About
Many of us will know the paperbacks of the Black Stallion series, which were published in various editions by Knight, starting in the 1970s. I still have the few that were printed with the lovely pictorial cover illustrations (mostly uncredited, The Island Stallion’s Fury is by S Hagsted, so I assume the others are too). I was so fond of these books I always read them with incredible care, and they have survived in a way I am quite proud of now.
The later editions I think had less appealing covers, and included an edition using stills-from-the-film, and what I assume were specially posed photographs of the black Arab stallion Malabar Rex. The pictorial covers from the 1980s used illustrations by Fred Gambino.
The books are still in print, but don’t fall within the scope of this website.
American covers and more information on Walter Farley
The books
Hagsted covers: Knight, 1970s
Most of these illustrations aren’t credited. The Island Stallion’s Fury is by S Hagsted, whom I assume is the Danish illustrator Sigvard Hagsted. As far as I know, not all titles from the series were printed.
Knight late 1970s: photographic covers
This edition (or at least the ones I have seen) mostly features photographs of the black Arab stallion Malabar Rex in a square photograph. Some examples may have stills from the film. There is a picture of the Black Stallion rearing to the reverse of the cover, which is taken from the film.
The logo:
Knight early 1980s: stills from the film & pictorial versions
Most of the series was published in early 1980s (all the examples I have seen were published in 1982) with a black stallion logo to the rear, and an arched cover picture, which was either a still from the film, or a pictorial cover by David McAllister.
The logo:
Knight late 1980s: Fred Gambino covers
All of the series were published in the 1980s with pictorial covers by Fred Gambino. He is a British artist, best known for his sci-fi illustrations. For more information on the artist, and examples of his work, click here.
