George and Alfred

Last updated

"George and Alfred"
by P. G. Wodehouse
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Series Reggie Pepper (1912 version)
Mr. Mulliner (1966 version)
Genre(s) Comedy
Publisher The Strand Magazine
Media typePrint (Magazine)
Publication dateDecember 1912 (Reggie Pepper version)
September 1966 (Mr. Mulliner version)

"George and Alfred" is a short story by P. G. Wodehouse and a Mr. Mulliner story. It was published in Playboy magazine in the US in January 1967. The story was also included in the 1966 collection Plum Pie . [1]

Contents

An earlier version of the story featured Reggie Pepper and was published as "Rallying Round Old George" in The Strand Magazine in December 1912. An American edition of this story was published in Collier's Weekly on 27 September 1913, titled "Brother Alfred". [2]

In "George and Alfred", Mr. Mulliner goes to Monte Carlo, along with his nephew George, who gets into trouble after getting drunk. To help George, Mr. Mulliner comes up with an idea that takes advantage of the fact that George has a twin brother, Alfred.

Plot

At The Angler's Rest pub, the topic of twins arises, and Mr. Mulliner recounts the following story involving his nephews, the identical twins George and Alfred. Alfred is a magician in London professionally known as "The Great Alfredo", while George is a low-ranking scriptwriter in Hollywood, being essentially a yes-man to his boss Jacob Schnellenhamer. Mr. Mulliner befriends Schnellenhamer and sees George on Schnellenhamer's yacht heading to Monte Carlo. George is eager to collect an inheritance left to him by his godmother from his trustee, P. P. Bassinger, in Monaco.

At Monte Carlo, Mr. Mulliner is surprised to see Alfred, who is performing at the Casino. Mr. Mulliner tells Alfred that he is with the filmmaker Schnellenhamer. Alfred leaves for rehearsal before Mr. Mulliner can tell him that George has also come. Later, Schnellenhamer says that Sam Glutz, whom Schnellenhamer came to Monte Carlo to do business with, was mugged and knocked out near the Casino. He was found by a passer-by and taken to a hospital. Sergeant Brichoux of the Monaco police arrives, looking for George Mulliner. George's wallet was found near where Glutz was mugged. Concerned, Mr. Mulliner looks for George.

"No fortune, a headache, and to top it all off the guillotine or whatever they have in these parts. That's Life, I repeat. Just a bowl of cherries. You can't win."
Twin! I uttered a cry, electrified.

— George gives Mr. Mulliner an idea [3]

He finds George, who had been drinking because Bassinger gambled George's inheritance away and ran off to South America. George remarks that he dreamed he had brawled with someone. Mr. Mulliner concludes that George must have mugged Sam Glutz when drunk. He tells George to flee, but George's passport is on the yacht. George cannot get it while the police are around, and he says his uncle would never find it. George resigns himself to his fate, saying of life, "You can't win". Mr. Mulliner, hearing "twin", gets an idea: George will retrieve his passport pretending to be Alfred.

On the yacht, a man claiming to be Alfred shows up and pitches an idea to Schnellenhamer to include a magician in his next film. Mr. Mulliner realizes this is actually Alfred. Alfred goes further into the yacht to get materials to demonstrate his tricks, and then George appears, pretending to be Alfred. Sergeant Brichoux is about to arrest George when a bandaged man, Sam Glutz, approaches. Schnellenhamer tells him that they have the mugger, George, and that he has fired George. However, Sam reveals that George actually saved his life by fending off the mugger. Sam hires George and promises him a large salary. Sam, George and Mr. Mulliner leave to have lunch. Meanwhile, Alfred returns to demonstrate his tricks to Schnellenhamer.

Differences between editions

There are many differences between the Mr. Mulliner and Reggie Pepper versions of the story. In the Reggie Pepper story, Reggie's friend George Lattaker kisses the maid Emma Pilbeam out of sheer joy when he gets engaged to Stella Vanderley, but Stella sees this and ends their engagement. (Voules, Reggie's valet, also ended his engagement to Emma after seeing George kiss her.) This induces George to drink, and he vaguely remembers getting into a brawl. Also, George is due to receive a legacy from his trustee, his uncle Augustus Arbutt, but is told that he must wait because a man is claiming to be George's long-lost twin brother Alfred.

