Scam Alert

I'll take more time to "pretty-up" this page when time allows. But the need for this alert is greater than the desire for cosmetic appeal.

Many GWTW collectors have found the on-line auctions, like ebay to be an excellent marketplace in past years - a place where collectors can find the "missing pieces" for their collections that have eluded them for years. I have found some treasures there, and I have sold books that others have considered treasures.

The number of questionable GWTW listings that have recently begun appearing on ebay should cause every honest ebay seller to be more forthright and every buyer to be more cautious. Sellers should be providing better descriptions, and buyers should be bombarding sellers with questions when they do not.

Here are some basic suggestions for how to avoid some of these scams:

First Editions

Avoid sellers who use the following vague and ambiguous phrases in their descriptions:

Avoid This	Reason
"Possible First Edition?"	If the seller doesn't know, there should be no suggestion that it might be a first edition.
"Copyright 1936 - No other dates listed"	This book is a Book Club Edition.  For some titles - but not Gone With The Wind, it can mean that the book is a first edition if it lists no reprint dates. Not so with GWTW. It must show "May, 1936" as the date printed. It doesn't matter that there are no other dates listed. If it doesn't state "May, 1936" as the date printed, it is not a True First Edition of GWTW.
First edition - June, 1936 with no other dates listed	Same as above. For the buyer who is not knowledgeable about how to identify the first edition of GWTW, this might appear to be a first edition.
688 pages	This is a Book Club Edition. First editions of GWTW - even the reprints - have 1,037 pages.
"Copyright, MCMXXXVI"	This is a book Club Edition. Don't confuse it with a First Edition.
This is the true first edition (although there was a special printing in May)	I saw this in a recent ebay listing. It tries to make one think that the May printing was of no significance. If you haven't figured it out yet, folks, the May printing is the only one that the experts consider to be the TRUE First Edition/First Printing. The June printing is quite collectible, but it is not the True First Edition.
Rare, two-column text layout.	I fell for this early in my collecting days. I rushed to my collection and lo and behold - all of my copies were typeset with one column of text on the page. I was talked into believing that the two-column layout was rare and special. It's not. This is the default text layout for the earliest Book Club Editions.
Just like the one that sold for $$$(any amount) in auction #...	Often, you'll find that when an ebay seller wants you to go compare a recently ended auction, you'll discover one of two things: The auction had some shill bidding going on to create an artificially high price for the express purpose of creating a phony point of reference. "Shill" bidding is explained in greater detail in a later section. The item is actually not the same. In one case that I remember, the seller of a Book Club Edition was comparing his book to a later printing of a first edition (with dust jacket). In another case the seller was comparing a nice later printing to a true First Edition / First Printing.
Ambiguous use of the words ORIGINAL, VINTAGE, and ACTUAL without explaining what they mean.	These words are easily taken out of context, or used with the intent of making one think that a book is very special - when it isn't. I have an original copy of GWTW in a vintage dust jacket. What I mean by that might be a Book Club Edition (as it was "originally" issued) with a dust jacket from the same era ("vintage"). What you might incorrectly infer from that description is that I have a First Edition in the dust jacket with which it was originally issued.
First Edition	When used without further explanation, this phrase should only describe the First Printing of the First Edition. When referring to any other printing, some additional verbiage is required. For Example: First Edition, Later Printing could refer to any of the later printings of a book. First Edition, 10th Printing refers to a specific printing of a book. First, thus means that it is not a true first edition of the title, but it is the first edition to be printed with a particular binding, or in a particular layout. The Deluxe Edition, for example was printed in 1965. It could be called "First, thus". It was printed again, and the copyright specifically states "Second Printing, 1969." The second printing of this book should never be referred to as a "First edition" of any kind.  First Book Club Edition WRONG! Glenn H. Larson has written an excellent article published on the International Book Collectors Association at http://www.rarebooks.org/firsted.htm entitled, "First Edition Identification." It includes a section specifically devoted to Book Club Editions. In his article, Mr. Larson states,  "Book Club (BC) editions are not first editions and generally have little collectable value. New collectors are often trapped thinking that they have a first edition when they really have a BC copy." (http://www.rarebooks.org/bookclub.htm)   I recommend this article to all book collectors. Some have criticized and questioned my use of this term throughout this web site. The fact is, that all of the reprints of the First Edition can be called First Editions, but should only be done so with the appropriate specifics. In other words, there's nothing "wrong" with calling an October printing a "First Edition" as long as you specify that it is a later printing or better yet - specify exactly which printing it is. To say that it is a "First" or a "First Printing" and leave it at that is quite misleading, and should be avoided.

Dust Jackets

Avoid auctions for early copies of the book with "later" dust jacket.

