Roman Candle

Letita Baldridge

Published by Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1956

About this Item

Stated First Printing October 1956. You can see the covers in the photos. They are very clean. The gilt lettering on the spine is very bright. The edges and corners are in excellent shape. The spine ends have just the typical crinkling. The top page edge is yellow. The middle page edge is deckled or rough-cut. The page edges are in very good shape. The book is quite decently bound from cover to cover. Some of the early pages have a little bit of a thin semi crease just to the right of the juncture off the top edge, not much of anything. There are no cracks or spaces between any of the facing pages. Both covers are tightly bound. The pages are exceptionally clean. I've scrolled through them a number of times without finding any instances of soiling. There is no conspicuous creasing. There are no markings. No attachments. Off the top edge of the blank first end paper is penciled 'From the Wallace Murrays.' There is no other writing to be found anywhere in the book. Given Ms. Baldridge's work within the government and overseas it is quite possible that this is the Wallace Murray who served as a career foreign service officer. You can see the dust jacket in the first few photos. It's in pretty nice condition. It does have two thin tears off its front bottom edge. There's also a bit of scuffing off the spine ends and a light crease off the front top edge. The rear dust jacket has a mild amount of light spotting. The flaps are in excellent condition, very clean. The top corner of the front flap is clipped so the price is not present. The jacket will be fitted with a protective cover after the photos are scanned. The first paragraph from the dust jacket: 'Here are some fireworks without a single fizzle. In a book as exuberant as her personality, Letiita Baldridge tells the story of her three years as ringmaster of one of the busiest, gayest, most important Embassy residences in the world: the Villa Taverna, permanent residence of the American Ambassador to Italy. The Villa is in Rome and Tish's (her nickname) Ambassador was Clare Booth Luce.' 'Letitia "Tish" Baldrige was an American etiquette expert, public relations executive and author who was most famous for serving as Jacqueline Kennedy's Social Secretary. Known as the "Doyenne of Decorum", she wrote a newspaper column, ran her own PR firm, and updated Amy Vanderbilts Complete Book of Etiquette.' As Social Secretary to Mrs. Kennedy she was responsible for coordinating aspects of the Inauguration, receptions, state dinners, and overseas trips. Seller Inventory # 003931

Bibliographic Details

Title: Roman Candle

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston

Publication Date: 1956

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Very Good

Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

Edition: 1st Edition