Author Archives: Dazzling Erin

Artwork of the Day: Lady With A Past (by Howell Dodd)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

by Howell Dodd

I couldn’t find out much about the content of this book, other than it was published in 1951 by Venus Books and it was, by 1951 standards, considered to be “adult reading.” Amos Hatter was a pseudonym for James W. Lampp, who wrote several of these type of books under different names. The book is about a girl who has a wild past and whether or not she can go on to have a normal life despite it. Because, of course, men can do whatever they want whereas women are expected to spend the rest of their lives apologizing for their decisions. What I like about this cover is that the lady with a past doesn’t look like she has any regrets whatsoever.

This cover was done by Howell Dodd, who has been featured many times in the past and who will be featured much more in the future.

Artwork of the Day: Faith (by Erin Nicole)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

by Erin Nicole

I don’t know if I’ve shared this one before or not.  I probably have.  Though I call this one “Faith,” this picture is not necessarily meant to be about religious faith.  Instead, it’s about what you believe in, whatever that may be.  It’s about having faith in anything, whether it’s God or science or your ideology or your country or your family or your friends or anything.  It’s about celebrating what you believe in your heat and mind and never giving up that faith.

As for the building in this picture, it’s actually the back of an old Albertson’s store.  The building was torn down a few months after I took the picture.

Artwork of the Day: Clouds at Sunset (by Erin Nicole)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

by Erin Nicole

I took this photograph many years ago, while watching the sun set in May.  It was a very peaceful moment and I think this pictures that.  One reason why I love this picture is that I didn’t even realized that I had also taken a picture of a bird flying across the sky until I looked at this image many months later.  That’s one of the thing that I love about photography.  You not only capture what you’re seeing but often, you discover what you previously missed.

Artwork of the Day: The Red Couch (by Erin Nicole)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

by Erin Nicole

Always be ready and prepared.  I just happened to be outside when our neighbor brought out his red couch and left on the curb and so I was able to get this picture of a discarded piece of someone’s life.  I’m not sure why he threw out the couch.  It was old but it still looked like it was in perfectly good condition.  Of course, I didn’t sit on it or anything like that.  I’m not that brave.

The next morning, the couch was gone.  Someone came and got it and since I wasn’t woken up by the sound of municipal trucks rumbling down the street that morning, I can be sure that it was saved from going to a landfill.  It’s probably sitting in someone else’s house now.

Whatever happened to it, I’m glad I was able to get this picture before it went away.

Artwork of the Day: Johnny Come Deadly (by Ernest “Darcy” Chiriacka)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

by Ernest “Darcy” Chiriacka

Phillip Race was the pen name for Elmer Parsons.  Born in 1926, Parsons spent much his early life in and out of prison.  When he was 23, he stole a car and was arrested after a lengthy police chase.  He served three years for that.  Three years later, he was arrested a second time and charged with writing 22 bad checks.  He was sentenced to five years, which he served in San Quentin.  While imprisoned, he edited the prison newspaper and he wrote and published his first three novels, including Johnny Come Deadly.  After he was released in 1960, he wrote westerns under his own name and was a prolific television writer.

Johnny Come Deadly was about a card shark named Johnny Berlin, who cops hated and women loved.  The cover above, which done by Ernest “Darcy” Chiriacka, is from 1960.

Artwork of the Day: Real Detective (Artist Unknown)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

Artist Unknown

I wrote about the lengthy history of Real Detective here.  This cover is from June of 1936.  Though the cover artist is unknown, I like the way the man on the cover is grabbing that money.  It looks like he either just won it in a card game or maybe he lost it and he’s trying to keep the winner from taking it away from him.  Either way, something big is about to happen.