The Dan Brown Enigma (31 page)

However, the film received a positive review from the official Vatican newspaper
L’Osservatore Romano
, that stated the Church was on the side of good in the film which contradicted its earlier stance that it would not approve it.

Overall critics gave the film mixed reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes
website said that out of 237 critics only 36% gave it a positive review. The general feeling was that it was an improvement on
The Da Vinci Code
. However, despite this the site said the story didn’t translate well to the big screen.

After its release in May 2009 the film’s overseas position remained at number one for the second weekend ahead of
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.
Domestically, the film met Columbia Pictures opening predictions of $40-50 million while
The Da Vinci Code
opened to $77.1 million. The difference was put down to the film’s material not being as popular as
The Da Vinci Code.

However, worldwide the film grossed $478,869,160 within more than a month, making it the largest grossing film of 2009 until
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
surpassed it. Interestingly, of this total amount only 27 per cent were domestic takings, the rest being from worldwide totals. For example, in the UK it grossed over $30 million, in Spain it was $21 million, with $13 million in Brazil and in Russia, Japan grossed $34 million and Germany saw earnings of $47 million. At the time of writing
Angels & Demons
stands at the ninth highest grossing film of 2009 worldwide.

On 24 November 2009 a two-disc set DVD was released in Region 1 that was an extended edition running six minutes longer, while in Region 2 a single disc DVD was released a month earlier on 4 October 2009.

This film is, at the time of writing, still in pre-production.

Director:Ron Howard (not yet confirmed)

Producers:Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and John Calley

Screenplay:Steven Knight and Dan Brown

Original Score:Hans Zimmer

Release Date:2012

Distribution:Imagine Entertainment and Columbia Pictures

Country of Origin:United States

Language:English

Robert Langdon:Tom Hanks

BY CRAIG CABELL

W
hat follows is a guide to collecting the first editions of Dan Brown in both the UK and US. As there are not many titles, special signed and illustrated editions are also included for clarity. Interesting paperbacks are also included, but not every paperback, as these are not as collectable as hardback books; only paperbacks that predate hardback issues are listed.

Special note regarding first hardback editions: If you are seriously collecting first edition hardbacks, either US or UK, ensure that the number line – if the book has one – on the copyright page has a ‘1’ in it, which denotes first edition, or has ‘First Edition’ clearly written on it. A good example are the Harry Potter books in first edition, where the first three books in the series has ‘10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1’ on copyright page, while books four, five, six and seven have ‘First Edition’. A number line that reads (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3) denotes a third edition.

To my mind the most important aspects of collecting first editions are:

• 
A price being on the dust jacket.

• 
The correct publisher noted on the spine of dust jacket and on the title page of the book.

• 
Correct number line or first edition state on copyright page.

Books that have GP, Guild Press, BCA, Ted Smart or World Book as publisher are normally listed as Book Club Editions and therefore worthless. Books that do not have a price on the dust jacket are normally passed off as Export Editions when in fact they are more often than not reserved for Book Club or libraries.

187 Men to Avoid: A Guide for the Romantically Frustrated Woman
(Berkley Publishing Group, 1995). This was a paperback written under the pseudonym ‘Danielle Brown.’ The book’s author profile reads, ‘Danielle Brown currently lives in New England: teaching school, writing books, and avoiding men.’ The copyright is attributed to Dan Brown.

187 Men to Avoid: A Guide for the Romantically Frustrated Woman
(Berkley, 2006): Paperback re-issue.

The Bald Book
by Blythe Brown (1998) (although Dan Brown apparently did much work on it).

Digital Fortress
(St Martin’s Press, 1998) (Press release version with press notes written by Brown’s wife Blythe): Hardback in dust jacket.

Digital Fortress
(St Martin’s Press, 1998): Hardback in dust jacket.

Digital Fortress
(Thomas Dunne Books, St Martin’s Griffin, 1998): Reissue hardback.

Angels & Demons
(Pocket Books, 2000): Hardback in dust jacket.

Angels & Demons
and
The Da Vinci Code
(Doubleday and Atria): X2 US hardback books in slipcase. First thus.

Angels & Demons Illustrated Edition
(Atria, 2003): First hardback reissue in different wrapper to first US Edition.

Angels & Demons Illustrated Edition
(Atria, 2005): Reissue hardback in yet a different dust jacket to anything previously issued.

Deception Point
(Pocket Books, 2001): First US edition in dust jacket.

The Da Vinci Code
(Doubleday, 2003): First US edition in dust jacket.

The Lost Symbol
(Random House, 2009): Signed book plate edition limited to 700 copies only.

The Lost Symbol
(Random House, 2009): US hardback variant limited to 1,000 copies in dust jacket and slip case.

The Lost Symbol
Illustrated edition (Random House, 2009).

Digital Fortress
(Bantam Press, 2005): First UK hardback in dust jacket.

Deception Point
(Corgi Books, 2002): First UK paperback, pre-dates UK hardback releases.

Deception Point
(Bantam Press, 2003): First UK hardback edition in dust jacket.

Angels & Demons
(Corgi, 2001): UK paperback proof copy.

Angels & Demons
(Corgi, 2001): UK paperback edition, pre-dates UK hardback releases.

Angels & Demons
Illustrated Edition (Bantam Press, 2005): UK hardback in dust jacket.

Angels & Demons and the Da Vinci Code
Omnibus Edition (Bantam Press, 2005): First UK Edition in dust jacket.

