CONNELLY, Marc

The Green Pastures

First edition, trade issue. Spine sunned, else very good or better, lacking the dustwrapper. Very nicely Inscribed by the author, although we have not as yet identified the recipient: "For Michael, my ancient adviser and friend. Marc. Paris, 1930." A very nice copy of the first edition of this fragile play, a musical comedy based on white novelist Roark Bradford's Ol' Man Adam an' His Chillun, a retelling of Old Testament stories based on the beliefs of Southern African-Americans, and which featured a large cast of African-Americans during its celebrated New York run. Described by Bruce Kellner in The Harlem Renaissance: A Historical Dictionary as "one white writer's version of another white writer's version of one black preacher's version of religion," it nevertheless was well-written and enjoyed enormous popularity, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and running for several years. Despite opposition from Southern theatre owners, Warner Brothers produced an entertaining and successful 1936 film version directed by Connelly, with Rex Ingram as "De Lawd."

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