Search Results: Original Manuscripts from Royal Books, Inc.

N.p.: N.p., Unknown. Carbon typescript manuscript for an unpublished novel. With manuscript ink and pencil annotations throughout, most noting editorial revisions. A chronically ill Palm Springs realtor finds himself unexpectedly framed for murder. Set in Palm Springs, CA. Ordered but unbound leaves, housed in a grey Southworth Typewriter Paper box. Title page present, with credits for author W.M. Bruckner. 330 leaves, with last page of text numbered 328. Carbon typescript, rectos only. Pages Very Good, with a few lightly soiled leaves.

N.p.: N.p., 1960. Bound carbon typescript of Stefan Zweig's 1927 novella, made for the purpose of use by German actress Lil Dagover for her reading of same for the 1963 German LP, "Lil Dagover spricht Stefan Zweig." Dagover's name is in blue manuscript ink on the front board, then again with her German address on the front endpaper, then only her name once again on the title page. With Dagover's manuscript corrections to the text on virtually every recto, and, when a rewrite of a passage was required, on the verso to the of a given typescript passage on the recto. Typescript is accompanied by the resulting recording by Dagover, the original German issue by Deustsche Grammophon, released in 1963. One of the most famous works by Zweig, an Austrian Jew who was a passionate collector of autograph manuscripts, maintained close friendships with the likes of Sigmund Freud and Richard Strauss, and whose prose took on the dual concerns of daily life and the impact of politics on everyday people. This… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1974. Draft manuscript for an unpublished novel, circa 1974. The Saroyan collection at UC Berkeley holds two copies of the manuscript, with slightly shortened titles, from which we date our copy. White untitled self wrappers. Title page present, with credits for novelist William Saroyan. 141 leaves, with last leaf of text numbered 139. Mimeograph duplication. Pages Fine, wrapper Near Fine, bound with two gold brads.

New York: Random House, 1987. First Edition. Preceding the First Edition by two years. First generation photocopied typescript (rectos only) containing photocopied annotations throughout. In five volumes. Last leaf of text in each volume states the editor's name (presumed) followed by the date(s) of revisions made, ranging from 1985 to 1987. Likely an internal draft prepared for circulation while the book was being edited. Volume one: title page through chapter IV, page 145 (roughly pages 1-304). Revised 6/20/86 and 9/10/86. Volume two: chapters V-VII (roughly pages 305-660). Revised 5/13/86 and 8/21/86. Volume three: "SECOND HALF-MINUS LAST CHAPTER" on title page. Chapters VIII-IX (roughly pages 661-968). Revised 4/16/85, 7/2/86, 10/9/86, 11/26/86. Tipped-in slip from Al Silverman (chairman of Book of the Month Club, 1972-1988; editor and publisher at Viking Press, 1989-1997), with "Mr. Fadiman" on the slip in manuscript ink. Clifton Fadiman (1904-1999) was an author, editor, and radio… Read More

New York: St. Martin's Press, 1986. Final corrected manuscript for George Baxt's novel, "The Alfred Hitchcock Murder Case," featuring his series character Jacob Singer, set in England between 1925-1936. Ribbon copy typescript, with manuscript pencil corrections by the author throughout. First published in 1986 by St. Martin's Press. 251 pages, Near Fine. In a custom clamshell box, with red leather title labels, titles and rule in gilt.

N.p.: N.p., 1990. Archive of original material belonging to mystery and crime author Gerald A. Browne, consisting of 19 typed manuscripts, 13 handwritten manuscripts, 8 corrected galleys, 3 screenplays, and extensive handwritten, typed, and xerographically duplicated materials pertaining to all novels in the author's oeuvre. Browne was born and raised in Litchfield County, Connecticut. He attended the University of Mexico, the Sorbonne, and Columbia University. "It's All Zoo," his debut novel, was written while Browne was living in Paris and working as a fashion photographer. The novel's success heralded a twenty-year career as a bestselling author, until his retirement in the late 1990s. His works were adapted twice for film: "11 Harrowhouse" (1974), directed by Aram Avakian and starring Charles Grodin, James Mason, and Candice Bergen, and "Green Ice" (1981), directed by Ernest Day and starring Ryan O'Neal, Anne Archer, and Omar Sharif. Both films follow jewel heists, a common theme in many of… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1970. Substantial archive of material belonging to Austrian-American stage hypnotist and magician John Kolisch, including two three-ring card binders with typescript and manuscript notes for Kolisch's live shows, and 271 vintage photographs of Kolisch in performance. Archive appears to date from the 1950s through the 1970s, the heyday of Kolisch's career. One binder holds notes and scripts for Kolisch's magic tricks, powers of suggestion, and general show patter and jokes, while the other binder focuses primarily on feats of hypnosis. The binders hold a variety of material relating to Kolisch's performances, a mix of more formal typed scripts for routines alongside manuscript draft notes and annotations noting potential "ad-libbed" interjections. Several pages capture Kolisch recording his ideas for changes to the pacing and setup of his shows, as well as reminders about modernizing his patter and updating his celebrity references. Although the bulk of Kolisch's material is undated,… Read More

