New York: Time, Inc., 1956. Presumed First Edition, First printing thus. Wraps. Format is approximately 10.4 inches by 14 inches. 196 pages, plus covers. Illustrations (some with color). Civer has some edge wear, soiling creases. Mailing label residue on front cover. Bold, formal portrait of Sir Winston Churchill on the front cover. This issue began the serialization of his "History of the English-Speaking Peoples." Life was an American magazine published weekly from 1883 to 1972, as an intermittent "special" until 1978, and as a monthly from 1978 until 2000. During its golden age from 1936 to 1972, Life was a wide-ranging weekly general-interest magazine known for the quality of its photography. Life was independently published for its first 53 years until 1936 as a general-interest and light entertainment magazine, heavy on illustrations, jokes, and social commentary. It featured some of the greatest writers, editors, illustrators and cartoonists of its time: Charles Dana Gibson, Norman Rockwell and Jacob Hartman Jr. Gibson became the editor and owner of the magazine after John Ames Mitchell died in 1918. In 1936, Time publisher Henry Luce bought Life, only wanting its title: he greatly re-made the publication. Life became the first all-photographic American news magazine, and it dominated the market for several decades. Possibly the best-known photograph published in the magazine was Alfred Eisenstaedt's photograph of a nurse in a sailor's arms, taken on August 14, 1945, as they celebrated Victory over Japan Day in New York City. The magazine's role in the history of photojournalism is considered its most important contribution to publishing. More