These “pirated” editions of The Lord of the Rings were published in the US in 1965 by Ace Books. When JRR Tolkien refused to let Donald Wollheim of Ace Books publish paperback editions of The Lord of the Rings, Wollheim found what he considered a loophole in copyright law to let him publish these. These editions brought much controversy with Tolkien urging his fans to purchase the authorized versions, published by Ballantine Books.

Sources

Books from the Victoria E. Mitchell and Jon Gustafson Collection on Science Fiction