THREE PLAYS FOR NON-PURITANS

1951. DEWITT, S.A. THREE PLAYS FOR NON-PURITANS. NY: Strathmore Press, 1951. 8vo., blue cloth with original paper title labels. First Edition. Signed presentation from DeWitt on the front endpaper: "For Bob from Sam DeWitt. March 3, '53." First Edition. The three plays, perhaps unstaged, are "Rhyme Without Reason", a comedy of manners set in the Bohemian days of Greenwich Village, "Where Are the Snows", a play about Francois Villon, and "Shoes for the Stars", about the spirit conquering greed and orneriness. Samuel Aaron DeWitt was a businessman and a member of the NY State Assembly representing Bronx's 7th district from 1919 until 1928. In 1928 he made an unsuccessful campaign for the U.S. Congress. DeWitt is most famous for being thrown out of the state Assembly, along with four fellow state legislators, for being members of the Socialist Party. The five members brought this case to the U.S. Supreme Court and, subsequently, the New York Assembly was forced to seat three of the five members again, including DeWitt. The other members included August Claessens, Samuel Orr, Charles Solomon, and most famously, Louis Waldman. DeWitt was good friends with author Upton Sinclair. In Sinclair's novel, "The Jungle," one of the main characters, Nicholas Schliemann, is based on Sam DeWitt. Very Good (two tiny scraps front cover label & few light stains; contents clean & tight). $50.00.