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FORMAT B - "YELLOW BOX"
These
are the most commonly found Armada paperbacks, and they made their
appearance just as the Collins hardbacks were being phased out. They
feature a cartoon-like illustration confined in rectangular box,
surrounded by yellow trim. The spine is also yellow with colored
rectangle at base with volume number - this rectangle flows into the
lower left corner of the front of the book, which reads "Nancy Drew
Mystery No. XX" (or sometimes just the "No. XX" and "A Nancy Drew
Mystery" in a starburst at the top right of the illustration).
Occasionally an eye-catching banner will appear in the lower right
corner of the cover, for special marketing purposes. Often the banner
will indicate that the story is "New in Paperback," but I have also
seen "The Thrilling Adventure Series" or "TV's Girl Detective."
These books were being published during the time that the television series starring Pamela Sue Martin was airing. As a tie-in to the TV show, Armada issued two of the stories with the actress on the cover, "The Mystery of the Tolling Bell" and "The Haunted Showboat." These would have been marketed side-by-side with the yellow box books; however I have found a copy of Haunted Showboat with both an illustrated cover and yellow box format. Probably the yellow box version was replaced by the TV cover format in 1981.
All the illustrated artwork appears to be the work of one Peter Archer, who also did the covers for the Hardy Boys paperbacks of this era. Although Archer is not credited in the Armada books, his same illustrations were also used on the earlier Australian editions (published by Angus & Robertson), and they do identify him by name. Since the style is so consistent amongst all the covers, I feel confident in attributing all the covers to Archer. The "yellow box" books were in print from 1975 to 1982.
The Ghost of Blackwood Hall. Artwork by Peter Archer, copyright © 1975, Armada, London. The Mystery of the Tolling Bell. Photo courtesy of MCA Television. Copyright © 1981 Armada, London. Titles available: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13,14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 51, 52, 53, 54
Titles available: 15, 19; ND&HB Meet Dracula; #19 comes with three banners: "Now on TV" , "As Seen on TV" and "A Thrilling Adventure"
Titles indicating "New in Paperback": 16, 22, 23?, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 51, 52, 53, 54
© 1998, 1999, 2008 Lea Shangraw Fox
