The Kid Brother Rises Again
ConversazioniGeorge Macy devotees
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1Django6924
I have been very busy with work and personal matters for the last several months and have neglected to post additional threads about the wonderful works of the Heritage Press, which despite the indifference of many booksellers and book collectors frequently achieved standards which many fine presses today would be proud to equal. Spurred on by the recent postings in November Acquisitions by howpim and Constantinopolitan, I am reviving this thread about Heritage Press Exclusives, which weren't reprints of LEC originals. (I confess I was also waiting t see if WildcatJF might post it first on his excellent George Macy Imagery blog, but he has also been busy.)
I will get the posting up this Sunday, and all I will say about it now is that the same title exists as an LEC offering, but with a different artist and typographic plan. I own both and would be hard pressed to prefer one over the other (so with my usual rigorous self-denial, I am keeping both.)
I will get the posting up this Sunday, and all I will say about it now is that the same title exists as an LEC offering, but with a different artist and typographic plan. I own both and would be hard pressed to prefer one over the other (so with my usual rigorous self-denial, I am keeping both.)
2NYCFaddict
Give us a hint :)
5WildcatJF
1) That makes me wonder what it is if I could have posted it. :p Ugh life. I think I know what it is, but I'll keep the secret for now. ;)
6kdweber
I have both the HP and LEC editions for the following titles:
The Age of Fable
Penguin Island
Gulliver's Travels - only the 1929 LEC
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - 1933 LEC, still need/want 1942 Benton illustrated LEC
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Leaves of Grass - Rockwell Kent signed HP, 1929 LEC, still need/want 1942 LEC with Weston's photos
Salome - both LECs
I have no plans to dump any of these "duplicates"
The Age of Fable
Penguin Island
Gulliver's Travels - only the 1929 LEC
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - 1933 LEC, still need/want 1942 Benton illustrated LEC
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Leaves of Grass - Rockwell Kent signed HP, 1929 LEC, still need/want 1942 LEC with Weston's photos
Salome - both LECs
I have no plans to dump any of these "duplicates"
7featherwate
Questo messaggio è stato cancellato dall'autore.
8BuzzBuzzard
>6 kdweber: Seems we like Salome today but when polled members of the club viewed it least favoritable of its series. Followed closely by Uncle Tom's Cabin. The winner was War and Peace.
9Django6924
>8 BuzzBuzzard: " least favoritable of its series. Followed closely by Uncle Tom's Cabin"
I think I understand why. The members of the LEC, especially in its early years, tended to be conservative and preferred established classics. Salome, in addition to its intentional decadence, was associated with the notorious Oscar, and Mrs. Stowe's work, though enormously influential, is not of the highest literary value, and bound to irritate a significant portion of the Club's members by its politics. War and Peace was a much safer offering.
I think I understand why. The members of the LEC, especially in its early years, tended to be conservative and preferred established classics. Salome, in addition to its intentional decadence, was associated with the notorious Oscar, and Mrs. Stowe's work, though enormously influential, is not of the highest literary value, and bound to irritate a significant portion of the Club's members by its politics. War and Peace was a much safer offering.
10featherwate
Gray's Elegy didn't do very well either, seventh of eleven titles (W&P counted as two), although it was hailed enthusiastically by the future husband of cookery grande dame Julia Child. I suppose it offended two groups of subscribers: those who disliked tall books and those who thought GM was trying to cheat them when he issued them a thin one...
Today it's more sought after (ie expensive) than most of the other books in the poll.
Edited to take account of Django's response below!
Today it's more sought after (ie expensive) than most of the other books in the poll.
Edited to take account of Django's response below!
11Django6924
>10 featherwate:
Jack, the Salome, complete (2 volumes and slipcase) also fetches some astronomical prices these days, as does Uncle Tom's Cabin.
Jack, the Salome, complete (2 volumes and slipcase) also fetches some astronomical prices these days, as does Uncle Tom's Cabin.
12Django6924
In 1943 George Macy designed for the LEC an edition of Erasmus’ MORIAE ENCOMIUM; OR, THE PRAISE OF FOLLY. With WW II raging, and the US and the Allies suffering early defeats in the Pacific, Europe and Africa, this satirical essay attacking human folly and superstition by the great Dutch humanist must have seemed particularly pertinent, especially since the Nazis had bombed to destruction Erasmus’ hometown in the 1940 Rotterdam Blitz.
