Midwood Books was an American publishing house active from 1957 to 1968. Its strategy focused on the male readers' market, competing with other publishers such as Beacon Books. The covers of many Midwood Books featured works by prolific illustrators of the era, including Paul Rader.
Novels from Midwood Books were written by many well-known authors, most writing under pseudonyms. Among these were Lawrence Block, Donald E. Westlake, Robert Silverberg, and Richard E. Geis.
History Harry Shorten was a writer and editor who had worked for MLJ Comics, publisher of Archie, for most of the 1940s and 1950s. He had made his fortune by creating, with comics artist Al Fagaly, a syndicated gag cartoon called There Oughta Be a Law!.
Looking for an investment in the financial results of his comics, Shorten decided to become an editor of paperbacks. He wanted to follow the example of publishers Beacon Books and Universal Distributing, which specialized in publishing cheap, lightweight books telling dramatic or erotic romances, with suggestive covers, for a male audience. Thus he created in 1957 the publishing house Midwood Books, named after his neighborhood in Brooklyn. At the time, the publishing house address was 505 Eighth Avenue in Manhattan.
Unlike other New York publishers such as Bennett Cerf at Random House, Shorten did not have extensive knowledge of quality literature. But he knew what would entice the average American reader. His books were bright, colorful, and eye-catching. Midwood's first publications were paperback collections of the There Oughta Be a Law! strips and an unnumbered book series in the same style as Beacon Books. With the 1958 release of Midwood 007 — Love Nest, by Robert Silverberg, writing as "Loren Beauchamp" — began the emergence of authors and artists recognized later as appurtenant to Midwood. Shorten quickly began soliciting manuscripts from the Scott Meredith Literary Agency (which also provided manuscripts for fellow pulp publisher Nightstand Books).
Only five people wrote most of the first 40 issues of the Midwood numbered series: Lawrence Block ("Sheldon Lord"), Robert Silverberg ("Loren Beauchamp"), Donald E. Westlake ("Alan Marshall""), Orrie Hitt, and Hal Dresner ("Don Holliday"). This group stabilized Midwood until Shorten was able to put together a stable of recurring writers, such as Sally Singer, Gilbert Fox, Julie Ellis, John Plunkett, and Elaine Williams. Although nobody at Midwood knew it at the time, several writers were providing books for both Midwood and Nightstand, but under different pen names. For example, "Loren Beauchamp" (Robert Silverberg) become "Don Elliott" a year later at Nightstand, "Sheldon Lord" (Lawrence Block) became "Andrew Shaw." Some writers wrote under the same name for both publishers.
Shorten obtained his cover illustrations from the Art Balcourt Service, the same agency that provided covers for Beacon. Artists such as Nappi, Rader, and Robert Maguire were significant to the company's success. The covers sold the books: Midwood's novels were not great literature, but were generally very entertaining. Many pages contained sex scenes, described as pornographic, full of insinuations and veiled references. Although romances and melodramas were of more interest to women, the target audience of companies like Midwood and Beacon was men. This was apparent from their covers.
In 1964, Midwood merged with Tower Publications to form two subsidiaries: Midwood-Tower and Tower Comics. Shorten went on to be editor-in-chief of Tower Comics.Irving, Chris. "Rise and Fall of Tower Comics," Comic Book Artist #14 (July 2001). By 1965, Midwood's headquarters were at 185 Madison Avenue (alongside fellow pulp publisher Lancer Books).Montgomery, Paul L. "Pulp Sex Novels Thrive as Trade Comes Into Open," New York Times (September 5, 1965).
Popularity among lesbians Pulp titles with strong connotations of lesbians were very popular; the authors were frequently men using female pen names, such as "Barbara Brooks," "Jill Emerson," and "Kimberly Kemp;" while the target audience was male readers, an unexpected second small audience base was lesbians themselves, with these books often reviewed in early lesbian and gay publications such as One Magazine and The Ladder by Barbara Grier, under her pseudonym "Gene Damon." Julie Ellis, though not lesbian herself (unlike Singer and Williams), bucked her bosses by insisting on putting happy endings for the lesbian lovers in her lesbian pulp fiction, a brave act for which she received much appreciative fan mail from emerging lesbian social and activist groups during Ellis's Midwood-Tower authorship period (1962-1968).
