# Is "The Naked Lunch" by William S. Burroughs a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs (The Olympia Press, 1959) is identified by: True first: The Olympia Press, Paris, 1959 — 'The Traveller's Companion Series' no. Olympia Press Paris 1959 is the true first; the US edition (Grove Press, 1962, titled 'Naked Lunch,' without the definite article) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first: The Olympia Press, Paris, 1959 — 'The Traveller's Companion Series' no
- 76, issued in the series' green printed wrappers, with the green decorative border to the title page and the title given as 'The Naked Lunch.' First issue: the rear wrapper is priced 'Francs: 1.500' and marked 'Not to be sold in U.S.A. or U.K.,' and a preliminary leaf is printed '76 1' at the lower right (the series number and first printing)
- Edition of 5,000 copies
- Publisher imprint reads The Olympia Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | William S. Burroughs |
| Publisher | The Olympia Press |
| Year | 1959 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first: The Olympia Press, Paris, 1959 — 'The Traveller's Companion Series' no |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first: The Olympia Press, Paris, 1959 — 'The Traveller's Companion Series' no. 76, issued in the series' green printed wrappers, with the green decorative border to the title page and the title given as 'The Naked Lunch.' First issue: the rear wrapper is priced 'Francs: 1.500' and marked 'Not to be sold in U.S.A. or U.K.,' and a preliminary leaf is printed '76 1' at the lower right (the series number and first printing). Edition of 5,000 copies.

## Is this the true first?
Olympia Press Paris 1959 is the true first; the US edition (Grove Press, 1962, titled 'Naked Lunch,' without the definite article) follows. France's new franc took effect 1 January 1960, roughly six months after the July/August 1959 publication, so copies at the printed '1.500' (old francs) precede those repriced 'NF 18' (new francs).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
There is no book-club edition of the Olympia first. Within the first printing the price state distinguishes issues: first issue shows the printed 'Francs: 1.500'; the later issue has unsold stock overstamped in blue 'NF 18' (18 new francs) over that original price. The '76 1' leaf and the green title-page border confirm the Olympia first PRINTING regardless of the price state; the '1.500' versus 'NF 18' price is what separates first issue from the repriced later issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Naked Lunch* by William S. Burroughs a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-naked-lunch
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.