Books

205 pages. Octavo (8 1/4" x 5 3/4") bound in original publisher's brown cloth with dark brown lettering to spine and circles to front cover in original pictorial jacket. Typed Letter Signed on an Adaptation of Playback. First edition. One page, 8.5 x 11, personal letterhead, January 9, 1948. Lengthy letter to Swanie, his literary agent H. N. Swanson. Chandler dissects a potential screenplay contract for Playback: "For such further changes and revisions as they need they should rely on my good will in the first place and in the second place on my interest in having the picture as good as it can be made" Playback is a novel by American-British writer Raymond Chandler featuring the private detective Philip Marlowe. It was first published in Britain in July 1958; the US edition followed in October that year. Chandler died the following year; Playback is his last completed novel. On 8 January 1947 Universal announced they had bought a story from Raymond Chandler called Playback. Joseph Sistrom was assigned to produce the film and it was intended Chandler would write the script. The novel was reworked by Chandler from the screenplay. The script, thought by some to be superior to the novel (generally considered to be the weakest of the seven Marlowe novels, perhaps because of its less complex plot and pat resolution), was published posthumously. Of all Chandler's novels, Playback is the only one never to have been adapted into a film. Condition: Corners gently bumped. Jacket spine ends rubbed and lightly chipped else near fine in a very good to fine jacket. Letter with folds else near fine.

Playback is Raymond Chandler's final novel, involving the private detective Philip Marlowe as he uncovers a complex web of lies and deceit.