# Is "The Name of the Game Is Death" by Dan J. Marlowe a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Name of the Game Is Death by Dan J. Marlowe (Gold Medal Books, 1962) is identified by: True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal k1308 (1962), the printed price. Paperback is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal k1308
- , the printed price
- Paperback wraps; no hardcover precedes it
- Gold Medal logo and catalog number; first printing has the original price and no later-printing statement
- A celebrated hardboiled PBO (admired by Stephen King)
- Publisher imprint reads Gold Medal Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Dan J. Marlowe |
| Publisher | Gold Medal Books |
| Year | 1962 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal k1308 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal k1308 (1962), the printed price. Paperback wraps; no hardcover precedes it. Gold Medal logo and catalog number; first printing has the original price and no later-printing statement. A celebrated hardboiled PBO (admired by Stephen King).

## Is this the true first?
Paperback is the true first. Modern reprints (Stark House etc.) are first-thus only.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. First Gold Medal k1308 printing has the printed price and no later-printing line; later printings raise price/add printing data.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Name of the Game Is Death* by Dan J. Marlowe a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-name-of-the-game-is-death
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.