Authors Lawrence Block, writing as "Sheldon Lord" Hal Dresner, writing as "Don Holliday" Julie Ellis, writing as "Joan Ellis," "Susan Richards," and similar pseudonyms Gilbert Fox, writing as "Dallas Mayo" and "Kimberly Kemp" for his lesbian novels and "Paul Russo" for his heterosexual books Richard E. Geis, writing as "Peggy Swenson" Jay Greene Orrie Hitt Al James Stuart James William Johnston William Knoles, writing as "Clyde Allison" Barry N. Malzberg, writing as "Mel Johnson". Pat Perdue, writing as "Randy Salem" John Plunkett, writing as "Jason Sloane Hytes" Robert Silverberg, writing as "Loren Beauchamp" Sally Singer, writing as "March Hastings" Donald E. Westlake, writing as "Alan Marshall" Elaine Williams, writing as "Sloane Britain" and similar pseudonyms. Some have stated she committed suicide in 1963 as a result of the social stigma she suffered as a lesbian. Other sources indicate that the car she was in skidded on snow and hit a tree head-on, killing Williams and gravely injuring her husband at the time.
Pricing Codes
Beginning with book 395, Midwood introduced a pricing code as the prefix to the book series number. Midwood books codes were the 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, and 38. Tower books codes were the 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, and 47.
32 = $.50 33 = $.60 34 = $.75 35 = $.95 37 = $1.25 38 = $1.75 42 = $.50 43 = $.60 44 = $.75 45 = $.95 46 = $.45 47 = $1.25 Collectable Paperback Books by Jeff Canja Glenmoor Publishing 2002 ISBN 0-9673639-5-0
After Midwood 37-339 the publisher divides into 3 new price series: M-125-x ($1.25), M-175-x ($1.75) and M-195-x ($1.95).
Popularity Among Collectors
Many Midwood covers are collectible due to the artists that produced the artwork. Artwork by Paul Rader can add significant value to a paperback. Other popular artists who produced covers for Midwood include Ron Lesser, Randy Nappi, Jerome Podwill, and Robert E. Schultz. Collectable Paperback Books by Jeff Canja Glenmoor Publishing 2002 ISBN 0-9673639-5-0Hip Pocket Sleaze: The Lurid World of Vintage Adult Paperbacks Headpress 2012 ISBN 9781900486484
Selected titles source:Kemp, Earl. "The Westlake Twenty-Eight," eI13 (April 2004).
Series 1-394 Midwood 1: There Oughta Be A Law! by Harry Shorten & Al Fagaly Midwood 2: [NOT ISSUED] Midwood 3: [NOT ISSUED] Midwood 4: There Oughta Be A Law! by Harry Shorten & Al Fagaly Midwood 5: I Take What I Want by Hal Ellson Midwood 6: Call Me Mistress by Tomlin Rede 1958 Midwood 7: Love Nest, by Loren Beauchamp — the first numbered titled in the Midwood series 1958 Midwood 8: Carla, by Sheldon Lord 1959 Midwood 9: A Strange Kind of Love, by Sheldon Lord Midwood 10: Affair With Lucy by Orrie Hitt Midwood 11: Immoral Wife by Gordon Mitchell Midwood 12: Girl Of The Streets by Orrie Hitt Midwood 13: Hired Lover by Fred Martin 1959 Midwood 14: Born to Be Bad, by Sheldon Lord 1959 Midwood 15: All My Lovers, by Alan Marshall — later reprinted as Midwood 129 (1960) Midwood 16: Summer Romance by Orrie Hitt 1959 Midwood 17: Backstage Love (Vol. I of the Phil Crawford trilogy), by Alan Marshall — later reprinted as Midwood 149: Apprentice Virgin (1962) Midwood 18: Connie by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 19: Only The Bed by Don Holiday 1959 Midwood 20: Man Hungry, by Alan Marshall — later reprinted as Midwood 147 (1961) Midwood 21: Unwilling Sinner by Loren Beauchamp 1959 Midwood 22: Sally, by Alan Marshall — later reprinted as Midwood 062 (1960) Midwood 23: As Bad As They Come by Orrie Hitt 1959 Midwood 24: 69 Barrow Street, by Sheldon Lord Midwood 25: Sin School by Don Holliday Midwood 26: Just Ask For Margaret by W.B. Tasker 