I have always felt this is one of Macy’s own triumphs of book design. Macy chose Lynd Ward to do the illustrations, and although Ward had to compete with the famous illustrations by Hans Holbein, I believe he achieved wonderful results—dark full-page mezzotints, often contemporary in nature (storm troopers throwing grenades) and marginal “glosses”—cartoon etchings in the style of the chapter headings Ward had done for Les Miserables—printed in rubric red on nearly every page (two on some pages). Ward was a natural choice, as his own “wordless novels,” God’s Man Madman’s Drum and Vertigo show a kindred spirit to Erasmus.
It was clearly a project Macy felt very strongly about, enlisting Hendrick Willem Van Loon, whose 1930 biographical novel R. v. R.: the Life and Times of Rembrandt van Rijn was one of the HP “Artist’s Lives” exclusives, to provide a forward. In these dark days, when the tide of battle still favored the Axis, the book must not have been one of the most popular LEC offerings, though to my mind it is one of the best. When it was issued, the Heritage Club was still maintaining an independent schedule of exclusive offerings, and had not yet started reprinting LEC offerings (though there are duplicate titles, the books themselves with a very few exceptions, are different in design and choice of illustrator).
Fast forward 10 years to 1953; much of Europe was still in ruins, though rebuilding rapidly in the West. Many of the fine printing houses used by the LEC in the pre-war days were either gone or still trying to recover. In the US, the Heritage Press was now mostly reprinting LEC originals, except for the Dickens’ novels and reprinting its own earlier exclusives, such as the Eichenberg-illustrated Crime and Punishment. The March 1953 offering, however, was Erasmus’ MORIAE ENCOMIUM; OR, THE PRAISE OF FOLLY; but it was not a reprint of the Ward-illustrated LEC version of ten years earlier—it is a new HP exclusive, designed and printed in Europe at Holland’s famous Enschede Press. It was thus an all-Dutch production (except for the illustrator—who was from neighboring Belgium).
According to the Sandglass (X:17), when Jan van Krimpen was designing Dumas’ The Black Tulip for the LEC, he had in his possession a group of woodcuts illustrating Erasmus’ work made by the Belgian artist Fran Masereel, and Van Krimpen offered, as long as he was doing the Dumas work for the LEC, to do MORIAE ENCOMIUM for the Heritage Club. His offer was promptly accepted! It must have been a no-brainer for Macy: Van Krimpen ranked with Mardersteig and Meynell as pre-eminent among Europe’s book designer/publishers, and had designed the LEC Homeric epics, Tyl Ulenspiegl, and Aristophanes’ The Frogs. The letterpress used, Eric Gill’s Perpetua, was not easily available in the US, and the rag paper was by the famous Dutch firm of Pannekoek.
Although the Sandglass is vague about the origin of the illustrations--it’s not explicitly stated that Macy had commissioned them, or Van Krimpen had, or that Masereel had done them for some other company which was not able to carry out the production--it was quite a coup to have an artist of Masereel’s stature in the Heritage fold. Masereel had been famous internationally before WW II for his wordless novels in woodcuts My Book of Hours, Story Without Words, and The Idea, and had illustrated Notre Dame de Paris for the LEC as the first offering in the Second Series. Masereel’s influence was enormous, and indeed he was a major influence on Lynd Ward. Although I generally prefer Ward’s work to Masereel’s, and did not care that much for his work on Notre Dame de Paris, I think his work here is very on the mark—not better than Ward’s for the LEC, but different and equally valid.
This might be the last of the Heritage Press exclusives (except for the Heritage Dickens), and would certainly be an excellent way to end. It is a simple book when compared to the LEC Erasmus, but that is more a reflection, I think, of the taste of the designer. Van Krimpen, as the Sandglass says, “believes that, in matters of taste, that there is no point in complicating a design in order to satisfy a fancy taste.” I’m sure that many feel that the book is too simple for a fine press offering; I can only say that if one of today’s small presses brought out this same book, letterpress on rag paper, with original woodcuts by an internationally famous artist, but signed and limited to say, 300 copies, that there would be great competition to pay several hundred dollars to obtain a copy. This book wasn’t limited and lacks a signature, but in every other respect I think it meets the criteria for a desirable addition to one’s library.
