ULTIMO, John & Ruth Vassos, 1930

Limited edition:

This edition was limited to 115 copies which were signed by both John and Ruth Vassos. The copy being described is number 44.

Title Page:

ULTIMO [red type] / an imaginative narration of / life under the earth with / projections by John Vassos / and the text by Ruth Vassos / E.P. DUTTON & COMPANY, INC., NEW YORK, 1930 [red type]

265 x 200mm. Bound in ¼ "ivory" paper with gold "tea chest" paper sides; wove paper for text; title stamped on spine in gold; type set as one letter / line; slipcase covered in red paper with decor stamped in gold. The book was designed by John Vassos and set in Futura type at Stratford Press. No page numbering. Collection PDV.

i half-title ii blank iii edition statement iv blank v blank vi frontispiece vii title page viii copyright notice ix dedication to D.H.L. x blank xi quote xii blank Prelude xiii-xxxiv Ultimo xxxv-xcviii = 49 leaves

Index of Illustrations:

In this book, the illustrations are not clearly marked or given some form of descriptive title. Vassos' 1976 publication Contempo, Phobia And Other Graphic Interpretations has given "titles" to some of the illustrations using descriptive text from the book. Those which have been extrapolated by me are indicated with an asterisk.
 

1^st Regular Edition - Variant 1

Title page: Identical to limited edition.

265 x 200mm. Bound in full red cloth; plain endleaves; title stamped in gold with decor stamped in gold, black and white; type on spine set one letter / line; no page numbering. This variant is believed to be the first based on its description in a review dated November 16, 1930. ⁽¹⁾ Collections of PDV, SUL.

i half title ii blank iii blank iv frontispiece v title page vi copyright notice vii dedication to D.H.L. viii blank ix "quote" x blank xi foreword xii blank xii-xxxii Prelude xxxiii-xcvi Ultimo = 48 leaves

Index of Illustrations:

Order of illustrations identical to limited edition except that they appear on pages:

iv, xv, xix, xxiii, xxxi, xxxv, xxxix, xliii, xlvii, li, lv, lix, lxiii, lxvii, lxxi, lxxv, lxxxix, lxxxii, lxxxvii, xci, xcv

1^st Regular Edition - Variant 2

265 x 200mm. Bound in gray-blue cloth; plain endleaves; title and decor stamped in black; type on spine set as one letter / line; no page numbering. Collections of PDV, SUL, MN.

Collation and position of illustrations identical to Variant 1.

1^st Regular Edition - Variant 3

265 x 200mm. Bound in rust / brown natural finish cloth; plain endleaves; title and decor stamped in black; type on spine set as one letter / line; no page numbering. Collection PDV.

Collation and position of illustrations identical to Variant 1.

Dust-jacket:

Printed on cream stock with rust / brown ink.

Front:

Same design as on binding

Spine:

Same design as on binding

Rear:

"This is a scientific fantasy set forth in a curious document by a man of the future looking backwards and recounting the history of humanity's sojourn inside the earth on the eve of his departure from it.

This mighty conception is illuminated by the remarkable drawings of Mr. Vassos, whose art is so peculiarly adapted to the projection of the human mind into these limitless realms."

Both the limited as well as regular editions of Ultimo were released October 28, 1930. The 1930 "Catalogue of Publications" listed the limited edition (115 copies) of this title at $10 and the regular edition at $5. By 1941 the regular edition dropped to 3.75. The limited edition ceased to be listed. By 1942 the "regular" was short-listed. Internal documents from E.P. Dutton dated June 2, 1933 show that between October 28, 1930 and April 30, 1931, 18 copies of the limited edition were sold, Vassos receiving $27 total at $1.50 each. That same document, however, also shows 56 copies were sold in the first 6 months. Between May 1, 1931 and April 30, 1933 no further copies are recorded as having been sold. Of the regular edition, 954 copies were sold between October 28, 1930 and April 30, 1933, 900 of these having been sold during the first 6 months after publication. Vassos received $468 $.50 each royalty. No advances were paid. ⁽²⁾ A letter dated October 14, 1932 from Elliott Macrae to John Vassos mentions that at least 2000 extra copies of Ultimo were still on hand and suggested that these be sold for the price of $1.00 in quantities of 500 or more. Vassos accepted. ⁽³⁾ On July 18, 1934 Elliott Macrae wrote to Vassos on the same subject, this time mentioning that "on that particular title we went a little bit astray in binding a large quantity, which we now have on hand. With Contempo we printed the same quantity but did not bind as many. On Ultimo we have approximately 1000 extra copies upstairs, and with your kind approval we should like to dispose of these at $.50 each. This $.50 price, of course, would apply only on orders for several hundred copies at a time." He concludes by asking for Vassos' approval. ⁽⁴⁾

