It Rhymes with Lust is a book, originally published in 1950, considered one of the most notable precursors of the graphic novel. Called a "picture novel" on the cover and published by the comic book and magazine company St. John Publications, it was written by Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller (together using the pseudonym "Drake Waller"), with black-and-white art by Matt Baker and inker Ray Osrin. In co-author Drake's opinion, "I don't think there is much question that It Rhymes with Lust was the first graphic novel". According to Drake, he and Waller created the concept of "picture novels" in 1949 while in college in New York City, conceiving "a more developed comic book — a deliberate bridge between comic books and book books. ... What we planned was a series of picture novels that were, essentially, action, mystery, Western and romance movies on paper". Armed with a two-page sample of an example story, One Man Too Many!, Drake and Waller convinced Archer St. John of St. John Publications to launch a line of mass market paperbacks containing original comics work that would appeal to the general public. It Rhymes with Lust is an adult-oriented story, influenced by film noir and pulp fiction, that depicts life in a steel town and stars a manipulative woman named Rust. Comics writer-artist Michael T. Gilbert wrote that it "reads like a B-movie potboiler, bubbling over with greed, sex, and political corruption". The cover tagline reads: "She was greedy, heartless and calculating. She knew what she wanted and was ready to sacrifice anything to get it". This painstakingly restored replica volume includes a new introduction by writer Arnold Drake providing a first-hand history of the graphic novel. Before winning the Bill Finger Award for lifetime achievement in comics writing, before creating Deadman, or writing Doom Patrol and X-Men, Drake helped bring the original "picture novel" to life, a true milestone in the history of comics! * Considered by many to be the first graphic novel, It Rhymes with Lust returns to print after more than fifty years--in the only edition authorized by the original creators! 5x7, softcover, 112-page full-color graphic album. ... $14.95

Edited by John Benson. A first-time collection of the best romance comics of the 1950s. These bright, naturalistic tales (originally published by Archer St. John and written by unrecognized comics master Dana Dutch) are about high school girls who may be inexperienced but definitely have minds of their own. Many of these stories are illustrated by Matt Baker, who achieved fame for his work on Phantom Lady and other sexy female characters in the 40s and 50s. 8x11, softcover, 160-page full-color graphic album. ... $22.95

Little Annie Fanny by Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder became the Playboy icon second only to the Rabbit Head and a risque comics icon second to none! Collected in two volumes is the definitive showcase of stunningly rendered stories from the sexy strip's 26-year run. Trend-setting in its use of color, irreverent in its satirical look at the changing face of America, and a masterpiece of artistic technique, Little Annie Fanny is one of the world's most controversial comic strips. See the swinging Sixties, Civil Rights, Reaganomics, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the beginning of the sexual revolution, all with the naughty flair and sexy naivete that made Little Annie Fanny a star!

Volume 1 : 1962-1970, softcover, 9x12, 224 full color pages ... $24.95
Volume 2 : 1970-1988, softcover, 9x12, 240 full color pages ... $24.95

Chicken Fat by Will Elder is according to Elder, "the part of the soup that's bad for you, yet gives the soup its delicious flavor." From Mad to Humbug to Little Annie Fanny, Will Elder's chicken fat has spiced up some of the finest comics of the past 50 years. So prepare to partake in the ultimate indulgence - a feast of Elder sketches, doodles, gag panels, paintings, private commissions and personal ephemera: Chicken Fat! $14.95

Top Hats and Flappers : the Art of Russell Patterson is a magnificent collection of this much neglected artists finest work. Imagine America in the 1920s, a time of tremendous social change and the last stand of the Golden Age of Illustration. As nationally known illustrators Charles Dana Gibson, James Montgomery Flagg, and J.C. Leyendecker upheld the old-school tradition of a polished and fully rendered romanticism, the irreverent illustrators/cartoonists of the humor magazines, Judge, College Humor, Ballyhoo, and LIfe used energetic and combustible pen and ink strokes to echo the era's verve and excitement. Of these, none captured the white hot jazz age more effectively or influenced more artists than Russell Patterson. Hardcover, 184 black and white glossy pages ... $19.95

The Glamor Girls of Don Flowers is a great sampling of a newspaper cartoonist whose career spanned four decades. His single panel cartoon was aptly named Glamor Girls. With one of the most fluid lilnes to ever grace comics, Flowers rendered his comely protagonists with equal aplomb whether they be blondes, brunettes, showgirls, or housewives. Here are the best of those cartoons, with a foreward by Sergio Aragones. Softcover, 5x7, 296 black and white pages ... $19.95

The Pin-Up Art of Bill Wenzel is a beautiful collection of the pin-up art of one of the most prolific artists of the 1940s-1970s. Wenzel's pin-ups appeared in virtually every humor and men's magazine. Wenzel set his cartoons apart from the usual wasp-waisted and long-legged women of the time with a decidely more Rubenesque rendering of the female form. Here are the best of Wenzel's sexy and sensual images. Softcover, 200 black and white pages, 5x7 ... $18.95

The Classic Pin-Up Art of Jack Cole is a collection of the rare '50s pinups that led to the artist's final gig, as Playboy's first star cartoonist. In the rarefied realm of classic cartoon pin-up art, nobody did it better than Jack Cole. With his quirky line drawings and sensual watercolors, Cole, under Hugh Hefner's guiding hand, catapulted to stardom in the 1950s as Playboy's marquee cartoonist, a position he held until his untimely death at the age of 43. Jack Cole has been justly celebrated as the creator of Plastic Man and an innovative comic book artist of the 1940s. Cole had sold a handful of cartoons to magazines such as Boy's Life, Colliers and Judge in the '30s and '40s, but after finishing his 14-year run on Plastic Man, he found himself back at square one in an idiom that didn't come naturally to him: the gag cartoon. According to Cole, his savior was the Humorama line of down-market digest magazines. This girls and gags magazine circuit proved to be the perfect training ground to regain his footing and develop his craft at single panel cartoons. While Cole may have been honing his skills as a gag writer, his ability to render the female form was already without peer. Though he signed his cartoons "Jake," Cole's exquisite line drawings and masterful use of ink-wash—a skill he carried over Playboy—betrayed his pseudonym. In comparison to his contemporaries, however, Cole was probably Humorama's least prolific artist. Though his images were frequently used for covers, Cole's cartoons were few and far between, with scarcely a single drawing appearing every five issues. This volume collects the best of these hidden gems, including several shot from Cole's stunning original art. Most of these drawings have not seen print in more than 50 years; taken together, they provide a rare glimpse into the singular artistry of Jack Cole. Hardcover, 104 black and white pages, 8x11 ... $19.95