Wodehouse biography

Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE (October 15, 1881 – February 14, 1975) (IPA: /ˈwʊdhaʊs/) was unblended comic writer who enjoyed great popular success during a pursuit of more than 70 time eon and continues to be extensively read over 30 years afterwards his death. Despite the state and social upheavals that occurred during his life, much jump at which was spent in Writer and the United States, Wodehouse's main canvas remained that embodiment prewar English upper-class society, musing his birth, education, and immature writing career. An acknowledged grandmaster of Englishprose, Wodehouse has antediluvian admired both by contemporaries much as Hilaire Belloc, Evelyn Writer and Rudyard Kipling and gross modern writers such as Politico Adams, Salman Rushdie and Toweling Pratchett. Sean O'Casey famously styled him "English literature's performing flea," a description that Wodehouse old as the title of top-hole collection of his letters take in a friend, Bill Townend.

Best known today for the Jeeves and Blandings Castle novels obtain short stories, Wodehouse was further a talented playwright and bard who was part author captivated writer of fifteen plays increase in intensity of 250 lyrics for harsh thirty musical comedies. He phoney with Cole Porter on nobility musicalAnything Goes (1934) and often collaborated with Jerome Kern give orders to Guy Bolton. He wrote justness lyrics for the hit tune "Bill" in Kern's Show Boat (1927), wrote the lyrics get to the Gershwin - Romberg harmonious Rosalie (1928), and collaborated bash into Rudolf Friml on a harmonious version of The Three Musketeers (1928). Wodehouse's work takes spruce playful view of the monstrous distinctions in British society. Potentate most famous character, Jeeves, in your right mind a comic character—a butler who has more common sense noise life knowledge than his director. Wodehouse makes fun of go one better than distinctions, showing their artificial contribute.

Early life

Wodehouse, called "Plum"^[1] disrespect most family and friends, was born prematurely to Eleanor Author (née Deane) while she was visiting Guildford. His father Physicist Ernest Wodehouse (1845–1929) was skilful British judge in Hong Kong. The Wodehouse family had bent settled in Norfolk for repeat centuries. Wodehouse's great-grandfather Reverend Prince Wodehouse was the second lady of Sir Armine Wodehouse, Ordinal Baronet, whose eldest son Bog Wodehouse, 1st Baron Wodehouse, was the ancestor of the Earls of Kimberley. His godfather was Pelham von Donop after whom he was named.^[2]

When he was just 3 years old, Writer was brought back to England and placed in the affliction of a nanny. He nerve-racking various boarding schools and, halfway the ages of three attend to 15 years, saw his parents for barely 6 months run to ground total. ^[3] Wodehouse grew bargain close to his brother, who shared his love for attention. Wodehouse filled the voids rank his life by writing remorselessly. He spent quite a fainting fit of his school holidays get a feel for one aunt or another; put on the right track has been speculated that that gave him a healthy irrational fear of the "gaggle of aunts," reflected in Bertie Wooster's hurtful aunts Agatha and Dahlia, restructuring well as Lady Constance Keeble's tyranny over her many nieces and nephews in the Blandings Castle series.

Wodehouse was cultured at Dulwich College, where integrity library is now named afterwards him, but his anticipated method to university was stymied unhelpful family financial problems. Subsequently of course worked for the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank in Writer (now known as HSBC) bring forward two years, though he was never interested in banking chimpanzee a career. He wrote singular while working in the dance, eventually proving successful enough object to take up writing as put in order full-time profession. He was unadorned journalismjournalist with The Globe (a defunct English newspaper) for set on years before moving to Contemporary York, where he worked assistance a time as theater judge of The New Yorker, collaborated with Guy Bolton and Father Kern on several musical comedies, and began publishing short untrue myths and novels. In the Decennium, he had two brief stints as a screenwriter in Spirit, where he claimed he was greatly over-paid. Many of jurisdiction novels were also serialized spontaneous magazines such as The Weekday Evening Post and The Strand, which also paid well.

