# Is "Marathon Man" by William Goldman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Marathon Man by William Goldman (Delacorte Press, 1974) is identified by: "First printing" is stated on the copyright page of the true first, with no reference to any later printing. US Delacorte Press (New York, 1974) is the true first — this part of the census claim is confirmed — but the census note's UK year is wrong and is corrected here.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- "First printing" is stated on the copyright page of the true first, with no reference to any later printing
- The book collates 309 pages, bound in black cloth lettered on the spine in silver and neon violet, with a red top-stain
- The jacket was designed by Paul Bacon and is predominantly red; the rear panel carries a photograph of Goldman with the ISBN at the lower right and no review blurbs — later jackets add review matter
- The jacket should be priced at the front flap (price present, not clipped)
- An advance uncorrected proof of the first edition exists and precedes the trade issue
- Publisher imprint reads Delacorte Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | William Goldman |
| Publisher | Delacorte Press |
| Year | 1974 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | "First printing" is stated on the copyright page of the true first, with no reference to any later printing |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
"First printing" is stated on the copyright page of the true first, with no reference to any later printing. The book collates 309 pages, bound in black cloth lettered on the spine in silver and neon violet, with a red top-stain. The jacket was designed by Paul Bacon and is predominantly red; the rear panel carries a photograph of Goldman with the ISBN at the lower right and no review blurbs — later jackets add review matter. The jacket should be priced at the front flap (price present, not clipped). An advance uncorrected proof of the first edition exists and precedes the trade issue.

## Is this the true first?
US Delacorte Press (New York, 1974) is the true first — this part of the census claim is confirmed — but the census note's UK year is wrong and is corrected here. The first UK edition is Macmillan (London, 1975), a year after Delacorte, not a 1974 simultaneous, under a jacket designed by Stan Fernandes. The Macmillan issue is separately collected as the first British edition. Later Ballantine and other trade reissues are first-thus, not firsts.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club-specific point is documented for this title in the sources consulted. US club copies of Delacorte titles of this period are identified in the usual way — no price at the jacket flap and a blind-stamped square or dot on the rear board, with lighter bulk and lower-grade paper than the trade book. Note that a previous owner's personal blindstamp at the half title is a provenance mark, not a club tell, and should not be confused with one.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Marathon Man* by William Goldman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/marathon-man
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.