1960 Midwood 27: Another Night, Another Love by Loren Beauchamp by although numbered as 29 is assumed to be 27 1960 Midwood 28: All the Girls Were Willing (Vol. II of the Phil Crawford trilogy), by Alan Marshall — later reprinted as Midwood 166: What Girls Will Do (1962) 1960 Midwood 29: Another Night, Another Love: An Original Novel, by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 29: Of Shame And Joy by Sheldon Lord 1960 Midwood 30: Meg, by Loren Beauchamp 1960 Midwood 31: The Wife Next Door, by Alan Marshall 1960 Midwood 33: A Woman Must Love, by Sheldon Lord Midwood 34: The Cheaters by Orrie Hitt 1960 Midwood 35: Kept, by Sheldon Lord 1960 Midwood 36: Virgin's Summer, by Alan Marshall Midwood 37: Anybody's Girl by March Hastings Midwood 38: A Doctor And His Mistress by Orrie Hitt Midwood 39: The Sins Of Martha Leslie by Don Holliday 1960 Midwood 40: Candy, by Sheldon Lord 1960 Midwood 41: A Girl Called Honey, by Sheldon Lord & Alan Marshall — dedication: "This is for Don Westlake and Larry Block, who introduced us" Midwood 42: Stag Model by James Harvey Midwood 43: Chita by Max Gareth Midwood 44: Strange Breed by Aldo Lucchesi Midwood 45: Two Of A Kind by Orrie Hitt Midwood 46: Glad To Be Bad by Adam Roberts Midwood 47: Unnatural by Sloan Britton 1960 Midwood 48: So Willing, by Sheldon Lord & Alan Marshall — dedication: "to Nedra & Loretta" [Nedra Westlake and Loretta Block] Midwood 49: Farm Girl by George Cassidy Midwood 50: Ladies' Masseur by James Harvey 1960 Midwood 51: All About Annette, by Alan Marshall Midwood 52: Meet Marilyn by Sloane Britain Midwood 53: The Unashamed by March Hastings Midwood 54: Lana by Joan Ellis 1960 Midwood 55: 21 Gay Street: An Original Novel, by Sheldon Lord — later reprinted as Midwood Y159 1960 Midwood 56: The Blonde: An Original Novel, by Peggy Swenson Midwood 56: The Blonde by Peggy Swenson Midwood 57: Insatiable by Sloane Britain Midwood 58: Sabrina And The Senator by Nick Vendor Midwood 59: A Twilight Affair by James Harvey Midwood 60: All The Way by Mike Avallone Midwood 61: Flame by Joan Ellis Midwood 62: Sally by Alan Marshall Midwood 63: The Unfortunate Flesh by Randy Salem Midwood 64: Million Dollar Mistress by Clyde Allison 1960 Midwood 65: Nurse Carolyn, by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 66: Sin School by Don Holliday Midwood 67: A Touch Of Depravity by Paul V. Russo 1961 Midwood 68: There Oughta Be a Law! by Harry Shorten and Al Fagaly Midwood 69: Liza's Apartment by Joan Ellis Midwood 70: Sin On Wheels by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 71: A Woman by Bruce Elliott Midwood 72: The Path Between by Jay Warren Midwood 73: The Sex Peddlers by Clyde Allison 1960 Midwood 74: Connie: An Original Novel, by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 74: Connie by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 75: Common-Law Wife by Karl Kramer Midwood 76: Pleasure Girl by Joan Ellis Midwood 77: Bucks County Report by Stuart James Midwood 78: Restless Virgin by Paul V. Russo Midwood 79: Your Sins And Mine by George Parksmith Midwood 80: The Jealous And The Free by March Hastings Midwood 81: School For Sex by Arnold English Midwood 82: These Curious Pleasures by Sloane Britain Midwood 83: One Flesh by Paul V. Russo Midwood 84: Lament For A Virgin by Art Serra Midwood 85: Silky by Dallas Mayo Midwood 86: The Fires Within by Loren Beauchamp Midwood 87: Drive-In Girl by R.C. Gold Midwood 88: Stag Starlet by Paul V. Russo Midwood 89: Middle Of Time by James Wyckoff Midwood 90: Step Down To Darkness by David Highsmith Midwood 91: Sex Behavior Of The American Housewife by W.D. Sprague Midwood 92: The Weekend by Thomas Cox