This article continues my series on Fontana paperback printings of Agatha Christie novels. In prior articles I've reviewed all the Fontana paperbacks created from 1953 through to 1972, which since 1963 include covers by Tom Adams, amongst others. In addition to providing images that are just to browse, these articles are designed to provide fans and readers a definitive guide to assist with building a collection of Fontana paperbacks. All articles also provide related insights and collecting tips. To read any of the prior articles see the links at the foot of the page.
Cover Design Evolution.
In the 1960s and early 1970s cover artist Tom Adams created designs at an impressive rate (especially when one considers he also created covers in the US in the early 70s). Fellow cover artist Ian Robertson also created over a dozen covers during this period. By the early 1970s Fontana had a fairly complete catalogue of their covers meaning that they could frequently reuse the artwork even when updating the pricing or visual branding.
While collectors of first paperbacks will need to collect many Fontana paperbacks, there are arguably more collectors of Fontana who just love the covers - whether the early designs by John Rose in the 1950s & 60s, Adams and Robertson in the 60s & 70s, or later artists, such as Martin Baker in the early 80s when the design aesthetic shifted markedly again.
For the period covered in this article (1973 to 1979), there are 31 Fontana printings that had new covers though there were dozens more that reused covers from years earlier. To keep this article less cluttered, I am now omitting the Series numbers of these books with reused covers and am only reviewing books with new designs.
Of the 31 new covers, only 22 featured new artwork by Tom Adams. 1980 marks the last year a new Adams cover can be found on a Fontana book. In fact, only two Fontana's were printed that year that carried over the design elements from the 1970s. Tom Adams' last cover was Miss Marple's Final Cases and it was only sold in continental Europe. Beginning in 1980, Fontana launched their new 'foxtail' design, so named because the font style used makes the 'g' in Agatha look like a foxes tail. Most of the covers from this period were created by Martin Baker, all of which will be reviewed in future articles. For this article I'm only including the one 1980 Adams cover. As always, there may be a new cover I've missed, and if you think I have please let me know. See the foot of this article for contact details.
Part 9: 1973-1980 (partial).
1973:
3261: Elephants Can Remember. This is the 1st global paperback of this title, and thus the 1st Fontana. It was published as a 'Continental edition' (sold in Europe with English text). The artist is uncredited.
3592: The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding. Published in November this is again stated to be the 2nd Fontana impression of this title. However, the first impression with Adams' first design was No. 896 in 1963, which was reprinted in 1964 and 1965.
This newer Adams cover design first appeared in 1970 on No. 2260, so Fontana is clearly struggling here with getting the number of printings correct.
1974:
3445: A Murder is Announced. This is the first appearance of this new Tom Adams cover. It is interesting to compare this to his first ever Christie cover from 1963 (above right), which was for this same title.
This year also saw the first appearance of Mary Westmacott penned novels in the Fontana imprint. Both are fairly difficult to find in collector quality condition as the print runs of each title appear to have been quite small. The photographer is not credited.
3455: Absent in the Spring. The first Mary Westmacott book to be published by Fontana as a paperback. It is not the first paperback as it was preceded by the Collins White Circle Service's Edition published in 1946.
3456: The Rose and the Yew Tree. The second Mary Westmacott to appear as a Fontana. This is the 1st UK paperback of this title, only preceded by the 1964 Dell (USA) printing.
3458: Nemesis. Published in May, this is the first UK paperback of this title and features art by Tom Adams. It is preceded Fontana Continental Edition from 1972.
3494: Postern of Fate. This is the 1st global paperback and thus the 1st Fontana printing of this title. It was issued as a 'Continental edition' (sold overseas).
3665: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. This is the first appearance of the new cover design by Tom Adams. There is some debate about what is on the cover, but I'd argue it's a maid's apron or pinafore not curtain lace! Regardless, it is far less grand guignol than his earlier cover of the stabbed head!
3712: Murder on the Orient Express. Published in December, this is the 11th Fontana impression of this title. This printing was specifically done as a tie-in to the new feature film starring Albert Finney as Poirot which first screened in the UK on November 24th, 1974.
1975:
3880: Destination Unknown. This title was one of the frequently republished by Fontana as this is the 15th impression. However, this is the first with this new cover by Tom Adams.
3885: Poirot’s Early Cases. This is the 1st global paperback of this title, and thus the 1st Fontana printing. Issued as a 'Continental Edition' it is noted as having been 'Litho’d in Canada' but it is unclear if it was sold in Canada in addition to Europe. It's cover photo is by Andy Seymour.
3930: Elephants Can Remember. This is the 1st UK Fontana and will state it is the first printing. However, as shown earlier Fontana first published this title in 1973 as a Continental Edition. This UK edition now features cover art by Tom Adams.
3995: Murder at the Vicarage. Another title that was republished frequently in prior years, but now with fresh cover art by Tom Adams. The design certainly evokes Magritte.
4024: The Listerdale Mystery. Published in August, this is the 4th Fontana impression of this title. Now with a new collage design by Tom Adams.
1976:
4196: The Labours of Hercules. This short-story collection is the first to have a Tom Adams cover as the prior design was by Ian Robertson.
4255: Postern of Fate. Preceded Fontana's 'Continental Edition' this is the 1st UK printing of this title despite it stating 'First time in paperback'. The cover design by Tom Adams includes an image of his father as a young child taken from a studio portrait photograph.
4277: Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case. This is 1st global paperback of this title, and thus the 1st Fontana. Issued as a 'Continental Edition' initially (stated as such on the copyright page) with a cover photo by Robert Golden and green font (later printings changed the font colour).
