George Gross (1909-2003) was a great pulp magazine cover artist. His first pulp cover assignments were for Mystery Novels Magazine and Double Action Western, which were both Winford Publications. George Gross next found work at Fiction House, where he soon became their top illustrator. He painted hundreds of freelance pulp covers for Action Stories, Air Stories, Baseball Stories, Complete Northwest, Detective Book Magazine, Fight Stories, Football Stories, Jungle Stories, North West Romances, and Wings.
George Gross produced all of his pre-war pulp covers while working in his father's art studio, in Manhattan, while sharing the space with his brother and sister. After the war George Gross began to sell freelance illustrations to paperback books from such publishers as Dell, Star Books, Lion Books, Bantam, Berkley Books, Cameo Books, and Ace Publications.
In the 1950s George Gross shared an art studio with the illustrator, Mort Kunstler, on White Street in the Tribeca warehouse section of Lower Manhattan. He also worked for men's adventure magazines, such as Male, Cavalcade, Action For Men, Argosy, Bluebook, Man's Conquest, Man's Illustrated, Man's World, Real, Saga, See, Stag, and True Adventures. George Gross later painted covers for The Avenger series of paperback books, published by Warner Paperbacks, and painted covers for the popular Nick Carter series of paperbacks for Ace Publications.
According to pulp writer Bill Cox, "George Gross could do exciting paintings even when there were no scantily clad damsels around, and what's more amazing, Fiction House let him!"
I imagine Gross would have been a recognized and respected fine artist had he the time, inclination and money to go in that direction.
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I only just discovered that he did dozens of album covers for the Longines Symphonette Society mail order records company. His work appears to have been used on these box set covers from the early 50's through the late 60's. Amazing talent!
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