P.G. ‘Plum’ Wodehouse had ample talents to entertain

by Gretchen Witt Rowan Public Library

On Oct. 15 in the year 1881, Pelham Grenville Wodehouse was born and, despite his mother’s penchant for substantial names, he was known throughout his life as Plum.

Growing up in late Victorian and Edwardian England, Plum, not atypically, was raised along with his two older brothers in England whilst his parents resided in Hong Kong. A reserved and solitary individual, he began writing stories at the age of 7. Plum’s first published work was in “Public School” magazine in February 1900; his career was to span three quarters of a century.

Listening to one of his audiobooks, “Damsel in Distress,” I was completely struck by how effortlessly he makes the most mundane of topics — eliminating pests in the garden for instance — into a fascinating bit of revelry. A young lady running away and hiding in a taxicab while her brother confronts her erstwhile rescuer draws a crowd of ordinary working class folks speculating on the exact nature of the argument and what will come of it. The activities of the everyday and the quirks and vagaries of his characters continue to amuse us.

In many ways Wodehouse fashioned the current view of what Edwardian England was like. Nearly everyone is familiar with his marvelous characters Bertie Wooster and the inestimable Jeeves. Who hasn’t been enchanted by the word play of Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry as they portray these two fellows getting in and out of the most absurdly sticky situations?

The library has four seasons of this wonderful show on DVD ready to be checked out. “The Jeeves Omnibus” is a good place to begin if you are unfamiliar with the antics of these two characters. It includes two complete novels and 10 short stories full of Plum’s unique dialogue of erudition and English upper-crust slang.

Wodehouse wrote 70 novels and more than 300 short stories. One collection of stories of particular interest might be “Wodehouse on Crime,” edited by Bensen with an intriguing forward by Isaac Asimov. With such titles as “Strychnine in the Soup” and “The Crime Wave at Blanding’s, this collection is for the detective novel lover.

“Strychnine” begins with characters described as their favorite libation — “Draught Stout” is comforted by “Lemonade and Angostura.” Bibliophiles everywhere will appreciate this excerpt: “No poet has yet treated of the most poignant bereavement of all — that of the man half-way through a detective story who finds himself at bedtime without the book.”

A number of Plum’s stories have been used to create a fine collection of short dramatic pieces on DVD, “Wodehouse Playhouse.” In one installment, a young man with an awful stammer is rid of his stutter after a day reminiscent of a Keystone cops episode and finally able to profess his love to his neighbor the vicar’s daughter.

David Jasen writes smoothly and with obvious affection an appealing biography, “P.G. Wodehouse: A Portrait of a Master.” Included in the biography are photographs, first printing book and magazine covers, personal letters and posters from musicals. Plum was an accomplished lyricist and wrote many plays and lyrics alone and in partnership with Jerome Kern and Guy Bolton. Looking for more, Jasen’s book includes a bibliography of published works.

Take time to explore the truly delightful world of P.G. Wodehouse.