Various American Cities: Various, 1970. First Edition. Archive of material relating to Lillian Gish's 1969 memoir "The Movies, Mr. Griffith, and Me," including author Lillian Gish's Olivetti Lettera 22 portable typewriter used to type the manuscript for the book, as well as two manuscripts for the book: one typescript with editorial annotations in manuscript pencil throughout, and one mimeographed copy. The archive also includes a First Edition copy of the book, with the bookplate of actor and producer Frank Buxton affixed to the front pastedown. Bookplate signed by Gish, and laid in with the book is a warm manuscript note from Gish. Also included in the archive are several scripts for Gish's one-woman touring show "Lillian Gish and the Movies-The Art of Film 1900-1928," housed in two binders, circa 1973. One binder holds two copies of the same script (one carbon typescript and one xerographically duplicated) dated 1973, with a note at the front indicating the script as the personal property of… Read More

(Los Angeles): N.p., 1981. First draft manuscript for the 1984 novel, dated 1981, and here under the working title "L.A. Death Trip." INSCRIBED by Ellroy on one of two title pages (with another unused title, "Because the Night," crossed out), in which the author identifies this typed manuscript as a "precursor" draft to "Blood on the Moon" and specifies the time period in which it was written. Also included is an autograph letter signed on Mysterious Press stationery, in which Ellroy calls this "the real live, genuine, cold-blooded 1st draft of Blood on the Moon - my 3rd novel. As you will be able to tell, the book needed work - I did it, and the revised edition met the eyes of the world. This edition meets only your baby blues... so I hope you dig it." As indicated in the Ellroy letter, comparison with the published book shows substantial differences from the manuscript on offer, with plot elements remaining relatively the same, but significant changes to the text. The author's third book and… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1987. Revised Draft manuscript for the 1988 mystery novel, seen here under the working title "The Man Who Drew Mobsters." The novel was first published in 1988 by Offspring Press. The first volume in the Lindsey and Plum detective series. Xerographic duplication. Approximately 357 leaves, rectos only. Near Fine. Unbound, housed in a white cardboard box.

N.p.: N.p., 1982. Original handwritten manuscript for an unproduced film. Laid in with the script is an undated revision page, as well as a receipt from Fisher Graphics itemizing two copies of the script be printed and collated. Missing page 28, likely as used or issued. Based on the 1968 novel "Legion of Outcasts" by Nick Hurk and Ben Roberts Davis writing as Hurk Davis. A Dutchman living in Paris joins the French Foreign Legion, where he is shipped off to fight in the Algerian Civil War, quickly captured by enemies, and held as a prisoner of war for six months. Set in Algeria, the Netherlands, and France. Green card wrappers. Title page present, dated Jan. 7, 1982, with credits for screenwriters Nick Hurk and Ben Roberts Davis. 233 leaves, with last page of text numbered 225. Handwritten, rectos only, with undated yellow revision pages throughout. Pages Very Good plus, wrapper Very Good plus, with silver prong binding.

N.p.: N.p., N.d.. Typescript draft for an unproduced film. A soldier's father is killed when witnessing a gang hit in Los Angeles and the soldier, on 30 day leave from his tour in Vietnam in order to attend his father's funeral, is out for revenge. A blunt condemnation of violent gangs. Lacking wrappers, as issued. Title page present, with credits for screenwriter Edward A. Townsend. 106 leaves, with last leaf of text numbered 104. Typescript. Pages Near Fine, bound with two gold brads.

N.p.: N.p., 1969. Original ribbon copy typescript for Tay Garnett's screenplay adaptation of Mickey Spillane's 1967 novel. Profusely annotated by Garnett in blue and red ink on every page, and with a annotations by him at the top right corner of the first leaf: "First Draft (Work Copy)," "Screenplay by Tay Garnett," and "From Mickey Spillane's novel." Raoul Walsh eventually worked with Garnett on the script, but this draft precedes his involvement. The film was released on May 15, 1970, and starred Yvette Mimieux, Christopher George, and Yvonne De Carlo. 182 leaves, rectos only. Leaves supple, Very Good plus overall.

N.p.: N.p., 1966. Heavily corrected original typescript for a story by Dieter Dengler and ghost-writer Trevor Armbrister, "Dengler" (here with the hand-corrected title, "Vietnam Exclusive: I Escaped from a Red Prison"). The story first appeared in the December 3, 1966 issue of the "Saturday Evening Post," and was adapted many years later by noted German director Werner Herzog for his 1997 documentary film, "Little Dieter Needs to Fly," then remade by him in 2006 as a dramatic version titled "Rescue Dawn," starring Christian Bale as Dengler. Being that the story was ghost-written by Trevor Armbriste in 1966 (the same year of Dengler's escape)-and that Dengler was a military pilot and not a writer, in addition to still recovering from injuries at the time-it is most likely that the substantive corrections are Armbriste's. Source material for Herzog's early films, often highly improvised affairs, is rare. This manuscript is the earliest corrected form of the story that would be adapted into two of… Read More

