# Is "The Shadow Magazine (pulp)" by Maxwell Grant (Walter B. Gibson) a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Shadow Magazine (pulp) by Maxwell Grant (Walter B. Gibson) (Street & Smith, 1931 onward) is identified by: Most collectible issue is the first, 'The Living Shadow' (The Shadow Magazine, April/Spring 1931). Original issue is the first appearance; no edition states.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Most collectible issue is the first, 'The Living Shadow' (The Shadow Magazine, April/Spring 1931)
- Identification by cover date, volume/number, and contents; single printing per issue
- Publisher imprint reads Street & Smith
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Maxwell Grant (Walter B. Gibson) |
| Publisher | Street & Smith |
| Year | 1931 onward |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Most collectible issue is the first, 'The Living Shadow' (The Shadow Magazine, April/Spring 1931) |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Landmark hero pulp. Most collectible issue is the first, 'The Living Shadow' (The Shadow Magazine, April/Spring 1931). Identification by cover date, volume/number, and contents; single printing per issue.

## Is this the true first?
Original issue is the first appearance; no edition states. The first issue ('The Living Shadow') is the key collectible.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club analog. Beware later Bantam/paperback novelizations and reprints of Shadow novels (1960s-the printed price), which are reprints, not the pulp firsts.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Shadow Magazine (pulp)* by Maxwell Grant (Walter B. Gibson) a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-shadow-magazine-pulp
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.