Detective Book Club oddity
I picked up today a "collector's item" published by the Detective Book
Club (aka Walter Black, Roslyn, NY). It was one of their three-in-one mystery collections, but bound in a heavy blue leather or leatherette, with gilt ends and a ribbon marker. The three books a - Erle Stanley Gardner, THE CASE OF THE EMPTY TIN - Agatha Christie, EVIL UNDER THE SUN - The Lockridges, A PINCH OF POISON The three novels were orignally publshed in 1941, but their copyrights are all listed as renewed in 1969, which is when I assume this book comes from. There's a limitation page which says "Copy 142 of 170 copies." There's nothing else in or on the book to indicate why this elaborate production. Any ideas? |
Detective Book Club oddity
Jim wrote:
I picked up today a "collector's item" published by the Detective Book Club (aka Walter Black, Roslyn, NY). It was one of their three-in-one mystery collections, but bound in a heavy blue leather or leatherette, with gilt ends and a ribbon marker. The three books a - Erle Stanley Gardner, THE CASE OF THE EMPTY TIN - Agatha Christie, EVIL UNDER THE SUN - The Lockridges, A PINCH OF POISON The three novels were orignally publshed in 1941, but their copyrights are all listed as renewed in 1969, which is when I assume this book comes from. There's a limitation page which says "Copy 142 of 170 copies." There's nothing else in or on the book to indicate why this elaborate production. Any ideas? As I said over in the flames-trolls-n-spammers thread this isn't my field, but it does seem as if Walter Black do a lot of limited leather-bound editions. For example, the following Zane Grey works all came out in that form: - The Light of Western Stars - The Rainbow Trail and The Desert Crucible (the Walter lack edition is bound as Horse Heaven Hill) - Mysterious Rider - The Thundering Herd - The Vanishing American (http://www.zgws.org/zgfechrono.html) The website doesn't give any dates for any of these editions. The same site also lists later Zane Grey from the 1970s in Walter Black editions (The Wolf Tracker, The Camp Robber and Other Stories, Angler's Eldorado), but they are glassine and not limited. I don't know if that's any help, but that's all I've managed to find so far. If Bob Finnan will stop flogging dead horses over in the Chrodspeller thread, he may be better able to help than I am. John |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 15, 11:15 pm, Jim wrote:
I picked up today a "collector's item" published by the Detective Book Club (aka Walter Black, Roslyn, NY). It was one of their three-in-one mystery collections, but bound in a heavy blue leather or leatherette, with gilt ends and a ribbon marker. The three books a - Erle Stanley Gardner, THE CASE OF THE EMPTY TIN - Agatha Christie, EVIL UNDER THE SUN - The Lockridges, A PINCH OF POISON The three novels were orignally publshed in 1941, but their copyrights are all listed as renewed in 1969, which is when I assume this book comes from. There's a limitation page which says "Copy 142 of 170 copies." 1969 is 28 years from 1941. At that time copyrights had to be renewed after 28 years, so the 1969 date probably isn't the date of publication. |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 29, 9:44 am, RF wrote:
1969 is 28 years from 1941. At that time copyrights had to be renewed after 28 years, so the 1969 date probably isn't the date of publication. Well, checking these titles on bookfinder, I come up with an ordinary Detective Book Club edition as well, which leads me to assume that 1969 (or 1970) *is* the date of publication. Not that I've followed the series particularly, but my impression was that the titles were always contemporary mysteries, and I'm wondering why, after 28--or even 35--years, they should do this volume. I have seen the fancier Zane Greys, but have never opened one to see if it actually had a limitation page inserted. |
Detective Book Club oddity
Jim wrote:
Well, checking these titles on bookfinder, I come up with an ordinary Detective Book Club edition as well, which leads me to assume that 1969 (or 1970) *is* the date of publication. I'm not sure why you think that. If a book carries a copyright but no publication date then, unless there is other evidence to pin down the date of publication, all one can assume is that it was published on or after the copyright date. my impression was that the titles were always contemporary mysteries, and I'm wondering why, after 28--or even 35--years, they should do this volume. That Zane Grey website has a lot of info on Walter Black. Apparently they did a lot of reprints of Zane Grey material during the 1960s: The Walter J. Black Editions were reprints of seventy-three of Zane Grey's titles with one additional title appearing as a First Edition. The series also included a biography of Zane Grey. Produced in the 1960's, they were bound in red and tan cloth and originally came in a rice paper cover. (http://www.zgws.org/black.html) It goes on to discuss the value of these editions (most of them are of little value, but there are one or two exceptions). So Walter Black were reprinting Zane Grey stuff in the 1960s and several of these reprints (according to http://www.zgws.org/zgfechrono.html) were limited "leatherette" editions. It's not unreasonable to suppose that they were reprinting other material from decades earlier and that some of that, too, came out in limited editions with a leather binding. John |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 29, 1:37 pm, "John R. Yamamoto-Wilson"
