Arthur Miller First Editions

• Situation Normal (nonfiction) — 1944 · Reynal & HitchcockReynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1944, full title 'Situation Normal...'; yellow cloth boards stamped in red and black, running 179 pages, octavo, in an illustrated dust jacket carrying its printed price. Miller's first published book, a piece of wartime reportage growing out of his research for the film that became 'The Story of G.I. Joe.'. US Reynal & Hitchcock 1944 is the true first and only original edition; no earlier or competing first exists. No book club edition of the true first.
• The Man Who Had All the Luck — 1944 · In 'Cross-Section: A Collection of New American Writing', edited by Edwin SeaverFirst book appearance is within the anthology 'Cross-Section: A Collection of New American Writing' (L.B. Fischer, 1944), issued in cloth with dust jacket. The play appears as a contribution among many authors in that volume. The Man Who Had All the Luck was not published as a separate book at the time; the 1944 Cross-Section anthology is the true first book appearance, predating the brief Broadway run of November 1944. A collectible copy is the anthology itself, not a standalone edition. No book club edition for this anthology first appearance.
• Focus (novel) — 1945 · Reynal & HitchcockReynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1945. Cloth boards (recorded in grey or tan cloth, lettered in black on the front board and in black and blue on the spine), with a dust jacket bearing a geometric Bauhaus-style design and the original price printed on the front flap. 217 pages. Miller's only novel. US Reynal & Hitchcock 1945 is the true first. A UK Victor Gollancz edition also appeared in 1945, after the US first; the record's claim of a 1949 Gollancz first was incorrect. A Book Find Club edition exists and must be distinguished from the trade first; watch for book-club markings and absence of the front-flap price.
• All My Sons — 1947 · Reynal & HitchcockMiller's first published play in book form, 83 pages. Issued in pale green cloth boards (also a gray cloth variant, no priority), spine lettered in navy blue, in a dust jacket priced 2.00. Dedicated to Elia Kazan, who directed the 1947 Coronet Theatre production. First printing has no statement of later printings on the copyright page. US Reynal & Hitchcock 1947 is the true first. Genuinely scarce in jacket; the second printing is noted on the copyright page. Second and later printings are stated as such on the copyright page; the true first carries no printing line. No common book-club edition.
• Death of a Salesman — 1949 · The Viking PressCopyright page reads 'Published by the Viking Press in March 1949' with no later printings listed. Broken/imperfect type in 'solid' on page 11 is the recognized first-issue typographic point. Orange cloth, spine and titles stamped in brown; Jo Mielziner stage-set pictorial endpapers. First-issue dust jacket designed by Joseph Hirsch, the printed price intact, with the jacket art positioned such that the 'S' of…. US Viking 1949 is the true first (precedes the UK Cresset Press 1949). Beware jacket-restored or married copies. Book Club Edition: jacket lacks the printed price or states 'Book Club Edition'; binding is often boards rather than cloth; a blind-stamped dot or mark appears at the lower-right rear board. The broken type alone is NOT conclusive, since some early club copies retain it; require the cloth binding plus the priced unclipped jacket plus the 'March 1949' statement.
• An Enemy of the People (adaptation of Ibsen) — 1951 · Viking PressThe Viking Press, New York, 1951 (published March 1951), titled 'Arthur Miller's Adaptation of An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen'; octavo, 125 pages. First-state binding is grey cloth with the spine and front cover lettered in black and a red top edge (stained topedge), issued under a pictorial orange-and-black dust jacket that retains its printed price when unclipped. US Viking 1951 is the true first of Miller's adaptation. No early book club edition of the true first; identify by the 1951 Viking imprint, grey cloth, red top edge, and the orange-and-black jacket.
• The Crucible — 1953 · The Viking PressCopyright page states 'Published by the Viking Press in April 1953' with no further printings listed. Octavo, bound in pin-stripe paper-covered boards over a grey cloth backstrip (nervy vertical red and yellow lines on a pale grey ground), spine lettered in red, top edge stained red. Dust jacket photograph by Gjon Mili. US Viking 1953 is the true first (precedes the UK Cresset Press 1954). Signed copies are author-inscribed trade copies. Later Viking printings add printing history to the copyright page; the first issue carries only the 'April 1953' statement. No prominent book-club edition is the collecting target.
• A View from the Bridge — 1955 · The Viking PressFirst edition contains the original one-act verse version, paired with 'A Memory of Two Mondays,' distinct from Miller's later two-act revision. The pairing matches the 29 September 1955 Coronet Theatre double bill. Copyright page carries the dated Viking first-printing statement with no later printings listed. US Viking 1955 is the true first of the original one-act text. The expanded two-act version (Cresset Press, London, 1956) is a separate 'first thus' for the revised play. Later printings add printing history; the first issue carries only the dated Viking statement. The one-act versus two-act text distinction matters more than printing for this title.
