Short answers, pulled from the story.
Gary Gygax wrote the text for the first Players Handbook while Mike Carr edited it and penned the foreword. D.A. Trampier created the original cover art that defined early perceptions of the game.
The book appeared in February 1989 after Michael Dobson outlined a schedule aiming for March or April 1989. David Zeb Cook wrote the content which expanded to 256 pages with eight full-color illustrations by Jeff Easley.
Rob Heinsoo, Andy Collins, and James Wyatt designed the edition to include eight new races including dragonborn and tiefling alongside eight existing ones. Classic elements such as the monk and bard classes disappeared from this initial release before returning later through supplements like The Complete Book of Humanoids published in 1993.
The sourcebook sold 22,090 units in its first week according to Publishers Weekly data. It ranked number one in Hardcover Nonfiction and number seven overall on bestseller lists while winning the 2015 Origins Award for Best Role Playing Game.
Wizards of the Coast offered limited copies six weeks early at Gen Con conventions while local game stores received access starting the 3rd of September 2024 through the Wizards Play Network. Tyler Jacobson created the standard cover featuring a party of adventurers with a friendly golden dragon standing behind them.