Fitzgerald, F. Scott

8vo (188 x 130mm.), FIRST EDITION (with letter "A" below colophon), PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR TO HARRY JOE BROWN ("For Harry Joe Brown | - late of the 17th | Infantry Brigade. | Wounded in Hollywood | 1920-1940. | - from his fellow | dough boy | F Scott Fitzgerald | Encino, 1939") on the front free endpaper, original green cloth, dust-jacket, collector's green chemise and morocco backed box, dust-jacket spine with some fading, dust-jacket worn at extremities with some loss at folds and strengthened on verso with one small piece at foot of spine reattached

Harry Joe Brown, bookplate and presentation inscription; sale, Bonhams New York, 20 June 2007, lot 5190

Bruccoli 14.1.a; Connolly 79

Condition is as described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

INSCRIBED PRESENTATION COPY OF THE AUTHOR'S LAST NOVEL AND IN HIS OWN OPINION, HIS FINEST WORK.

In the nineteen years which had passed between the publication of The Great Gatsby and the appearance of Tender is the Night in April 1934, anticipation and expectation had built around what would be Fitzgerald's last novel. However, on publication, Tender is the Night achieved niether the acclaim nor the sales which Fitzgerald hoped for, an outcome which puzzled him for the rest of his life. This was despite a number of overwhelmingly positive reviews, including that of John Chamberlain for The New York Times, who wrote: "Mr. Fitzgerald has not forgotten his craftsmanship... Beyond the story, there is [his] ability to catch the "essence of a continent", the flavor of a period, the fragrance of a night and a snatch of old song, in a phrase."

Harry Joe Brown (1890-1972) was a Hollywood producer, who Fitzgerald recorded meeting in late 1939: "Somewhere around this time [September 1939] Harry Joe Brown called me over to Twentieth Century Fox on a Sonja Heine picture but it was apparently only for a day's pumping." (letter to the Berg-Allenberg Agency, 23 February 1940). 

Fitzgerald had been contracted as a writer by Metro Goldwyn Meyer Studios in the July of 1937, initially for six months. His contract was then extended for another year, but when this lapsed in December 1938 MGM did not renew it. Over the next two years, Fitzgerald freelanced for numerous studios on a number of films, including Everything Happens at Night for which Brown was an associate producer. Fitzgerald was uncredited.

This last spell in Hollywood was not a success, with Fitzgerald picking up only one single screenwriting credit. Despite this Fitzgerald wrote to his daughter Scottie in March 1939: "Sorry that you got the impression that I'm quitting the movies - they are always there...Seriously, I expect to dip in and out of the pictures for the rest of my natural life."