I have always felt this is one of Macy’s own triumphs of book design. Macy chose Lynd Ward to do the illustrations, and although Ward had to compete with the famous illustrations by Hans Holbein, I believe he achieved wonderful results—dark full-page mezzotints, often contemporary in nature (storm troopers throwing grenades) and marginal “glosses”—cartoon etchings in the style of the chapter headings Ward had done for Les Miserables—printed in rubric red on nearly every page (two on some pages). Ward was a natural choice, as his own “wordless novels,” God’s Man Madman’s Drum and Vertigo show a kindred spirit to Erasmus.
It was clearly a project Macy felt very strongly about, enlisting Hendrick Willem Van Loon, whose 1930 biographical novel R. v. R.: the Life and Times of Rembrandt van Rijn was one of the HP “Artist’s Lives” exclusives, to provide a forward. In these dark days, when the tide of battle still favored the Axis, the book must not have been one of the most popular LEC offerings, though to my mind it is one of the best. When it was issued, the Heritage Club was still maintaining an independent schedule of exclusive offerings, and had not yet started reprinting LEC offerings (though there are duplicate titles, the books themselves with a very few exceptions, are different in design and choice of illustrator).
Fast forward 10 years to 1953; much of Europe was still in ruins, though rebuilding rapidly in the West. Many of the fine printing houses used by the LEC in the pre-war days were either gone or still trying to recover. In the US, the Heritage Press was now mostly reprinting LEC originals, except for the Dickens’ novels and reprinting its own earlier exclusives, such as the Eichenberg-illustrated Crime and Punishment. The March 1953 offering, however, was Erasmus’ MORIAE ENCOMIUM; OR, THE PRAISE OF FOLLY; but it was not a reprint of the Ward-illustrated LEC version of ten years earlier—it is a new HP exclusive, designed and printed in Europe at Holland’s famous Enschede Press. It was thus an all-Dutch production (except for the illustrator—who was from neighboring Belgium).
According to the Sandglass (X:17), when Jan van Krimpen was designing Dumas’ The Black Tulip for the LEC, he had in his possession a group of woodcuts illustrating Erasmus’ work made by the Belgian artist Fran Masereel, and Van Krimpen offered, as long as he was doing the Dumas work for the LEC, to do MORIAE ENCOMIUM for the Heritage Club. His offer was promptly accepted! It must have been a no-brainer for Macy: Van Krimpen ranked with Mardersteig and Meynell as pre-eminent among Europe’s book designer/publishers, and had designed the LEC Homeric epics, Tyl Ulenspiegl, and Aristophanes’ The Frogs. The letterpress used, Eric Gill’s Perpetua, was not easily available in the US, and the rag paper was by the famous Dutch firm of Pannekoek.
Although the Sandglass is vague about the origin of the illustrations--it’s not explicitly stated that Macy had commissioned them, or Van Krimpen had, or that Masereel had done them for some other company which was not able to carry out the production--it was quite a coup to have an artist of Masereel’s stature in the Heritage fold. Masereel had been famous internationally before WW II for his wordless novels in woodcuts My Book of Hours, Story Without Words, and The Idea, and had illustrated Notre Dame de Paris for the LEC as the first offering in the Second Series. Masereel’s influence was enormous, and indeed he was a major influence on Lynd Ward. Although I generally prefer Ward’s work to Masereel’s, and did not care that much for his work on Notre Dame de Paris, I think his work here is very on the mark—not better than Ward’s for the LEC, but different and equally valid.
This might be the last of the Heritage Press exclusives (except for the Heritage Dickens), and would certainly be an excellent way to end. It is a simple book when compared to the LEC Erasmus, but that is more a reflection, I think, of the taste of the designer. Van Krimpen, as the Sandglass says, “believes that, in matters of taste, that there is no point in complicating a design in order to satisfy a fancy taste.” I’m sure that many feel that the book is too simple for a fine press offering; I can only say that if one of today’s small presses brought out this same book, letterpress on rag paper, with original woodcuts by an internationally famous artist, but signed and limited to say, 300 copies, that there would be great competition to pay several hundred dollars to obtain a copy. This book wasn’t limited and lacks a signature, but in every other respect I think it meets the criteria for a desirable addition to one’s library.
