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Catalog 161, T-X

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161. THOMPSON, Hunter S. Autograph Letter Signed to Richard Elman. December 16 [1966]. Six pages of text, handwritten on both sides of three pages, a tirade against Random House/Pantheon's "rotten & inexcusable" failure to promote Elman's book (The Poorhouse State) blended with parallel fears over Random House's coming launch of his own book (Hell's Angels). Thompson covers four possible fronts (Aspen, Denver, San Francisco, L.A.) where he might be able to get press for Elman, pausing occasionally to take swipes at Random House, to note that he himself hasn't yet read Elman's book ("maybe it's rotten & inexcusable too - eh?"), and to suggest that he and Elman team up and join the Oklahoma City Police Department. He promises to make efforts on Elman's behalf but warns that all he can do is mail the books off and "hope for the best. I can't be too hard-nosed with them because I don't want to be black-listed before they have a go at mine" (Hell's Angels, which was officially published the following month). He concludes by asking Elman to do what he can to get Hell's Angels reviewed: "My entire financial future hangs in the balance." Signed, "HST." A noteworthy letter for a number of reasons, but most importantly because Elman was the person who was most directly responsible for getting Hell's Angels published. In his memoir, Namedropping, Elman writes about meeting Thompson, who had called him on the basis of their having a mutual friend. After taking Elman on a scary motorcycle ride around Central Park and New York City, Thompson showed him the manuscript of Hell's Angels, told him their mutual friend had said that he, Elman, had connections in publishing and asked if he could find someone who would be interested in publishing this. Elman had written for The Nation so he showed the piece to Carey McWilliams, the editor of the magazine, and McWilliams printed an excerpt from it in The Nation soon after, the first publication of any portion of the book. Then Elman took the manuscript to his own editor at Pantheon, Sara Blackburn, who loved the book and decided to offer Thompson a contract. At the sales meeting to discuss it, however, Jason Epstein, the editor at Random House, got so excited by the project that he took it from Blackburn and Pantheon and made it a Random House book, offering Thompson a larger contract than Pantheon had (Pantheon was at the time part of the Random House group of publishers, which also included Alfred A. Knopf). A historic letter, at a critical point in Thompson's career, which sheds light on Thompson's and Elman's earlier relationship, when Elman helped Thompson get his work noticed: here the tables are turned, and Elman is seeking Thompson's help, although Thompson, who still has not yet had a book published, can do little to reciprocate. 500 words; writ large in red pen, on gray paper, folded in thirds for mailing, with a crimped, short tear at the middle of the right margin; near fine.

162. THOMPSON, Hunter S. Galley Sheets for "Presenting: The Richard Nixon Doll (Overhauled Model)." (n.p.): Pageant Magazine, 1968. Galley sheets for Thompson's article on the Nixon campaign, written for the July 1968 issue of Pageant Magazine. Here untitled, and dated April 10, 1968. Eventually collected in The Great Shark Hunt. We were unable to locate this issue of Pageant, but the galleys differ from the collected version in a handful of instances. Six pages, 9" x 12", printed on rectos only, with penciled notation "670 lines/at 32 chars/per line." A notable piece in Thompson's bibliography and his biography: it is the first piece he wrote on Richard Nixon, who became over the years something of a nemesis or a bete noire to Thompson. Thompson's hatred of Nixon was legendary and it created a kind of bond between the two. After Nixon's death Thompson wrote "Richard Nixon was an evil man -- evil in a way that only those who believe in the physical reality of the Devil can understand it. He was utterly without ethics or morals or any bedrock sense of decency." And yet he also wrote "It was Richard Nixon who got me into politics, and now that he's gone, I feel lonely." Folded in half once, with a gentle corner crease; near fine. Early gonzo reporting, in a rare advance state.