The contract for Ultimo between E.P. Dutton, dated October 6, 1930 and the Vassoses specified that they were to deliver "a clearly typewritten manuscript in perfect order for printing with all necessary originals for illustration ready for the engraver. "In contrast to the contracts for his other titles to date, the one for Ultimo made no mention of the number of illustrations to be provided nor of a dust-jacket or binding design. The copyright notice page however does indicate that the book was designed by Vassos. ⁽⁵⁾

In a prepublication review dated April 10, 1930, L.T.N. writes that he has seen the text only, 2100 words, and then very briefly abstracts the plot. He does not indicate any personal feelings about the text or illustrations. ⁽⁶⁾

In a review published in the Detroit Free Press, November 16, 1930, Mary Griffin writes that the "black and white drawings and narrative blend into perfect oneness." Ruth Vassos' writings are described as "wonderfully terse," in what was the only positive comment which could be found about her writing style . Concluding, she writes, "readers with a mind for the extraordinary will find rare pleasure in the Vassoses' collaboration. It is interesting both in text and drawing. The boards are red, black, white and gold; the margins spacious, the type attractive." This is the only description of for any binding of this title. It was described in Rykken and Scull's "Catalog 99" as the "first edition in preferred red, black, white and gold deco binding."

The Syracuse University Library's copy of this particular variant as well as PDV's copy of the 1930 printing of The Ballad of Reading Gaol were both inscribed to Max Miller a reviewer for the San Diego Sun, who mentioned the book with accompanying illustration in the October 26, 1931 edition of that paper. Vassos wrote, "My dear Max Miller – That you won't despise my effort. July 27^th, 1932

In a letter dated November 18^th, 1930, George Suttcliffe, of Sangorski and Suttcliffe Bookbinders, wrote to Elliot Macrae thanking him for a signed copy of Ultimo. He writes that "Miss Vassos' vision is worth of his expression of it. What a collaborator for H.G.W(ells). He would dare picture the Time Machine I am sure." Sutcliffe continues on and asks Macrae to pass his thanks on to the Vassoses and offers "in return any piece of work I can achieve for him in my way, under his direction, for I would not venture to design, as a token of my appreciation I would be happy to endeavour it." ⁽⁷⁾

The February 1931 edition of The Dance Magazine, in which Vassos ran 6 illustrations, published a brief review describing Vassos as "the brilliant young artist whose drawing in recent numbers of The Dance Magazine have caused so much comment. Just as in his drawing for The Dance in this volume, Mr. Vassos shows a strange, powerful quality which lends itself particularity to stage setting and design. The illustrations are packed full of ideas for modern dances, and Ultimo would seem a treasure house of source matter for the choreographer.

Coley Taylor, whose review of Contempo was abstracted earlier also reviewed Ultimo for the Wheeling [IL] Register on November 23^rd, 1930. The review was republished in Dutton's "Christmas Book" flier for 1930, and both were accompanied by "cities became perpendicular" and a photo of Vassos. Taylor described Ultimo as "a curious book, and a strangely satisfying one in the realm of scientific prophecy. Ultimo is described as reminding one of "Jules Verne's books in its rich scientific and artistic imagination and as portraying the purely fantastic realistically, a method which was also applied to Butler's Erewhon. Taylor recounts the plot at length, a plot in which the scientists who helped in the development of life on earth have not been able to protect mankind from this new ice age which was exacerbated by their developments. Mankind is threatened with extinction... In their tale, however, the Vassoses say no to this vision, telling the reader how we adapt and grow, building a utopian society. This society looks upon the past as man's golden age and their desire to re-attain this leads drives them to develop a "rocket car" to take them to a new world where they can start anew. Taylor describes the book's greatest importance as being the illustrations which he claims are the best of Vassos' career. Not having to interpret the work of others as in the case of the Wilde books or to illustrate familiar, contemporary phenomena as in the case of Contempo, offered Vassos the opportunity to let his imagination run freely."

