Jules Verne, the Fitzroy editions edited by I. O. Evans and their Jerome Podwil cover illustrations for Ace Books
part 1 of 2 parts
by Steven Williams
Jules Verne (1828-1905) was a prolific and highly regarded French writer who is best known to contemporary readers for the his science fiction.
Nadar was the pseudonym of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon (1820–1910), a French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist and balloonist. He was an innovator in photography and in 1858 became the first person to take aerial photographs. He also pioneered the use of artificial lighting in photography. His experiments with balloons lead him to the decision that the future of flight was in heavier-than-air machines. In 1863 he founded 'Société d’encouragement de la navigation aérienne au moyen du plus lourd que l’air' (The Society for the Encouragement of Aerial Locomotion by Means of Heavier than Air Machines), with Nadar as honorary president and Verne as secretary. The society's meetings were held at Nadar's photo studio. In addition producing noted photographic portraits of Verne, Nadar's exploits with baloon experimentation inspired Verne's Cinq Semaines en Ballon (Five Weeks in a Balloon) as well as providing the inspiration for Verne's character Michael Ardan in De la Terre à la Lune (From the Earth to the Moon). Nadar is also associated with the development of the Impressionist movement by providing access to his photo studio for the world's first Impressionists exhibit in 1874.
The publisher Bernard Hanison signed a contract with I. O. Evans (Idrisyn Oliver Evans) in 1958 for a re-introduction of a series of the lesser known Jules Verne books. This contract was signed in the publisher's offices were at 10 Fitzroy Street, London. Fitzroy Street is a very famous street in central London in the heart of Bloomsbury. In the 1920s and 1930s 10 Fitzroy Street was the meeting place of the "Fitzroy Group" group of English artists. Unfortunately the building was demolished in the early 1960s. It was this building and street which gave the name The Fitzroy Editions to the Jules Vern novels edited and mostly translated by Evans under the contract with Hanison.
There are sixty-three titles in the complete Fitzroy Edition series of Verne novels. The initial hardcover printings, with dustjackets, were published by Bernard Hanison (London), ARCO (London), and Associated Booksellers (Westport, Connecticut). There are also ten Fitzroy Edition titles also published in the a paperback series by ACE (New York) notable for their fine and captivating cover artwork by Jerome Podwil.
Jerome Podwil, aka Jerry Podwil, is an American artist and illustrator born in New York City in 1938. Podwil attended the Pratt Institute School of Art and Design and the Art Students League from 1955 through 1960. He graduated from the Pratt School in 1960. His cover artwork for fantasy and science fiction, as well as westerns and Gothic thrillers, almost exclusively in their paperback editions, began with the 1960 MacFadden Books' Shannahan's Feud by Al Cody.
Along with providing art for paperback publishers and various major science fiction magazines, he also sold art to 'Playboy', 'Penthouse' and other major, general interest magazines. His illustratios Playboy and Penthouse for magazine articles is especially notable and includes the artwork for 'The Unholy Alliance' by Thomas de Baggio (Penthouse, February, 1985), an article about then recently declassified documents from World War II revealed links between American big business, particularly Du Pont and General Motors. For an especially relevant and interesting book, see IBM and the Holocaust: The Strategic Alliance Between Nazi Germany and America's Most Powerful Corporation by Edwin Black (Crown, 2001). Podwil's career includes professional recognition in the form of a Gold Medal from the 1970 Society of Illustrators Annual Exhibition, his first prominent national exposure. Podwil went on to receive an Award for Excellence from Chicago shows of the Society of Illustrators in 1974 and another in 1976 as well as a medal from the Communication Arts Annual.
