Books of the Day: Two Broadway Classics, in First Editions

Teichmann Howard, and Kaufman, George S., The Solid Gold Cadillac (Random House, stated 1st ed., 1st printing, 1954). LOC 54-8795. Oh, to have been at the Belasco, Broadway, the night of November 5, 1954. At 67, in the last Broadway role of a career that started in 1908, Josephine Hull (1887-1957)- she of You Can’t Take It With You, Arsenic and Old Lace, and, immortally, Harvey- walked on the stage as Laura Partridge, the “actress” who took over the General Products Corporation of America. While Judy Holliday made the role her own in the charming 1956 film, anyone who has seen Hull on film can hear her voice in see her quirky, sparrow-like moves reading the script in this hardcover volume. Our copy is marked for performance by the late “Queen of Charlotte Theater,” Gladys Lavitan (1916-2014), whose career lasted 79 years. Unclipped dust jacket with some 

wear about the edges. Nice association copy. HBB price: $39.95.

Axelrod, George, Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (Random House, 1st ed., 1st printing, 1956). LOC 56-6818. George Axelrod (1922-2003) had the gift. He started in radio, then moved into TV, producing program scripts and gags for Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. His 1952 play, “The Seven Year Itch”, ran for three years and was a blockbuster hit film with Marilyn Monroe. Axelrod followed that with “Rock Hunter” about a fan magazine writer who sells his soul to the Devil (in the person of a literary agent; Axelrod wrote the dedication, “Ten percent of this play is dedicated to Irving Lazar,” his own agent) in return for success as a playwright. The show ran for over a year and was adapted into a much-altered movie in which bombshell actress Jayne Mansfield was the only thing left from the original. Axelrod went on to do successful adaptations for The Manchurian Candidate, Breakfast At Tiffany’s, and other films). 

Hardcover, 145 pp, 8.25” x 5.75”, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. HBB price: $50.

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