Hank Janson: Pulp Fiction Writer Extraordinaire

“It was just another Thursday, the kind that comes around, oh, about once every week. I was working the graveyard shift for Max, a private dick I owed a favor to. I had an hour left to go and it had just started to rain. As I pulled my black, Auburn V-8 onto Dempsey Street, I saw her. There, under the street lamp, she was lighting a cigarette—wearing red stiletto heels and a Burberry trench coat. This was a dame with an eye for trouble, I thought. I stopped the car just feet from her. She paid no attention.”

“Get in!” I said.

Now what happens? Hank Janson would know (real name: Stephen D. Frances). Hank was the pulp fiction writer extraordinaire back in the 50s and early 60s. He lived and wrote in Britain and was revered in the paperback novel world. However, Hank was the victim of severe censorship by Britain’s “Home Office” when, in January of 1954, twelve jurors found him and his publisher/distributor guilty of obscenity. Janson was incredibly popular, having sold five million copies of his books in six years. Yet, the Home Office in Britain managed to burn or destroy over 350,000 books and novels, of which Janson’s paperbacks were prime examples. Respected researcher and pulp fiction historian Steve Holland gives a remarkable account of Janson’s life in his book: The Trials of Hank Janson. Available on Amazon. [ Janson novels now © Telos Publishing. ]

Reposted from 2008.

An Obsessed Collector

(Above) LESLIE THRASHER (American, 1889-1936)
She Loves Me ...She Loves Me Not
Oil on canvas
17 x 15 in.
Signed lower right
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $1,000 - $2,000.

(Above) AMERICAN ARTIST (20th Century)
Crack Detective, pulp cover, July 1943
Oil on canvas
19 x 16 in.
Not signed
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $1,000 - $1,500.

(Above) AMERICAN ARTIST (20th Century)
The Couple in the Green Light
Oil on canvas
16 x 22 in.
Not signed
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $800 - $1,200.

Click any image for larger view.

(Above) ELLEN BARBARA SEGNER (American, d. 2001)
Sunbeam/Stroehmann’s Bread ad illustration
Gouache on board
11 x 15.5 in.
Not signed
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $700 - $900.

(Above) AMERICAN ARTIST (20th Century)
The Wire Tap, men’s magazine illustration
Gouache on board
20 x 15 in.
Not signed
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $200 - $400.

Click any image for larger view.

(Above) “When I asked for a divorce, I told him I only wanted one thing -- everything!”

BILL WARD (American, 1919-1998)
Men’s magazine cartoon illustration, 1963
Mixed-media on paper
23 x 15.5 in.
Signed lower left
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $800 - $1,200.



(Above) CHARLES CLYDE SQUIRES (American, 1883-1970)
The Intruder
Oil on canvas
24 x 36 in.
Signed lower right
From the Estate of Charles Martignette. Estimate: $600 - $800.


A FRIEND AND GALLERY OWNER IN CALIFORNIA alerted me to this great auction of the late Charles G. Martignette who died in 2008 at the age of 57. Martignette traveled all over the U.S. in the 70s and 80s buying illustration art when no one else was interested. His house was found to be filled floor to ceiling with paintings, as were several warehouses. Pulp fiction, romance, sports, gunslingers, cowboys, science fiction, cartoons—you name it, Martignette bought it. His only criteria— it had to be American and aimed for a mass audience. But before you call Charles crazy, remember this: the best collections in the world come from people just like him. His lifestyle and habits may be abnormal to most people (he never married, btw) but his life must have been full and exciting.

There are many great illustrators in this auction, with some extremely high prices (some have already been sold)—but for this post I selected 7 illustrations with an estimated selling price under $2,000. Check out the auction here.

Heritage Auction Galleries is the largest collectibles auctioneer and third largest auction house in the world. With nearly 460,000 registered online bidder-members, they are also a leader in internet auction sales. Their reputation for professional business practices and vast expertise in the field of art and collectibles make Heritage a great place for those seeking to add to their collections.