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THE GLASS MENAGERIE
by Williams, Tennessee
- Used
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- Near fine in very good plus dust jacket.
- Seller
-
Silver Spring, Maryland, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Random House, 1945. Near fine in very good plus dust jacket.. Inscribed first edition, first printing of Tennessee Williams' semi-autobiographical memory play, his first stage success. GLASS MENAGERIE was a hit on Broadway, "hailed with joy from end to end" and praised as being composed of "make-believe so real it tears your heart out" (jacket). Its success rocketed Williams into the ranks of Arthur Miller and Eugene O'Neil. It has received several film adaptations, the first of which starred Gertrude Lawrence and Kirk Douglas.
Based on an earlier short story "Portrait of a Girl in Glass," Tennessee Williams's GLASS MENAGERIE painfully echoes the events of his young adulthood. The play almost doesn't need the "semi-" qualifier ahead of "autobiographical," from Tom's monotonous job at the shoe factory (Williams began writing in earnest while working at the International Shoe Company factory) to his absent father (Williams' own father was a traveling salesman) and even to the lead character's name (Williams' birth name was Thomas).
This copy is inscribed to Elizabeth Anne McMurray, the proprietor of McMurray's Bookstore in Dallas, Texas, and later a judge for the National Book Awards. A lovely and bookish association copy. 7.25'' x 4.75''. Original rust cloth with black spine plate and gilt lettering. Original price-clipped color pictorial dust jacket, designed by Riki Levinson. Black topstain. Fore-edge machine deckle. Black-and-white photographic frontispiece, with three black-and-white photographic plates of the stage production. 124 pages. Inscribed by Williams to front flyleaf "For Elizabeth Anne / McMurray / with sincere appreciation," dated August 1945. Jacket with mild edgewear and light foxing; some sunning to spine. Binding spine ends and corners mildly bumped. A clean, tight copy.
Based on an earlier short story "Portrait of a Girl in Glass," Tennessee Williams's GLASS MENAGERIE painfully echoes the events of his young adulthood. The play almost doesn't need the "semi-" qualifier ahead of "autobiographical," from Tom's monotonous job at the shoe factory (Williams began writing in earnest while working at the International Shoe Company factory) to his absent father (Williams' own father was a traveling salesman) and even to the lead character's name (Williams' birth name was Thomas).
This copy is inscribed to Elizabeth Anne McMurray, the proprietor of McMurray's Bookstore in Dallas, Texas, and later a judge for the National Book Awards. A lovely and bookish association copy. 7.25'' x 4.75''. Original rust cloth with black spine plate and gilt lettering. Original price-clipped color pictorial dust jacket, designed by Riki Levinson. Black topstain. Fore-edge machine deckle. Black-and-white photographic frontispiece, with three black-and-white photographic plates of the stage production. 124 pages. Inscribed by Williams to front flyleaf "For Elizabeth Anne / McMurray / with sincere appreciation," dated August 1945. Jacket with mild edgewear and light foxing; some sunning to spine. Binding spine ends and corners mildly bumped. A clean, tight copy.
Synopsis
The Glass Menagerie is an evocative, four-character memory play by Tennessee Williams. It was originally written as a screenplay for MGM, to whom Williams was contracted. Initial ideas stemmed from one of his short stories, and the screenplay originally went under the name of 'The Gentleman Caller'. The play premiered in Chicago in 1944, was championed by critic Claudia Cassidy there, and in 1945 went on to win the prestigious New York Drama Critics Circle Award.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Type Punch Matrix
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 40994
- Title
- THE GLASS MENAGERIE
- Author
- Williams, Tennessee
- Book Condition
- Used - Near fine in very good plus dust jacket.
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- Random House
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1945
- Keywords
- 20th century,Theatre,American,1940s,Post-WWII,Books to Film,Gift Idea
Terms of Sale
Type Punch Matrix
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About the Seller
Type Punch Matrix
Biblio member since 2020
Silver Spring, Maryland
About Type Punch Matrix
Type Punch Matrix is a rare book firm founded by Rebecca Romney and Brian Cassidy. TPM is a member firm of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America and upholds their Code of Ethics.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Plate
- Full page illustration or photograph. Plates are printed separately from the text of the book, and bound in at production. I.e.,...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- A.N.
- The book is pristine and free of any defects, in the same condition as ...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Association Copy
- An association copy is a copy of a book which has been signed and inscribed by the author for a personal friend, colleague, or...
- Inscribed
- When a book is described as being inscribed, it indicates that a short note written by the author or a previous owner has been...
- Tight
- Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
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