Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - July - 2012 Issue

European Posters from Burkhard Sülzen

Jannings and Dietrich on the cover of the latest Burkhard Sülzen catalogue.

Jannings and Dietrich on the cover of the latest Burkhard Sülzen catalogue.

We have received Katalog 16 from Burkhard Sülzen of Berlin. Reviewing these catalogues is a bit of a challenge for an American as they are written in German, a language with which this reviewer is not conversant. Fortunately, this problem is at least partly offset by the catalogue's and material being quite visual. The German bookseller specializes in posters, works appealing more for their images than words. The visuals often relay the message better than words. While these posters are overwhelmingly German in origin, there are many with a noted American connection as well. Among the types of posters offered are those pertaining to films, concerts, travel, politics, and consumer goods. Many of the films shown in Germany were from America, and many concerts promoted were by American artists. So we will focus somewhat more on these as they are easier for me to understand. Here, now, are some of the posters, which date from 1900-1996, displayed in this latest Burkhard Sülzen catalogue.

It is not unusual to see graphic messages intended to scare us into good behavior, but this one circa 1930 is a bit extreme even by today's standards. With the bold heading Kraftfahrer! Obacht! (Drivers! Watch Out!) it displays the consequences of a driver who didn't watch out. With just those two words of copy, the remainder of the message is visual. We see the tire of a car or truck, a crushed bicycle underneath, and an arm protruding from the wreckage. And, from somewhere off camera beneath the car, blood flows, a river of deep red blood. Indeed, drivers, watch out! Item 72. Priced at €420 (euros, or roughly US $525).

The poster shown on the catalogue's cover is for the 1930 film Der blaue Engel (The Blue Angel). It starred Emil Jannings and Marlene Dietrich. This was the film that made the relatively obscure actress into an international star. The Blue Angel is a tale of downfall. Jannings plays the role of a respected schoolteacher who is incensed by his students going to the Blue Angel nightclub to watch Miss Dietrich's performances. He goes there, hoping to catch the students, only to be entranced by her charms. He becomes obsessed, abandoning his teaching job, marrying “Lola-Lola” (Miss Dietrich), ends up performing in her troupe as a clown, is mocked by patrons of the club, becomes consumed with jealousy as Ms. Dietrich's affections stray, and dies a broken man. There's a lesson in all of this. Along with being the film that launched Dietrich's career, it is considered the first major German talking film. Item 17 is the first poster announcing the premier of this important film. €20,000 (US $25,010).

Item 24 is a poster for the 1933 film Lady Lou. If that name doesn't sound familiar, its American title probably will – She Done Him Wrong. It starred Mae West as Lady Lou, who uttered the famous line, “Why don't you come up sometime and see me?” (it is now usually misquoted as “see me sometime”). West's bawdy humor and double entendres made this an enormously popular film and cemented West's risqué image. It made her a perennial film favorite despite her not being the most beautiful of movie stars. This film would also prove to be a breakthrough for the young actor Cary Grant. The poster features a large, profile drawing of Miss West from the neck up. €1,800 (US $2,249).

Rare Book Monthly

  • SwannPrinted & Manuscript African AmericanaMarch 20, 2025 SwannPrinted & Manuscript African AmericanaMarch 20, 2025
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    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 7: Thomas Fisher, The Negro's Memorial or Abolitionist's Catechism, London, 1825. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 78: Victor H. Green, The Negro Travelers' Green Book, New York, 1958. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 99: Rosa Parks, Hand-written recollection of her first meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., autograph manuscript, Detroit, c. 1990s. $30,000 to $40,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 154: Frederick Douglass, Autograph statement on voting rights, signed manuscript, 1866. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 164: W.E.B. Du Bois, What the Negro Has Done for the United States and Texas, Washington, circa 1936. $3,000 to $4,000.
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    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 263: Susan Paul, Memoir of James Jackson, Boston, 1835. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 267: Langston Hughes, Gypsy Ballads, signed translation of García Lorca's poetry, Madrid, 1937. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 274: Malcolm X, Collection from Alex Haley's estate, 38 items, 1963-1971. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 367: Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave, Auburn, NY, 1853. $2,500 to $3,500.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 402: Anna Julia Cooper, A Voice from the South, Xenia, OH, 1892. $2,000 to $3,000.
  • Koller, Mar. 26: Wit, Frederick de. Atlas. Amsterdam, de Wit, [1680]. CHF 20,000 to 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: Merian, Maria Sibylla. Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandelung, und sonderbare Blumennahrung. Nürnberg, 1679; Frankfurt a. M. und Leipzig, 1683. CHF 20,000 to 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON. Faust. Ein Fragment. Von Goethe. Ächte Ausgabe. Leipzig, G. J. Göschen, 1790. CHF 7,000 to 10,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: Hieronymus. [Das hochwirdig leben der außerwoelten freünde gotes der heiligen altuaeter]. Augsburg, Johann Schönsperger d. Ä., 9. Juni 1497. CHF 40,000 to 60,000.
    Koller, Mar. 26: BIBLIA GERMANICA - Neunte deutsche Bibel. Nürnberg, A. Koberger, 17. Feb. 1483. CHF 40,000 to 60,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: HORAE B.M.V. - Stundenbuch. Lateinische Handschrift auf Pergament, Kalendarium französisch. Nordfrankreich (Rouen?). CHF 25,000 to 40,000
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    Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR

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