The Prince of Saxburg-Liegnitz gets mugged near the Casino, and George is suspected. Reggie suggests that George pretend to be Alfred to avoid arrest. George discovers later that the uncle invented the twin brother to buy time to flee after gambling away George's money. Voules finds out about George pretending to be Alfred, and Reggie bribes him to remain silent. Count Fritz von Cöslin, the Prince's equerry, reveals that George saved the Prince's life. Voules suddenly appears, now wealthy and outspoken after a winning streak at the casino; seeking revenge on George for kissing Emma, he betrays George's identity, and is surprised when the Count wants to reward George. Voules reconciles with Emma. Reggie fires him, but Voules was planning to quit anyway. [4]

The plots of the British and American editions of the Reggie Pepper story are essentially the same, though in the latter edition, Reggie Pepper and his friends are American rather than British. Reggie's valet Voules is still English; Reggie introduces him as "an Englishman who had spent most of his time valeting earls, and looked it". [5]

Background

The references to Hollywood in the Mulliner story "George and Alfred" were inspired by Wodehouse's experience as a scriptwriter in Hollywood in the 1930s. [6]

Publication history

The Reggie Pepper story "Rallying Round Old George", published in 1912 in the Strand, credited both Wodehouse and Herbert Westbrook (who would collaborate with Wodehouse on the stage adaptation of the story) as authors. This story was illustrated by Charles Crombie. [7] The American edition titled "Brother Alfred", which only credited Wodehouse as the author, was illustrated by Wallace Morgan in Collier's. [8] The Mulliner story "George and Alfred" was illustrated by Bill Charmatz in Playboy. [9]

"Rallying Round Old George" was collected in the American edition of The Man with Two Left Feet in 1917, and in the UK collection My Man Jeeves in 1919. [10] "George and Alfred" was featured in the 1972 collection The World of Mr. Mulliner, and in the 1985 collection of Hollywood-related Wodehouse stories, The Hollywood Omnibus. [11]

The British edition of the Reggie Pepper story was featured, under the American edition title "Brother Alfred", in the collection Enter Jeeves, published in 1997 by Dover Publications. This collection includes all the Reggie Pepper stories and several early Jeeves stories. [12]

Adaptations

The Reggie Pepper version of the story was adapted into a play titled Brother Alfred, co-written by Wodehouse and Herbert Westbrook. The play, produced by and starring Lawrence Grossmith, was performed in April 1913 at the Savoy Theatre in London. [13] The 1932 comedy film Brother Alfred was based on the play.

Related Research Articles

<i>Lord Emsworth and Others</i> 1937 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Lord Emsworth and Others is a collection of nine short stories by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 19 March 1937 by Herbert Jenkins, London; it was not published in the United States. The Crime Wave at Blandings, which was published on 25 June 1937 by Doubleday, Doran, New York, is a very different collection, sharing only three of its seven titles with the UK book. Penguin Books published a UK edition of The Crime Wave at Blandings in 1966. The stories in both books had all previously appeared in both British and American magazines.

Mr. Mulliner is a fictional character from the short stories of P. G. Wodehouse. Mr. Mulliner is a loquacious pub raconteur who, no matter what the topic of conversation, can find an appropriate story about a member of his family to match it.

<i>Blandings Castle and Elsewhere</i> 1935 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Blandings Castle and Elsewhere is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. It was first published in the United Kingdom on 12 April 1935 by Herbert Jenkins, London, and, as Blandings Castle, in the United States on 20 September 1935 by Doubleday Doran, New York. All the stories had previously appeared in Strand Magazine (UK) and all except the last in various US magazines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Few Quick Ones</span> 1959 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

A Few Quick Ones is a collection of ten short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. It was first published in the United States on 13 April 1959 by Simon & Schuster, New York, and in the United Kingdom on 26 June 1959 by Herbert Jenkins, London. The first US edition dust jacket was designed by Paul Bacon. The book's title comes from the informal phrase "a quick one", which is British slang for an alcoholic drink consumed quickly.

<i>Eggs, Beans and Crumpets</i> 1940 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Eggs, Beans and Crumpets is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on April 26, 1940 by Herbert Jenkins, London, then with a slightly different content in the United States on May 10, 1940 by Doubleday, Doran, New York.

<i>My Man Jeeves</i> 1919 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

My Man Jeeves is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom in May 1919 by George Newnes. Of the eight stories in the collection, half feature the popular characters Jeeves and Bertie Wooster, while the others concern Reggie Pepper, an early prototype for Bertie Wooster.

<i>Mr Mulliner Speaking</i> 1929 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Mr Mulliner Speaking is a collection of nine short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. It was first published in the United Kingdom on April 30, 1929 by Herbert Jenkins, and in the United States on February 21, 1930 by Doubleday, Doran. The stories were originally published in magazines in the UK and the US between 1924 and 1929.

