GREENE, Graham.

£2,500 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

The Complaisant Lover. First edition, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "For Mercia, with love from Graham". The recipient was Lady Mercia Harrison (née Tinker), an avid art collector, friend of Giacometti, and wife of actor Rex Harrison. She first met Green in south-east Asia in 1953 while both were married to other people. Although their relationship is not detailed by Greene's biographers, their correspondence - now held at Columbia University - suggests a passionate affair that subsided into an enduring friendship. The Complaisant Lover premiered on 18 June 1959 at the Globe Theatre, London. The first Broadway production opened at Ethel Barrymore Theatre on 1 November 1961 starring Gene Wilder.

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