Wodehouse Tribute

[honoriaplum.livejournal.com]

What Ho everyone,

I just wanted to post a message to honour and remember P.G. Wodehouse, who died on this day in 1975.

Thanks, Plum.


HP

Comments

[blackletter]

*raises a glass*

[dreamwaffles.livejournal.com]

I'll drink to that. And I don't even drink. -raises glass-

[mxdp.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Mr Plum, sir, for everything. *tips hat*

[chaoticchaos13.livejournal.com]

Cheers, Plum. Thanks for everything.

[emeraldreeve.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Plum!

[mrs-dalliard.livejournal.com]

*is enternally greatful*

[triedunture.livejournal.com]

*pours measure of brandy onto ground*

And one for my homie.

[elmyraemilie.livejournal.com]

Hear, hear!

::pours a drop out::

[heatherlp.livejournal.com]

Cheers, Plum! A world without Jeeves has no hope left for it.

[chibi-wolvie.livejournal.com]

*a silent minute*
Cheers to all here...

[pyrocrastinator.livejournal.com]

*removes imaginary hat* Truly a genius.

[umpteenth-gail.livejournal.com]

Well said! While PG is remembered as one of the great comic writers of the 20th century, it is for Jeeves and Wooster that he is most loved and most remembered. Without his famous pair, he would have been just another slightly obscure comic writer. And he even, allegedly, wanted to slash them, and only didn't because of the times in which he lived! No wonder he made sure that Bertie never married.

(Raises glass of lemon, lime and bitters to PG) Cheers, old top!

[georgeodowd.livejournal.com]

*wants very much to know who is doing said alleging*

[umpteenth-gail.livejournal.com]

Well, there have been publications of notes PG made of his stories and letters he wrote to friends. He is supposed to have remarked in a letter that he wished he had the courage to write of such things as homosexuality and other things, or words to that effect. There are of course, books about him as well.

There have been a few discussions here in the past about this, but I wouldn't know how to find them, as there is no search engine.

[georgeodowd.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I only ask since this is very much a pet topic of mine. I think I know which comment you are referring to, but I believe he meant it in rather more of a mocking way. I don't think he ever publicly (or in a published letter) admitted to wishing he had written about homosexuality (unless you are referring to some other quote I have never come across). I do know that the published versions of the letters between him and Bill Townend were very heavily edited so as to remove all 'intimate' content.

I guess my theory is that Wodehouse was a firm believer in what I like to call 'the great divide'. He was very much a product of his time, in that 'homosexuality' to him referred to men who adopted an effeminate manner and hung about in certain seedy nightclubs - whereas overt affection between male friends (which perhaps disguised a deeper, unspoken bond) was an acceptable and unnamed thing. I think his writing is pretty good evidence of this, as he was so fond of writing about these inseparable male duos, and in most of the canonical works, women are either incidental or antagonists.

But I'll stop there before I launch into an essay. I just get very excited about these things.

I have read the McCrum biography (highly recommended), and a collection of unpublished short stories, but I do need to read the rest of the literature, for sure.