AUTOGRAPH: The close of a contract SIGNED by BENNETT CERF as cofounder of Random House in the year they purchased "Modern Library" from Boni and Liveright. Cerf, Bennett (1898-1971). American author & publisher who co-founded Random House. Books-on-Books

New York, 1925., 1925. Fine. - The last paragraph lettered "(d)", clipped from the bottom of a contract, typed on 4-3/8 inch high by 8-1/2 inch wide paper signed in full by Bennett Cerf, representing Random House, with Random House Inc.'s corporate seal dated 1925 stamped in blind overlapping the signature at bottom right. Near fine. The American writer and publisher Bennett Cerf (1898-1971) co-founded the publishing firm "Random House" with Donald Klopfer upon purchasing the rights to the "Modern Library" from Boni and Liveright. He maintained relationships with William Faulkner, John O'Hara, Eugene O'Neill, James Michener, Truman Capote, Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss) and, though he disagreed with her philosophy, published Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged". Cerf won the landmark censorship case "United States v. One Book Called Ulysses" in 1933, and subsequently published the first American unabridged edition of James Joyce's "Ulysses". Cerf was also known for his compilation of jokes and puns, his appearances on the lecture circuit and and for his appearances on the television show "What's My Line".