163. THOMPSON, Hunter S. Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72. NY: Popular Library (1973). The first Popular Library edition of Thompson's third book, the second of his "Fear & Loathing" accounts, in which Thompson covers the Nixon/McGovern race for the Presidency, bringing to the campaign a sense of humor and horror that is simultaneously both off-the-wall and entirely appropriate to its subject. Inscribed by Thompson at Owl Farm, October 7, 1977 to photographer Michael Montfort: "Michael - we enjoyed your visit to Owl Farm - come back when Lutz has a plan to make us both rich. Thanks. H.S. Thompson." Additionally signed and dated inside the front cover. Montfort is well-known for his collaborations with Charles Bukowski, of whom he took between 2000 and 3000 photographs during his career. Montfort also took an iconic photograph of Thompson himself, aiming his .44 Magnum, which appeared in X-Ray 9, the artists' magazine put together by Johnny Brewton, in 2003. Trace rubbing to folds; price sticker on the front cover; very near fine in wrappers. An uncharacteristically nice inscription, and association, indicative of a long-term relationship between the two.

164. THOMPSON, Hunter S. Kingdom of Fear. NY: Simon & Schuster (2003). Nonfiction; essays and memoirs. Subtitled "Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Century." Signed by Thompson on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket, with a flyer announcing the signing laid in. Thompson did a very small number of signings in his career: he was too volatile a personality. At this signing the ground rules were that he would only sign copies of this book, not his earlier ones, and when someone brought him a first edition of Hell's Angels and asked him to sign it he reportedly threw the book across the room.

165. UPDIKE, John. Your Lover Just Called. (Middlesex): (Penguin Books)(1980). The first British edition of this collection of related stories that was published as a paperback original in the U.S. with the title Too Far to Go. Introduction by Updike. Seven of the stories had never been collected in book form prior to the U.S. publication. Made into a movie for television. Age-toning to page edges, else fine in wrappers.

166. (UPDIKE, John). The Place My Words Are Looking For, NY: Bradbury Press (1990). A book of poetry for children, with comments by the poets about their work. Updike contributes "Icebox," which he explains he wrote for his son in 1957 as part of "A Cheerful Alphabet of Pleasant Objects." Two page comment by Updike on the icebox and the poem. Fine in a fine dust jacket and scarce thus: most copies that surface are ex-library copies or later printings.

167. (VIDAL, Gore). Playbill for Weekend. NY: Playbill, 1968. Playbill for Vidal's original two-act play, which opened and closed at the Broadhurst Theatre in March, 1968, after a total of 21 performances. John Forsythe starred. In the decade prior, Vidal had been on Broadway with Visit to a Small Planet and The Best Man, the latter of which was far more successful with this theme of personal values vs. political positioning. Vidal's Playbill biography mentions these plays, his novels from Williwaw to Myra Breckenridge, his work in the "Golden Age" of television, and also that as a Democrat-Liberal candidate for Congress in New York's (traditionally Republican) 29th District in 1960, "he got the most votes of any Democrat since 1910, running 20,000 votes ahead of John F. Kennedy." Mild rubbing and edge-sunning; near fine in stapled wrappers. Uncommon playbill for a short-lived production.

168. (Vietnam War). CONNOLLY, David. Lost in America. (Woodbridge): Viet Nam Generation & Burning Cities Press (1994). White Noise Poetry Series #1, a volume of poems and short prose pieces about the Vietnam War, written by a Vietnam vet who declares that he "takes pride in having been, and continues to be, a Vietnam Veteran Against the War." VVAW was a group of veterans who banded together to express opposition to the war and later to hold a public investigation into atrocities and war crimes in Vietnam. Inscribed by the author, "I wish you peace." Owner name inside front cover; fine in wrappers, with glossary of names and terms laid in. Uncommon.

169. (Vietnam). MARLANTES, Karl. Matterhorn. Berkeley/NY: El León Literary Arts/Atlantic Monthly (2010). The Powell's Books limited edition of Marlantes' first novel, provided to Indiespensable subscribers. One of the most powerful, harrowing and highly praised novels of the Vietnam War, originally published by a small press after being rejected numerous times by mainstream publishers. The author worked on it, and reworked it, for nearly 35 years before succeeding in seeing it published. This is number 485 of 1100 numbered copies signed by Marlantes. Clothbound; fine in a fine slipcase, with Powell's promotional material tucked in. The limitation for this edition almost equals the 1200 copy print run first ordered by El León, its original publisher, which was bought up by Atlantic Monthly when they agreed to a 60,000 copy print run.

