Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions This finding aid was created by Lauren Paljusaj, Jimmy Chang, and Sarah Jones. This copy was published on May 03, 2021. Persistent URL for this finding aid: http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/f1p370 © 2021 The Regents of the University of Nevada. All rights reserved. University of Nevada, Las Vegas. University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives. Box 457010 4505 S. Maryland Parkway Las Vegas, Nevada 89154-7010 [email protected] Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions Table of Contents Summary Information ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Historical Background ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Scope and Contents Note ................................................................................................................................ 4 Arrangement .................................................................................................................................................... 5 Administrative Information ............................................................................................................................. 5 Related Materials ............................................................................................................................................. 6 Names and Subjects ........................................................................................................................................ 6 Collection Inventory ........................................................................................................................................ 6 - Page 2 - Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions Summary Information Repository: University of Nevada, Las Vegas. University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives. Creator: Council on Books in Wartime Collector: Rogers, Beverly, 1950- Title: Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions ID: MS-00913 Date [inclusive]: 1943 to 2003 Date [bulk]: 1943 to 1947 Physical Description: 48.60 Cubic Feet (47 boxes, 1 cabinet) Physical Description: 34.51 Linear Feet Abstract: The Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions includes one thousand two hundred and forty of the original paperback Armed Services Edition titles published between 1943 and 1947 used by World War II service members in the United States Army and Navy, as well as four later editions from the Legacy Project published in 2003 and one from the Pocket Books Inc. series published in 1944. The original Armed Services Editions include works of fiction and non-fiction in their unabridged forms. Preferred Citation Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions, 1943-2003. MS-00913. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. ^ Return to Table of Contents Historical Background The original publication of Armed Services Editions (ASE) books was a project that provided reading material for World War II service members between 1942 and 1947. During this time, the United States Navy and Army (including the Air Forces) received a total of 122,951,031 mass-produced paperback volumes of over 1,300 titles. In 2002, the Legacy Project revived ASE publications for American troops abroad at the time. Formed by a group of publishers, booksellers, authors and libraries, the Council on Books in Wartime (CBW) worked to support World War II efforts of the U.S. Army and Navy with the publication of non- fiction and fiction. Titles include books about war, humorous books, popular fiction classics, and anthologies of stories and verses. The CBW used the slogan "books are weapons in the war of ideas" to emphasize the - Page 3- Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions need not only for entertainment, but also for education regarding political, historical, and military issues. These publications predominantly, but not exclusively, featured contemporary best sellers. The CBW initially sold ASE books to the Army and Navy at the cost of manufacture (approximately six cents per volume) plus ten cents for overhead costs. In the ASE's development, the CBW focused on the books' portability first and foremost, as they had to fit into a soldier's pocket. As such, the CBW printed the books as "two-ups," or as pairs, one above the other, in a single magazine that was cut horizontally in half to create two separate pocket-sized books. They typically measured 14 centimeters by 10 centimeters after slicing, with longer books measuring 16.5 centimeters by 11.5 centimeters. The CBW published the first ASE book in 1943. In the original publication run, the CBW organized the ASE titles numerically by monthly series until Series "HH," the thirty-fourth and last monthly series of the original ASE project in 1946. After WWII, the CBW agreed to continue the paperback prints, running until Series "TT," the last print series delivered in September 1947. Beginning in 2002, Andrew Caroll, author and archivist, revived the ASE's publication with the Legacy Project prints, denoted by the Series "LP." These issue numbers appear on the spines and/or front covers of the ASEs. Sources: Cole, John Y., ed. Books in Action: The Armed Services Editions. Washington, D. C.: The Center for the Book, Library of Congress, 1984. Accessed April 22, 2019. https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/ a473543.pdf Gable, John A., ed. The Man in the Arena. 1st ed. Washington, D.C.: Legacy Project, 2003. Gussow, Mel. "Literature Re-enlists In the Military; Pilot Project Is Sending Books to American Ships And Troops Abroad." The New York Times, November 7, 2002. Accessed April 19, 2019. https:// www.nytimes.com/2002/11/07/arts/literature-re-enlists-military-pilot-project-sending-books-american-ships- troops.html U.S. Library of Congress. "Armed Services Editions." Library of Congress Catalog. Accessed April 19, 2019. https://lccn.loc.gov/53016500. Wolff, H. and Stefan Salter. Editions for the Armed Services Inc.: A History Together With the Complete List of 1324 Books Published for American Armed Forces Overseas. New York: Council on Books in Wartime, 1948. ^ Return to Table of Contents Scope and Contents Note The Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions includes one thousand two hundred and forty of the original paperback Armed Services Edition titles published between 1943 and 1947 used by World War II service members in the United States Army and Navy, as well as four editions from the Legacy Project published in 2003 and one from the Pocket Books Inc. series published in 1944. The original Armed Services Editions include works of fiction and non-fiction in their unabridged forms. The Legacy Project prints include contemporary best sellers. The collection also includes a custom cabinet donated by Beverly - Page 4- Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions Rogers to house and display a portion of the Armed Services Editions. Duplicate copies exist and are noted at the file level of this inventory. ^ Return to Table of Contents Arrangement Titles are physically arranged by original issue number. ^ Return to Table of Contents Administrative Information Access Note Collection is open for research. Cataloging of these titles is ongoing. All titles are listed in this inventory. Many of the titles have also been described individually in more detail in the University Libraries' catalog. Publication Rights Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish. Acquisition Note Materials were donated in 2019, 2020, and 2021 by Beverly Rogers; accession number 2019-010. Processing Note In 2019, the books were inventoried, organized, and rehoused by Lauren Paljusaj. Jimmy Chang and Lauren Paljusaj wrote the finding aid description and entered the data into ArchivesSpace. In 2020, Lauren Paljusaj and Sarah Jones added additional books to the inventory. In 2021, Sarah Jones added additional items to the inventory. ^ Return to Table of Contents - Page 5- Guide to the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions Related Materials Separated Materials Publications that support research and study of the Armed Services Editions were separated from the Beverly Rogers Collection of Armed Services Editions. The following separated publications are available in UNLV Special Collections and Archives and are described individually in the University Libraries' catalog. Books as weapons: propaganda, publishing, and the battle for global markets in the era of World War II by John B. Hench Books for the Army: the Army Library Service in the Second World War by John Jamieson Books in action: the Armed Services Editions by John Young Cole Editions for the Armed Services Inc.: A History Together With the Complete List of 1324 Books Published for American Armed Forces Overseas by H. Wolff and Stefan Salter When books went to war: the stories that helped us win World War II by Molly Guptill Manning ^ Return to Table of Contents Names and Subjects • Novels • World War, 1939-1945 • Military life • Soldiers -- Books and reading • Soldiers -- Books and reading -- United States • World War, 1939-1945