Acquired Tastes XLIII:
Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 104
HIS69, Part 33 of 44
The HIS69 imprint was active from 1971 thru 1988, delivering an astounding 531 titles. Surrey House, Inc. / Surree Ltd, Inc. of San Diego and Santee, California are responsible for this imprint which was distributed by the same company as Trojan Books, Manhard Books, Gay Books and Gay Way Books; the Zorro Distribution Company, also operating out of San Diego.
It should be noted that many of these titles, with original artwork included, were simultaneously republished under the Gay Books imprint and then, later, minus the artwork, were also republished under the ManPower imprint.
The artwork for the HIS69 books would go through only two minor shifts with all the covers featuring ink drawings by various uncredited illustrators - artwork quite similar to what we saw with the Manhard imprint.
It should be noted that many of these titles, with original artwork included, were simultaneously republished under the Gay Books imprint and then, later, minus the artwork, were also republished under the ManPower imprint.
The artwork for the HIS69 books would go through only two minor shifts with all the covers featuring ink drawings by various uncredited illustrators - artwork quite similar to what we saw with the Manhard imprint.
So, we're only hitting the ball 50% of the time, today. Six out of twelve? Oh, well.
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Author: Mark Andrews
HIS69509
Hard to distinguish who just who might be the coach and who the player. One thing's for certain... I'm sure they both score big time!
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Down The River
Author: Brock Steele
HIS69510
(Cover Not Found)
I used to have me some great fun, down by the river - the mighty Mississippi. I'd hike along its banks for hours, encountering all sorts of wildlife.
And on occasion I'd run into an animal or two, too.
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Author: Jon Hartley
HIS69511
Brings new meaning to the position... 'Head' Foreman. I've never seen myself in that kind of position before, but maybe I should apply.
I certainly have the skillset in my wheelhouse.
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Male Room
Author: Andrew Martin
HIS69512
(Cover Not Found)
I worked as a temp in a mailroom once. Quietest job I've ever had. Rarely saw a soul. It was a little creepy and I have no idea what I did all day. There wasn't much to do. This was back in the days before cellphones. If I'd had a cellphone and Grindr? Oh! I would have had so much fun.
Also, over the many years that I have worked in an office, I've noticed that people receive less and less mail. Why should they? Email and file sharing - everything is electronic now. Maybe office mailrooms will one day be a thing of the past.
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High School Buddies
Author: Chris Carver
HIS69513
(Cover Not Found)
I think about my little high school gang - all nerds and creative types - and can't imagine us having a circle jerk. But they did happen. I ran into an old 'frenemy' of mine years later - a caustic queen who was obsessed with being popular. He told me everybody was having sex and that our little group was viewed as 'hands off.' He told me a story about a time he and the quarterback watched a certain girl we all knew well and the king of the stoners get it on. I was just floored - that such things happened.
I was in my 30's before I began to become so sexually free.
Needless to say, I've been making up for lost time ever since!
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Hot Dean, Hung Hunk
Author: Jay Michaels
HIS69514
First 'Young Coach' and now, 'Young Dean.' Again, hard to say who is who. And what is with the masks? Must be one of those Eyes Wide Shut sort of parties!
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Stereo Stud
Mark Andrews
HIS69515
I bet this is about a young gay who delivers and sets up stereo systems in people's homes. How exciting. It would make an ideal porno.
And, while I love the idea of surprising a delivery person by answering the door naked, it does pose a sort of ethical dilemma. There is a need for consent. On occasion I'll stumble on a short vid of some gay dude doing this to a bellboy or the UPS man, and it doesn't feel quite right to me. So, the fantasy? Fun. The reality? Ethically soupy.
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Make It A Holiday
Andrew Martin
HIS69516
What the hell is going on in this illustration? Is he really putting that giant firecracker up that dude's ass? And why is blondie bound and bent over the hood of a car? All these questions, and the sight of those pristine asses, would compel me to buy this book.
So... illustrator? Mission accomplished!
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The Mountain Men
Murray Montague
HIS69517
(Cover Not Found)
I immediately think of big, burly men, with long, thick hair, a bristly, bushy beard, a pumped up torso covered in man fur with muscles for days. Close to feral, he comes upon me in the woods and views me as having only one purpose in his life. Sigh.
Oh, lumberjack love! In the woods. He'd kidnap me and I would keep house for him, keeping the hearth glowing until he gets back from hunting or whatever it is mountain men do to occupy their time. I'd teach him to read (I always have a book in my backpack.) And he would fill my nights with endless wonder.
Sounds like a modern-day Disney animation film! I wonder if Elton John will be writing the songs?
Can you feel the love tonight? Oh, yes, Elton. Yes, indeed.
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Up And Coming Quarter Back
Michael Scott
HIS69518
Not a clue what the title has to do with the illustration, or, for that matter, what's going on in that illustration. They're in the woods, drying clothes, running around naked? I mean, it's obvious what the two dudes in the foreground are up to, but what about sneaky Pete, behind that tree?
I bet The Hardy Boys would get to the 'bottom' of this one!
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Chicken Hawk
Chris Carver
HIS69519
(Cover Not Found)
Ah, what would a post about HIS69 books be without a little 'chicken' in the mix?
There are two types of 'Chicken Hawks' that I am aware of. There are the overweight, scruffy types who prey on the dumb and ugly ones and then there are the uber-vain type who only go for the pretty ones. Both ply their boys with promises and flattery. The former strike me as a bit pedo-like, while the latter seems to believe if he surrounds himself with youth, he'll never grow old. I confess, I hold a dim view of either type. It feels 'icky' to me. But...
...to each their own.
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Coming Out
Mark Andrews
HIS69520
(Cover Not Found)
I wonder if we'll ever reach the stage, as a society, that we have coming out parties for young people... you know, the way they have bar mitzvahs and the quinceañeras? Wouldn't that be fun?
In a way, I'm amazed that we don't.
Nobody throws a party like a gay!
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And that's all for now.
Next week? Another dozen scintillating, titillating titles.
Notice, I don't say 'covers.' That's because we are heading into territory where we will have even more titles with an author, but the cover will be MIA.
Until then...
Thanks for reading!
Until then...
Thanks for reading!
Holiday - KSI
3 comments:
You are right! Both the Dean and the Coach are literally the same age as their pupils. But the covers keep being sexy as hell. And I didn't understand that firecracker, either.
And talking about high school? Same! I never knew how much sex my classmates were having. I learned that one of my classmates, a tall, handsome boy, was often invited to orgies! He even draw some of the scenes for me!
XOXO
Some pretty steady concepts, though, throughout all the imprints.
Dyno-mite! That one IS an eye-raiser. My cousin pressed a good old red firecracker into my palm back in 1971 (when all the dangerous things like lawn darts were permissible). But that thing would 'blow my box apart' in the immortal words of Terence Stamp.
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