4313: Cards on the Table. This is the first appearance of this title with cover art by Tom Adams. The prior version featured art by Ian Robertson.
4415: N or M? Published in November, this is the 8th Fontana impression. Now featuring a new design by Tom Adams to replace his 1964 design on Fontana r.674
1977:
4045: Appointment with Death. Numerically out of sequence, this was published in June 1977, and is the 9th Fontana impression. Now featuring a striking new cover by Tom Adams.
r.4277: Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case. The 1st UK printing of this title by Fontana was in 1977, though it retained the same Series number as the 1976 Continental Edition. I note reused Series numbers with a 'r' in front of them. The cover photo and font colour did not change for this printing from the Continental Edition. It is unclear why Tom Adams wasn't hired to create a cover for this paperback. Fortunately he did finally create a cover for this book when HarperCollins issued their 2014 Commemorative Box Set with The Mysterious Affair at Styles.
4590: Sleeping Murder: Miss Marple’s Last Case. This is the 1st global paperback of this title and thus the 1st Fontana impression. Issued as a 'Continental Edition' it features cover art by Tom Adams. This was the first time Tom Adams artwork was used on a 'Continental Edition'.
4629: Ordeal By Innocence. Published in August, this is the 13th Fontana impression of this title. Surprisingly, this is the third cover design for this title by Tom Adams. The prior iterations can be found on Series No. 798 (1964) and No. 2450 (1970). I particularly like how the cover design allowed the feathers of the raven to overlap with white border.
4657: Murder is Easy. Published in August, this is the 9th Fontana impression but the first with this new design by Tom Adams.
1978:
r.4590: Sleeping Murder: Miss Marple’s Last Case. This is the 1st UK Fontana printing as it was preceded by the Continental Edition in 1977. However, the artwork and Series number did not change, hence my 'r' prefix to denote it was reused.
5036: Elephants Can Remember. This is stated to be the 2nd Fontana on the copyright page, though in reality it is the 3rd due to the earlier 'Continental Edition'. This marks a fairly rapid replacement of Series No. 3930 from just a few years earlier which also featured a design by Tom Adams. This new design is certainly calmer, and this Series number is surprisingly challenging to find implying it had quite a small print run.
5359: A Caribbean Mystery. A very heavily printed title - especially with the grusome head of the Colonel first created back in 1967. This new version was printed in September and is the 23rd Fontana impression. Tom Adams' cover is far less 'in your face' (forgive the pun) and is one of my favourite covers he created. It is less common than one might think but a worthy addition to any paperback collection.
5394: Hercule Poirot’s Christmas. Another title for which this is the 3rd cover designed by Tom Adams. My thought here is it was re-released with its fresh cover just in time for Christmas sales given there was no longer new 'Christie for Christmas' hardbacks.
1979:
5490: The Mystery of the Blue Train. While not a novel Christie liked herself, it clearly had sold well over the years as this new printing, released in January, was the 30th Fontana impression of this title. The new cover art by Tom Adams, with its red faceted ruby design, it rather challenging to find and collect.
5676: Poirot’s Early Cases. This release appeared four years after Fontana's 'Continental Edition' - a surprisingly long time by comparison to offer printings. However, it is still the 1st UK Fontana printing, though not the 'First time in paperback'. While the 1975 featured a photographic cover, this UK printing now had a Tom Adams cover, with a nod to all the large insects he has placed on covers over the years.
5764: Passenger to Frankfurt. Published in August, this is the 9th Fontana impression of this title. The new cover by Tom Adams replaced his more well known cover with the black-widow spider. This new 'bubble' cover was clearly a limited print run as it is a very scarce image to find, but a necessary one for completists who want all the Adams covers.
1980 (partial):
I am only referencing the single Tom Adams cover for this year. All covers by Martin Baker will be discussed in a future article.
5960: Miss Marple’s Final Cases. This is the 1st global paperback of this short-story collection, and thus the first Fontana. It was issued as a 'Continental Edition'. Rather surprisingly the cover art by Tom Adams was not used by Fontana when they released the title for the UK market. This is unquestionably the rarest Tom Adams cover to acquire. Very good copies lacking damage (creases, tears, etc..) have regularly sold for £75 plus. However, vigilant collectors may be able to find on in Europe (where they were sold) for regular used book prices if you look hard enough.
For collectors of Tom Adams covers, this article and the prior ones from 1963 onward now provide you will all the specifics you need to build a collection of his covers - whether you are seeking just the images or the actual first appearances of each (a harder task!).
Corrections Welcome:
As always, if you have any additions, corrections or comments, please email me at collectchristie@gmail.com . Reader input helps make these articles more interesting.
Related Paperback Articles:
For all the prior Fontana articles, while they are in the Index above, direct links are below.
Part 1: 1953 to 1957 and the first 15 Christie titles Fontana published (link).
Part 2: 1958 to 1960 and the next 21 covers created during those years (link).
Part 3: 1961 to 1963 (partial) and the 23 covers created prior to Tom Adams (link).
Part 4: 1963 (partial) to 1964 & the 21 books published, many now with Adams covers (link).
Part 5: 1965 to 1966 and the 22 books published in those years (link).
Part 6: 1967 to 1968 and the 19 books published in those years (link).
Part 7: 1969 to 1970 and the 17 books published in those years (link).
Part 8: 1971 to 1972 and the 37 books published in those years (link).
If you haven't yet viewed my new index of all the articles I've written about paperbacks, it can be accessed from the home page of my website or via this link.
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