Red Arrow and LA Bantam

Bantam Publications shares a number of characteristics with Red Arrow Books which make them natural partners for this blog.

1) very early in the days of mass market publishing: Red Arrow - 1939/40 and Bantam - 1940/41,
2) not located in New York: Red Arrow - Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Bantam - Los Angeles,
3) complicated publishing histories: Red Arrow with three or four versions of all but one of its 13 books and Bantam with two or three versions of all but one of its 29 books,
4) both publishers used illustrated and type only covers. Bantam on eight books (plus one with illustrated only) and Red Arrow on the first 12 books,
5) the last book for both publishers are odd-balls.

The 13 Red Arrow books:

1 Thirteen at Dinner                      Agatha Christie
2 Murder on Hudson                       Jennifer Jones
3 Murders in Praed Street              John Rhode
4 Death in the Library                    Philip Ketchum
5 Death Wears a White Gardenia     Zelda Popkin
6 My South Sea Island                      Eric Muspratt
7 Yankee Komisar                            S.M. Riis
8 Girl Hunt                                       Laurence D. Smith
9 The Seven Sleepers                       Francis Beeding
10 Captain Nemesis                          F. Van Wyck Mason
11 Wind-swept                                 Olga Moore
12 Pirate's Purchase                        Ben Ames Williams
nn Unspeakable Gentleman              John P. Marquand

Red Arrow books were colour coded: red for Mystery and Crime (1-5), green for Travel and Adventure (6-10) and blue for Fiction (11, 12). Here is an example of each.

Red Arrow 5

Red Arrow 6

Red Arrow 12