170. (Vietnam War). TORRES, Saul. And I Cry Again. (Oxford): (Luna Press)(2003). Poems by a Puerto Rican Vietnam vet, illustrated with photographs from the Francois Sully Photojournalism Collection Archives at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. Owner name on title page, else fine in self-wrappers.

171. VOLLMANN, William T. Butterfly Stories. (London): Andre Deutsch (1993). A novel by the National Book Award-winning author, the second volume in what has come to be known as his "Prostitution Trilogy." Vollmann's books often deal with characters on the fringes of society, and when a section of this novel was published in Esquire magazine -- part of the story "More Benadryl, Whined the Journalist" -- it was taken by many to be nonfiction, as the author's actual exploits as recounted in his nonfiction were as extreme as his fiction. This is one of a limited edition of three Roman-numeraled copies prepared by the publisher, this being Copy I of III -- the publisher's own copy of the most limited issue of this title, signed by the author. Bound in full red morocco in red cloth slipcase. Fine in a fine slipcase.

172. -. Same title. Copy "A" of 26 lettered copies, bound in red cloth and marbled paper boards. This copy was reserved for the publisher. Fine in a fine slipcase.

173. VONNEGUT, Kurt. A Man Without a Country. NY/(London): Seven Stories Press/Bloomsbury (2005/2006). Both the first American edition and the first British edition of this collection of essays. The American edition is signed by the author with a self-caricature and dated 6/17/06; the British edition is signed by the author with a self-caricature and dated 7/12/06. Each is fine in a fine dust jacket and the two are housed together in a custom clamshell case. From the collection of Joe Petro III; the six page Author's Note at the end of the book is almost entirely devoted to the relationship between Vonnegut and Petro, including the comment that "it seems quite possible in retrospect that Joe Petro III saved my life." Very few copies of this title were signed by Vonnegut, especially the U.K. edition.

174. WALLACE, David Foster. This is Water. NY: Little Brown (2009). The advance reading copy of this posthumously published book which contains the commencement address Foster made in 2005 at Kenyon College. Named by Time Magazine as one of the top ten commencement speeches of all time (in the company of Steve Jobs, John F. Kennedy, Winston Churchill, and Stephen Colbert, among others). Widely published on the internet; here stretched to 134 pages of text by averaging one thought per page. Sticker residue front cover; near fine in wrappers. Uncommon in any advance state.

175. WALLACE, David Foster. Fate, Time, and Language. An Essay on Free Will. (NY): (Columbia University Press)(2011). An advance reading excerpt of Wallace's posthumously published honors thesis, submitted as a senior at Amherst College. Marked "Uncorrected Proof" on the front cover, and with publication information on the rear cover. This advance excerpt prints the book's preface (by Steven M. Cahn and Maureen Eckert); its introduction (by James Ryerson); and Wallace's acknowledgements and the introduction to his essay. 8 1/2" x 11". Approximately 36 pages total; fine in stapled wrappers.

176. WALLACE, David Foster. Both Flesh and Not. NY: Little Brown (2012). The advance reading copy of this posthumous collection of fifteen essays, all published in book form for the first time. Fine in wrappers. Uncommon.

177. (WALLACE, David Foster). War of the Words. NY: Three Rivers Press (2001). The advance reading copy (marked "uncorrected proof") of the 20th anniversary anthology of writings from the Voice Literary Supplement. Wallace's contribution is "Feodor's Guide," on Dostoevsky. Also includes work by Jonathan Lethem (on "Science Fiction's Lost Promise"), Rick Moody (on Angela Carter), Bharati Mukherjee (on Salman Rushdie), Dorothy Allison (on Anne Rice), and many others. Fine in wrappers.

