I don't have a lot to say about this book. I'm a big fan of Edward Gorey, but wasn't really taken with this screenplay. More interesting is definitely the interview that precedes it. ( )

Even one accustomed to the enigmatic short works of Edward Gorey can feel a bit dazed by the comings and goings in “The Black Doll: A silent screenplay”.
The book is gorgeously produced by Pomegranate, which has been bringing out reprints and as in this case, unpublished works of the late Gorey, and it begins with a 16 page interview which puts the screenplay of a silent movie into context.
The screenplay itself is presented in eight sequences, with a worthy climax involving the eponymous Black Doll. Along the way, we meet such Gorey staples as the ecorche, the Fiend, the insect, a bear named GLUB which has a cultish following, Octavia Prong (recently widowed), Ursula Scchnittlauch, a pub named The Smashed Clavicle, the inevitable open limousine driver’s name: Maximilian.
A typical snippet or two from the giddy screenplay, a ball at the Villa Bernique:
“Octavia and the mute are dancing. Macchableu, in a black suit and a full semi-realistic mask with painted beard and closed eyes, and the ballerina dance by; an Elizabethan, in black doublet and hose with a white codpiece and a shiny white oval mask, cuts in on the them; Macchableu then cuts in on the other couple; the mute leaves.”
Earlier, a more macabre, if hardly less Gothic, set of flashbacks. Here is flashback number two, taken completely out of context.
“Flashback. Another but similar field. The Fiend’s limousine parked at right. Jasper II (played by Joshua), wearing a broad-brimmed flat black Spanish hat and a long black overcoat, his feet bare, enters frame left and tiptoes toward the Fiend’s car. When he is within several yards of it, he suddenly claws the air, turns toward the camera, totters a few steps, and falls dead with an expression of horror on his face.”
The book is laid out in two columns per page, with every fourth page containing only one column of text and a Gorey sketch of a character in the screenplay. We encounter a nun, a little girl, obelisk, ecorche, Elizabethan, insect, many sporting the furs and headgear we have come to expect.
For the obsessive Gorey collector, this screenplay about the iconic Black Doll is an essential article. Notwithstanding the various inside jokes, and the precision of the screenplay directions, the play leaves more to the imagination, than say, The Other Statue.

A beautifully bound book. I plan to look into other books from this publisher simply because they publish Gorey in such splendid bindings. Specifically, this book offers some reprints of a few of Gorey’s drawings from other works, a rare interview with the artist, and the direction for his silent play “The Black Doll.” As already stated, the artwork is all available elsewhere (it does, however, add to the overall enjoyment of the book), but the interview and the play are both nearly impossible to find.

Overall the parts add up to an unbelievable gem. The interview gives rare insight into the author/artists work. The play gives the reader another opportunity to experience Gorey’s dark humor and unusual sensibilities in a slightly different way. Gorey’s artwork is always a pleasure to examine and the binding brings it altogether in a remarkable package. This book is definitely recommended to anyone who enjoys Gorey. The only caveat I would place on this book is that it is not a good jumping in place for the unfamiliar. (Then again, not every book can be for the novice.

Enjoy!

A great book from a wonderful press seemingly dedicated to preserving Gorey's works in optimal formats. Beautiful, bleak and wonderfully informative. I could not ask for more. ( )

A book I received through the Early Reviewer program at Librarything. It's a screenplay for a silent film written by Gorey, although half the book is an interview with him about film. I had never heard of 95% of the films he discussed, so the interview kind of went over my head, but I'm going to go back to the book in front of my Netflix queue and do some adding.
The screenplay itself was enjoyable, and I wish he'd had a chance to make it into a movie. He takes the concept of a Macguffin and builds a whole story around it, and delightfully includes with a masked ball (illustrations of the costumes are provided in the book). It takes up a lot of silent film tropes, but of course in a very Edward Gorey way. As a fan of his work, I very much enjoyed this. ( )