There are some sellers who are buying up inexpensive later printings of GWTW with dust jackets, and then performing "shotgun weddings" in order to "marry" them to older copies of the book. Result? A $10.00 book is matched up with a $10.00 dust jacket, and sold for $100.00 or more to an unsuspecting buyer who did not notice the sly wording and thought that the dust jacket was originally issued with the book. In these cases, the seller might be making a half-hearted attempt to "tell the truth" without "telling the whole story." Be careful when the book is described as having a "later" dust jacket, or a "vintage" dust jacket. If the seller has left any reason to doubt, ask for more specific information. Ask if this is the dust jacket with which the book was originally issued. If not, ask why not. See the chart below for more details on how to tell if it's the right dust jacket.

Avoid auctions when the dust jacket doesn't appear to be of the correct "vintage."

Some sellers won't even give you a clue that the jacket is not the one that was originally issued with the book. You have to detect this for yourself. One of my goals for this web site has long been to document the chronology of the original dust jackets - in a way similar to what I've done with the First Edition and its reprints. Time has not allowed me to do that in the way that I'd like - with photos and detailed descriptions of every minor detail. So here's the brief history of the dust jackets:

Book	Dust jacket	Distinguishing Characteristics
True First Edition, First Printing	First State	Back of dust jacket lists "Macmillan Spring Novels." Note that "Gone With The Wind" is the second title in the right column. See photos in the section of this web site on the First Printing.
All of the printings in June and July of 1936	Second State	Like the first state, the back of dust jacket lists Macmillan's Spring Novels, but "Gone With The Wind" is the first title in the left column, and the top line reads "New Macmillan Books" in large type.
All other printings from 1936	"Running Totals" starting with "SEVEN PRINTINGS" and going through approximately "THIRTY PRINTINGS"	The bottom of the front of the dust jacket states the number of printings and the number of copies printed. These dust jackets are commonly referred to as the "running totals." Instead of "Macmillan Spring Novels," these dust jackets say "All America is Reading" at the top of the back of the dust jacket.
All printings from 1937	"Running Totals" starting with approximately "THIRTY-ONE" and going through approximately "FORTY"	Identical to above - only the totals start at 31 printings and go through about 40. You might wonder why I've used the word "about" and not "exactly?" It's difficult to be absolutely certain that all printings of the book can be matched up to a specific version of the "running Totals" dust jacket. One very well respected collector told me that he once had it all figured out, but I have never seen a list that I found convincing. I don't think that Macmillan was careful to get these matched-up exactly, but they tend to be be very close - within certain limits. For example, I've seen January, 1937 books with dust jackets between 30 and 33. So if it's within a few, it's probably OK.
All printings from 1938 through 1940 (or perhaps 1941)	Plain front.	No more "Running Totals" on the bottom of the the front. Otherwise, about the same.
1942 through 1945 (all printings)	Freedom Dust Jacket.	Top of the back now reads "The Critics Said." Also, the lower portion of the back has an ad for war bonds and stamps.
1946 through 1958	Plain back.	Still says "The Critics Said" on the top of the back, but no longer carries the war bonds ad.
1960 through 92nd printing	No stripes.	The entire design changed. Most obvious is that the stripes have been eliminated. In 1977 (86th printing), ISBN numbers began appearing on the lower back of these jackets.
93rd printing through current.	ISBN numbers.	Reverts back to a striped design similar to the early 1936-1938 dust jackets, but they now have an ISBN number printed on the lower back of the jacket. Technically, ISBN numbers were added starting in 1977, but this feature is key to distinguishing one of the older 1938 dust jackets and the much newer ones.
The point of al of this is: ask enough questions until you are satisfied that it's reasonable to believe that the dust jacket is original to the book. If it's not - don't bid like it was! This sort of mismatched set is roughly worth the value of the book alone or the dust jacket alone - but it is not worth the matched set as originally issued.

 

Avoid auctions that provide details about the book, but only refer to the dust jacket as "vintage."

"Vintage" can be very ambiguous. To the reader it might mean "Old - like the book." or "of the same vintage as the book." What the seller might be hiding is the fact that the book is old, and the dust jacket is old, but they are not of the same "vintage." Use the table above to determine where the dust jacket fits in.

Avoid auctions with bidding wars between two bidders.

Unfortunately, it's a fairly simple matter to create multiple e-mail accounts, and multiple ebay IDs. This allows an unscrupulous seller to use "fake buyers" to start a bidding war against one another. They will bid multiple times, increasing the price up to where the seller hopes to get a "real" bid from an unsuspecting buyer. It creates the illusion that there is great interest in the book - why else would there be so many bids? This scam is sometimes referred to as "shill" bidding. This is a trap that all auction bidders need to be aware of and avoid.

