Black Doll

GOREY (Edward):

Black Doll

New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1973

A Few Frames from the BLACK DOLL, comprising eight mounted photographs by Tom Parrish, each picture signed by the photographer and dated '75 - '76.

Square quarto, [8] ff. + index; original stiff marbled paper with a typed title label on upper cover.

Created as a promotional presentation for making the film version of "The Black Doll".

Accompanied by: The BLACK DOLL. New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1973. Small 8vo, 52pp + colophon; grey paper wrappers with pictorial label designed by the author on the front wrapper.

First printing, signed by Edward Gorey on the title-page.

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"The Black Doll" is Gorey's screenplay for an unproduced silent film. Like many of his works, the plot is set in a Victorian-esque surrounding. It tells the story of the black doll, a "PRO," or "priceless ritual object", from the ancient Asian city of Glub (or Blug), which is sought after by various groups of people.

The black doll figure is a recurring figure in Gorey's books, and makes appearances in The Listing Attic (1954), The Willowdale Handcar (1962), The Tunnel Calamity (1984), and The Raging Tide (1987). Gorey, a film buff particularly inspired by the works of Louis Feuillade, blends his own signature black humor with the traditional elements of silent film, creating a unique screenplay that provides much more insight into the author's thought process than many of his other books, which are hallmarked by their minimal use of text.

In 1998, The Black Doll was reprinted along with several color illustrations by Gorey in "Scenario, The Magazine of Screenwriting Art". In 2009, Pomegranate published a new, hardcover edition of The Black Doll with the "Scenario" illustrations, an interview with Gorey, and an introduction by Andreas Brown.