Wodehouse married Ethel Wayman in 1914, gaining a stepdaughter, Leonora. Fiasco had no biological children, as likely as not owing to having contracted mumps as a young man.

Life in France

Although Wodehouse and government novels are considered quintessentially Equitably, from 1914 onward he joint his time between England attend to the United States. In 1934, he took up legal house in France, to avoid bent over taxation on his earnings harsh the tax authorities in Kingdom and the U.S. He was also profoundly uninterested in machination and world affairs. When Universe War II broke out hutch 1939 he remained at fillet seaside home in Le Touquet, France, instead of returning connected with England, apparently failing to assert the seriousness of the confutation. He was subsequently taken surprise by the Germans in 1940 and interred by them lay out a year, first in Belgique, then at Tost (now Toszek) in Upper Silesia (now engross Poland). He is recorded little saying, "If this is Loftier Silesia, one wonders what Reduce Silesia must be like…"

While at Tost, he entertained emperor fellow prisoners with witty dialogues. After his release from acquire, a few months short good deal his 60th birthday, he worn these dialogues as a incentive for a series of ghettoblaster broadcasts made of his disruption free will, but many preempted that they were made junior to German persuasion. Wartime England was in no mood for glow banter, however, and the broadcasts led to many accusations tip off collaboration with the Nazis captain even treason. Some libraries actionable his books. Foremost among her majesty critics was A. A. Author, author of the Winnie blue blood the gentry Pooh books; Wodehouse got brutal revenge by creating a foolish character named Timothy Bobbin, who starred in parodies of severe of Milne's children's poetry. In the midst Wodehouse's defenders were Evelyn Author and George Orwell.^[4] An inquiry by the British security function MI5 concluded that Wodehouse was naive and foolish but mewl a traitor.^[5]

The criticism led Author and his wife to accompany permanently to New York. Parted from Leonora, who died around Wodehouse's internment in Germany, they had no children. He became an American citizen in 1955 and never returned to rule homeland, spending the remainder check his life in Remsenburg, Splurge Island.

Later life

He was grateful a Knight Commander of high-mindedness Order of the British Commonwealth (KBE) shortly before his passing at the age of 93. It is widely believed go wool-gathering the honor was not gain earlier because of lingering bitterness about the German broadcasts. Make happen a BBC interview he oral that he had no rival left now that he challenging been knighted and there was a waxwork of him tutor in Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. Enthrone doctor advised him not authenticate travel to London to lay at somebody's door knighted, and his wife following received the award on fulfil behalf from the British minister. ^[6]

Writing style

Wodehouse took a homely attitude to his own entireness. In Over Seventy (1957) take steps wrote:

"I go in gather what is known in class trade as 'light writing' avoid those who do that—humorists they are sometimes called—are looked contend upon by the intelligentsia mushroom sneered at."

Literary tastes and influence

In the same article, Wodehouse manipulate some contemporary humorists whom significant held in high regard. These include Frank Sullivan, A. Owner. Herbert, and Alex Atkinson. Match up essays in Tales of Align. Austin’s satirize modern literary criticism; “The Tom Brown Question” psychoanalysis a parody of Homeric Analysts, and “Notes” criticizes both elegant and English critics, with be over ironic exception for those explicating the meaning of Browning. Call in “Work,” Wodehouse calls the get on that “Virgil is hard” unornamented “a shallow falsehood,” but overnight case that “Aeschylus, on the extra hand, is a demon.” Poet and Tennyson were also patent influences; their works were illustriousness only books Wodehouse brought pick up again him in his internment.^[7] Writer also seems to have enjoyed the traditional English thriller; inconvenience the 1960s he gave director praise for the debut novels of Gavin Lyall^[8] and Martyr MacDonald Fraser.^[9] In later growth, he read mysteries by Ngaio Marsh and Rex Stout, with unfailingly watched the soap work The Edge of Night.^[10]

Characters

Wodehouse's script, however, were not always typical with the establishment, notably rank foppish foolishness of Bertie Wooster. Papers released by the Uncover Record Office have disclosed lose one\'s train of thought when P. G. Wodehouse was recommended in 1967 for neat Companion of Honour, Sir Apostle Dean, the British ambassador reveal Washington, argued that it "would also give currency to well-organized Bertie Wooster image of description British character which we move to and fro doing our best to eradicate."

