NB: A version of this post also appears on Existential Ennui.
I’m back, with a Westlake Score, and further evidence, as if any were needed, of the madness which consumes me. Because despite already owning three different editions of the seventh Richard Stark Parker novel—both under its original title of The Seventh (the 1966 US Pocket Books paperback first edition) and its later title of The Split (a 1969 UK Hodder movie tie-in paperback, and a 1985 UK Allison & Busby hardback)—I’ve now acquired a fourth edition on eBay: a 1968 US Gold Medal paperback printing, as seen above. Really, I can offer little in the way of defence here. I mean, The Seventh/The Split is one of my favorite Parkers, and this edition does boast Robert McGinnis cover art (featuring Parker modelling a fetching roll-neck), and furthermore copies of the Gold Medal paperback aren’t easy to come by here in Britain; but even given all that, I’m still not sure I can justify this purchase—except that it does give me an opportunity to point out that, as with the 1967 Gold Medal edition of Point Blank, which is often mistakenly credited as being published in 1962 due to the appearance of a “Copyright © 1962” line in the indicia, the Gold Medal paperback of The Split—which, again like Point Blank, was retitled in order to tie in to its then-forthcoming movie adaptation—often suffers a similar fate; just take a look at the listings on AbeBooks, half of which are currently incorrect. Reason for that being the same as for Point Blank:
The only indication of pub date is the copyright line from the original publication.
. . . Yeah, I’m clutching at straws for justification even there, aren’t I?
No matter. At least this post gives us another opportunity to gaze at that great McGinnis cover art. And next week I should have a pair of much more interesting Westlake Scores, neither of which, to my knowledge, have ever been shown online before, making them Violent World of Parker/Existential Ennui exclusives. Mind you, I haven’t seen the covers of either of the books yet (they’re currently en route), so we could all be in for a crushing disappointment if they turn out to be the same as the American editions . . .
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Parker looks like he’s wearing a Ronald Reagan Halloween mask on this one;-) lol
Forget the Reagan mask…a few years earlier, ‘ol Ronnie could have actually PLAYED Parker! Wouldn’t that have been something?! Yikes! I like all the McGinnis covers although I never imagined Parker wearing a turtleneck, especially a baby blue one. The Reagan comparison is pretty good but it also reminds me of Philip Carey who played Phillip Marlowe in a late ’50’s TV series.
Nah, Ronnie was way too old by the early 60’s, and his acting career was winding down–his very last acting role, interestingly, was as the villain in a Lee Marvin film called “The Killers” (supposedly based on Hemingway’s story, but not really), where Marvin plays a professional hitman who has some Parker-esque qualities (honestly, so do most of Marvin’s characters–Parker was role he was born to play, and never quite exactly did).
The Parker on that cover doesn’t look like Reagan at all. Not Philip Carey either. Can’t quite place the face, but it does look familiar somehow. Maybe McGinnis combined the features of a few different tough guy actors there.
I can definitely see the Reagan…it’s in the ears and the haircut. (Not the nose, though.)
Of course, Reagan was always sharply dressed, unlike this Parker!
I think it’s less that he looks like Reagan, and more that Reagan himself looked like a standard-issue movie guy out of central casting. Btw, you ever hear what Louis B. Mayer said when he heard Reagan was running for governor? “No, Spencer Tracy for governor, Ronald Reagan for his best friend.” ;)
You know, I missed something about the haircut–the hair is parted on the right–most men do it on the left–Reagan was one of the rare exceptions (so is Al Gore). There are theories about what this means. Google it. :)
Interesting stuff, but also ridiculous. Back when I had hair, I parted it on the right. The reason was because it would have been impossible to part it to the left. There was a natural part on the right side of my head that didn’t exist on the left side of my head. All there was to it.
Are there people who have a choice in the matter? Probably. But this sounds like phrenology to me.
Or it would, if left-handers weren’t smarter on average than right-handers. Sadly, I’m right-handed.
If he looks like anybody it’s Charlton Heston.
JGA
In McGinnis’ cover for The Rare Coin Score, he’s a dead ringer for Heston. Not in this one, though. McGinnis kept changing the look, as did other illustrators for the novels–so atypical of this type of paperback tough guy franchise in that era. You usually see them being very consistent in how the protagonist looks on the cover (Earl Drake, Shell Scott, Mack Bolan). It’s an important part of brandname recognition, that kind of consistency. Thing is, Westlake really never was that specific about Parker’s appearance. Parker is an ideal, and an ideal can never be perfectly described. And I think he was never as interested in ‘branding’ as most of the other guys working in that genre. Which is one reason why his books hold up so much better now.