• A View from the Bridge (revised two-act version) — 1957 · Cresset PressThe Cresset Press, London, 1957. Cloth (red cloth with gilt spine lettering is recorded), with dust jacket. Prints the expanded two-act revision of the play and also includes Miller's introductory essay 'On Social Plays'. Cresset Press London 1957 is the first UK edition and the first standalone book of the revised two-act text. Note that the two-act text also appears in Arthur Miller's Collected Plays (Viking, New York, 1957); precedence between the two 1957 appearances is not firmly established from available sources, so Cresset should be described as the first separate two-act volume rather than the unqualified first appearance. No book club edition.
• Arthur Miller's Collected Plays — 1957 · Viking PressThe Viking Press, New York, 1957. Cloth boards with dust jacket. Collects All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, The Crucible, A Memory of Two Mondays, and A View from the Bridge, and carries the first appearance of Miller's substantial critical Introduction (about fifty pages). US Viking 1957 is the true first and the first appearance of the important Introduction. A UK Cresset Press edition followed in 1958. No early book club edition for the Introduction's first appearance.
• The Misfits (cinema-novel) — 1961 · Viking PressFirst edition, Viking Press, New York, 1961. Tweed/linen cloth stamped in black and red, in first-issue dust jacket. Described by Miller as a cinema-novel, a story conceived as a film, written concurrently with the screenplay for the 1961 John Huston film. US Viking is the true first; the UK Secker & Warburg edition also appeared in 1961. A book-club issue exists: typically smaller/thinner bulk, no price on the jacket flap, and a blindstamp (small indentation) on the rear board.
• Jane's Blanket (children's book) — 1963 · Crowell-Collier PressFirst edition, first printing, The Crowell-Collier Press, New York, 1963. Illustrated boards; Miller's only children's book, illustrated by Al Parker. Octavo, 64 pages, black-and-white illustrations with pink used for the blanket. The Crowell-Collier Press US edition of 1963 is the established true first. A supposed earlier 1962 UK Robert Hale / Collier-Macmillan issue could not be confirmed by any reliable source and should not be relied upon; treat the 1963 US edition as the first. (Note a distinct, much later 1972 Viking edition illustrated by Emily McCully — a separate reissue, not the first.). No known book-club edition.
• After the Fall — 1964 · Viking PressFirst edition, first printing, Viking Press, New York, 1964. Dark red cloth-covered boards, spine lettered in gilt, in dust jacket. The Viking first prints the revised final stage version of the text. US Viking is the true first (1964); the UK Secker & Warburg edition followed in 1965. The stage premiere used an earlier working text, but the first published Viking book already carries the revised final stage version. A book-club issue exists: typically no price on the jacket and a blindstamp on the rear board.
• Incident at Vichy — 1965 · Viking PressFirst edition, first printing, Viking Press, New York, 1965; a slim octavo bound in half blue cloth over patterned white paper boards, gilt-lettered spine, with black endpapers and a blind-embossed 'M' to the front board. The first-issue dust jacket was designed by M.B. Glick and should retain its printed price on the front flap (not clipped). US Viking is the true first (1965); the UK Secker & Warburg edition followed in 1966. A book-club issue exists, distinguished by the usual tell of no printed price on the jacket. Note that the blind-embossed 'M' on the front board is a feature of the Viking trade first itself, not a book-club marker.
• I Don't Need You Any More (stories) — 1967 · Viking PressFirst edition, Viking Press, New York, 1967. Cloth in dust jacket, collating xiii, 240 pages; a collection of nine stories, among them The Misfits. The first-issue jacket should retain its printed price. US Viking is the true first (1967); the UK Secker & Warburg edition also appeared in 1967. A book-club issue exists, distinguished by the usual tells: no printed price on the jacket and a blindstamp on the rear board.
• The Price — 1968 · Viking PressFirst edition, first printing, Viking Press, New York, 1968. Bound in quarter black cloth over blue paper-covered boards, with the spine lettered in green, blue, and white and a green topstain to the fore-edge. Collation runs [10], 3-116, [4] pp. The first-issue dust jacket carries a design by Mel Williamson; the printed price should be present on the front flap. US Viking Press is the true first (1968); the UK Secker & Warburg edition also appeared in 1968. The play premiered on Broadway in 1968. A book-club issue exists, distinguished by the usual tells: no printed price on the jacket flap and a blindstamp (small blindstamped square) on the rear board.
• In Russia (with Inge Morath, photos) — 1969 · Viking PressHardcover in dust jacket, issued as A Studio Book / Viking Press, New York, 1969. Text by Arthur Miller with photographs by Inge Morath; roughly 240 pages, printed in gravure with color plates. US Viking (A Studio Book) is the true first. A British edition (Martin Secker & Warburg, London) also appeared in 1969, along with other-language editions; the Viking Studio Book is the recognized first printing. No book-club edition is typically associated with this photographic title.