New York: Random House, 1953. Joseph Hayes' original typed manuscript for his most famous novel, "The Desperate Hours," with numerous authorial typeovers and editorial corrections. Stamps from the James Brown Agency (author's agent), date stamp of Sept 15 1953 and hand notation "Random House New York" to the title page. The book was published by Random House in 1954, and was so popular upon its release that the author rewrote it as both a play and a movie screenplay within a year of publication. Basis for the classic 1955 film noir directed by William Wyler and starring Humphrey Bogart and Arthur Kennedy, a story of home invasion by a group of ruthless prison escapees, that was in some ways the pinnacle of American urban paranoia in the 1950s. Housed in Hayes' original brown file folder, with his personal return label affixed (indicating a home address in Sarasota, Florida), marked in the author's hand: "ORIGINAL MANUSCIPT [sic] 'THE DESP. HRS' AS SUBMITTED TO RANDOM HOUSE." Unbound pages, Very… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1970. Original manuscript of Terry Southern's short story. Boldly inscribed by the author in manuscript ink to author and editor Jean Stein on the title page: "To darling Jean, this personally inscribed copy of 'The Donkey and the Darling,' now on prominent display at your basic Museum of Modern Art in downtown Gotham, the Empire City, in the room next to the fab work of big Ed Munch ('The Scream,' etc) and not, repeat not, to be missed (I hope, I trust, I pray!) by a certain ultra fab Ms. Jean Stein!!! / Yours as per ever, XXX Ter." Manuscript missing the last page (ending on page 35), amounting to approximately two and a half paragraphs of missing text. Southern's only children's book, an infamous parody of children's tales, originally written in 1958 for the children at the U.N. nursery school in Geneva where his wife worked, and first published by Obscure Publications in 2005. From 1967 to 1977 artist Larry Rivers worked with Universal Limited Art Editions (ULAE) to create a… Read More

New York: HarperCollins, 1996. Tony Hillerman's original typescript for his novel "The Fallen Man," with his original manuscript corrections in ink. Housed in a plain orange publisher's box, with a memo from Hillerman, on his stationery, affixed to the lid. The history of the manuscript is explained in three documents that accompany the typescript: (1) a letter from the editorial staff at HarperCollins, on the publisher's stationery, stating that this the most recent copy-edited typescript, (2) an autograph note on publisher's memo stationery from Hillerman's editor Eamon Dolan, asking Hillerman to provide final changes, and thanking him for providing jacket copy, which he says is superior to his, and will appear "virtually unchanged on the book's flaps," and (3) an autograph note on Hillerman's personal stationery to a bookseller friend, stating that it is his copy of the final corrected typescript (which was ultimately returned to him by the publisher, after the changes were made for the book).… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1987. Vintage six-page typescript for the first chapter from Dorothy Salisbury Davis' 1951 novel "A Gentle Murderer," with the author's annotations in manuscript ink and pencil throughout. Included with the manuscript is a manuscript letter from Davis to Barry Zeman, on Davis' personal letterhead, dated June 13, 1987. The letter notes the typescript as being the first draft of the opening chapter of the novel-seen here under the early working title "No Man's Guilt." Davis also humorously notes that the draft was written while she "was obviously enchanted by Soroyan," and goes on to say that she discarded the remainder of the draft long ago. Davis was nominated for an Edgar Award eight times, served as president of the Mystery Writers of America in 1956, and was declared a Grand Master by the organization in 1985. Typescript: 8.5 x 11 inches. Typescript, rectos only. Unbound. Very Good plus, with light edgewear and age toning. Letter: 8 x 11.5 inches. One leaf, recto only. Near Fine.… Read More

New York: Children's Songs, 1949. Original manuscript and typescript for "The Howdy Doody Show" theme song "It's a Howdy Doody World," created by and belonging to the song's composer Edward Kean, INSCRIBED by Kean in the margin: "From Edward Kean / to / the very special Scott Petersen man!," and further annotated by Kean in manuscript ink. The listing also includes a typed letter signed from Kean to the manuscript's recipient, in which he writes that of the 51 songs in his collection that he wrote for the show ("most while taking showers"), only a dozen or so were manuscript originals as opposed to photostat reproductions, with "It's a Howdy Doody World" being one of the few that he "really liked." Also included is a modern photocopy of a 1953 biography of Kean written for NBC that states "he hopes to see his name in lights on Broadway," to which Kean has affixed a manuscript note reading "TACO BELL made it, but I didn't," plus a couple of other typescript and manuscript marginalia from the… Read More

Paris: Editions Georges Marton, 1938. Original carbon typescript for the 1938 play in agency wrappers. The play debuted at the Theatre des Mathurins in Paris on January 11, 1938 and ran for 100 performances. First published in the collection "Pieces noires" (Calmann-Levy, 1942) and published in English as "Restless Heart" (Methuen, 1957). Beige agency wrappers, 108 leaves, with last page of text numbered 105. Carbon typescript. Pages Fine, wrapper Very Good, bound internally with two gold brads.