<i>Meet Mr Mulliner</i> 1927 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Meet Mr. Mulliner is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. First published in the United Kingdom on 27 September 1927 by Herbert Jenkins, and in the United States on 2 March 1928 by Doubleday, Doran. The short stories were originally published in magazines, mainly The Strand Magazine in the UK and Liberty in the US.

<i>The Man with Two Left Feet</i> 1917 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

The Man with Two Left Feet, and Other Stories is a collection of short stories by British author P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the UK on 8 March 1917 by Methuen & Co., London, and in the US on 1 February 1933 by A. L. Burt and Co., New York. All the stories had previously appeared in periodicals, usually The Strand Magazine in the United Kingdom and The Red Book Magazine or The Saturday Evening Post in the United States.

<i>Mulliner Nights</i> 1933 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Mulliner Nights is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. First published in the United Kingdom on 17 January 1933 by Herbert Jenkins, and in the United States on 15 February 1933 by Doubleday, Doran. The stories in the collection were originally published in magazines in the UK and the US between 1930 and 1932.

<i>Thank You, Jeeves</i> 1934 novel by P. G. Wodehouse

Thank You, Jeeves is a Jeeves comic novel by P.G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 16 March 1934 by Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States on 23 April 1934 by Little, Brown and Company, New York.

<i>Young Men in Spats</i> 1936 short story collection by P.G. Wodehouse

Young Men in Spats is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 3 April 1936 by Herbert Jenkins, London, then in the United States with a slightly different selection of stories on 24 July 1936 by Doubleday, Doran, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reggie Pepper</span> Fictional character in P. G. Wodehouse stories

Reginald "Reggie" Pepper is a fictional character who appears in seven short stories by English author P. G. Wodehouse. Reggie is a young man-about-town who gets drawn into trouble trying to help his pals. He is considered to be an early prototype for Bertie Wooster, who, along with his valet Jeeves, is one of Wodehouse's most famous creations.

"A Slice of Life" is a short story by the British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse. A part of the Mr. Mulliner series, the story was first published in the UK in 1926 in The Strand Magazine, and appeared almost simultaneously in Liberty in the United States. It also appears in the collection Meet Mr. Mulliner. The main character in this story, Wilfred Mulliner, plays off-stage parts in "Mulliner's Buck-U-Uppo".

"The Truth About George" is a short story by the British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse. A part of the Mr. Mulliner series, the story was first published in July 1926 in Strand Magazine, and appeared almost simultaneously in Liberty in the United States. It also appears in the collection Meet Mr. Mulliner.

"Honeysuckle Cottage" is a short story by the British author P. G. Wodehouse. The story was first published in the 24 January 1925 issue of the Saturday Evening Post in the United States, and in the February 1925 issue of the Strand Magazine in the United Kingdom.

Plum Stones is a set of 12 volumes of uncollected short stories by P. G. Wodehouse. All 25 stories were previously published in magazines, but not published in book form in the UK. The volumes were published posthumously between 1993 and 1995 in the UK by Galahad Books. The first two volumes were published in 1993, the following six in 1994, and last four in 1995.

"Jeeves Makes an Omelette" is a short story by P. G. Wodehouse, and features the young gentleman Bertie Wooster and his valet Jeeves. The story was published in the Star Weekly in Canada in August 1958. The story was also included in the 1959 collection A Few Quick Ones.

"Fixing it for Freddie" is a short story by P. G. Wodehouse, and features the young gentleman Bertie Wooster and his valet Jeeves. Originally starring Reggie Pepper, the story was published in The Strand Magazine as "Helping Freddie" in the United Kingdom in September 1911, and in Pictorial Review as "Lines and Business" in the United States in March 1912. The story was later changed to feature Bertie Wooster and Jeeves when it was included in the 1925 collection Carry On, Jeeves.

References

Notes
  1. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), pp. 99-100, A89.
  2. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), p. 145, D15.9, and p. 183, D133.25.
  3. ↑ Wodehouse (1968) [1966], chapter 7, p. 150
  4. ↑ Wodehouse, P. G. (December 1912). "Rallying Round Old George". Madame Eulalie. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
  5. ↑ Wodehouse, P. G. (27 September 1913). "Brother Alfred". Madame Eulalie. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
  6. ↑ Phelps, Barry (1992). P. G. Wodehouse: Man and Myth. London: Constable and Company Limited. p. 176. ISBN   009471620X.
  7. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), p. 183, D133.25.
  8. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), p. 145, D15.9.
  9. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), p. 154, D51.16.
  10. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), pp. 33-34, A21b and A22a.
  11. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), pp. 115-115, B5b, and pp. 129-130, B33a.
  12. ↑ Wodehouse (1997), pp. ii-v.
  13. ↑ McIlvaine (1990), pp. 301, J7.
Bibliography
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.