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American Literature: 13 works

Lot 304
29.09.2023 11:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Sold
£ 6 930
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
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ID 1028955
Lot 304 | American Literature: 13 works
Estimate value
£ 6 000 – 9 000
A group of 13 volumes, comprising:

John O’HARA (1905-1970). Appointment in Samarra. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1934.
First edition of the author’s first novel, one of the greatest works of American fiction, rare in the first-issue dust-jacket. Octavo. Printed slip before dedication leaf explaining title quotation, as issued. Original black cloth, spine lettered in gilt (slightly cocked, some minor marks to cloth); original dust-jacket designed by Maurer (somewhat tanned, some creasing, a few small chips and closed tears with some tape reinforcement on verso).

— Pal Joey. New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1940.
First edition of a fine epistolary novel. Octavo. Original black cloth, spine lettered in gilt (ends of spine lightly rubbed); original dust-jacket (spine tanned, a few closed tears and tiny nicks to top edge).

JOHNSON, James Weldon (1871-1938). The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. Boston: Sherman, French & Company, 1912.
First edition of Weldon’s influential novel about a biracial man who decides to 'pass' as white in order to escape the racial prejudices of his society. Octavo. (Very light occasional finger-soiling, pp. 83-86 with some staining.) Original brown cloth, spine and upper cover lettered and decorated in gilt (slightly cocked, spine lightly sunned, headcap bruised). Provenance: William E. Baugh (ownership inscription to front free endpaper).

HEYWARD, DuBose (1885-1940). Porgy. New York: George H. Doran Company, 1925.
First edition of the author’s most famous novel. It was later adapted for the stage by his wife, playwright Dorothy Heyward and was developed, with George and Ira Gershwin, into ‘Porgy and Bess’. Octavo. 5 full-page illustrations by Theodore Nadejen, leaves untrimmed (tiny nick to one leaf). Original black cloth, titles and author’s device stamped to upper cover, spine lettered, all in gilt, top edge stained brown (extremities lightly rubbed, spine faded); original price-clipped dust-jacket designed by Nadejen, publisher’s ads on verso (top edge lightly frayed, upper panel and backstrip faded).

HAMMETT, Dashiell (1894-1961). New York: Lawrence E. Spivak, [1943-1951] and Joseph W. Ferman, 1962.
Rare set of short stories and novellas previously unpublished in book form. ‘All the Hammett books of short stories are important, but without question the cornerstone is The Adventures of Sam Spade’ (Queen’s Quorum). 10 volumes, octavo, comprising: $106,000 Bloody Money; The Adventures of Sam Spade; The Continental Op; The Return of the Continental Op; Hammett Homicides; Dead Yellow Woman; The Creeping Siamese; Woman in the Dark; Nightmare Town; A Man Named Thin. (Pages brittle, some corners dog-eared, few chips and water stains). Printed card wrappers (lightly rubbed); housed in custom green half morocco case.

— Autograph collection of participants in the 1941 film The Maltese Falcon, including signatures of Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, Elisha Cook Jr, Gladys George, Lee Patrick, Ward Bond, Barton MacLane and John Huston, on a collection of separate leaves, mostly from autograph books; and a cheque made out to Dashiell Hammett. 11 items, in a custom black morocco backed box.

HIMES, Chester (1909-1984). Lonely Crusade. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1947.
First edition, presentation copy. Octavo. Original brown cloth, spine lettered in gilt, upper cover with Himes’s device, lower cover with publisher’s, both blindstamped (extremities lightly rubbed, spine sunned); original dust-jacket (lightly browned, a few small nicks and tears, spine with nick repaired on verso with tape). Provenance: Catherine Davis Bela (authorial presentation inscription to front free endpaper, dated Sept. 19, 1949).

