Rare books from Rare Finds Booksellers

New York: Mutual Music Society, 1943. Book. Fine. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall. Hard cover, red cloth boards with beautiful bright gilt lettering on front and on spine, Fine. Very little rubbing on edges and mild bumping on top and bottom of spine. Binding tight with a little give. Pages ever so slightly yellowed but clean. 116 pages. AUTHOR HAS SIGNED on free front page "SINCERELY GLENN MILLER" in black fountain pen. Not stated but assumed first edition, first printing. ALSO INCLUDED are much sought after 2 MUSICAL SCORES loosely inserted: "I'M THRILLED" first page has edge chipping due to page being larger than others and minor yellowing, and "SONG OF THE VOLGA BOATMEN" stamped "Bradbury Wood Ltd. 142, Charing Cross Road, WC2" (London, England). Both scores are in Very Good condition. B&W photographs and many musical arrangements. Included are 2 small catalogues from Bron's Orchestral Service, London. No dust jacket as issued. Book issued one year before… Read More

New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1972. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). Second Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard Cover, Very Good. Navy cloth boards with gilt printing on spine and signature cut out printing on cover. Very little bumping on top and bottom of spine. Binding tight with a little give. Pages clean. 380 pages. Photo section with many B&W photos in center of book. SIGNED BY AUTHOR DAVID NIVEN on front free endpaper in black pen "For Mary Frances All good luck! David Niven". Dust jacket is in Very Good condition in protective mylar cover, with next to no flaws but a little yellowing and slight bumping on top of spine and a very little wear on top and bottom of back cover. Very Good, solid signed Second Impression. NOT A REPRINT!!! Hard to find..

New York, NY: William Morrow, 1976. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard Cover, Very Good +. Grey boards with black cloth spine, gilt lettering on spine. Next to no flaws with barely visible bumping on top and bottom of spine. SIGNED BY AUTHOR on first free page, in large black ink, "To Doris and Sidney Gracias Desi Arnaz" Binding tight. Pages clean. 322 pages. Starting with page 291 and ending with 322 (last page), the pages are upside down and book needs to be turned around to continue reading, a unique printing error? Dust jacket is in Very Good condition, and is protected by a mylar cover, with a very little chipping on top and bottom of dj spine. NOT price clipped. B&W photos throughout. A scarce, signed, very special edition. Full Title is: A Book By Desi Arnaz: The Outspoken Memoir of "Ricky Ricardo" - The Man Who Loved Lucy.

New York, NY: E.P. Dutton, Inc., 1982. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard Cover in Very Good condition. Black boards with white cloth spine and gilt lettering on spine. Some edgewear, bumping on corners and small yellow water stain (barely noticeable) appearing on bottom of front cover near spine; top of inside front cover and top of front end paper; bottom of inside back cover and bottom of last free page. Binding tight with a very little give. Pages clean with very little yellowing. 311 pages. SIGNED IN PERSON BY AUTHOR on front end paper in red ink "Nov, '82 For Bob - gratefully Lana Turner", slight smudge to date. Many B&W photographs throughout. Dust jacket is Very Good - . Some edgewear on dj and small yellow water stains on bottom and top of inner front cover. Noted First Edition in Book. Very decent Signed First Edition..

Harrison, NJ: Grand Award, 1960. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). 1st Edition. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Boxed set of vinyl record albums, SIGNED and INSCRIBED in black ink on the cover by PAUL WHITEMAN near his potato head caricature "To the gang at Music Systems, Pops, Paul Whiteman" Bandleader Paul Whiteman was known as The King of Jazz and is credited with discovering dozens of future top jazz and pop artists including Bing Crosby, Jack Teagarden, Hoagy Carmichael, Ferde Grofe, and many many others. In Very Good Condition. Rare one of a kind item..

New York: William Morrow, 1979. Book. Fine. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall. Hard cover, black boards with gilt lettering on front and spine, Fine, Not stated but assumed first edition. Binding tight. Pages clean. 63 pages of text plus more than 140 pages featuring 212 photos. Dust jacket, Very Good. Very slight edgewear. Gold with red/white/black lettering with Hirschfeld caricature on front and photo on back. SIGNED BY AUTHOR on second inner page, featuring a reproduction of an air mail envelope addressed to Benny Goodman, in bold black felt tip marker "To Paul Best wishes Benny Goodman". A fantastic Signed First Edition book..

New York: Rinehart & Co., 1946. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard cover, chartreuse boards with black lettering on spine. Some edgewear on boards and spine and very few light stains with discoloration on front and back edges, Very Good - . Former owner's name printed inside front cover, covered by DJ flap. Binding tight. Dust jacket Good has some edgewear with small chips, tear and wrinkles. Mylar protection.156 pages. Pages slightly yellowed but clean. B&W photo illustrations. Not stated but assumed first edition. SIGNED BY AUTHOR/SONGWRITER on free front page in black ink "HOAGY CARMICHAEL". Large signature. Newspaper articles dated 1981 of his obituary included with book. The songwriter tells his life story including his close friendship with Bix Beiderbecke and many other jazz greats. Author wrote the greatest popular song of the 20th Century - Star Dust. Extremely rare and much sought after Signed First Edition..

New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1975. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). Third Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard Cover, Very Good - . Navy cloth boards with silver printing. Some bumping and wear on top and bottom of spine. Binding tight with a little give. Pages clean. 369 pages. Photo section with many B&W photos in center of book. SIGNED BY AUTHOR DAVID NIVEN on front free endpaper in black marker "For Bill Morrison - Best wishes! David Niven". To noted film director William Morrison. Dust jacket is in Good condition in protective mylar cover, a few tears on top and some chips on spine and worn wrinkles on the edges, front and back. Very Good, solid signed Third Impression..

