# Is "The Getaway" by Jim Thompson a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Getaway by Jim Thompson (Signet, 1958) is identified by: True first is the paperback original, Signet S1584, published January 1959 (copyright 1958); pictorial wraps with cover art by Robert Maguire, 127 pages. The Signet paperback original is the true first; for over a decade the only other appearance was the French Serie Noire translation.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the paperback original, Signet S1584, published January 1959 (copyright 1958); pictorial wraps with cover art by Robert Maguire, 127 pages
- No hardcover precedes it
- The Signet imprint and the catalog number S1584 on the cover and spine identify the first printing
- Publisher imprint reads Signet
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jim Thompson |
| Publisher | Signet |
| Year | 1958 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the paperback original, Signet S1584, published January 1959 (copyright 1958); pictorial wraps with cover art by Robert… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first is the paperback original, Signet S1584, published January 1959 (copyright 1958); pictorial wraps with cover art by Robert Maguire, 127 pages. No hardcover precedes it. The Signet imprint and the catalog number S1584 on the cover and spine identify the first printing.

## Is this the true first?
The Signet paperback original is the true first; for over a decade the only other appearance was the French Serie Noire translation. Movie tie-in editions (after the 1972 Peckinpah film and the 1994 remake) are much later reprints.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. Distinguish the first Signet from later Signet printings (later catalog numbers or an added printing statement) and from the film tie-in covers.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Getaway* by Jim Thompson a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-getaway
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.