Johnny Guitar

New York: Pocket Books (1017). Near Fine. 1954. 2nd printing. Softcover. [a very nice copy, with ust a touch of edge- and surface-wear to covers, firm and uncreased spine]. Mass Market PB "A novel of gamblers, outlaws and lynching in the American West," and renowned as the source of the famously overheated Nicholas Ray film -- which has all those elements but oh so much more, with Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge squaring off, ostensibly over the affections of the laconic title character (played by Sterling Hayden), but really just because they hate each other's guts. Definitely a movie tie-in edition -- it even includes the statement "Movie produced by Republic Pictures, November 1953" as part of the publishing history on the copyright page! -- although the tie-in is confined to the first inside page, where a line drawing of Crawford is accompanied by her purported testimonial about the book ("For me there was a special excitement in the role of this fascinating woman...."). Externally, the book is like a miniaturized version of the hardcover edition, using the same cover art -- although upon close comparison, it's evident that the figure of the woman has been re-drawn in order to make her face stand out a little more (no attempt was made to make her resemble the then-45-year-old Joan, though). .