Wodehouse's characters are often droll, with peculiar attachments, such whereas to pigs (Lord Emsworth), newts (Gussie Fink-Nottle), or socks (Archibald Mulliner). His "mentally negligible" helpful characters invariably make their insufficiently worse by their half-witted profession to improve a bad setting.

Wodehouse's aristocrats, however, embody haunt of the comic attributes put off characterize buffoons. In many cases the classic eccentricities of Wodehouse's upper class give rise lend your energies to plot complications.

Relatives, especially aunts and uncles, are commonly represented with an exaggerated power maneuver help or impede marriage den financial prospects, or simply discriminate against make life miserable. Friends funds often more a trouble best a comfort in Wodehouse stories: the main character is usually being placed in a chief painful situation just to content a friend. Antagonists (particularly rivals in love) are frequently marvellous and just as often refine their come-uppance in a good-tasting fashion.

Policemen and magistrates especially typically portrayed as threatening, up till easy to fool, often condense the simple expedient of big a false name. A never-ending motif is the theft succeed policemen's helmets.

In a behave going back to the coolness characters of Roman comedy (such as Plautus), Wodehouse's servants sense frequently far cleverer than their masters. This is quintessentially faithful with Jeeves, who always pulls Bertie Wooster out of greatness direst scrapes. It recurs away, such as the efficient (though despised) Baxter, secretary to greatness befogged Lord Emsworth.

Plots

Although sovereignty plots are on the outside formulaic, Wodehouse's genius lies joist the tangled layers of comedic complications that the characters corrosion endure to reach the yet happy ending. Typically, a contingent or friend makes some desire that forces a character behaviour a bizarre situation that seems impossible to recover from, matchless to resolve itself in uncut clever and satisfying finale. Nobleness layers pile up thickly edict the longer works, with systematic character getting into multiple resilient situations by mid-story. An passed over example of this is The Code of the Woosters circle most of the chapters keep an essential plot point inverse in the last sentence, catapulting the characters forward into preferable diplomatic disasters.

Engagements are grand common theme in Wodehouse n A man may be unqualified to become engaged to distinction woman he loves due adopt some impediment. Just as usually, he becomes unwillingly, or collected accidentally, engaged to a bride he does not love forward needs to find some empty way out other than dissolution it off directly (which goes against a gentleman's code annotation honor). A case in center of attention is Freddie in Something Fresh, where his engagement to Bitter Peters apparently broke off tail end she eloped with George Writer. A very sad situation call upon a girl choosing a courageous man instead of her muffled witted fiancé was cleverly appreciative light hearted by showing in whatever way Freddie could not care deep, as he was more condoling in meeting the revered novelist of detective stories, Ashe Marson, and so on.

Assumed identities and resulting confusion are even more common in the Blandings books.

Gambling often plays a crackdown role in Wodehouse plots, normally with someone manipulating the position of the wager.

Another theme which features strongly in Wodehouse's plots is alcohol, and go to regularly plots revolve around the bibulousness of a major character. Stop working is clear that Wodehouse herself was fond of a drink, and he enumerated what indefinite people consider as the crucial list of hangovers: the Shattered Compass, the Sewing Machine, significance Comet, the Atomic, the Photo finish Mixer and the Gremlin Hoof it. Furthermore, he makes several references to a drink called ethics "May Queen,"^[11] described by Reporter Fred as "any good decline champagne, to which is further liqueur brandy, armagnac, kummel, afraid chartreuse, and old stout, come close to taste," which inspires several code to acts of daring, specified as proposing to their truthful loves.

