THE “FIFTY” SERIES by Odhams
On my Raymond Sheppard blog, I’ve published two illustrations I have by Raymond Sheppard which were published in books by Odhams. Both start with the title “Fifty…”. I was intrigued and couldn’t find anywhere listing them all so here’s my attempt to bring together disparate sources in one place.
I have only ever seen one of these books with a dustjacket – that had only text – no illustrations on the front. However most of those I have seen have embossed images on them either on the spine and/or on the front. The majority appeared around 1936-1938 as far as I can see but the hook “Fifty” was used by Odhams before these dates and in the 50s and 60s. They appear to form a series which I’ve attempted to list below. The illustrators are interesting as they feature work by Ronald Lampitt, E. S. Annison, Dudley Cowes, J. Harris, Cyril Holloway, T. Grainger Jeffrey, H. Charles Paine, Eric Parker, Pisani, Tony Royle, James Short, A. Sindall, E. B. Thurstan, S. Tresilian, Gilbert Wilkinson, S. van Abbe, Norman Howard, Clive Uptton, Dudley S. Cowes, De Mornay, and Yates Wilson. If anyone wants me to show them these, let me know
- Fifty Adventures into the Unknown 1938 [Starts: The Mystery of the Matto Grosso – Denis Clark. Includes: He Gave Britain a Continent – Owen Rutter. Flowers from the Roof of the World – Hugh Broadbridge. The Yukon Trail – W.G.C. Shebbeare. The Crankiest Expedition in History – Charles J. Seymour. Ends: Alone on a Pacific Island – Anon].
- Fifty Amazing Escapes
- Fifty Amazing Hairbreadth Escapes 1937 [The windjammer film / A.J. Villiers — When Al Capone was ambushed / J. Bilbo — The fever ship / Anonymous — Shipwreck and a stabbing / Dare Dubois-Phillips — An Afghan raid / Achmed Abdullah — Escape / Francesco Nitti — The crash in the mountains / Lowell Thomas — Called out to be shot / Prince Tuganoff — Cannibal gymnastics / F.H. Law — Gales in the hurricane zone / Alain Gerbault — Escape from the Foreign Legion / M. Donovan — Journey to the Forbidden City / M. Huc — Escape from the Soviets / T. Tchernavin — The madman in the desert / Ex-Legionnaire 1384 — Adrift in an open boat / Sir J. Barrow — The flight to Varennes / Madam Campan]
- Fifty Amazing Secret Service Dramas [Authors include: Sir Basil Thomson, Marthe McKenna, Dr A K Graves, Lord Baden-Powell, S T Falsted, E T Woodhall, Bernard Newman, Charles Lucieto]
- Fifty Amazing Stories Of The Great War 1936
- Fifty enthralling stories of the mysterious east – see contents here
- Fifty Events that Amazed the World
- Fifty Famous Detectives of Fiction 1948 – see Goodreads for contents
- Fifty Famous Detective Stories 1948
- Fifty Famous Fights in Fact and Fiction Hardback 1932
- Fifty Great Adventures that Thrilled the World 1937
- Fifty Great Sea Stories 1937
- Fifty Greatest Rogues, Tyrants and Criminals
- Fifty Great Disasters and Tragedies that shocked the world
- Fifty Masterpieces of Mystery
- Fifty Mutinies, Rebellions and Revolutions
- Fifty Strangest Stories Ever Told
- Fifty Thrilling Wild West Stories [Why the Wild West Was Wild by F E Sutton. The Borrowed Brand by Paul Evan Lehman. The Long Arm of the Mounted by Harry Sinclair Drago. Bully of The Town by Tom Roan. Blue Eyes and Blue Steel by Charles H Snow. Bill Latimers Tree by W D Hoffman. In the Mexican Quarter by Tom Gill. Without Fear or Favour by William MacLeod Raine. Battle,s End by Max Brand. Grub Delayed by Archie Joscelyn. Horseshoe Law in Misty Sink by William A Todd. Thief! by Will Jenkins. The Treasure of Iron Dome, by Charles H Snow. The Sheriff Was a Runt by Will Jenkins. Broken Courage by Charles Wesley Sanders. Reward for an Outlaw by Herbert Sullivan. The Reverend Chawles by George Goodchild. The Sheriff of Crevasse County by George Brydges Rodney. Ghosts of the Cimarron by Harry Sinclair Drago. The Killers by George Brydges Rodney. He Belonged West by Christopher Culley. The School Maam of Selwood Flats by Paul Evan Lehman. Fighting Fool by Tom Roan. A Reason for Wrath by Johnston Ma C ulley. Three Little Calves by Frank C Robertson. Change of Name by George S Surrey. Death badge by Lee Bond. The Cave of Death by James Denson Sayers. Singing Lead by Eugene Cunningham Texas Ranger by Lester Gregory. Rustled Herd by Lester Gregory. The Whip Hand by George Brydges Rodney. The Marquis and Miss Sally by O Henry. Kid Cyclone by Leo Grex. This Worm Has Fangs by James Denson Sayers. Six Gun Justice by Louis Gray. Million-dollar Burros by H C Wire. A Mounties Code by Canon Risdon. Man of Ice by Claude Rister. When the Coach Was Held up by George Thorne. El Roded by R B Cunninghame Graham. Warrior Woman by Frank Roland Conklin. A Vengeance by Proxy by G S Wallington. A Doubtful Experiment by Gerald Sussex. Vigilante Vengeance by Joseph F Hook. Two Snakes and a Man by Lloyd Eric Reeve. Maverick Water by David Lavender. Riding With the Mail by Clarence E Mulford. The Phantom of the Rio Grande by Jay Allen Dunn. Gunsmoke in Raimondo by Denver Bardwell] – For Illustrators see below
- Fifty True Love Stories [Horace Theaker, Mrs Magdalene Roff, Mona Scanlon, Arthur Jones, Douglas Howarth, RF Gosney, Mrs Alice Ford, Mrs Mary Charles, Mary Brady, Irene Ballington]
- Fifty True Stories: Stranger Than Fiction 1936 [Authors include P.C. Wren, Rt. Hon Winston Churchill, H. Rider Haggard, Mrs Belloc Lowndes, Lord George Sanger Twenty Four Hours in the Foreign Legion – P.C.Wren. Includes: The Circus People Take Revenge – ‘Lord’ George Sanger. The Luck of an Earthquake – Fred Walker. The Forest of Illusion – Roger Courtney. Ends: The Man Who Snatched a Throne – Amir Habibullah].
- Fifty world famous heroic deeds – see contents here
- The Fifty Most Amazing Crimes Of The Last 100 Years 1936
Visual Rants 