Resources
Jerome Podwil's Page at BrooklynArtProject.com
Jerome Podwil's gallery postings at BrooklynArtProject.com
Jerome Podwil's home page at MySpace.com
Published books with cover art by Jerome Podwil:
Shannahan's Feud by Al Cody (1960, MacFadden Books paperback) (western)
The Coming of the Strangers by John Lymington (1961, Manor Books) (scifi)
The Desert Killers by Bradford Scott (1961, Pyramid Books paperback) (western)
The Gun from Nowhere by Tom West (1961, Ace Double paperback) (western)
Born to Trouble by Nelson Nye (1962, MacFadden paperback) (western)
The Dying Breed by John Shelley (1962, Berkley Medallion paperback) (western)
Gay Girl by Joan Ellis (1962, Tower Publications paperback) (fiction)
On the Dodge by D. B. Newton (1962, Berkley Books paperback) (western)
Terror by Robert Bloch (1962, Belmont Books paperback) (horror fiction)
Texas Rider by Bradford Scott (1962, Pyramid Books paperback) (western)
Trail of Blood and Bones by Bradford Scott (1962, Pyramid Books paperback) (western)
Backstairs by L. K. Scott (1963, Pyramid Books paperback) (fiction)
Gun Ranch by Al Cody (1963, MacFadden Books) (western)
Hardcase Hotel by Edwin Booth (1963, Berkley Medallion paperback) (fiction)
Legend of Lost Earth by G. McDonald Wallis (1963, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
Nightmare by Edward S. Aarons (1963, MacFadden Books paperback) (fiction)
Outlaw Gold by Bradford Scott (1963, Pyramid Books paperback) (western)
Shadow of Fu Manchu (1963, Pyramid Books paperback) (thriller)
Star Toter by Al Cody (1963, MacFadden Books paperback) (western)
Dead at Sunset by Bradford Scott (1964, Pyramid Books paperback) (western)
The Deputies from Hell by Chuck Martin (1964, MacFadden-Bartell paperback) (western)
Rifles on the Range by Lee Floren (1964, Macfadden paperback) (western)
Sing a Song of Six Guns by Burt Arthur (1964; MacFadden Books paperback) (western)
Wolf Dog Range by Lee Floren (1964, MacFadden-Bartell Books paperback) (western)
Before Adam by Jack London (1965; Ace Books paperback) (fantasy)
Land Beyond the Map by Kenneth Bulmer (1965, Ace Double) (fantasy)
The Alternate Martians by A. Bertram Chandler (1965, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
The Devolutionist and the Emancipatrix by Homer Eon Fling (1965, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
Empress of Outer Space by A. Bertram Chandler (1965, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Enemy Stars by Poul Anderson (1965, Berkley Publishing paperback) (scifi)
The Mightiest Machine by John W. Campbell (1965, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Mission to Universe by Gordon R. Dickson (1965, Berkley Publishing paperback) (scifi)
The Other Side of Time by Keith Laumer (1965, Berkley Publishing paperback) (scifi)
Outcast of Ute Bend by Clement Hardin aka Dwight Bennett Newton (1965, Ace Double paperback) (western)
Tama of the Light Country by Ray Cummings (1965, Ace Books paperback) (fantasy)
The Water of Thought by Fred Saberhagen (1965, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany (1966, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Black Star Passes by John W. Campbell (1966, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Crack in Space Books by Philip K. Dick (1966, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Doppelgangers by H. F. Heard (1966, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Four Day Weekend by George Henry Smith (1966, Belmont Books paperback) (scifi)
Hawk of the Wilderness by William L. Chester (1966, Ace Books paperback) (fantasy)
Planet of Exile by Ursula K. LeGuin (1966, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
The Scheme of Things by Lester del Rey (1966, Belmont Books paperback) (scifi)
The Second Secret by Edwina Noone (1966, Belmont Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
The Sword of Lankor by Howard L. Cory (1966, Abe Books paperback) (fantasy)
Tama, Princess of Mercury by Ray Cummings (1966, Ace Books paperback) (fantasy)
