Search Results: Humor from Singularity Rare & Fine

Berkeley, CA: Ulysses Press, 1990. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Fine. See scans and description. Berkeley, CA: Ulysses Press, 1990. First Edition and First Printing of Darryl Henriques' '50 Simple Things You Can Do to Pave the Earth', an irreverent parody of '50 Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth' as issued by the Earthworks Group one year earlier. Octavo, illustrated perfect-bound wraps, 96 pp. Fine; without flaw. A scarce 1st/1st, in superb condition, of an already scarce bit of genre humor. See scans. L86

New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2015. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. First Edition and First Printing thus. Near Fine. "Angry Optimist - The Life and Times of Jon Stewart", by Lisa Rogak, this being the edition "updated and with a new chapter" (after the 2014 first edition). New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2015. Octavo, illustrated wraps, 280 pp. A strong Near Fine; faint and delicate top right corner crease at front cover, several small points of edge wear, the kind likely incurred when new on the rack. A sharp example. See scans.

Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood & Sons, 1877. Decorated Cloth. Very Good. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. William Blackwood & Sons, Edinburgh and London, 1877. One of a number of later editions which increasingly expanded on the 1849 original. 12mo, 256 pp. Bright blue very fine grain cloth with gilt and blind stamped title and decoration; All Edges Gilt. Edge wear, some small stains at some edges; foxing at endpapers, contents otherwise remarkably bright and fine. About Very Good. See scans. A collection of parodic verse, "edited by Bon Gaultier". In fact, written by William E. Aytoun and Sir Theodore Martin, whose contributions to Fraser's magazine were made under this nom de plume, borrowed from Rabelais' Prologue to Gargantua. An expanded 256 page edition of not-so-subtle lampoons of about everyone and everything within reach at the time, with many writers being quasi-stylistically lampooned as well. Colt, Widdicomb, Wordsworth, Willis,… Read More

New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1981. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Near Fine/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Fine book in Very Good jacket. See scans and description. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1981. First Printing of Don Ethan Miller's 'The Book of Jargon'. Tall octavo, jacket, cream and red boards with gilt spine imprinting, xiv + 347 pp. Near Fine book with demure 2% or so of spine lean, light dust on top and bottom page edges, small amount of spine bottom fade. Jacket is Very good, with moderate tatter along top edge, front and rear panels, and a small closed cut at bottom edge, front panel. See all scans. A fun, enlightening period first-printing about how our numerous demographics talk. Medicalese, legalese, computerese, TV Talk, Basic Jock, twenty more American varieties. For the collector of unusual (not to mention entertaining) reference tomes. LT24

New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. First American Edition . Cloth. Near Fine/Near Fine. Octavo. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. First Edition with all first state points, those being - on Jacket: James Jones blurb instead of Nelson Algren's at bottom of back panel; $ 5.00 price; code 0464, bottom of front flap. Book: purple cloth, black paper boards; no statement of printing (later editions do state printing); 5.75" x 8.25", 224 pp.; red endpapers and topstain as per first issue. Near fine in near fine jacket; very close to fine, which is scarce for this title in the first state. One of the better copies you're likely to see of this inexpensively produced title. Jacket is first state and not clipped, still bearing the $ 5.00 price. First edition of the somewhat tardy American re-do of Southern's original (under the pseudonym Maxwell Kenton)through the Olympia Press in Paris in 1958 -which was itself chased and marked for destruction by French authorities.… Read More

New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. First American Edition . Cloth. Near Fine/Near Fine. Octavo. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. First Edition with all first state points, those being - on Jacket: James Jones blurb instead of Nelson Algren's at bottom of back panel; $ 5.00 price; code 0464, bottom of front flap. Book: purple cloth, black paper boards; no statement of printing (later editions do state printing); 5.75" x 8.25", 224 pp.; red endpapers and topstain as per first issue. Near fine in near fine jacket; very close to fine, which is scarce for this title in the first state. One of the better copies you're likely to see of this inexpensively produced title. Jacket is first state and not clipped, still bearing the $ 5.00 price. Book shows unobtrusive spotting at top (dyed) page edges, faint fade toward very top of boards. Jacket shows very small scale touch edgewear at places. First edition of the somewhat tardy American re-do of Southern's original (under… Read More

New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. First American Edition . Cloth. Very Good/Near Fine. Octavo. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1964. Signed by Terry Southern on the title page, without inscription. First Edition with all first state points, those being - on Jacket: James Jones blurb instead of Nelson Algren's at bottom of back panel; $ 5.00 price; code 0464, bottom of front flap. Book: purple cloth, black paper boards; no statement of printing (later editions do state printing); 5.75" x 8.25", 224 pp.; red endpapers and topstain. A Very Good book in a Near Fine jacket. Book shows some discoloration to top page edges, and a 5% lean (see scan); also very faint touch of fade at top edges of the boards. Jacket is first state and not clipped, still bearing the $ 5.00 price, and really shows no damage to call out, a solid Near Fine example of a jacket which has often suffered grade-loss easily. A nice "flat" signed (no inscription), First Edition, First State example of… Read More