DEW was smart in that he wasn’t very specific about Parker’s looks. We know he’s a big man, but at the time The Hunter appeared big probably meant anything over 5’10” or 11″. We know he’s fit but not any specific weight. We know he has dark eyes and hair. He was called ugly a few times during the series.
I think DEW kept it murky because that would allow more people–men, obviously–to see themselves as Parker. As opposed to Shell Scott who is 6’2″ and has a white buzzcut and eyebrows, or McGee who is 6’4″ and 205, deep tan and “gin colored” eyes.
He was called ugly, but women can’t take their eyes off him. Though of course you could say the same of Humphrey Bogart, Jack Palance, and any number of other ‘noir’ movie stars. You didn’t always have to be handsome to be a matinee idol, or model-gorgeous to be a femme fatale. Progress. :\
Men had no problem seeing themselves as James Bond, Mike Hammer, Travis McGee, or Shell Scott (all of whom sold a LOT more books than Parker). I think he avoided too specific a description for the same reason he avoided telling us too much of what was going on inside Parker’s head–because that’s the character. There’s something about him that always remains unknowable.
And as I’ve mentioned, my girlfriend identifies with Parker as much as any guy ever did (she’s always had this yen to pull a heist). It’s about freedom, more than anything else. It was never going to be as popular with men as the more conventional male fantasies. Truth is, freedom scares the hell out of most people.
True, Chris. There are some male actors from ages past who exude some kind of virility, or, for lack of a better term, “maleness” that women find irresistable. And they aren’t guys you would automatically call movie-star handsome. Such as Bronson, Yul Brynner, Lee Marvin, Palance.
Yeah, most guys have no trouble seeing themselves as Bond, Hammer, etc. I would love to place myself in Parker’s shoes, but I’ve often said I’m way more Grofield than Parker. Parker is on a different wavelength than any of us. It would probably be a bitch to maintain a friendship with Parker. He doesn’t strike me as the sort who’d invite you out to catch a ballgame at Hooters;-) lol Unless he was casing the joint;-)
Rereading this and I caught Clue’s comment about Ronnie playing Parker–uggh, I’d rather have his co-star Bonzo the Chimp play him than Ronnie. Nothing politically oriented (I have no love or patience for either party)it’s just Ronnie didn’t have many acting chops. He was of the Troy Donahue school of acting. His greatest bit of acting was probably the eight years he played the POTUS;-) lol
Please…let me clarify my earlier comments…I by no means feel Ronald Reagan SHOULD have played Parker. I simply meant The Seventh was published not long after Ronnie retired from his career as a screen actor. If Hollywood had jumped on the Parker series at the beginning while Reagan was still active, in theory, he COULD have been cast in the role. It would have been TERRIBLE casting. I doubt he would have taken the role anyway. I read where he hated his role in The Killers because he had to rough up Angie Dickinson. He probably wouldn’t have liked playing a guy like Parker. Besides, I think he was busy hosting Death Valley Days round about that time.
Clue, I NEVER thought you were suggesting Reagan should have played Parker.
But Reagan turned 55 the year “The Seventh” was published. He was retired from acting for about two years by then, and in fact he was nominated for governor that year. His last leading role in a film was “Hellcats of the Navy” in 1957, after which he pretty much worked entirely in television, which is the medium “The Killers” was made for.
As you say, it’s extremely unlikely that he’d have wanted to play any version of Parker in the movies, but he’d have had no shot at landing the role if he had wanted it. Wrong type, too old, no kind of box office draw. They’d never have offered it to him. He got out of acting and into politics at exactly the right time–for him. ;)
You got that right Chris…his move from acting to politics worked out well for him…he got all the best leading roles as a politician! I just remembered…I saw him recently in an episode of the early ’60’s anthology series, Kraft Suspense Theatre on one of the retro TV stations I like to watch.
Gotcha Clue. The illustration also looks vaguely like Burt Lancaster; or some bizarre android concoction of Lancaster and Reagan from a grade Z-Movie from the 60’s;-) lol Attack of The Staunch Republicans or something!
I still say William Smith for Parker, Anthony Perkins for Grofield, any time, any day, any way. Jan Michael Vincent as Stan Devers, Claude Akins as Ed Mackey and Julie Newmar as Brenda. Julie may not be perfect for Brenda but let’s just say I have a “thing” for her, hee hee hee;-) But I’ll settle for Jacqueline Bisset or Raquel Welch in a pinch.