Gold Medal Books, launched by

Fawcett Publications Fawcett Publications was an American publishing company founded in 1919 in Robbinsdale, Minnesota by Wilford Hamilton "Captain Billy" Fawcett (1885–1940). It kicked off with the publication of the bawdy humor magazine ''Captain Billy's Whiz B ...

in 1950, was an American book publisher known for introducing

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, le ...

originals, a publishing innovation at the time. Fawcett was also an independent newsstand distributor, and in 1949 the company negotiated a contract with

New American Library The New American Library (also known as NAL) is an American publisher based in New York, founded in 1948. Its initial focus was affordable paperback reprints of classics and scholarly works as well as popular and pulp fiction, but it now publish ...

to distribute their Mentor and Signet titles. This contract prohibited Fawcett from publishing their own

reprints. Roscoe Kent Fawcett wanted to establish a line of Fawcett paperbacks, and he felt original paperbacks would not be a violation of the contract. In order to test a

loophole A loophole is an ambiguity or inadequacy in a system, such as a law or security, which can be used to circumvent or otherwise avoid the purpose, implied or explicitly stated, of the system. Originally, the word meant an arrowslit, a narrow verti ...

in the contract, Fawcett published two anthologies — ''The Best of

True True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality. True may also refer to: Places * True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States * ...

Magazine'' and ''What Today's Woman Should Know About Marriage and Sex'' — reprinting material from Fawcett magazines not previously published in books. When these books successfully sailed through the contract loophole, Fawcett announced Gold Medal Books, their line of paperback originals. Sales soared, prompting Ralph Daigh to comment, "In the past six months we have produced 9,020,645 books, and people seem to like them very well." However, hardcover publishers resented Roscoe Fawcett's innovation, as evidenced by Doubleday's LeBaron R. Barker, who claimed that paperback originals could "undermine the whole structure of publishing." It was a revolutionary turning point in paperback publishing. William Lengel was the Gold Medal editor, and the art director was Al Allard, who had been employed with Fawcett since 1928. Beginning their numbering system at 101, Gold Medal got underway with Alan Hynd's ''We Are the Public Enemies'', the anthology ''Man Story'' and ''The Persian Cat'' by John Flagg. Writing about the demise of

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

s in ''The Dime Detectives'',

Ron Goulart Ronald Joseph Goulart (; January 13, 1933 – January 14, 2022) was an American popular culture historian and mystery, fantasy, and science fiction author. He published novelizations and other work under various pseudonyms: Kenneth Robeson, Co ...

observed, "Fawcett dealt another blow to the pulps when, in 1950, it introduced its Gold Medal line. What Gold Medal specialized in was original novels. Some were merely sleazy, but others were in a tough, hard-boiled style that seemed somehow more knowing and more contemporary than that of the surviving pulps." Early Gold Medal authors included John D. MacDonald, Charles Williams, Richard S. Prather, and

Marijane Meaker Marijane Agnes Meaker (May 27, 1927 – November 21, 2022) was an American writer who, along with Tereska Torres, was credited with launching the lesbian pulp fiction genre, the only accessible novels on that theme in the 1950s. Under the name ...

(under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

of "Vin Packer"). Other 1950 Gold Medal originals included the Western ''Stretch Dawson'' by William R. Burnett, the first lesbian pulp novel ''

Women's Barracks ''Women's Barracks: The Frank Autobiography of a French Girl Soldier'' is a classic work of lesbian pulp fiction by French writer Tereska Torrès published in 1950. Historians credit it as the first US paperback-original bestseller, as the first ...

'' by

Tereska Torrès Tereska Torrès (born Tereska Szwarc; 3 September 192020 September 2012) was a French writer known for the 1950 book '' Women's Barracks'', the first "original paperback bestseller." In 2008 historians credited the republished book as the first p ...

(later to be followed by Marijane Meaker's ''

Spring Fire ''Spring Fire'', is a 1952 paperback novel written by Marijane Meaker, under the pseudonym "Vin Packer". It is the first lesbian paperback novel, and the beginning of the lesbian pulp fiction genre; it also addresses issues of conformity in 1950 ...

'' and Ann Bannon's ''Beebo Brinker Chronicles'') and mystery-adventure novels — ''Nude in Mink'' by Sax Rohmer and ''I'll Find You'' by Richard Himmel. After Donald E. Keyhoe's article "Flying Saucers Are Real" in ''True'' (January 1950) created a sold-out sensation, with ''True'' going back to press for another print run, Keyhoe expanded the article into a top-selling paperback, ''The Flying Saucers Are Real'', published by Fawcett that same year. With an increase from 35 titles in 1950 to 66 titles in 1951, Gold Medal's obvious success in issuing paperback originals revolutionized the industry. While MacDonald, Williams, Prather,

Louis L'Amour Louis Dearborn L'Amour (; né LaMoore; March 22, 1908 – June 10, 1988) was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels (though he called his work "frontier stories"); however, he also wrote hi ...

Richard Matheson Richard Burton Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres. He is best known as the author of '' I Am Legend'', a 1954 science ficti ...

Bruno Fischer Bruno Fischer (29 June 1908 – 16 March 1992) was a German-born American author of weird and crime fiction. Biography The son of a grocer, Fischer was born in Berlin, Germany, on 29 June 1908. Bruno emigrated to the United States with his fa ...

, and

MacKinlay Kantor MacKinlay Kantor (February 4, 1904 – October 11, 1977), born Benjamin McKinlay Kantor, was an American journalist, novelist and screenwriter. He wrote more than 30 novels, several set during the American Civil War, and was awarded th ...

were joining Gold Medal's roster of writers, other paperback publishers were soon asking agents for original manuscripts. Literary agent Donald MacCampbell stated that one publisher "threatened to boycott my agency if it continued to negotiate contracts with original 25-cent firms."

References

{{reflist 1950 establishments in New York City American companies established in 1950 Book publishing companies based in New York City Publishing companies established in 1950 Fawcett Publications