Is My Dutchman and The Slave a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, first printing: William Morrow & Company, New York, 1964
• The point is the copyright page, which lists no additional printings; there is no number line, and later printings are identified by the printing statement added there
• Critically, the book was issued simultaneously in two formats in 1964 — a clothbound issue and a wrappers issue in Morrow's Apollo Editions (A-122) — so 'first edition' alone does not settle the format, and ABAA dealers accordingly catalogue the hardback as the 'clothbound issue'
• The clothbound issue is quarter white/ivory cloth over black paper-covered boards; dealer descriptions of the spine lettering CONFLICT (some read black and brown, others red and black), so treat the lettering colour as unsettled and rely on the copyright page and the format
• A yellow topstain is reported, but by a single source only
• The pictorial dust jacket is by Lawrence Ratzkin; some jackets carry a gold-foil 'Off-Broadway Award Winner' sticker on the front panel, which is a publisher's promotional addition rather than a state point, and its absence does not demote a copy

How William Morrow, New York marked a first edition

• 1922–c.1962 (Harper & Brothers, stated-first era): from 1922 Harper & Brothers began printing the words 'First Edition' on the copyright page. IMPORTANT: the letter printing code did NOT stop in 1922 — it continued to ap…
• Reading the year code (the central trap): the year sequence begins M=1912 and runs forward through the alphabet — M=1912, N=1913, O=1914 … Z=1925, A=1926, B=1927 … L=1936. In 1937 the alphabet is RECYCLED: it restarts at…

Full William Morrow, New York first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

US true first — census claim confirmed. William Morrow, New York, 1964 precedes the first UK edition, Faber & Faber, London, 1965 ([vi], 88 pp., gilt-lettered red cloth), which is separately collected as the first English edition but is a reprint of the text. Both plays had been staged before publication — Dutchman opened in 1964 and took the Obie for Best American Play — so the Morrow volume is the first book appearance, not the first appearance of the work. The true first bears LeRoi Jones on the title page; any copy reading 'Amiri Baraka' is later, as the author adopted that name after publication.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue is documented for the Morrow printing. The live trap is format rather than a club copy: the 1964 Apollo Editions paperback (A-122) is a genuine first printing in wrappers and is routinely and accurately listed as 'First Edition; First Printing' — it simply is not the clothbound issue, and buyers of a 'first' frequently receive it. Later Morrow and Apollo printings are identified by the printing statement added to the copyright page. Faber's 1965 edition and its reissues (ISBN 9780571063949) are UK reprints of the text.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Dutchman and The Slave a first edition?

A first edition of Dutchman and The Slave by LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka) (William Morrow, New York) is identified by: First edition, first printing: William Morrow & Company, New York, 1964.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). US true first — census claim confirmed.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No book-club issue is documented for the Morrow printing. The live trap is format rather than a club copy: the 1964 Apollo Editions paperback (A-122) is a genuine first printing in wrappers and is routinely and accurately listed as 'First Edition; First Printing' — it simply is not the clothbound issue, and buyers of a 'first' frequently receive it. Later Morrow and Apollo printings are identified by the printing statement added to the copyright page. Faber's 1965 edition and its reissues (ISBN

I have a first edition of Dutchman and The Slave — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.