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.

by Ernest “Darcy” Chiriacka

This book was first published in 1962.  Judging from the blurb, the main message seems to be that women should stay out of Las Vegas.  Not only will it cause them to get a quickie divorce but the atmosphere was created to “stimulate their passions and play upon their need for men!”  Divorce was still considered to be scandalous in 1962 so it should came as no surprise that it was the topic of several pulp novels during the era.  Las Vegas, with its quickie weddings and quickie divorces, was the city of sin.  I’m just wondering how they managed to find a beach in Nevada.

This cover was done by Ernest “Darcy” Chiriacka, much of whose work has been shared on this site in the past..