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Seeking Ross Macdonald

All things Ross Macdonald, Lew Archer and Ken Millar

The Moving Target

December 20, 2015 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

The Moving Target, by Ross Macdonald, originally published in 1949

The Moving Target cover

Author Ross Macdonald (as John Macdonald)
Publisher Alfred A. Knopf (a Borzoi book)
Publication Date (initial) April 11, 1949

Overview

The Moving Target was the first Lew Archer novel and in what would become a theme for Archer, he finds himself embroiled in a family drama.  In his debut novel, Archer is hired by the young, second wife of Ralph Sampson, a wealthy oilman, to find her husband. Along the way, he meets Sampson’s disaffected daughter Miranda, his pilot Alan Taggert and Sampson’s attorney, Albert Graves.  He also meets up and spends an evening with the aging actress  and Sampson astrologer Fay Estabrook.  A ransom note is produced for Sampson, but Archer isn’t convinced.  He does reach the truth as he works his way through the dysfunctional family.

Reviews

Anthony Boucher wrote a review in the New York Times Book Review in the Criminals At Large section on April 3, 1949.

Just at the time that the tough genre in fiction needs revitalizing John Macdonald turns up.

Observations

Poster for the movie Harper
The Moving Target served as the basis for the 1966 film Harper, starring Paul Newman as Archer and Lauren Bacall. William Goldman wrote the adaptation.

Additional Publication Information

The information is here is accurate to the best knowledge of the site’s author, but should not be presumed to be definitive.

Date Publisher Notes
1949 Alfred A. Knopf 2nd edition (Mystery Guild)
1950 Pocket Books 3rd edition
1951 Cassell & Company 1st English edition
1954 Pan Books 5th edition (UK, paper)
1959 Pocket Books 6th edition
1966 Pocket Books of Canada 6th  edition (as Harper)
1966, 1971 Collins/Fontana 7th edition (UK)
1967 Alfred A. Knopf 8th edition (collected in Archer in Hollywood)
1970 Bantam 9th edition
1979 Gregg Publishing 1st edition, second printing
1979 John Curley 10th edition (large print edition)
1998 Vintage Crime/Black Lizard 1998 edition

Book Covers

The Moving Target 1st edition cover  1st edition dust jacket cover
The Moving Target pocketbook cover 1950 Pocketbook cover
moving-target-front-cover-hardback-uk 1951 Cassell and Company (UK)
the-moving-target-pan 1954 Pan cover (UK)
moving target-pocketbook-3 1959 Pocketbook cover
MovingTargetUK-movietiein  1966 Collins/Fontana cover
Harper movie tie-in
The Moving Target-Bantam 1970 Bantam cover
Macdonald_Moving_Target-1971-fontanta 1971 Fontana cover
the-moving-target-bantam-70s  Bantam cover (unknown date)
the-moving-target-paperback 1983,  Allison & Busby  (UK)
movingtarget-warner Warner Books cover (date, edition unknown)
The Moving Target cover  1998 Vintage/Black Lizard cover

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Filed Under: Novels Tagged With: 1949, Lew Archer

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At three o'clock in the morning it's always the real dark night of the soul.~Ross MacdonaldSource: The Far Side of the Dollar

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