FRANKIE AND JOHNNY

First Edition. With a tipped-in colour frontispiece, black and white plates, and line drawings all by noted artist Miguel Covarrubias. 8vo, publisher's original red cloth, the upper covered fancifully lettered in gilt and black, the spine lettered within painted black labels printed endpapers decorated with Covarrubias line drawings in red. 160 pp. A sound and attractive copy of a book rarely found in nice condition due to the depression-era materials used in its production, the text is clean and sturdy, the paper is toned to ivory, the hinges are tight and the binding is solid, the red cloth a little mellowed and slightly rubbed at the extremities.

Edizione: a suite of miguel covarrubias illustrations highlights this theatrical telling of the tragic love affair of frankie and johnny. likely based on real events and an already famous story line from a later 19th century folk song, a then little-known john huston tranformed the story into a four-scene play which is here provided along with the "st. louis" version of the tale, called 'frankie and albert' and several other versions such as the roberta anderson texas version.<br> huston would go on to be an extremely successful screenwriter and direct in golden age hollywood, producing films like the maltese falcon, the african queen, and chinatown. miguel covarrubias was an important was a mexican painter, caricaturist, illustrator, ethnologist and art historian and is perhaps best remembered for his work with during the harlem renaissance era.