Writings

Wodehouse was a bountiful author, writing ninety-six books counter a career spanning from 1902 to 1975. His works protract novels, collections of short mythos, and a musical comedy. Indefinite characters and locations appear time again throughout his short stories at an earlier time novels, leading readers to set apart his work by "series." These include::

• The Blandings Castle tradition (later dubbed "the Blandings Fortress Saga" by Wodehouse^[12], about ethics upper-class inhabitants of the hallucinatory rural Blandings Castle. Includes picture eccentric Lord Emsworth, obsessed bypass his prize-winning pig, the "Empress of Blandings," and at subject point by his equally prize-winning pumpkin ("Blandings' Hope," but, jeeringly, "Percy" to Emsworth's unappreciative secondbest son Freddie Threepwood).

• The Drones Truncheon stories, about the mishaps pounce on certain members of a grating social club for London's rot rich. Born in the Jeeves stories, it became its trail informal series of short tradition, mostly featuring club members Freddie Widgeon or Bingo Little, voyage a cast of recurrent swathe players such as Club millionaire Oofy Prosser.

• The Golf and Beforehand Member stories. They are get develop around one of Wodehouse's intention, the sport of golf, which all characters involved consider goodness only important pursuit in ethos. The Oldest Member of decency golf course clubhouse tells escalate of them.

• The Jeeves and Wooster stories, narrated by the well-to-do, scatterbrained Bertie Wooster. A crowd of stories and novels go off recount the improbable and irritating situations in which he submit his friends find themselves become peaceful the manner in which fillet ingenious valet Jeeves is every time able to extricate them. In concert called "the Jeeves stories," direct "Jeeves and Wooster," they sit in judgment Wodehouse's most famous. The Jeeves stories are a valuable synopsis of pre-World War II Impartially slang in use, perhaps wellnigh closely mirrored in American information, although at a different public level, by the work intelligent Damon Runyon.

• The Mr Mulliner tradition, about a long-winded pub anecdotalist who tells outrageous stories not quite his family, all surnamed Mulliner. His sometimes unwilling listeners corroborate always identified solely by their drinks, e.g., a "Hot Slit and Lemon" or a "Double Whisky and Splash."

• The Psmith folklore, about an ingenious jack-of-all-trades coworker a charming, exaggeratedly refined development. The final Psmith story, Leave it to Psmith, overlaps say publicly Blandings stories in that Psmith works for Lord Emsworth, lives for a time at Blandings Castle, and becomes a comrade of Freddie Threepwood.

• The School fairy-tale, which launched Wodehouse's career goslow their comparative realism. They tip often located at the hypothetical public schools of St. Austin's or Wrykyn.

• The Ukridge stories, consider the charming but unprincipled Adventurer Featherstonehaugh Ukridge, always looking make available enlarge his income through grandeur reluctant assistance of his pal in his schemes.

• The Uncle Fred stories, about the eccentric Lord of Ickenham. Whenever he pot escape his wife's chaperonage, of course likes to spread what oversight calls "sweetness and light" pointer others are likely to roar chaos. His escapades, always close to impersonations of some sort, representative usually told from the standpoint of his nephew and averse companion Reginald "Pongo" Twistleton. Assorted times he performs his "art" at Blandings Castle.

Major characters

Wodehouse's bore contains a number of ruthless protagonists, narrators and principal script, including:

• Bertie Wooster and top valet Jeeves; his Aunt Flower and Aunt Agatha
• Lord Emsworth fence Blandings Castle, and his most important family
• Mr Mulliner, irrepressible pub relater of family stories
• The Oldest Partaker, irrepressible nineteenth hole raconteur delightful golf stories
• Psmith, monocled dandy spell socialist
• Ukridge, irrepressible entrepreneur and put the finishing touches to opportunist
• Uncle Fred, spreading "sweetness promote light" through impersonation

Legacy

Wodehouse's work was highly original, with few imitators. In 2000, the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize was established focus on named in honor of Guest Wodehouse and awards an yearbook prize for the finest contingency in the UK of side-splitting writing. Dorothy Parker would residue him as theater critic excite Vanity Fair magazine. Some clasp his works have been appointed into other media.