15featherwate
>11 Django6924:
Thanks for the information, Robert. I must have struck lucky with my copy of Uncle Tom when I bought it a couple of years ago. Much as I like Covarrubias' work I'd not have paid what's now being asked for even a reasonable copy. (I assume it is his contribution that's pushed the price up: I notice that both Typee and Batouala are also more expensive these days.)
Thanks for the information, Robert. I must have struck lucky with my copy of Uncle Tom when I bought it a couple of years ago. Much as I like Covarrubias' work I'd not have paid what's now being asked for even a reasonable copy. (I assume it is his contribution that's pushed the price up: I notice that both Typee and Batouala are also more expensive these days.)
16WildcatJF
14) It's still a very nice book. Since I didn't get a Sandglass with it alas, I'll probably utilize your post for the details whenever I get to posting it. ;)
17Django6924
>15 featherwate:
Jack, any of the Covarrubias-signed books fetch prices 2-4 times what they did 30 years ago--the Bernal Diaz Conquest of Mexico is $200 minimum, whereas the matching Conquest of Peru with Jackson's illustrations tops out at half that.
I've searched for several years for a pristine All Men are Brothers, buying two over that period and having to send them back because they fell woefully short of their advertised condition. Now Finer copies are probably priced out of my capability to buy them.
>16 WildcatJF:
Jerry, I'll scan it tonight for you.
Jack, any of the Covarrubias-signed books fetch prices 2-4 times what they did 30 years ago--the Bernal Diaz Conquest of Mexico is $200 minimum, whereas the matching Conquest of Peru with Jackson's illustrations tops out at half that.
I've searched for several years for a pristine All Men are Brothers, buying two over that period and having to send them back because they fell woefully short of their advertised condition. Now Finer copies are probably priced out of my capability to buy them.
>16 WildcatJF:
Jerry, I'll scan it tonight for you.
18asburytr
>17 Django6924: I likewise am on the search for a copy of All Men Are Brothers in nice condition. I bought a cheap copy for 25 dollars or so with the two volumes in good condition but only the sleeve of the chemise which is worn and faded. A fine copy is defintely on the top of my list!
19EclecticIndulgence
Questo messaggio è stato cancellato dall'autore.
20Django6924
>19 EclecticIndulgence:
The last set I saw marked as "Fine" and complete with chemise and intact slipcase was $400
The last set I saw marked as "Fine" and complete with chemise and intact slipcase was $400
21kdweber
>20 Django6924: I think you can get a NF copy for considerably less is you're willing to accept a ratty slipcase. I bought my copy 3 years ago for $100 - Fine condition, NF chemise and a worn/taped together slipcase.
22Constantinopolitan
>12 Django6924: Thanks for the excellent review, Robert. On the strength of that I've ordered a copy of The Praise of Folly.
23Django6924
>21 kdweber:
Well Ken, I'll keep looking....
>22 Constantinopolitan:
I don't think you will be disappointed!
Well Ken, I'll keep looking....
>22 Constantinopolitan:
I don't think you will be disappointed!
24howpim
Very interesting. I haven't read this. The illustrations are intriguingly modern in content, how many roughly are there?
25Django6924
>24 howpim:
Twenty-four, 11 of which are full page. Based upon most helpful information from featherwate, it appears that these were originally done for a planned LEC version, but WW II made it impossible to complete and Lynd Ward was brought in to illustrate a new LEC edition designed by Macy.
EDITED: To add I just received a catalog from our favorite overpriced bookseller, Charles Agvent, which features a copy of a Masereel-illustrated book, Wilde's The Ballad of Reading Gaol. This was a very limited (320 copies) signed edition by German publisher Drei Masken Verlag. This particular poem was exceedingly fortunate to have three such eminent illustrators--Masereel, Lynd Ward, and Zhenya Gay. The Masereel-illustrated version is by far the most costly, and despite the "overpriced" tag I gave Mr Agvent, to be fair, his copy is listed at $3500 and represents a price reduction from his original ABE listing of $4375. So as I mentioned above, if the HP Erasmus had been a signed, limited edition, it would probably be fetching much higher prices.
Twenty-four, 11 of which are full page. Based upon most helpful information from featherwate, it appears that these were originally done for a planned LEC version, but WW II made it impossible to complete and Lynd Ward was brought in to illustrate a new LEC edition designed by Macy.
