[Rarebooks] fs: Our American Cousin

[Back Creek Books]

Greetings All,

For your consideration:
~
(No. 7360 )  Taylor, Tom (1817-1880). OUR AMERICAN COUSIN: A DRAMA, IN 3
ACTS.
(S.l.): (s.n.), 1869. First printing, Wrappers, Duodecimo, 46 pages. Very
good.
      The first printed appearance of the popular play that Lincoln was
watching when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth in 1865.
    How can 1869 be the earliest printing of a play that was so successful
years earlier, you ask? Piracy. Or more precisely, the fear thereof.
Copyright laws of the day offered scant protection, particularly for
dramatic works, and playwrights and owners of plays often avoided publishing
them. Laura Keene had acquired the rights to Tom Taylor's "Our American
Cousin" in 1858, and opened it that year in her theatre in New York. The
play was a great success and Ms. Keene was very careful to protect her
property. Besides the original manuscript owned by Keene and one other
manuscript copy found in the estate of Joshua Silsbee, the play only existed
in the manuscript prompt books used by the actors. Laura Keene once
successfully sued a pair of competitors who had sent stenographers to
performances of "Our American Cousin," copied down the lines, and begun a
production of their own. Though the play's popularity continued for a time
after the Lincoln assassination, Ms. Keene finally did allow this version of
the text to be printed in 1869. Even then she was careful to prominently
state on the title page "Printed, but not published," as existing copyright
law was much less protective of dramatic works that had been "published."
(See Bryan, "The Great American Myth," p. 176; Taylor, "Our American Cousin:
the Play that Changed History," p. 25.)
    This copy is bound in the original plain light blue wrappers over a sewn
binding. Original cast from the 1858 opening at Laura Keene's Theatre, New
York, appears on verso of title page. The last words that Lincoln heard on
this earth appear on page 37. Heel of spine has some shallow chewing along
last 3/4," title and year lightly pencilled on front cover, title penned in
contemporary ink on spine. A nice example of a scarce bit of Lincolniana.
$650.00
See photo: http://www.backcreekbooks.com/bookphotos/7360.jpg

=:::=:::=T E R M S=:::=:::=
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Thank you for your interest.

Best regards,

Rock Toews
Back Creek Books
Post Office Box 3540, Annapolis, MD 21403, U.S.A.
Tel. 410-626-1363 or 877-896-2669 (toll free), Fax. 815-425-8542
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--
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Today's featured book from our stock at the booksellers' cooperative,
TomFolio.com:
 Sikorski, Wladyslaw (Introductory Note by George C. Marshall).  'Modern
Warfare.'
 Details and secure ordering:
http://www.tomfolio.com/bookdetailsmem.asp?book=6629&mem=106
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'Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch.
Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote.' - Benjamin Franklin, 1759