Avoid auctions with lots of bids from "low feedback" bidders

Low feedback numbers generally indicate that a person has not been an ebay member for very long. The person might be an inexperienced collector - new to ebay, or it might be a fake ID created for the express purpose of allowing a seller to bid on his own items without revealing his true identity. By bidding on his own items, he drives the price up. This is also a form of "shill" biding. It's against ebay rules, and it is against the law.

Now, if an auction has multiple bidders with higher feedback numbers, it might very well be a valuable item that is being sought by many experienced bidders. But when most have low feedback, they are likely to be up to something.

Ask questions

Honest sellers do not get annoyed at honest questions. They should also not mind providing additional scans and photos.

Beware of Facsimile Editions

Several Facsimile editions of GWTW have been printed. These are quite legitimate printings - not "underground" or unauthorized. But they are exact reproductions of the True First Editions, with only very subtle distinguishing characteristics. Macmillan produced one in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the printing of the book. It even contains the "May, 1936" printing date. But just inches beneath it, it also contains the 1964 Copyright renewal. So if you can see the entire copyright page, you'll spot the 1964 date, and you won't be fooled.

The First Editions Library also produced one. It also caries an additional 1964 copyright renewal notice inches beneath the original May, 1936 Printing date.

These books are dead ringers for the Real Deal, so buyers must be wary.

 

Beware of Facsimile and Reproduction Dust Jackets.

A very tricky scam is to use the dust jacket from one of the Facsimile Editions on a True First Edition. The dust jackets are exact reproductions of the first state dust jackets, as issued with the May, 1936 True First Editions, but each has its own innocuous method of differentiating it from the true First State dust jacket.

In the case of the Macmillan version, the dust jacket has an ISBN number printed in the lower left corner of the back of the dust jacket. it is ISBN 0-02-585400-3. I have seen "first state" dust jackets that were slightly chipped here and there with small tears as you would expect to find, and with just tiny amounts of wear that you might expect to find on a jacket that had been well cared for. Other than these few minor problems - in very good condition. When you see something like this, it's enough to make your heart stop! Unfortunately, the lower left corner of the back of the jacket had been chipped away. It seemed so minor - an area no more than a quarter-inch tall and an inch and one-half long. This caused me to believe, however, that it was a Facsimile edition dust jacket from which the ISBN number had been torn away - removing the only characteristic by which it could be identified. This is the kind of thing that you really have to be aware of. 

Facsimile Edition

The First Edition Library dust jacket is even more difficult to identify. It has no ISBN number, but it does have the letters "F·E·L" printed at the bottom edge of the back inside flap. It's even easier to disguise by removing it and "roughing up" the rest of the jacket to give it the look of a little age.

First Edition Library

"Reproduction" dust jackets have become quite easy to make with the recent technological advances in color photocopying techniques. Someone with access to an authentic First State dust jacket can make a color photocopy and make it almost indistinguishable from the original.

 

Beware of Fraudulent Autographs

Gone With The Wind was an overnight sensation, and Margaret Mitchell was soon besieged with requests for autographs. People would send their books to her through the mail and ask her to sign them. It didn't take long for this to become an overwhelming task to open packages, sign books, repackage them, and return them through the mail. Finally, in December of 1936, Miss Mitchell decided that she would no longer autograph copies of her book. She extended this rule even to close family members, refusing to sign books for anyone. The only exceptions that I'm aware of are a few well-documented foreign language editions. There were, however a number of women who went around the country impersonating Miss Mitchell and signing books. Copies of Gone With The Wind with authentic signatures of Margaret Mitchell are rare and quite valuable. But be particularly leery of autographed copies that were printed after December, 1936. Below is a scan of an Authentic Margaret Mitchell autograph. 

Buyer Beware

Buyers must beware of these potential scams, and take every caution to avoid them. Don't bid on items if the scans or photos don't clearly show the parts required to identify phonies. Don't bid if the seller "plays dumb" and doesn't know the right answers. Don't fall for the line about "selling this book for someone else." Beware of item descriptions that begin with "I'm not on expert on books, but ..." These clues don't automatically mean that the seller is trying to perpetrate a fraud, but they are commonly used by knowledgeable sellers who don't want you to catch onto the fact that they don't want to divulge everything that they know about the item that they're selling.

I hope that some of these tips will help you be better shoppers, and avoid wasting your money on scams. I breaks my heart when I see someone spend hundreds of dollars on a nearly worthless Book Club Edition because they didn't do their homework, and they weren't careful. They might live on in blissful ignorance for many years thinking that they purchased a True First Edition at a bargain price. 

Good luck, and be careful out there!

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