EDITED: To add I just received a catalog from our favorite overpriced bookseller, Charles Agvent, which features a copy of a Masereel-illustrated book, Wilde's The Ballad of Reading Gaol. This was a very limited (320 copies) signed edition by German publisher Drei Masken Verlag. This particular poem was exceedingly fortunate to have three such eminent illustrators--Masereel, Lynd Ward, and Zhenya Gay. The Masereel-illustrated version is by far the most costly, and despite the "overpriced" tag I gave Mr Agvent, to be fair, his copy is listed at $3500 and represents a price reduction from his original ABE listing of $4375. So as I mentioned above, if the HP Erasmus had been a signed, limited edition, it would probably be fetching much higher prices.
26BuzzBuzzard
>12 Django6924: One other Heritage Press exclusive that I think worthy of review is the 1952 Baron Munchausen illustrated by Fritz Kredel. I looked at my copy yesterday and the binding is particularly attractive. The boards of my copy are covered in blue marbled paper but I have seen a red variant as well. The paper is on the thick side (though the book is still rather thin) stained red on all sides. It is amazing that one can have it for next to nothing.
27Parchment123
Heritage exclusive?
28BuzzBuzzard
>27 Parchment123: You are right of course!
29NYCFaddict
Yes, next to nothing! I chanced upon a Fine/Fine copy in The Strand for $12. The letterpress on the Heritage has real bite!
30chrisrsprague
>12 Django6924: I had the FS edition of In Praise of Folly in my wish list, but have since removed it, having purchased the HP edition mentioned here. It's delightful! Thanks!
31Django6924
>30 chrisrsprague:
You're welcome. It really is a gem, and considering it was originally intended to be an LEC, an outstanding bargain.
You're welcome. It really is a gem, and considering it was originally intended to be an LEC, an outstanding bargain.
32NYCFaddict
The FS edition is also a triumph of design, in my opinion - though I can see how it is not to everyone's taste.
33Lukas1990
Can anyone send me the Sandglass for HP Erasmus’ MORIAE ENCOMIUM; OR, THE PRAISE OF FOLLY? I have just bought the book but it will take a long time until it will arrive to Europe from Canada. I am also not sure if it has the Sandglass at all.
Thank you very much!
Thank you very much!
34kermaier
>12 Django6924:
I couldn't agree more: The HP Erasmus is great! In fact, when deciding which edition to buy, intending to have only one, I did my homework and settled on the HP, for it's quality, taste, simplicity and price.
I couldn't agree more: The HP Erasmus is great! In fact, when deciding which edition to buy, intending to have only one, I did my homework and settled on the HP, for it's quality, taste, simplicity and price.
35maisiedotes
>33 Lukas1990:
I have the Sandglass for The Praise of Folly and will email it to you.
I have the Sandglass for The Praise of Folly and will email it to you.
36Django6924
I haven't been very active here of late, and am glad to see other Devotees providing some great information. It's about time I featured another HP exclusive--one of the best, but also one of the least read--but I will have to work on it in the rare moments I have available in my current schedule to indulge my enthusiasm for fine publishing and literature.
I'll try to post it with pictures by April 19th in a new thread: The Kid Brother Takes a Chance. (If featherwate reads this, he may be able to use the scant clues I've planted here to discover the post's subject.)
I'll try to post it with pictures by April 19th in a new thread: The Kid Brother Takes a Chance. (If featherwate reads this, he may be able to use the scant clues I've planted here to discover the post's subject.)
38Django6924
I wouldn't be surprised. These days, I'm surprised very little by travesties.
39featherwate
>36 Django6924:
Thank you, Robert. Scant is the mot juste!, and for me to try to puzzle out what on earth you are talking about could be to court disaster - I can see I may end up yanking out tufts of my hair (which god knows is scant enough already).
Thank you, Robert. Scant is the mot juste!, and for me to try to puzzle out what on earth you are talking about could be to court disaster - I can see I may end up yanking out tufts of my hair (which god knows is scant enough already).
40Django6924
>39 featherwate:
Heaven forfend! Well, maybe I'll add another clue next week, Jack, but I don't want to make it too easy for our resident Sherlock!
Heaven forfend! Well, maybe I'll add another clue next week, Jack, but I don't want to make it too easy for our resident Sherlock!
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