# Is "Nightmare Alley" by William Lindsay Gresham a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Nightmare Alley by William Lindsay Gresham (Rinehart & Company, 1946) is identified by: True first is the 1946 Rinehart HARDCOVER. Caution: hardcover precedes the paperback.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the 1946 Rinehart HARDCOVER. Caution title
- Not a PBO despite its noir/carny reputation
- Rinehart first has no later-printing statement and the original jacket; later Signet/popular paperbacks are reprints
- Publisher imprint reads Rinehart & Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | William Lindsay Gresham |
| Publisher | Rinehart & Company |
| Year | 1946 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the 1946 Rinehart HARDCOVER. Caution title |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
True first is the 1946 Rinehart HARDCOVER. Caution title. Not a PBO despite its noir/carny reputation. Rinehart first has no later-printing statement and the original jacket; later Signet/popular paperbacks are reprints.

## Is this the true first?
Caution: hardcover precedes the paperback. The mass-market reprints are first-thus.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish the Rinehart hardcover first from book-club editions and from paperback reprints (and modern NYRB editions).

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Nightmare Alley* by William Lindsay Gresham a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/nightmare-alley
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.