Search preferences

Product Type

  • All Product Types
  • Books (1)
  • Magazines & Periodicals
  • Comics
  • Sheet Music
  • Art, Prints & Posters
  • Photographs
  • Maps
  • Manuscripts &
    Paper Collectibles

Condition

Binding

Collectible Attributes

  • First Edition
  • Signed
  • Dust Jacket
  • Seller-Supplied Images
  • Not Printed On Demand

Seller Location

Seller Rating

  • Seller image for [Radio script]: A Tale of Two Cities for sale by Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc. ABAA

    WELLES, Orson, John Houseman. Adapted from the novel by Charles Dickens

    Published by (The Columbia Broadcasting System, Orson Welles and The Mercury Theatre on the Air), [New York], 1938

    Seller: Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc. ABAA, Gloucester City, NJ, U.S.A.

    Association Member: ABAA ESA ILAB IOBA

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    First Edition

    Used - Hardcover
    Condition: Near Fine

    US$ 7,500.00

    Convert currency
    US$ 5.50 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. Quarto. 94 mimeographed leaves printed rectos only. Bound (or likely rebound at an early date) with quarter canvas spine and thick card boards with typed title labels on front board and spine. Modest evidence of bookplate removal inside front board, small chip at the corner of the label on the front board, else very near fine. Adapted from the Charles Dickens novel. The Mercury Theatre on the Air produced 22 radio plays based on literary novels, plays, or short stories in 1938, this was the third play produced. Up until October, 1938, all of the adaptations, including this one, were written by Orson Welles and John Houseman. Overwhelmed by the weekly deadlines (Welles also starred in most of the dramas, sometimes playing multiple parts), they hired Howard Koch to assist - three weeks later they collaborated on *The War of the Worlds* - arguably the most famous dramatic radio broadcast in history. In *A Tale of Two Cities*, Welles played both Sidney Carton and Dr. Alexandre Manette in this production. In the script, page two is blank, except for the word "Welles" - presumably Welles would deliver his introduction extemporaneously. The Mercury Theatre on the Air scripts are rare. *OCLC* locates a single copy of this script (Dartmouth).