?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 300 - $ 400
INDISPENSABLE FOR PLAYING "THE NUMBERS" (GAMBLING.) PROFESSOR NOI RAM [MARION VAN WALKER JR.] The Black-Cat Dream-Book. Frontispiece portrait of a turbaned 'seer' Professor Noi Ram (Marion) holding his crystal ball; 100 pages, plus advertisement. Small 8vo, original color pictorial stiff wrappers; well used, but still in good shape. New York, 1937
A scarce example of something one could once find in almost every Harlem household. In the 1920's straight through the 1960's and beyond, virtually everyone played 'the number.' You could play 50 cents or 50 dollars. The number was the last three digits of the final day's take at the track that would be shown on the 'Tote Board.' You would refer to the Dream Book if you had a dream that involved Marcus Garvey, a Pullman Porter, Voo-doo, N.A.A.C.P., opium, or Mahatma Gandhi--virtually anything at all. You would look in the dream book to find the number that corresponded to each thing or the closest thing to it, and that would tell you what number to play.
![(GAMBLING.) PROFESSOR NOI RAM [MARION VAN WALKER JR.] The Black-Cat Dream-Book.](https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/full//847\728847.jpg)
![(GAMBLING.) PROFESSOR NOI RAM [MARION VAN WALKER JR.] The Black-Cat Dream-Book.](https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/full//847\728847_view 02_02.jpg)
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![(GAMBLING.) PROFESSOR NOI RAM [MARION VAN WALKER JR.] The Black-Cat Dream-Book.](https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/thumb//\847\728847tn.jpg)
![(GAMBLING.) PROFESSOR NOI RAM [MARION VAN WALKER JR.] The Black-Cat Dream-Book.](https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/thumb//\847\728847_view 02_02tn.jpg)