wrote: So Walter Black were reprinting Zane Grey stuff in the 1960s and several of these reprints (according tohttp://www.zgws.org/zgfechrono.html) were limited "leatherette" editions. It's not unreasonable to suppose that they were reprinting other material from decades earlier and that some of that, too, came out in limited editions with a leather binding. The Detective Book Club, as far as I can see, was never a reprint series (unlike Black's Readers Service or Classics Club). The three books that appeared in each month's volume (if they were monthly; I don't even know) were always "current" mysteries, recently published. None of them that I have bears an actual publication date, just the copyrights for the individual novels. Yes, the limited edition could have been done at any time, but the existence of ordinary members' copies makes me believe they were issued close together. I can't imagine them doing an ordinary member edition in (say) 1970, and then a limited edition in (say) 1985. And what possessed them to reprint these three novels at that time? And while I'm asking rhetorical questions, how limited were the Zane Grey "limited" editions? (Were they numbered? I can't locate one on Bookfinder to check...) But yes, it's all supposition, since--unlike the Zane Grey page--there seems to be no site or documentation on the Detective Book Club. |
Detective Book Club oddity
Jim wrote:
The Detective Book Club, as far as I can see, was never a reprint series (unlike Black's Readers Service or Classics Club). The three books that appeared in each month's volume (if they were monthly; I don't even know) were always "current" mysteries, recently published. None of them that I have bears an actual publication date, just the copyrights for the individual novels. Yes, the limited edition could have been done at any time, but the existence of ordinary members' copies makes me believe they were issued close together. I can't imagine them doing an ordinary member edition in (say) 1970, and then a limited edition in (say) 1985. And what possessed them to reprint these three novels at that time? And while I'm asking rhetorical questions, how limited were the Zane Grey "limited" editions? (Were they numbered? I can't locate one on Bookfinder to check...) But yes, it's all supposition, since--unlike the Zane Grey page--there seems to be no site or documentation on the Detective Book Club. One of the great living treasures of the bookcollecting world is Steve Trussel and, no, he doesn't quite fill the gap you note. However, he does have a page on 2- and 3-in-one Detective Book Club editions of Maigret, which seems to bear out your observation: http://www.trussel.com/maig/wjb.htm As far as I could see, all the Walter Black Maigret was published fairly shortly after it originally appeared in English translation. I found one or two listings online as well, such as this one - http://biblion.co.uk/books/69411.html - which seems to be "current", but you could probably get a better idea by chcking through the ABE listings to see whether there are any exceptions listed there. John |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 29, 11:51 am, Jim wrote:
On May 29, 9:44 am, RF wrote: 1969 is 28 years from 1941. At that time copyrights had to be renewed after 28 years, so the 1969 date probably isn't the date of publication. Well, checking these titles on bookfinder, I come up with an ordinary Detective Book Club edition as well, which leads me to assume that 1969 (or 1970) *is* the date of publication. **** you! You ask for opinions then make with the smart cracks. |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 30, 9:44 am, RF wrote:
**** you! You ask for opinions then make with the smart cracks. Thank you for your ever-helpful comments, and your uplifting language. |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 30, 10:19 am, Jim wrote:
On May 30, 9:44 am, RF wrote: **** you! You ask for opinions then make with the smart cracks. Thank you for your ever-helpful comments, and your uplifting language. You're welcome, dickhead. |
Detective Book Club oddity
John R. Yamamoto-Wilson wrote:
Jim wrote: Well, checking these titles on bookfinder, I come up with an ordinary Detective Book Club edition as well, which leads me to assume that 1969 (or 1970) *is* the date of publication. I'm not sure why you think that. If a book carries a copyright but no publication date then, unless there is other evidence to pin down the date of publication, all one can assume is that it was published on or after the copyright date. my impression was that the titles were always contemporary mysteries, and I'm wondering why, after 28--or even 35--years, they should do this volume. That Zane Grey website has a lot of info on Walter Black. Apparently they did a lot of reprints of Zane Grey material during the 1960s: The Walter J. Black Editions were reprints of seventy-three of Zane Grey's titles with one additional title appearing as a First Edition. The series also included a biography of Zane Grey. Produced in the 1960's, they were bound in red and tan cloth and originally came in a rice paper cover. (http://www.zgws.org/black.html) It goes on to discuss the value of these editions (most of them are of little value, but there are one or two exceptions). So Walter Black were reprinting Zane Grey stuff in the 1960s and several of these reprints (according to http://www.zgws.org/zgfechrono.html) were limited "leatherette" editions. It's not unreasonable to suppose that they were reprinting other material from decades earlier and that some of that, too, came out in limited editions with a leather binding. John Today I came across a learthette bound book from Walter Black. This was the "Works of Tolstoi" bearing a copyright of 1928 (presumably for the translation). But the condition of the book looked much more recent than 1928. Francis A. Miniter |
Detective Book Club oddity
Francis A. Miniter wrote:
