuing. Mountain Sheriff (Volume 1), was published in paperback by Zebra in 1987, with Lobo Wolf (V. 2) and The Canyon Mountain War (V. 3, not shown),
following in 1988.
MOUNTAIN SHERIFF: "They hid on the edge of Montana's Absaroka Wilderness in the shadows of rock and thick timber, watching hikers and skiers through binoculars while oiling their semi-automatic rifles. They watched the new condominium complex take shape at the foot of "their" mountain. And when the workers were finished and gone, the three grizzled mountain men-- Sterne Morgan and his twin sons Casey and Corey-- loaded their guns, packed their explosives, and declared all-out war on society. Their targe was Dan Slayter, the new sheriff of River County. They knew they couldn't give Slayter a second Chance, so they ambushed him in a hail of gunpowder and hot lead-- but they didn't finish the job. Now Slayter was coming for them-- the one man who could go deep in the wilderness and succeed where FBI helicopters and SWAT teams failed. Slayter was born and raised in the high country and knew every backtrail trick in the book. He'd track down the three sidewinders who were born 150 years too late and bring them down the mountain to justice-- dead or alive!"
LOBO WOLF: "It crept in with the nightfall, bringing death to Blaine Markson's Rocking H Ranch. Big as a pony and blacker than the pits of Hell, a renegade wolf was on the rampage, slaughtering the millionaire cattleman's livestock, then disappearing like smoke into the high Montana wilderness. Modern weaponry was useless against a creature able to elude its pursuers with almost human cunning. And after two of his cowhands vanished while tracking the monster, Markson feared it had developed a taste for a new kind of meat. Dan Slayter knew the high country like the back of his hand, so he seemed the natural choice to take up the hunt. But once on the trail, the River County sheriff realized he was chasing no ordinary predator but an intelligent, directed devil-beast bent on laying waste to the mammoth Rocking H spread. But whether a freak of nature or an authentic avenging Indian spirit, it had no place in twentieth century civilization. Slayter was keeping his senses razor sharp and his firearms loaded and ready-- for when one lone wolf faces another, the one with deadliest bite is bound to triumph."
Richardson illustrated at least a dozen covers in the Mack Bolan men's adventure series. Created in 1969 by Don Pendleton, the Mack Bolan Executioner stories have now been featured in over 600 novels, with sales exceeding 200 million books. At least 71 authors have participated in the writing of the series. As for the cover art, I am assured of only these five illustrators: Franco Accornero, Michael Herring, Gil Cohen, Daniel Crouse and Hiram Richardson. There may be other artists involved, but I don't have any evidence of that (more recent entries have switched to live-model photography for the covers). Anvil of Hell was published by Gold Eagle in 1988.
"Someone is building a nuclear bomb, and Mack Bolan thinks he knows who it is. For years, small amounts of Uranium 235 have been disappearing from the world's top research facilities. When a computer at Stony Man Farm reveals the extent of the thefts, the President demands immediate covert action to avert a potential disaster. Bolan picks up the trail in Marseilles and embarks on a journey of peril and intrigue through North Africa's wasteland. But an unexpected twist leads him to a military complex in an underground cavern-- and a conspiracy to blackmail the world."
I'm no expert in weaponry, but I believe Richardson accurately replicated an M-60 machine gun on the cover of Red Dust, one of the most lethal weapons ever used by U.S. soldiers in the Vietnam War. This 13th volume in the Vietnam: Ground Zero series was published in paperback by Gold Eagle in 1988.
Eric Helm is a pseudonym used by the writing team of Kevin D. Randle and Robert "Bob" Cornett. Drawing upon their service in the military, the pair collaborated on 33 novels, 27 of which are in their VGZ series, the others being restricted to science-fiction. Randle also wrote 21 additional science-fiction novels, some in collaboration with his friends Ed Gorman and Randy J. Randisi.
"Vietnam, 1968: From dawn to dusk, nothing moves on the highways from Hanoi to the DMZ. Weeks have passed since Navy pilots spotted daytime enemy traffic. The Americans are baffled by this recent NVA tactic. But the capture and interrogation of a Vietcong student reveals that her village in North Vietnam is a staging are for NVA troops. And recon photos taken by high-altitude SR-71s support this intel. U.S. Army Special Forces Captain Mack Gerber and a team of Green Beret commandos undertake a covert action mission to the North to plant some "tulips" along key routes. These seismic intrusion devices will pinpoint target data on nighttime enemy movement for the USAF Phantoms. Despite this U.S. counterthrust, Gerber knows that the night belongs to Charlie."