Paris: Olympia Press 1958, 1958. First Edition . Printed Wrappers. Near Fine. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. Paris: Olympia Press, 1958. First edition. 12mo, green perfect-bound wrappers, 189 pp. Near Fine; touch peripheral wear. Please see scans. Bearing the later price overstamp. Scarce first edition - if you're here, you know the story of the bannings, burnings, and later pirate and non-pirate editions. The story of a naive and gorgeous young blonde girl - who quickly finds out in exactly what way we men are all, instantly and always, the same - borrows its plot structure from Voltaire's Candide and uses that strangely juxtaposed vehicle to shine a light on all the vagaries of modern western life which beg to be lampooned. Considered by many, then and now, to be a classic of "black (dark) humor". In 2006, Playboy Magazine included Candy on its list of the "25 Sexiest Novels Ever Written". Handsome and rare specimen of a title that is en… Read More

New York: Random House, 2012. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New/New. 12mo - over 6¾ - 7¾" tall. New and pristine First Edition, First Printing. See scans and description. New York: Random House, 2012. Calvin Trillin's "Dogfight - The 2012 Presidential Campaign in Verse". 12mo, jacket with illustrations by Barry Blitt, red boards with gilt spine imprinting, x + 154 pp. + 1 pp. About the Author + 1 pp. About the Type. New, immaculate, and flawless first, with the number line starting with "2", under the words "First Edition", as was still the policy at Random House at the time of publication. Calvin Trillin's political-humor-as-doggerel piece on the 2012 presidential election, in the form of a very pristine first / first. See scans. Ships in a new, sturdy, protective box - not a bag. L9n

New York: Bloomsbury, 2006. 1st Edition . Soft cover. New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. New; see description and scan. Advance Reading Copy. New York: Bloomsbury, 2006. The Duchess of Nothing, ARC, Heather McGowan's darkly comic novel about wandering with and relating to a seven year old boy because, though it's not easy, it is easier than doing the same thing with her cold, insensitive, absent husband or her cold, insensitive, absent lover. Well, we ARE men. Octavo, illustrated perfect-bound wraps, 5 + 216 + 1 pp. New and quite pristine. Note that the apparent cover dust in the scan is not, in fact, dust; it was the unfortunate choice of the cover artist to make it look like dust. The sensibilities of artistes. This immaculate Advance Reading Copy is from uncorrected proofs, and "the text should not be quoted without comparison to the revised text". A sharp, collectible piece, and of course chronologically about as early as one can get. See scans. L106

New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1990. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Fine Book in Fine jacket. See scans and description. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1990. Stated First Edition and First Printing of 'The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste', by Jane & Michael Stern. Quarto, illustrated jacket, russet & black boards with copper spine imprinting, cover with title in blind stamp and even a faint attempt at reproducing the leopard pattern of the jacket in blind; this latter endeavor is, imho, lost in the russet, however. 334 pp. (331 + 3). Fine; not new, but strongly Fine, both book and jacket, with a couple of micro-touches and absolutely no salient flaws. See all scans. Engaging humor; has instructed and somewhat elevated yours truly taste, insofar as that is possible. Probably about as nice for condition as any example you'll find of this 1990 offering from HarperCollins. First/First, for the collector. Ships in a new,… Read More

New York : Hearst Magazines, 2004. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Near Fine. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Near Fine; very. See scans and description. New York: Hearst Magazines, 2004. The February, 2004 issue of Esquire magazine, that being the Dubious Achievements Awards issue covering the most absurd people and events of preceding year, 2003. Quarto, illustrated perfect-bound wraps, 132 pp. Near Fine; faint crease at lower right, front cover (scan), and that's it. Otherwise flawless. No labels, of course, and all the tipped in subscription offers etc. remain untouched. Apart from the always hilarious Dubious Achievements awards, which always seem to dominate their issue, other foci herein include Carla Gugino, Lost Boys, Esquire University, Ron Suskind, Robert Altman, Chuck Klosterman, Letters from Soldiers, Presidential Primaries, Ed Schultz, NBA, Sex, Hollywood, Ten Clues to Women (yeah right), and so on. Superbly preserved genre collectible, soon-to-be-getting-vintage.… Read More

Boston: Gambit, 1975. 1st Edition . Soft cover. Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Boston: Gambit, 1975. Publisher's promotional preview booklet, sent to industry professionals, for David Levine's upcoming "The Fables of Aesop". Octavo, illustrated stapled wraps, 8 pp. including covers. Cover gives just basic information, remaining pages show seven of the fifty humorous illustrations which were to be in the book. See scans. L-eph1