An anonymous review published in the Herald-Advertiser November 9^th, 1930 (no location) and accompanied by "cities became perpendicular" begins by stating that "Ultimo rates top notch for sheer artistry," and that "if Ultimo is not the most artistic book published this year, then the one which will surpass it has not yet reached our desk." The reviewer recounts the tale much as Taylor did, but remarks that the story is "rather lightly done" and not as well developed as Verne's writings. He continues by writing that ultimately Ultimo is a "a very transient bit of beauty." The writer acknowledges Vassos' artistic talent, but states that if John Vassos continues "wasting some extraordinarily fine efforts on a background of very mediocre prose then he is less observant than his artistic genius would indicate." What the writer suggests is that John Vassos "should be associated with a prose undertaking of more distinction than the allegory which sustains this book, so long as he insists on being an illustrator. Or, to put it another way, we would rather see the illustrations presented as original conceptions, each with a paragraph of explanatory text."

Elsie McCormick, in a review published in The World (no date or location) suggests using Ultimo as a remedy for insomnia. By saying so she claims not to imply that the volume is boring, but that "its effectiveness lies in its fascination." She continues, "somehow it carries one far out of the present world and many light years away from one's own round of problems. Besides, the story of the fight against eternal frost makes a person feel so grateful for a warm bed that his worries dwindle into insignificance."

In a review published in the Dallas Morning News on January 18^th, 1931, Jerry Bywaters begins "as if Contempo were only an ordinary book, John and Ruth Vassos have really dropped the reins of their imaginations and presented us with Ultimo, a fictional – prophetic work of insidious interest." Bywaters like all other reviewers then proceeds to recount the plot, concluding with "perhaps Ultimo is only a far fetched dream; maybe it is a prophecy. At least it is a well put one, splendidly presented by creative drawings, and an example of fine bookmaking, and it is fittingly dedicated to D.H.L. (D.H. Lawrence) "who loved the sun." The review is accompanied by the first illustration in the story, "cities became perpendicular."

The Boston Advertiser wrote on December 23^rd, 1930 that "Ultimo is a logical successor to Contempo by the same pair. Mr. Vassos calls his drawings "projections" They express in curve and angle, light and shade, the artists conception of man's achievements. They are vast and stimulating. They are decorative, they delight the eye, but like program music, require a text to illuminate them. They will bear poring over, for the artist is also a philosopher and a prophet. The bound volume is one of great beauty."

On November 15^th, 1930, the New Yorker wrote that Ultimo is "a goofy sort of enterprise with text by Ruth and projections by John Vassos. The pictures, if in color, would make good posters for some brand of bed or bacon." The Republic wrote on December 24^th, 1930 that this is a "slight but pretentiously presented performance... It is a stark monotonous account of life on, and later within, this earth as it moves further and further from the sun [the real cause in the text was that the sun was shrinking]. The illustrations are decorative inventions, much like modernistic stage-sets and poster work."

Other published reviews or mentions:

Buffalo Times - November 2, 1930, illus of "into the frozen earth bored the hugh drills," "The ever weakening rays of the dying sum gleam on the chasmed earth..," "We cast from us the shell of an earth now useless and dead" with review.
Saturday Review of Literature - November 8, 1930, review .
Richmond Times-Dispatch - November 9, 1930, illus of "The hour of departure is come" with mention.
Salt Lake Telegram - October 12, 1930, 1 illus each from the Harlot's House and Contempo with mention.
Salt Lake Telegram - November 16, 1930, illus of "cities became perpendicular" and photo of Vassos with mention.
Philadelphia Enquirer - November 22, 1930, review by C.H.B.
New York World - November 22, 1930, mention .
Boston Advertiser - November 23, 1930, illus of "Great circular cities were built consisting of low buildings..." with review.
Dallas Times Herald - November 23, 1930, illus of "cities became perpendicular" with review .
Minneapolis Journal - November 23, 1930, illus of "All under the earth..," "into the frozen earth bored the hugh drills," "...there was a very real feeling of joy..," with mention.
Richmond Times Leader - November 27, 1930, review.
United Press Red Letter (NY) - November 27, 1930, review.
Golden Book - December, 1930, mention .
Time - December 1, 1930, review.
New York Times Book Review - April 19, 1931, illus of "The ever weakening rays of the dying sum gleam on the chasmed earth..." ⁽⁸⁾

Back to Contents

1. From a review of Ultimo. Mary Griffin. The Detroit Free Press, November 16.1930.

2. E.P. Dutton Papers, Box 55, Vassos, John and Ruth, Correspondence. John Vassos: Royalty Earned and Deductions to Apr. 30, 1933. June 2, 1933.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. E.P. Dutton Papers, Box 55, John and Ruth Vassos, Correspondence.

6. E.P. Dutton Papers, Box 55, John and Ruth Vassos, Reader's Reviews.

7. E.P.Dutton Papers, Box 55, John and Ruth Vassos, Correspondence.

8. E.P. Dutton Papers, Box 55, Vassos, John, Reviews - Ultimo.