None of the following paperbacks by Dashiell Hammett includes a credit for the cover artist, but the languorous signature of H. Lawrence Hoffman is clearly visible in the lower left-hand corner of the “Pocket Book Editions” of Red Harvest and in the lower-middle of The Thin Man. Several websites give Gerald Gregg the nod for the cover of Dead Yellow Women, so let’s just say that one is by that guy (unless and until someone proves otherwise). And last but not least, the cover art for The Glass Key is signed “MANSU” in the lower right, a solid clue that ought to lead to an attribution, except that I have no idea who Mansu is, and neither, if Google is to be believed, does anyone else. But maybe you can help…?
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
ABOVE: Dashiell Hammett, The Glass Key (NY: Pocket Books, 1943), with cover art signed “Mansu.”
ABOVE: Dashiell Hammett, Red Harvest (NY: Pocket Books, 1943), with cover art by H. Lawrence Hoffman.
ABOVE: Dashiell Hammett, The Thin Man (NY: Pocket Books, 1944), with cover art by H. Lawrence Hoffman (attrib.).
ABOVE: Dashiell Hammett, Dead Yellow Women (NY: Pocket Books, c1947), with cover art by Gerald Gregg (attrib.).
UPDATE (19 July 2014):
Turns out, the cover art for The Glass Key is not signed “MANSU.” Rather, the signature is “MANSO,” which is the surname of Leo Manso (1914-1993), who later made a name for himself as an abstract painter and collagist.
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