Description
First edition, second printing of Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. From the library of Dorothy Comingore, Hollywood actress and star of Citizen Kane, later blacklisted for her communist sympathies.
Octavo, ix, [1], 278pp. Light blue cloth, title stamped in black and red on spine. Lacking Scribner’s A on copyright page. Light dust remnant along top edge, solid binding, dampstaining to lower corners, with no impact to text block. In the publisher’s dust jacket, $3.00 on front flap, chipping at top of spine, vibrant colors. Signed by Dorothy Comingore on the front free endpaper. An attractive example of one of the best-known works of South African literature.
Dorothy Comingore (1913-1971) was the breakout star of Citizen Kane, the critically acclaimed film by Orson Welles. As her fame grew, so did the FBI’s attention to her suspected communist activities. In 1952 she declined to answer questions when called in front of the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), resulting in her being blacklisted from Hollywood. She never worked in Hollywood again and struggled with alcoholism in her later years.