• The Creation of the World and Other Business — 1973 · The Viking PressThe Viking Press, New York, 1973; hardcover octavo of about 106 pages in original green cloth, the spine lettered in gilt and black, with yellow endpapers, in a dust jacket designed by Hal Siegal bearing its printed price. First edition, first printing carries the Viking imprint on the title and copyright pages with no statement of a later printing. The play had premiered on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on 30…. US Viking 1973 is the true first for this play in book form. To confirm a first printing, verify the copyright page shows the Viking first-edition state without a stated later printing; treat any book-club reprint (blind-stamp on rear board, absence of price on jacket) as a separate later issue.
• In the Country (with Inge Morath) — 1977 · Viking PressHardcover in dust jacket, Viking Press, New York, 1977; text by Arthur Miller with photographs by Inge Morath, approximately 184 numbered pages plus unnumbered photographic plates, black-and-white with some color. US Viking is the true first. A British issue (Secker & Warburg) also appeared; the Viking printing is the recognized first. No book-club edition is typically associated with this photographic title.
• The Theater Essays of Arthur Miller — 1978 · The Viking PressHardcover in dust jacket, The Viking Press, New York, 1978; edited and introduced by Robert A. Martin with a foreword by Arthur Miller, about 401 pages. First edition, first printing carries the Viking imprint without a later-printing statement. US Viking is the true first for this collection. No book-club edition is typically associated with this title.
• Chinese Encounters (with Inge Morath) — 1979 · Farrar, Straus & GirouxFirst edition, first printing by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, 1979. Text by Arthur Miller with color and black-and-white photographs by Inge Morath, documenting their 1978 trip to China during the political thaw after Mao's death. A small quarto (roughly 9 the printed price by 7 the printed price inches), about 252 pages plus a few unnumbered leaves, bound in blue cloth with silver titling to the spine,…. US Farrar, Straus & Giroux is the true first for this photographic title, 1979. No book-club edition is typically associated with this title.
• Salesman in Beijing (nonfiction) — 1984 · Viking PressFirst edition, Viking Press, New York, 1984. Bound in quarter red cloth over black paper-covered boards with gilt and black spine titling, in a pictorial dust jacket. Numerous black-and-white photographs by Inge Morath throughout. A softcover issue was also released. US Viking Press is the true first edition. No book club edition is typically encountered.
• Timebends: A Life (autobiography) — 1987 · Grove PressFirst edition, Grove Press, New York, 1987. Hardcover in quarter cloth over boards, stamped in gilt, with dust jacket; approximately 614 pages, illustrated with photographic plates. A signed limited issue also exists. US Grove Press is the true first trade edition; the UK edition was published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson (not Methuen) in 1987. Later printings can be distinguished from the first printing.
• The Ride Down Mt. Morgan — 1991 · Methuen DramaFirst published in London by Methuen Drama in 1991, issued in wrappers. Miller was dissatisfied with the 1991 London production and substantially revised the text for the later US premiere, so the US edition carries a revised text. The UK Methuen 1991 edition is the first; the revised US text follows later. No book club edition.
• The Last Yankee — 1993 · Methuen DramaFirst published by Methuen Drama, London, 1993, in wrappers (Methuen Modern Plays, ISBN 0413677204). The Penguin US trade edition followed in 1994; a Dramatists Play Service acting edition also exists. The UK Methuen 1993 wrappers edition precedes the 1994 US Penguin trade edition. No book club edition.
• Broken Glass — 1994 · Methuen DramaFirst published by Methuen Drama, London, 1994, in illustrated card wrappers (Methuen Modern Plays series, ISBN 0413681904, 96 pp.). Timed to the UK premiere at the National Theatre's Lyttelton Theatre in August 1994. The UK Methuen 1994 wrappers edition is the first published edition; US and acting editions follow. No book club edition.
• Mr. Peters' Connection — 1998 · Methuen DramaFirst published in the UK by Methuen Drama in 1998 in printed wrappers (ISBN 0-413-74730-1, Methuen Drama Modern Plays series), following the May 1998 Off-Broadway premiere starring Peter Falk. The US Penguin Plays paperback (ISBN 0-14-048245-8) followed, dated 1999. The UK Methuen wrappered edition of 1998 precedes the 1999 US Penguin Plays paperback; the play appeared only in wrappers, with no hardcover trade issue. No book club edition; the two early states are the 1998 Methuen wrappers and the 1999 Penguin Plays paperback, distinguished by publisher, ISBN, and date.
• Resurrection Blues — 2006 · PenguinTrade paperback in wrappers; Penguin (Penguin Plays), 2006. Posthumous publication of a late Miller play. ISBN 9780143035480. Issued in wrappers; no hardcover trade first precedes it. No book club edition.

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