Ben Hecht; Gene Fowler — The Great Magoo

New York, Covici-Friede, 1933. First edition. Cloth. A smart, dust-wrapper-clad first edition of Hecht and Fowler's notoriously unsuccessful play, with colour illustrations by Herman Rosse. First edition.   In the publisher's original black cloth binding, encased in the original, clipped dust wrapper.   Illustrated with a vignette title page and several further colour decorations by Herman Rosse, who also designed the set for the 1932 performance.   The unsuccessful Broadway play, co-written by Academy-Award winner Ben Hecht and American writer Gene Fowler. Following its debut at the New York Selwyn Theatre, the performance ran for a further ten shows before closing prematurely.   From the theatrical collection of Clive Hirschhorn, theatre critic for the Sunday Express from 1966 to 1993. Known for his witty and thorough reviews, features and interviews, Hirschhorn also authored several works on the film industry, including his critically acclaimed biographies of Hollywood stars, Gene Kelly and James Mason.   A renowned book collector, the majority of works from Hirschhorn"s incredible library of theatre-related material have a characteristic pencil inscription with his date of acquisition to the upper corner of the paste down. In the publisher's original black cloth binding, encased in the original, clipped dust wrapper. Externally, very smart with slight bumping and rubbing, light marking and minor loss of cloth. Dust wrapper also pleasing, featuring heavier edge wear, culminating in a few small chips, and light discolouration and marking. Internally, firmly bound. Bright and clean with only mild discolouration and the odd spot. Very Good . Ill.: Herman Rosse. Very Good/Very Good.