According to Richardson, its all about the stare. Balefire was published initially as a hardcover by Bantam Books with Richardson's art, and then reprinted in paperback---this image is of that 1988 paperback edition.
Ken Goddard became a successful crime writer by brilliantly incorporating his years of service as a deputy sheriff and forensic scientist into works of engrossing fiction. After his impressive debut with Balefire, he wrote 11 more outstanding thrillers, comprising two separate series of 3 books each, one lone TV-tie-in novel (CSI), and 4 standalones.
"A small city on the southern California coast is the scene of a series of brutal, unexplained killings which have angered and frightened local citizens ans stymied the police. Stunned and confused by what seem to be senseless murders, the cops area almost helpless to defend the city, their families, or themselves against these meticulously planned "random" attacks by an unseen predator. Until-- with drawing realization that the havoc might be a cover-up to something even more shocking-- a select team of investigators and crime lab specialists begins to fight back. Very soon, these men and women will find themselves prey to Thanatos-- a superbly capable professional killer whose greatest weapon is fear itself."
Hawkwood is a pretty good adventure novel but it definitely benefits from Richardson's excellent cover art. Bantam published it in paperback in 1989.
Andrew Patrick O'Rourke (1933-2013) managed to write Hawkwood and Red Banner Mutiny (an insurrection aboard a Soviet destroyer), all while being fully employed as either a well regarded social worker, military officer and historian, attorney, judge, and Chief Executive of Westchester County, New York. The lesson to learn from O'Rourke would seem to be: "it's all doable-- so just go do it!"
"He's a decorated Vietnam War hero, highly skilled in combat techniques and survival. Now he's in way over his head with the Mafia. Suddenly a plane crash in Boston gives him the opportunity of his life-- to die, then start over again. He changes identity and career. He takes the name of a daring Englishman who fought alongside the Black Prince during the Hundred Years War, John Hawkwood. He deposits in Switzerland the big money he recovered from the crash. Now Hawkwood is ready for a new life: wresting adventure and riches from a violent world as a free-lance soldier of fortune. With a cool toughness and a keen knack for anticipating headlines and hot spots, Hawkwood flies to Argentina, just as war explodes with the Falklands-- and just in time to save the royal skin of England's most fearless prince..."
The Branded Man was published by Dell in August, 1989: Trail boss Mark Flood could find no trace of his herd-- no drovers, no trail, no sign of 3000 head of cattle-- nothing but a dead campfire and hundreds of .45 shells scattered around it... Branded a rustler by his neighbors, Flood faced an impossible task. Searching for the heard meant riding into the midst of a deadly range war, a treacherous fight that pitted neighbor against neighbor, friend against friend, and Mark Flood against his own past..."
Here's a Richardson cover I would like to compare against its original painting, just to see the dichotomy that probably exists between the two, paper reproductions being what they are. Long Rider 18, Texas Manhunt was published in paperback by Berkley Diamond in 1992.
Neal Barrett, Jr., Len Levinson and Giles Tippette used the house-pseudonym Clay Dawson to complete their 27 volume, Long Rider Adult Western series, which began in 1988 and went for five years. Surprisingly, this eighteenth volume appears to have been written by Richard Matheson, one of America's most respected writers of science fiction, fantasy, crime and the supernatural. Guess it's time to add yet another genre accomplishment to Matheson's impressive oeuvre.
"Long Rider is heading for a new job in El Paso when he meets up with three mean-lookin' men and a young woman. The lady would be a real beauty if she wasn't battered up so bad... and Long Rider doesn't buy the story that she was thrown from her horse. Sure enough, the trio turns out to be trouble. They're kidnappers and bank robbers, and it's Long Rider's job to bring them to justice. He's been deputized by Judge Roy Bean himself-- but that doesn't help much when he's up against crooks, liars and cheats... and even the law itself!"
* * * * *
HIRAM RICHARDSON has been a resident of Carbondale, Colorado, for a long time now. Recently his works were on display in the Cooper Corner Gallery in neighboring Glenwood Springs, and may still be there yet. It's certainly worth a road trip to find out, just be wary of the dangerous mudslides in Glenwood Canyon! And if you happen to be introduced to my friends Carl and Sheri who also live in the area, consider yourself fortunate-- they're two of the nicest people you'll ever meet on earth. May they and Hiram enjoy good health and live to be a hundred or more!
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