Code Three X1394 by Ralph Raphael (1967, Berkley Publishing paperback) (scifi)
Crisis on Cheiron by Juanita Coulson (1967, Ace Double paperback)(scifi)
The Genetic General by Gordon R. Dickson (1967, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Gunslammer by Lee Floren (1967, Lancer Books paperback) (western)
The Road to the Rim by Bergram Chandler (1967, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
Science Fiction Monsters by A. E. van Vogt (1967, Paperback Library paperback) (scifi)
Standoff at Massacre Buttes by Louis Trimble (1967, Ace Double paperback) (western)
Echo of a Texas Rifle by Kyle Hollingshead (1967, Ace Double paperback) (western)
The Wandering Tellurian by Alan Schwartz (1967, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
The Waiting Sands by Susan Howard (1967, Ace Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
War with the Newts by Karel Capek (1967, Berkley Books paperback) (scifi)
Asylum Earth by Bruce Elliott (1968, Belmont Books paperback) (scifi)
The Begum's Fortune (Cinq cents millions de la Bégum) by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Bell from Infinity by Robert Moore Williams (1968, Lancer Books paperback) (scifi)
Carpathian Castle by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The City in the Sahara by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Dead Man's Gold by Lee Hoffman (1968, Ace Double paperback) (western)
The Demon of Cawnpore by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Doom of the Green Planet by Emil Petaja (1968, Ace Double paperback) (scifi)
Element 79 by Fred Hoyle (1968, Signet Books paperback) (scifi)
The Fantastic Universe Omnibus edited by Hans Stefan Santesson (1968, Paperback Library paperback) (scifi)
For the Flag by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Guns of Judgment Day by Cliff Farrel (1968, Dell Books paperback) (western)
The Horn of Time by Paul Anderson (1968, New American Library paperback) (scifi)
The Hunt for the Meteor by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Into the Niger Bend by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Killer on the Warbucket by Ray Hogan (1968, Ace Double paperback) (western)
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1968, Lancer Books paperback) (fiction)
The Status Civilization by Robert Sheckley (October, 1968, Dell paperback) (scifi)
Strange Beasts and Unnatural Monsters edited by Philip Van Doren Stern (1968, Fawcett Crest paperback) (horror fiction)
The Thief of Thoth by Lin Carter and ... and Others Shall be Born by Frank Belknap Long (1968, Belmont Books) (scifi)
Tigers and Traitors by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
The Village in the Treetops (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Yesterday and Tomorrow by Jules Verne (1968, Ace Books paperback) (scifi)
Journey Beyond Tomorrow by Robert Sheckley (1969, Dell paperback) (scifi)
The Others edited by Terry Carr (1969, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (scifi)
The Sky Is Filled with Ships by Richard C. Meredith (1969, Ballentine Books paperback) (scifi)
Space Lash by Hal Clement (1969, Dell Books paperback) (scifi)
Tamara by Mary Louise Dodge (1969, Paperback Library paperback) (gothic thriller)
A Wicked Pack of Cards by Rosemary Harris (1969, Ace Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
The Devil on Lammas Night by Susan Howatch (1970, Ace Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
One Against Time by Astron Del Martia (1970, Paperback Library paperback) (scifi)
This Perfect Day by Ira Levin (1970, Fawcett Crest paperback) (scifi)
Undertow by Kathleen Norris (1970, Paperback Library paperback) (fiction)
Castlecliffe by Sandra Shulman (1971, Paperback Library paperback) (gothic thriller)
The Witch Tree by Lyda Belknap Long (1971, Lancer Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
Bloodhype by Alan Dean Foster (1973, Ballantine Books paperback) (scifi)
First Blood by David Morrell (1973, Fawcett Crest paperback) (fiction)
The Midnight Walker by Rona Randall (1973, Ace Books paperback) (gothic thriller)
