Aleister Crowley contributes a one page humorous piece essay: "How to tell an Englishman from an American", to Lilliput, August - 1946. Vol. 19, No. 2. Issue No. 110.
London: Pocket Publications Ltd. / Hulton Press, August 1946. First Edition. Softcover. Stapled booklet. Small octavo. Eccentrically paginated, approximately 104pp. [ x + 85-168pp + xi - xx.] Color illustrated wrappers, extensively illustrated in b&w. A single issue of this popular monthly magazine which includes the first publication of a strange little one page 'humorous' piece by Crowley "How to tell an Englishman from an American." Crowley managed to get the piece published in "Lilliput" with the assistance of John Symonds - then a young journalist who would later become one of the Beast's best known biographers. When the editors sent Crowley the proofs of his piece for approval, they included the text of a "potted biography" of him that either they or Symonds had written and which was to appear in the "Contributors to this issue" section. We know from the draft of a letter that was in stock at Weiser Antiquarian Books in April 2015 that Crowley was most displeased with the biographical note and sent the editors a telegram, asking them not to go to press with the existing text, but rather to wait on an alternative piece that he would send them at once. Presumably the telegram had the desired effect because the published biographical note is almost certainly the work of Crowley himself. It reads in part: "Aleister Crowley magus, poet, mountaineer, explorer, big game hunter, chess master and cook - to mention a few of his accomplishments. Author of many books, particularly standard works on Magic and the Tarot Cards ..." (p. 147). Due to "Lilliput's" popularity and big print-run, the quirky little anecdote that Crowley contributed to it almost certainly had by far the largest circulation of any (non-newspaper ) piece published by Crowley during his lifetime! Covers a bit grubby and darkened, light vertical crease to front cover, crease to one corner of rear cover. Creases to corners of a few pages ("dog-ears"). Still a complete and rather unusual piece. Despite having a huge print-run most copies of the magazine probably ended up pulped because of their ephemeral nature and post-war paper shortages. Item #71954
Price: $40.00