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1959. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard cover, black boards with silver lettering on spine and small cut-out depressions of top-hats, canes and dance shoes on cover, shows almost no wear with very little edgewear on top of spine, Very Good +. Binding tight. SIGNED BY AUTHOR on first title front page in black ballpoint pen "FRED ASTAIRE".Dust jacket has some edgewear with one small tear on edge but overall Very Good. Not price clipped. 338 pages. Pages very slightly yellowed but clean. B&W photo illustrations throughout. Not stated but assumed first edition. Very desirable Signed First Edition..

New York - Boston: Carl Fischer, 1935. Sheet music. Fair. No Binding. Signed by Author(s). 1st Edition. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Over 1 lb. of various music scores, i.e. Big Band arrangements, some printed and others handwritten and SIGNED by Big Band Leader JAN SAVITT. In varying condition. Some items signed in fountain pen, others in pencil. Many musical notations in Savitt's hand added to the scores. I have no way of knowing if any of these are complete scores, so it's probably best to consider all of the titles as fragments. Titles are: "Park Avenue Fantasy", "Negro Spirituals: Go Down Moses - Swing Low, Sweet Chariot", "Valse" (Brahms), and "Paganini"..

New York: Farrar, Straus and Young, 1952. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard cover, black cloth boards with yellow/green lettering on spine, Very Good. Some edgewear on corners of boards and spine and small discoloration on back. Boards show some overall wear. Binding tight with just a very little give. Pages slightly yellowed but clean. 394 pages. Dust jacket, Good, is protected by mylar cover and is price clipped. DJ has edgewear and several open tears on edges of both front and back boards, spine and front and back flaps. Dj has a light brown water stain on top and bottom of back as well as on top of front and back flaps. Vintage SIGNED bookplate by author in blue ink "ARTIE SHAW" affixed to free front page. Bookplate reads "Ex Libris Best Wishes from the Author" . Previous owner's stamp and light signature appears above bookplate. Previous owner's signature appears on second half-title page after book foreward. Note from previous… Read More

New York: The Review of Reviews Corp., 1917. Book. Very Good. Full-Leather. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. Hard Cover editions, all in Very Good condition, all dark brown embossed full leather with gilt raised lettering and decorations on covers and spines, none are worn. All bindings tight with very little give. Few bumped corners, nothing serious. Page edges cut rough. COMPLETE 10 VOLUME SERIES, pub. 1917-1923. No DJs as issued. Sold as a set. Book 1: Myself - To Date, Irvin S. Cobb aka Stickfuls (autographed edition; signed by author in black ink on free front page "Irvin S. Cobb") (1923, 355 pages); Book 2: Snake Doctor and Other Stories (1923, 343 pages); Book 3: Sundry Accounts (1922, 435 pages); Book 4: From Place To Place (1920, 407 pages); Book 5: Those Times and These (1917, 374 pages); Book 6: Speaking of Operations - and Other Humorous Stories (including Eating in Two or Three Languages) (1923, 341 pages); Book 7: Old Judge Priest (1916, 401 pages); Book… Read More

Boston: Little Brown & Company, 1954. Book. Illus. by Al Hirschfeld. Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard cover, black cloth boards with slightly faded gilt lettering on spine displaying some broken letters, Good +. First/First. SIGNED BY AUTHOR FRED ALLEN on free front page in blue ink "For - Ed & Betty - If you have abandoned your radio set - this may bring back some pleasant memories - Fred Allen". Includes drawings by Al Hirschfeld. No dust jacket.Few small stains on front and back, some bumping on top and bottom of spine. Binding tight but has very little give. Pages clean and surprisingly nearly white considering age. 240 pages. Wonderful Signed First Edition..

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1959. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hard cover, black boards with silver lettering on spine and small cut-out depressions of top-hats, canes and dance shoes on cover, shows almost no wear with very little edgewear on top of spine, Very Good. Binding tight. SIGNED BY AUTHOR on gatefold title page in black ballpoint pen "FRED ASTAIRE". Dust jacket Good + (not price clipped) fading on spine, has some edgewear/tears with chips, sticker applied to front dj: A Reminder to see "Another Evening With Fred Astaire" NBC 9:00 PM EST Wednesday, November 4 sponsored by Chrysler Corporation. There is a letter included from the manager of the Chrysler Corporation Promotion office dated Oct. 15 1959 to a newspaper columnist. 338 pages. Pages slightly yellowed but clean. B&W photo illustrations throughout. First Edition. The best, most beautiful example of this signed first edition seen thus far..

Hard Cover, Very Good - . Navy boards with light blue cloth spine and slightly faded gilt lettering on spine. Some bumping and edgewear, some fading on spine, white spotting on back cover. Dark stain along edge of final free page. Also a light foxing stripe on same page. Page tops have a pale green tone. Binding tight. 267 pages. Clean pages. SIGNED BY AUTHOR GEORGE BURNS AND WIFE GRACIE ALLEN in blue ink on free front page "To Catherine & Mary MacLear Best Wishes Gracie Allen, George Burns". Light foxing stripe on signature page partially touches inscrip. & sigs. Dust Jacket Good - . In protective mylar cover. Some tears and chips on dj edges, some damage on rear dj causes holes which result in loss of some of the type. NOT price clipped. B&W photographs at beginning of book. Stated First Edition in book. Terrific Signed First Edition of a great book.