Gloria Stoll Karn: 1923-2022

Artist Gloria Stoll Karn died July 23, 2022, at 98.

I didn’t hear the sad news until shortly after PulpFest 50 began last week, and didn’t have a chance to post anything at the time.

Ms. Karn was a delightful Guest of Honor at PulpFest 2017 in Pittsburgh, her hometown. (That was her second time as Guest of Honor; the first being at Pulpcon 30 in 2001.) She enjoyed visiting with pulp collectors, and taking time to chat as she signed pulps and prints of her artwork. I had hoped that she would visit PulpFest again, but being in her 90s limited her participation. Then COVID hit.

Her pulp career was relatively brief (six years), but she painted at least 80 terrific covers for pulp magazines including Dime Mystery, Black Mask, Detective Tales, Rangeland Romances, Love Novels, and All-Story Love.

You can read her obituary on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette website.

Listen to David Saunder’s interview with Ms. Karn, which I recorded at PulpFest 2017.