178. (WALLACE, David Foster). The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories. NY: Anchor Books (2004). The uncorrected proof copy of this collection of stories by Wallace ("Brief Interviews with Hideous Men"), as well as by Lydia Davis, A.M. Homes, Sam Lipsyte, Aleksandar Hemon, Jhumpa Lahiri, William Gay, Rick Bass, George Saunders, Christine Schutt, Mark Richard, Aimee Bender and others. Fine in wrappers.

179. WALLS, Jeanette. The Glass Castle. NY: Scribner (2005). The advance reading copy of Walls's award-winning memoir that to date has spent more than 300 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list -- an astonishing six years as a bestseller. A film is rumored to be in development, starring Jennifer Lawrence. Age toning to page edges; near fine in wrappers. Curiously scarce in an advance state: publishers have cut back on printed ARCs in recent years, offering some advance copies in digital format, but in 2005 that was not nearly as true as it is now. This title, however, may have had a relatively limited distribution: the publication information does not list the size of the first printing, something publishers often do when that is an indication of their supporting and promoting the book extensively. This seems to have become more of a word-of-mouth bestseller, rather than one orchestrated by the publisher.

180. WHALEN, Philip. Three Mornings. (San Francisco): [Four Seasons Foundation], 1963/(1964). A broadside poem reproduced by photo-offset from the author's own calligraphy and printed in an edition of 300 copies on the occasion of a reading by Whalen, Gary Snyder and Lew Welch at Longshoreman's Hall, San Francisco, June 12, 1964. Signed by the author. 9 1/2" x 12 1/2". Faint edge sunning; else fine.

181. (WHITE, E.B.). KINKEAD, Eugene. Spider, Egg, and Microcosm. NY: Knopf, 1955. White provides a 3-page foreword to this book about three Russian-born scientists: an arachnologist, an embryologist, and a microbiologist. "The egg! The spider! The protozoan! Promise of life, web of life, life invisible to the naked eye..." Mild offsetting to rear endpages; else fine in a near fine dust jacket with trace fading to the red on the spine. Not an uncommon book, but difficult to find in nice condition.

182. WILLIAMS, Tennessee. A Streetcar Named Desire. London: John Lehmann (1949). First U.K. edition of Williams' classic play, with a 1973 autograph letter signed by publisher John Lehmann laid in, agreeing to sign one of his books for the recipient, despite appearances to the contrary after a previous letter apparently went astray. Lehmann also informs the recipient that all his manuscripts have gone to the Humanities Research Center in Texas. Written on two sides of Lehmann's personal stationery; near fine, with hand-addressed envelope. Together with the Aldwych Theatre program for the show, which carries an advertisement for the book -- "The English reading text of this play, as approved by the author, is published by John Lehmann" -- adding that it is "on sale at this Theatre or through any bookseller." The book is edge-sunned, with offsetting to the endpages; very good in a very good, spine-faded dust jacket with several small chips. Inscribed on the front pastedown by John Lehmann: "Producer's Copy: with/ Poppa Christmasshow [?] 1949." The program is fragile, but very good in stapled wrappers. The play was directed by Laurence Olivier and starred his wife, Vivien Leigh; it opened in October of 1949 and ran for 326 performances, before Leigh brought the role to the screen. A notable copy of this book, with interesting provenance.

183. WILSON, Gahan. First World Fantasy Awards. Garden City: Doubleday, 1977. An anthology edited by Wilson, commemorating the awards given at the first World Fantasy Convention in 1975. Robert Bloch won a Lifetime Achievement award; Patricia McKillip won the award for Best Novel. Wilson contributed an appreciation of artists Lee Brown Coye. Inscribed by Wilson to horror writer Stanley Wiater. With Wiater's Gahan Wilson-designed bookplate on the front flyleaf, a fact noted in Wilson's inscription: "To Stanley Wiater, who has superb taste in bookplates, from his friend, Gahan Wilson/ August 1st 1993." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with a little rubbing to the corners and folds. A nice association.

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