Today I came across a learthette bound book from Walter Black. This was the "Works of Tolstoi" bearing a copyright of 1928 (presumably for the translation). But the condition of the book looked much more recent than 1928. Interesting. I notice the copyright date they used on their Maigret titles was the date of the original, rather than the date of the translation. Anyway, the thing about reprint companies like this is that, since they generally don't give a printing date and only use a copyright date, it's well-nigh impossible to pin down the exact date of publication. How do/did Walter Black distribute? This series is a "book club", so I'm guessing it would be a subscription thing, right? If so, then these leatherette and/or limited editions might have been special offers to members, or inducements to become a member. They might have chosen their most popular title(s) for this treatment, hence the OP's "vintage" volume in a series of "current" mystery stories. John |
Detective Book Club oddity
John R. Yamamoto-Wilson wrote:
Francis A. Miniter wrote: Today I came across a learthette bound book from Walter Black. This was the "Works of Tolstoi" bearing a copyright of 1928 (presumably for the translation). But the condition of the book looked much more recent than 1928. Interesting. I notice the copyright date they used on their Maigret titles was the date of the original, rather than the date of the translation. Anyway, the thing about reprint companies like this is that, since they generally don't give a printing date and only use a copyright date, it's well-nigh impossible to pin down the exact date of publication. How do/did Walter Black distribute? This series is a "book club", so I'm guessing it would be a subscription thing, right? If so, then these leatherette and/or limited editions might have been special offers to members, or inducements to become a member. They might have chosen their most popular title(s) for this treatment, hence the OP's "vintage" volume in a series of "current" mystery stories. John That makes sense. I mentioned Walter Black a couple of months ago with respect to an Erle Stanley Gardner work, "The Case of the Singing Skirt". There is a dust jacket from Morrow (Gardner's usual publisher) on it, but the book says Walter Black. The copyright page says "published by special arrangement with William Morrow & Co." But when I to an AddALL search for the book, I only get one Walter Black copy, no Morrow copies. Strange. The Morrow dust jacket contains a $2.95 price, by the way. Francis A. Miniter |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 30, 8:28 pm, "Francis A. Miniter"
wrote: Today I came across a learthette bound book from Walter Black. This was the "Works of Tolstoi" bearing a copyright of 1928 (presumably for the translation). But the condition of the book looked much more recent than 1928. That would be a "Reader's Service" volume, I bet. The ordinary ones were red, and the fancy ones (which you saw) a cream-colored binding, if I recall. You didn't happen to notice anything indicating it was "limited" in any way, did you? |
Detective Book Club oddity
Jim wrote:
On May 30, 8:28 pm, "Francis A. Miniter" wrote: Today I came across a learthette bound book from Walter Black. This was the "Works of Tolstoi" bearing a copyright of 1928 (presumably for the translation). But the condition of the book looked much more recent than 1928. That would be a "Reader's Service" volume, I bet. The ordinary ones were red, and the fancy ones (which you saw) a cream-colored binding, if I recall. You didn't happen to notice anything indicating it was "limited" in any way, did you? No, but I may be able to get back and double check. Certainly there was nothing on the copyright page. That I am sure of. Francis A. Miniter |
Detective Book Club oddity
Jim wrote:
You didn't happen to notice anything indicating it was "limited" in any way, did you? Francis wrote: No, but I may be able to get back and double check. Certainly there was nothing on the copyright page. That I am sure of. What I'm thinking is that these were not "limited" in the proper sense, but "deluxe." (I grant that they were limited in the sense that they were published in smaller numbers than the regular edition...) I suspect that's also the case with the Zane Grey titles John cites above. |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 30, 9:26 pm, "Francis A. Miniter"
wrote: I mentioned Walter Black a couple of months ago with respect to an Erle Stanley Gardner work, "The Case of the Singing Skirt". There is a dust jacket from Morrow (Gardner's usual publisher) on it, but the book says Walter Black. The copyright page says "published by special arrangement with William Morrow & Co." But when I to an AddALL search for the book, I only get one Walter Black copy, no Morrow copies. Strange. The Morrow dust jacket contains a $2.95 price, by the way. Almost all the Gardner titles went right into a Detective Book Club volume (according to the Dorothy Hughes bio), and were reprinted by Black later in various forms, eventually becoming the uniform edition known as the Gardner Mystery Library. |
Detective Book Club oddity
On May 30, 9:11 pm, "John R. Yamamoto-Wilson"
wrote: How do/did Walter Black distribute? This series is a "book club", so I'm guessing it would be a subscription thing, right? If so, then these leatherette and/or limited editions might have been special offers to members, or inducements to become a member. They might have chosen their most popular title(s) for this treatment, hence the OP's "vintage" volume in a series of "current" mystery stories. I've seen the leatherettes of various titles around, but never a *numbered* limited edition... |
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