LIFE IN LONDON: OR, THE LARKS OF LOGIC, TOM AND JERRY AN EXTRAVAGANZA IN THREE ACTS...; An Extravaganza in Three Acts of Wit and Whim, Replete with High Goes, Prime Chaunts, and Out-and-out Sprees; Founded on Pierce Egan's Highly Popular Work. Performed at the Olympic Theatre [Two volumes: the first edition and the second edition, corrected].
Isaac Robert Cruikshank. London: John Lowndes, 1822. Two volumes. (VOLUME 1) FIRST EDITION: Folding hand-colored frontispiece etching, "Mr. Wilkinson, Mr. Burroughs & Mr. Wrench, As Logic, Jerry & Corinthian Tom...," by Robert Cruikshank. Bound (together with Songs, Parodies etc below) in 8vo gilt-stamped polished calf by Riviere & Son with six spine compartments; all edges gilt; 54 pp; 2-line Errata and "Printed by F. Marshall, Kenton Street, Brunswick Square" at base of last text page. Upper half-inch of spine rubbed to board, darkening from old tape repair on verso of frontis (crossing upper left corner), otherwise very good. Bound in at rear is SONGS, PARODIES, DUETS, CHORUSSES ... TOM & JERRY; OR, LIFE IN LONDON ... UPS & DOWNS IN LIFE ... BY A CELEBRATED EXTRAVAGANT ERRATIC AUTHOR." London: John Lowndes, no-date. Title page notes "First performed at the Adelphi Theatre November 26, 1821." Hand-colored frontispiece etching, "Corinthian Tom," by Robert Cruikshank, 23 pp; publisher’s ads on verso of title page. (VOLUME 2) SECOND EDITION, CORRECTED: Hand-colored frontispiece etching, "Mr. Oxberry as Jerry Hawthorn," by Robert Cruikshank. "Bingham, Printer, Tavistock-street, Covent-garden" on title page. Bound by Wallis in 8vo three-quarter leather over light brown cloth boards, gilt-lettered spine; 40 pp; top edge gilt. Front cover, front free endpaper and first blank detached, rubbing along edges of leather, lower half inch of spine leather rubbed to board. Provenance: Bookplate of William Hartmann Woodin, who served as the Secretary of Treasury under Franklin Roosevelt, in each. In the first, Woodin’s bookplate partially obscures that of J. Barton Townsend whose collection of color-plate books was auctioned in 1919, and in the second, that of Cruikshank bibliographer Alfred M. Cohn whose collection was auctioned in 1920. The first and second editions of the "Larks" are exceedingly scarce if not rare, as is "Songs, Parodies, etc."
Item #54607
Price: $2,500.00