A Loss of Roses: A New Play by William Inge.

INGE, William. [Peter O'Toole].

$1,800.00

Item Number: 123340

New York: Random House, 1960.

First edition of Inge’s 1959 play, from the working library of legendary stage and screen actor Peter O’Toole. Octavo, original half cloth over pictorial boards. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “To Peter O’Toole Best wishes, Bill Inge.” The recipient, Peter O’Toole, began his acting career in the 1950s, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old Vic and with the English Stage Company, before making his television debut in 1954. Based at the Bristol Old Vic from 1956 to 1958, he starred in numerous productions including King Lear (1956), The Recruiting Officer (1956), Major Barbara (1956), Othello (1956), and The Slave of Truth (1956). Inge was at the height of his career in the 1950s. He received a Pulitzer Prize in 1953 for Picnic, and produced several other popular plays including Glory in the Flower (1953), Bus Stop (1955), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1957), and A Loss of Roses (1959). Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Meyer Wagman from illustrations by Faye Gage. From the library of Peter O’Toole with his bookplate to the pastedown. An exceptional association.

"Inge has probed gently and with sympathy into the characters of these people. Since he writes with skill and clarity, Inge has transferred that sympathy to me." Thus wrote the New York Daily News critic, John Chapman, of A Loss of Roses, which opened at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on November 28, 1959. In his foreword to this edition, Inge candidly discusses his feelings about the play.