LEE, George W. (1903-1955). Beale Street Sundown. New York: House of Field Inc., 1942.
First edition of a collection of stories about the African-American community of Memphis; presentation copy to journalist George Morris. Octavo. (A few minor stains.) Original blue cloth, printed labels to upper cover and spine (extremities rubbed, label to spine with some loss, endpapers browned); original dust-jacket (somewhat rubbed and some dampstained, spine faded, several small closed tears and chips, minor textual loss to title on spine). Provenance: Mr. George Morris (journalist from Memphis; authorial presentation inscription to front free endpaper ‘For Mr. George Morris who is much like some tall peak tower above the fog of racial and religious bigotry’, dated June 1942).

WILSON, Sloan (1920-2003). The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1955.
First edition, presentation copy, inscribed by Wilson to Robert Torcasio: ‘Sloan Wilson with great appreciation to Robert Torcasio for the wonderful window display --.’ Torcasio designed a window display featuring Wilson's novel for the Doubleday Book Shop on Fifth Avenue and 52nd Street. The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit was made into a 1956 film starring Gregory Peck, Frederic March, and Jennifer Jones. Octavo. Leaves untrimmed. Original red cloth-backed grey boards, spine lettered in gilt, silhouette of a man blindstamped to upper cover, top edge stained grey (extremities lightly rubbed, top edge faded, titles oxidised); original dust-jacket (some dampstaining and darkening, some chipping and a few tears along spine ends and edges); housed in modern quarter morocco clamshell box, with leather silhouette of a man pasted to front lid that echoes upper cover design. Provenance: Robert Torcasio (authorial presentation inscription to front free endpaper) — Donald G. Drapkin (bookplate to front pastedown, his sale Christie’s NY, June 29, 2005, lot 418) — old description loosely inserted.

DURANTE, Jimmy (1893-1980) and Jack KOFOED (1894-1979). Night Clubs. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1931.
First edition of an autobiographical work chronicling Durante’s wild experiences during his early career performing in the all-nighter clubs of Harlem to ‘the perfumed sophistication of Les Ambassadeurs’. Octavo. Title printed in black and gold, 14 photographic plates on 7 leaves. Original black cloth, spine and upper cover decorated and lettered in silver and red, publisher’s device blindstamped to lower cover, top edge stained red, decorative monochrome endpapers (spine ends faintly rubbed); original dust-jacket (spine faded, light spotting, minor chips or nicks to edges and spine ends).

DELMAR, Viña (1903-1990). Bad Girl. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1928.
First edition, presentation copy of Delmar’s surprise hit success debut novel from the library of prolific American filmmaker Charles Lamont. Octavo. Leaves untrimmed (very light recurring dampstain to outer bottom corner, some faint soiling to a few leaves). Original green cloth, spine and upper cover lettered in yellow (hinges split, extremities lightly rubbed and stained); original price-clipped dust-jacket designed by Arthur Hawkins (slightly rubbed and soiled, several small chips and creases, spine sunned). Provenance: Charles Lamont (1895-1993, prolific American filmmaker; ownership inscription dated April 28th 1928 and bookplate to front free endpaper) — Gareth L. Pawlowski (authorial presentation inscription to half-title, dated October 10th 1986) — loosely inserted newspaper clipping and playing card — bookseller’s label to rear pastedown.

— Kept Woman. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1929.
First edition of the author’s second novel. Octavo. Leaves untrimmed. Original green cloth, spine and upper cover lettered in black; original dust-jacket designed by Arthur Hawkins Jr. (lightly rubbed, spine sunned, several creases, small nicks and closed tears, one through title on upper panel).

VAN VECHTEN, Carl (1880-1964). Parties. Scenes from Contemporary New York Life. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930.
Signed limited first edition of the author’s final novel, a satirical portrait of wealthy New Yorkers. Number 91 of 250 copies. Octavo. Title printed in yellow, black and green, leaves untrimmed (occasional light marginal finger-soiling). Original yellow vellum, spine titled, and upper cover and spine with decoration stamped in silver, lower cover with publisher’s device blindstamped, top edge stained silver (lightly soiled, spine sunned).
Place of origin:USA
Auction house category:Printed books
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
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