Article No.2013
Written by London swaminathan
Swami_48@yahoo.com
Date : 23 July 2015
Time uploaded in London : 14-17
1.Children
There is a legend about the fervent message Bernard Shaw received from Isadora Duncan expressing the opinion that by every eugenics principle they should have a child.
“Think what a child it would be”, she said, “with my body and your brain.”
Shaw sent the following response, discouraging the preposition, “Think how unfortunate it would be if the child were to have my body and your brain.”
2.Shaw—an imaginary Personage?
Bernard Shaw’s name first became familiar to the general public as the result of scurrilous attacks, disguised as interviews, made upon by him by a section of the London evening press. The interviewer would force his way into Shaw’s modest apartment, apparently for no other purpose than to bully and insult him.
Many people maintained that Shaw was an imaginary personage. Why did he stand it? Why didn’t he kick the interviewer downstairs? Failing that why didn’t he call the police? It seemed difficult to believe in the existence of a being so Christian as this poor persecuted Shaw appeared to be. Everyone talked about him.
As a matter of fact, the interviews were written by Shaw himself.
XXXX
3.Shaw as a Critic
When Bernard Shaw wrote dramatic criticisms for the “London Saturday Review” he commented about a certain play in his column as follows:
“I am in a somewhat foolish position concerning a play at the Opera Comique, whither I was bidden this day week. For some reason I was not supplied with a program; so that I never learned the name of the play. At the end of the second act the play had advanced about as far as an ordinary dramatist would have brought it five minutes after the first rising of the curtain; or say as far as Ibsen would have brought it ten years before the event. Taking advantage of the second interval (intermission) to stroll out into the Strand for a little exercise, I unfortunately forgot all about my business, and actually reached home before it occurred to me that I had not seen the end of the play. Under these circumstances, it would ill become me to dogmatize on the merits of the work or its performance. I can only offer the management my apologies.”
4.Practical Joking
George Bernard Shaw was poring over a second hand book stall of volumes much marked down, when he came across a volume containing his own plays. The book was inscribed, moreover, to a friend, beneath whose name on the fly-leaf, G.B.S. saw, written in his own hand, “With renewed compliments. G.B.S,” and sent it back to the early recipient.
5.Habits
In reply to an invitation to lunch with Lady Randolph, George Bernard Shaw wired: “certainly not; what have I done to provoke such an attack on my well known habits?”
Lady Randolph sent another telegram:
“Know nothing of your habits; hope they are not as bad as your manners.
6.Shaw came to conquer England
Lillah Mc Carthy asked Bernard Shaw why he had come to live in England instead of seeking inspiration among the Dublin (Irish) poets – George Moore, A.E.Yeats and the others. He answered: “Lord bless you, I am old enough to be A.E.’s father; and George Moore had not discovered Ireland then. He was in Paris studying painting. He hadn’t even discovered himself. The Ireland that you know did not exist. I could not stay there, dreaming my life away on the Irish hills. England had conquered Ireland; so there was nothing for it but to come over and conquer England. Which, you will notice, I have done pretty thoroughly.”
7.Oscar Wilde on G.B.Shaw
When G.B.Shaw, as a young man, emerged from his native Ireland and moved to England he began writing a column for a London weekly publication. At that time Oscar Wilde was enjoying his vogue as a wit and epigram maker. One evening an acquaintance, calling upon Wilde, happened upon a copy of the paper to which Shaw was a contributor and reading therein one of Shaw’s characteristic articles which was signed with the author’s initials, said to his host:
“I say, Wilde, who is chap G.B.S. who is doing a department for this sheet?”
“He is a young Irishman named Shaw,” said Wilde. “Rather forceful, isn’t he?”
“Forceful”, echoed the other, “well, rather! My word, how he does cut and slash! He doesn’t seem to spare anyone he knows. I should say he is in a fair way to make himself a lot of enemies.”
“well,” said Wilde, “as yet he hasn’t become prominent enough to have enemies. But none of his friends like him.”
Rest of the anecdotes in Part 2……………..
Tamil and Vedas 
You must be logged in to post a comment.