BURLEY, Dan (1907-1962). Dan Burley’s Original Handbook of Harlem Jive. New York: 1944.

First edition, featuring an 18-page dictionary Jiver’s Bible and numerous articles and translations of famous works into jive.

As a reporter for Harlem’s Amsterdam News, Dan Burley gained prominence for his two regular columns in the weekly paper – a sports column in which he advocated for the integration of baseball, and a nightlife column which chronicled the Harlem scene and documented the ‘jive’ spoken in the clubs of Harlem. ‘According to Burley, it was… Langston Hughes who “insisted” that he compile a handbook of jive… As Burley explained in the book’s preface, “This volume is intended as a guide and handbook designed primarily to give students of Jive, and those who would like to be “in the know” about this newest and most popular addition to the American dialect, an idea of what it is all about.” As it’s title suggested, the work really was all about the lingua franca of Harlem during the era. In his dialogues and stories, and parodies of Shakespeare’s monologues and other famous poets, Burley sought, via jive, to capture the many cultural crosscurrents blowing through the capital of Black America.’ (Hamm, ‘Dan Burley’s Original Handbook of Harlem Jive (1944),’ in The Brooklyn Rail, December 2008-January 2009.)

Octavo. Original pictorial orange paper wrappers, author’s copyright ink-stamp to front cover. Housed in a modern custom red cloth clamshell box with chemise.