Acquired Tastes XLIII:
Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 174
Impact Library
Part 2 of 2
This is the second of two posts about the Impact Library imprint.
I found very little information about Impact Library or it's publisher, Echelon Book Publishers, Inc.
They operated out of Los Angeles, CA at 5525 Wilshire Boulevard and published titles under the Impact Library imprint from 1967-1974. The bulk of their titles skewed hetero, with a great deal of attention focused on niche kink - whips, bondage, torture, women deflowering young boys, incest, oral sex, sex workers, interracial relationships, nature lovers, and all things then considered perverse. On the plus side, they had a handful of titles devoted to lesbian sex and about 20 titles dealing with gay males - a number of which were inspired by or translations of classic European titles along with the usual 'report' style books, purporting to be actual case histories/files.
They certainly liked to fan a flame... take for example this tagline from 1971's I Never Touched Susie Harberger: "He was a sex-sick rapist, transvestite, animalist, male whore, yet his passions went like an arrow toward females." That covers a lot of ground, don't you think?
The cover art for the gay male titles is pretty tame, but worth a look, as it is a part of gay history. Remember, these books did all they could to skirt their way around the censorship and obscenity laws of the time.
So, let's take a look at the rest of the gay titles, one of which I own.
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Other Than a Man
Author: W. F Mosher
1968
IL-241
Impact Library
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Lavender Lads
Author: Barry Crandall
1968
IL-243
Impact Library
We learned all about Barry Crandall last week... about as odd as they come.
I actually own a copy of this one. I believe I got it for $35. It's never been read! There's one for sale at AbeBooks for $199!
Given the title, I assumed it was about incest.
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Le Pouffe
Author: Lavor Mollet
1968
IL-310
Impact Library
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The Anal Delight
Author: James Harvey
1968
IL-315
Impact Library
(Cover Not Found)
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The Muscle Swappers
Author: Barry Crandall
1968
IL-328
Impact Library
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The Singing Wind
Author: Rod McGraw
1968
IL-332
Impact Library
According to a note on Hommi Publishing's big ass list, this one is about "an Indian and a white man." Probably this imprint's attempt to cash in on the runaway popularity of Richard Emory's Song Of The Loon.
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Another Room-Another Brother
Author: James Harper
1968
IL-340
Impact Library
A deviant hitchhiker? Rough men? On the road? Sign me up!
And that's all for now.
Next week: more tantalizing vintage gay pulp titles as we explore another imprint!
Until then...
Thanks for reading!
Available as a downloadable ebook or PDF at Hommi Publishing for $1.25!
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Melody of Spring
Author: H. L. Trocci
1968
IL-342
Impact Library
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Lavender Cage
Author: Hal Webb
1969
IL-343
Impact Library
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Gay Stallions
Author: Robert Douglas
1970
IL-557
Impact Library
(Cover Not Found)
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Next week: more tantalizing vintage gay pulp titles as we explore another imprint!
Until then...
Thanks for reading!
Melody In Spring - Lanny Ross
from the 1934 motion picture Melody In Spring
.jpg)
2 comments:
These books must be highly sought with prices like that! Who knew???
Oh, I love these covers!
And I love that whole Lavender thing!
XOXO
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