The "Peff" era at Pan began in 1956,
with Peffer being paid up to £45 for each cover,
but no royalties or second-right sales. At the time of
publication,
few viewed the covers as art in its own right, with the
priority set on creating a "saleable" design. Much to the
chagrin of art editors, he signed all his covers "Peff",
a nickname his picked up during his Navy years.
Pan
held the rights to publish the James Bond novels by Ian Fleming
in paperback between the 1950s and the 1980s.
Artist Josh
Kirby created American style pulp covers for
Pan's first few 007 publications with varying depictions
of Bond, but Peffer created a consistent visualisation
of the popular hero when he took over the series in 1957,
basing the character's appearance on model Dick Orme.
During the swinging-sixties and the height of Bondmania,
the money being offered by Pan for his artwork was in decline
as film tie-in covers were cashed in with the launch of Sean
Connery as 007, and cheaper artwork flooded in from Italy.
Peffer also painted for Digit books and created some Hank
Janson covers for Compact.
Left: "From Russia With Love" British Pan paperback 1st-9th
editions (1959 onwards) |