Seven Steps to the Sun by Fred Hoyle and Geoffrey Hoyle (1973, Fawcett Crest paperback) (scifi)
The Weather-Makers by Ben Bova (1973, Signet Books paperback) (scifi)
The Connoisseur by Evan S(helby) Connell, Jr. (1974, Avon Books paperback) (fiction)
Death Trap by John D. MacDonald (1974, Fawcet Gold Medal paperback) (gothic thriller)
Do With Me What You Will by Joyce Carol Oates (1974 Fawcett Crest paperback) (fiction)
Dragon Under The Hill by Gordon Honeycombe (1974, Fawcett Crest paperback) (fantasy)
The Jesuit by John Gallahue (1974, Fawcet Crest paperback) (thriller)
Mamelle by Nathan Butler (1974, Fawcett paperback) (fiction)
Mistress of the Moor by Abigail Clements (1974, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (gothic thriller)
Power by Laurence M. Janifer (1974, Dell paperback) (fiction)
Christabel's Room by Abigail Clements (1975, Fawcet Gold Medal paperback) (gothic thriler)
The Dark Below by Michael T. Hinkemeyer (1975, Fawcet paperback) (gothic thriller)
God and Mr. Gomez by Jack Smith (1975, Fawcett Crest paperback) (fiction)
Double Honeymoon by Evan S. Connell, Jr. (1976, Avon Books paperback) (fiction)
King of White Lady by R. Lance Hill (1976, Fawcett Crest paperback) (fiction)
The Malpas Legacy by Adriadne Pritchett (1976, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (gothic thriller)
Ravensgate by Deidre Rowan aka Jeanne Williams (1976, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (gothic thriller)
The Speaking Stones by Sara Cardiff (1976, Fawcett Crest paperback) (gothic thriller)
Desert Captive by Ellio Tokson (1977, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (fiction)
Leviathan by John Gordon Davis (1977, Fawcett Crest paperback) (fiction)
Polonaise by Piers Paul Read (1977, Avon Books paperback) (fiction)
The Space Vampires by Colin Wilson (1977, Pocket Books paperback) (scifi)
The Vampire of Mons by Desmond Stewart (1977, Avon Books paperback) (horror fiction)
Do Cats Think? by Paul Corey (1978, HBJ Jove Books paperback) (non-fiction)
Demolished Man by Alfred Bester (1978; Pocket Books paperback) (scifi)
Property Of by Alice Hoffman (1978, Fawcet Books paperback) (fiction)
The Rich Girl by Elizabeth Villars (1978, Pocket Books paperback) (fiction)
The Rommel Plot by John Tarrant (1978, Pocket Books paperback) (thriller)
Selected Stories by O. Henry, frontispiece portrait of O. Henry by Jerome Podwil (1978, Franklin Library hardcover) (fiction)
The Universe Maker by A. E. van Vogt (1978, Pocket Books paperback) (scifi)
Young Torless by Robert Musil (1978, Pocket Books paperback) (fiction)
Renaissance by A. E. van Vogt (1979, Pocket Books paperback) (scifi)
The Weapon Makers by A. E. von Vogt (1979, Pocket Books paperback) (scifi)
The 7 Cardinal Virtues of Science Fiction (1981, Fawcett Crest paperback) (scifi)
Fire at the Center by George W. Proctor (1981, Fawcett Gold Medal paperback) (scifi)
Schrodinger's Cat II: The Trick Top Hat by Robert Anton Wilson (1981, Pocket Books Paperback) (scifi)
Keepers of the Feast by B. C. Hall (1982, Popular Library paperback) (fiction)
Science Fiction's 7 Deadly Sins edited by Isaac Asimov, Charles G. Waugh, and Martin H. Greenberg (1980, Fawcett Crest paperback) (scifi)
Sirens by Eric Van Lustbader (1982, Fawcett Crest paperback) (thriller)
The Victim by Saul Bellow (1983, Avon Books paperback) (fiction)
The Story of Henry Tod by William F. Buckley, Jr. (1984, Dell Books paperback) (thriller)
Fatal Run by Ernest Clark (1985, Dell Publishing paperback) (fiction)
Jade D'Arcy and the Affair of Honor by Stephen Goldin and Mary Mason (1988, NAL Signet paperback) (scifi)
Treasures by Belva Plain (1992, Delacorte Press hardcover) (fiction)
Whispers by Belva Plain (1993, Delacorte Press hardcover) (fiction)
Wind Song by Margaret Brownley (1994, Topaz Books paperback) (fiction)
Infinite World: The Fantastic Visions of Science Fiction Art by Vincent Di Fate as a contributor (1997, Virgin Books hardcover) (illustration)
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