# Is "Five Plays (Chicago; Icarus's Mother; etc.)" by Sam Shepard a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Five Plays (Chicago; Icarus's Mother; etc.) by Sam Shepard (Bobbs-Merrill, 1967) is identified by: True first is the Bobbs-Merrill (Indianapolis) 1967 hardcover in cloth with dust jacket, Shepard's first book. US Bobbs-Merrill 1967 hardcover is the true first and precedes the UK Faber edition, which is a 1969 wrappers issue rather than a simultaneous 1967 printing.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the Bobbs-Merrill (Indianapolis) 1967 hardcover in cloth with dust jacket, Shepard's first book
- It collects Chicago, Icarus's Mother, Red Cross, Fourteen Hundred Thousand, and Melodrama Play
- The Faber and Faber (London) edition did not appear until 1969 and was issued in wrappers, so it is not a co-first
- Publisher imprint reads Bobbs-Merrill
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Sam Shepard |
| Publisher | Bobbs-Merrill |
| Year | 1967 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the Bobbs-Merrill (Indianapolis) 1967 hardcover in cloth with dust jacket… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
True first is the Bobbs-Merrill (Indianapolis) 1967 hardcover in cloth with dust jacket, Shepard's first book. It collects Chicago, Icarus's Mother, Red Cross, Fourteen Hundred Thousand, and Melodrama Play. The Faber and Faber (London) edition did not appear until 1969 and was issued in wrappers, so it is not a co-first.

## Is this the true first?
US Bobbs-Merrill 1967 hardcover is the true first and precedes the UK Faber edition, which is a 1969 wrappers issue rather than a simultaneous 1967 printing.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Five Plays (Chicago; Icarus's Mother; etc.)* by Sam Shepard a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/five-plays-chicago-icaruss-mother-etc
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.