# Is "Baby Doll (screenplay)" by Tennessee Williams a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Baby Doll (screenplay) by Tennessee Williams (New Directions, 1956) is identified by: First edition in cloth (yellow) with a dust jacket. US New Directions is the true first; the UK Secker & Warburg edition followed in 1957.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- New Directions, 1956
- First edition in cloth (yellow) with a dust jacket
- Screenplay text, with the two one-act plays from which it derived ('27 Wagons Full of Cotton' and 'The Long Stay Cut Short; or, The Unsatisfactory Supper')
- Publisher imprint reads New Directions
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Tennessee Williams |
| Publisher | New Directions |
| Year | 1956 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | New Directions, 1956 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
New Directions, 1956. First edition in cloth (yellow) with a dust jacket. Screenplay text, with the two one-act plays from which it derived ('27 Wagons Full of Cotton' and 'The Long Stay Cut Short; or, The Unsatisfactory Supper').

## Is this the true first?
US New Directions is the true first; the UK Secker & Warburg edition followed in 1957.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. A Signet paperback appeared separately and is not the first edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Baby Doll (screenplay)* by Tennessee Williams a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/baby-doll-screenplay
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.