New York: Gallery Books, 2016. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. New, First Edition and First Printing; pristine and immaculate, throughout. See scans and description. New York: Gallery Books, 2016. Octavo, nicely illustrated jacket (very fetching front and back Amy photos for it by Mark Seliger), gray boards with black spine imprinting, robin's egg-blue endpapers, 347 pp. (viii + 323 pp. + 16 pp. color photographic section). New, and flawless throughout. See scans. The yes-she-is-related-to-Charles Schumer girl who will before long make the subject and object of that phrase be heard more often the other way around. Autobiographical essays, with that humor and spice that makes her both interesting and...hot. Keeper of a First/First. See all scans. Ships in a new, sturdy, protective box - not a bag. L7n

New York: Scribner's, 1991. First Edition . Hardcover. Fine/Very Good Plus. Oblong Quarto. Hirschfeld, Al. New York: Scribner's, 1991. Apparent second printing, with no "1" in the number sequence. Signed and inscribed by the author on the half-title. Illustrations throughout by the author. Introduction by Alistair Cooke. Hefty oblong quarto, 306 pp., black cloth-backed paper-covered boards, illustrated dustjacket. Fine copy in a very good plus jacket which is price-clipped and shows a bit of toning at the top edge. Sharp and handsome. A profusely illustrated retrospective by the master caricaturist and stylist, Al Hirschfeld. Hundreds of his b&w caricatures festoon these pages, and there are a few full-color musical stylizations as well. Hardly an entertainment luminary escaped his perceptive pen during the eight decades herein covered, and you'll recognize them all, and laugh. Signed and inscribed to Bill Reidell in the year of publication, on 12/13/91.… Read More

New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1989. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Fine/Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Stated First Edition, & First Printing. Fine book in a very Near Fine jacket. See scans and description. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1989. First Edition, stated, and first printing. Erma Bombeck's "I Want to Grow Hair, I Want to Grow Up, I Want to Go to Boise - Children Surviving Cancer'. Octavo, illustrated jacket, yellow cloth boards with red spine imprinting, child's color illustration endpapers (and many interior color illustrations, each credited to a child; also, a list of other contributing children at the end), xxii + 174 pp. A Fine and book in what must be termed a (very, very) Near Fine jacket, due to a thin scratch at front cover (see scan). Essentially, almost As New throughout. See all scans. A very upbeat, heartfelt exposition by the late beloved queen of suburban family humor, Erma Bombeck, who passed away in… Read More

New York: Scribner, 2013. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New/New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. New York: Scribner (A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.), 2013. First Edition and First Printing, so stated and indicated on copyright page. ISBN 9781439184493. Octavo, designed jacket, boards are 3/4 black paper-covered and 1/4 black cloth with gilt spine imprinting, 214 pp. New. Book and Jacket are flawless and pristine; sealed and laid flat at time of purchase. See scan, An apparently quite hard-to-come-by true first printing of pop culture humorist and social essayist Klosterman's latest foray, in perfect collector condition. L-42 n

New York: Scribner, 2013. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New/New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. New York: Scribner (A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.), 2013. First Edition and First Printing, so stated and indicated on copyright page. ISBN 9781439184493. Octavo, designed jacket, boards are 3/4 black paper-covered and 1/4 black cloth with gilt spine imprinting, 214 pp. New. Book and Jacket are flawless and pristine; sealed and laid flat at time of purchase. See scan, An apparently quite hard-to-come-by true first printing of pop culture humorist and social essayist Klosterman's latest foray, in perfect collector condition. L107

Dublin, Ireland: The O'Brien Press, 1987. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Fine. See scans and description. Dublin, Ireland: The O'Brien Press, 1987. First Edition and First Printing. Raymond Lamont-Brown's Irish Grave Humour. Octavo, illustrated perfect-bound wraps, 96 pp. Fine; demure amount of the inevitable toning of the inexpensive paper of the pages, else quite flawless. See scans. Lamont-Brown's entertaining look at Irish cemetery creativity. First/First. L17n

New York: Leslie-Judge Co., 1923. First Edition . Illustrated Wraps. Very Good. 11 1/4" x 8 1/4. Enoch Bolles Cover; Ralph Barton; Clive Weed; Charles Baskerville; James Montgomery Flagg; Gilbert Wilkinson; Angus MacDonnall et al . Very Good. See scans and description. New York: Leslie-Judge Co., 1923. First Edition. November 24, 1923, Vol. 85, No. 2195. Quarto, illustrated wraps, 32 pp. The titillating cover, "Turkey, With Very Little Dressing", is by renowned pin-up artist Enoch Bolles. Iinterior illustrations in color and b&w by a variety of noted, and less-noted, artists, some of whom are Ralph Barton; Clive Weed; Charles Baskerville; James Montgomery Flagg; Gilbert Wilkinson; Angus MacDonnall. A large number of others. Remarkable condition for a Judge issue from the 20's. Front cover soil (see scan), rust starting at staples, just a bit of the usually more pronouced age-toning to the paper. Rear cover bears subscriber's address at lower right corner. See scans. A… Read More