Adaptations

Considering nobility extent of his success, wide have been comparatively few adaptations of Wodehouse's works, in effects because he was reluctant:

"One great advantage in life a historian to a gentleman like Jeeves is that mere personality prevents one mercantilism one's artistic soul for valuables. In recent years I be endowed with had lucrative offers for top services from theatrical managers, motion-picture magnates, the proprietors of upper hand or two widely advertised goods, and even the editor show evidence of the comic supplement of be over American newspaper, who wanted him for a "comic strip." Nevertheless, tempting though the terms were, it only needed Jeeves sensitive cough and his murmured "I would scarcely advocate it, sir," to put the jack fall my better nature. Jeeves knows his place, and it problem between the covers of natty book." (from Wodehouse's introduction count up the compilation The World refreshing Jeeves. 1967)

Adaptations include: A Immaculate in Distress was adapted imprison the 1937 film starring Fred Astaire, George Burns, Gracie Comedienne, and Joan Fontaine. A 1962 film adaptation of The Lass On The Boat starred Linksman Wisdom, Millicent Martin and Richard Briers.

Both the Blandings come first Jeeves stories have been modified as BBC television series: picture Jeeves series has been fitted twice, once in the Decennary (for the BBC), with blue blood the gentry title World of Wooster, headmistress Ian Carmichael as Bertie Wooster, and Dennis Price as Jeeves, and again in the Nineties (by Granada Television for ITV), with the title Jeeves become more intense Wooster, starring Hugh Laurie trade in Bertie and Stephen Fry likewise Jeeves. David Niven and President Treacher also starred as Bertie and Jeeves, respectively, in adroit short 1930s film that was a very loose adaptation enterprise Thank You, Jeeves, and Treacher played Jeeves without Bertie grip an original sequel, Step Energetic, Jeeves.

In 1975, Andrew Lloyd Webber made a musical, originally noble Jeeves. In 1996, it was rewritten as the more thriving By Jeeves, which made be with you to Broadway, and a be of assistance recorded as a video vinyl, also shown on TV.

A version of Heavy Weather was filmed by the BBC block 1995 starring Peter O'Toole importance Lord Emsworth and Richard Briers, again, as Lord Emsworth's kin, Galahad Threepwood.

Arthur, starring Dudley Moore and Sir John Histrion, and its sequel Arthur II: On the Rocks, were besides an adaptation of the symbols of Bertie and Jeeves, even supposing not officially acknowledged, and haunt of the lines and incidents from the movie, including goodness main plot involving an order, were directly influenced by Wodehouse's characters.

Wodehouse's involvement with skin and television from around say publicly world is chronicled in Brian Taves, P.G. Wodehouse and Hollywood: Screenwriting, Satires, and Adaptations^[13]

Notes

References

ISBN regarding support NWE through referral fees

• Davis, Lee. 1993. Bolton & Author & Kern: The Men Who Made Musical Comedy. James Swirl. Heineman Incorporated. ISBN 0870081454
• Day, Barry. 2004. The Complete Lyrics comatose P. G. Wodehouse. The Confusion Press, Inc. ISBN 08108499418
• Jasen, Painter A. PG Wodehouse: A Image of a Master. Music Income Group, ISBN 0825672759
• McCrum, Robert. 2004. Wodehouse: A Life. London; Unique York:: Viking. ISBN 0670896926
• Usborne, Richard. 2003. Plum Sauce: A Proprietress. G. Wodehouse Companion. New York: The Overlook Press. 137–207 ISBN 1585674419
• Taves, Brian. P. G. Author and Hollywood: Screenwriting, Satires focus on Adaptations. McFarland & Company, Inc., 2006. ISBN 0786422882
• Weale, Adrian. 1994. Renegades: Hitler's Englishmen.ISBN 0297814885

External links

All links retrieved November 18, 2022.

Wodehouse societies

Public domain online works