The Da Vinci Code
(Bantam Press, 2003): First UK edition in dust jacket.

The Da Vinci Code
Special Illustrated Collector’s Edition (Bantam Press, 2004): First UK hardback in dust jacket.

The Lost Symbol
(Transworld, 2009): Standard UK hardback in dust jacket.

The Lost Symbol
Limited signed edition (Transworld, 2009). The first 150 copies of the UK first edition had a colour pictorial key bookplate signed by Brown and were available from Waterstone’s, Piccadilly on the morning of release. These books were sold at face value and the most collectable today are those sold with ‘Signed by the Author at Waterstone’s’ sticker to front cover, till receipt, Waterstone’s carrier bag, Da Vinci Code Travel Journal and a free paperback in the Dan Brown style.

The Lost Symbol
Illustrated Edition (Transworld, 2010): First UK edition in dust jacket.

The Lost Symbol
(Transworld, 2010) first UK paperback edition: Unread copy with press release.

 
 
[1]
 
Dan Brown did an interview with Steve Bertrand in the Barnes & Noble Studio in March 2003, which can be found on their web pages and from which this quote was taken

 
 
[2]
 
Life After The Da Vinci Code
, by James Kaplan, published on Parade.com on 09/13/2009

 
 
[3]
 
Life After The Da Vinci Code
, by James Kaplan, published on Parade.com on 09/13/2009

 
 
[4]
 
The Dan Brown Revelations
, by David Shugarts, published in
Secrets of the Code
, edited by Dan Burstein, CDS Books, 2006 p.363

 
 
[5]
 
The Witness Statement
, by Dan Brown, published in the High Court of Justice Chancery Division, Intellectual Property between authors Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh and Brown’s publisher Random House, 21/12/2005

 
 
[6]
 
The Man Behind The Da Vinci Code: An Unauthorized Biography
, by Lisa Rogak, published by Robson Books, 2005 p. 18

 
 
[7]
 
This description of the people in his apartment building comes from
The Witness Statement
, by Dan Brown, published in the High Court of Justice Chancery Division, Intellectual Property, 21/12/2005

 
 
[8]
 
See Lisa Rogak’s book,
The Man Behind The Da Vinci Code: An Unauthorized Biography
, published by Robson Books in 2005 p. 20

 
 
[9]
 
IBID

 
[10]
 
See Lisa Rogak’s book for more details p. 23

 
[11]
 
Lisa Rogak states that the larger issue for the couple was probably the age gap rather than possible misuse of her position and there may have been some ‘raised eyebrows’ despite the laissez-faire attitude of the L.A. music business.

 
[12]
 
IBID

 
[13]
 
See Rogak’s book where she cites an interview Brown did in
The Calendar
published in 1992

 
[14]
 
See Dan Brown’s
Witness Statement
in the section entitled
187 Men to Avoid.

 
[15]
 
This information comes from p. 34 of Lisa Rogak’s book
The Man Behind The Da Vinci Code: An Unauthorized Biography

 
[16]
 
See the interview in March 2003 with Bookbrowse.com

 
[17]
 
Life After ‘The Da Vinci Code’
, by James Kaplan, published on Parade.com on 09/13/2009

 
[18]
 
The quotes from this paragraph and the preceding one are from
British Thriller Writers Mount Challenge to US ‘Production Line’
which appeared in
The Guardian
Newspaper on 20 April 2009, guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010

 
[19]
 
See Brown’s
Witness Statement,
the
Digital Fortress
section

 
[20]
 
Information and quotes in this paragraph and the preceding one come from
The Witness Statement
Brown made in 2005

 
[21]
 
See Kaplan,
Life After ‘The Da Vinci Code’
, published on Parade.com on 09/13/2009

 
[22]
 
This quote and the entire piece by Fleming was published on the blog ifthisisablogthenwhatschristmas.blogspot.com on 17 June 2010

 
[23]
 
This quote, the quotes in the previous paragraphs and the paragraph below are from the Fleming piece

 
[24]
 
See the Barnes & Noble interview from March 2003

 
[25]
 
This information on Brown’s writing technique comes from his
Witness Statement,
paragraphs 6 & 7 dated 21 December 2005

 
[26]
 
See the Barnes & Noble interview conducted by Steve Bertrand with Brown

 
[27]
 
From the Wikipedia entry on Dan Brown, published on Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia internet site and updated 22 July 2010

 
[28]
 
This quote comes from the Barnes & Noble interview with Brown that took place in March 2003

 
[29]
 
The two quotes in this paragraph are from the
Bookbrowse
interview

 
[30]
 
This information comes from a radio interview Brown did on
National Public Radio
in 2009

 
[31]
 
The quote in this paragraph and in the preceding one are from the James Kaplan interview with Brown published as
Life After ‘The Da Vinci Code’

 
[32]
 
An Evening With Dan Brown
, a talk Brown gave in support of the New Hampshire Writer’s Project, The Capitol Center for the Performing Arts, Concord, New Hampshire, 18 May 2004

 
[33]
 
See the Barnes & Noble interview

 
[34]
 
From the talk Brown gave at the Capitol Centre for the Arts in support of the New Hampshire Writers’ Project

 
[35]
 
Brown said this to Steve Bertrand during the interview for Barnes & Noble back in March 2003

 
[36]
 
This quote comes from an article,
How Dan Brown’s wife unlocked the code to bestseller success
, by Joanna Walters and Alice O’Keeffe, published in the
Observer
, 12 March 2006