Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 4-2001 The Sense of Nonsense: An Annotated Edition of Ring W. Lardner’s Short Plays Scott A. Topping Western Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the English Language and Literature Commons, and the Playwriting Commons Recommended Citation Topping, Scott A., "The Sense of Nonsense: An Annotated Edition of Ring W. Lardner’s Short Plays" (2001). Dissertations. 1392. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/1392 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE SENSE OF NONSENSE: AN ANNOTATED EDITION OF RING W. LARDNER’S SHORT PLAYS by Scott A. Topping A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan April 2001 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE SENSE OF NONSENSE: AN ANNOTATED EDITION OF RING W. LARDNER’S SHORT PLAYS Scott A. Topping, Ph.D. Western Michigan University, 2001 This edition presents twenty-one short plays by Ring W. Lardner (1885-1933), most of which have previously been accessible only on microfilm and in special collections. No edition exclusively dedicated to Lardner’s plays has ever been published. Though Lardner is known primarily for his short stories and sports writing, he considered himself to be a playwright and lyricist. Throughout his career he wrote several full-length plays (collaborating with George Cohan and George Kaufman, among others) and hundreds of short plays and sketches from which my collection is derived. Lardner’s sensitive ear for American dialects, praised by H. L. Mencken, Carl Van Doren, and others, combines with his keen eye for the absurd in these short plays, providing a unique view of America’s Teens and Twenties. Included.are representative samples of Lardner’s newspaper plays, written for his “In the Wake of the News” column in theChicago Tribune (1913-1919), sketches written for the Ziegfeld Follies (1922), and all of the so-called nonsense plays (1922-1931) for which Lardner has received some critical attention. After a brief introduction to the life and dramatic work of Lardner, the twenty-one plays are presented in clear­ text, with editorial emendations made to the non-substantive errors. A full listing of emendations and textual variants is recorded. Following the texts of the plays are extensive content notes, a complete and annotated listing of Lardner’s uncollected short plays, and a performance list of all o f Lardner’s dramatic work. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy subm itted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. 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Number 3007029 ___ ® UMI UMI Microform 3007029 Copyright 2001 by Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Scott A. Topping 2001 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................... 1 A Brief Overview of Lardner’s Dramatic Work.................................... 2 Critical Attention..................................................................................... 3 Lardner’s Dramatic Work........................................................................ 5 Newspaper Plays.............................................................................. 7 Sketches and Plays for the Popular Stage...................................... 20 The Nonsense Plays........................................................................ 26 Conclusion................................................................................................ 37 NOTES ON THE TEXT.............................................................................................. 42 Rationale for Selection............................................................................ 42 Selection of Copy-Text............................................................................ 44 Format of the T exts ................................................................................. 46 Authorial Revisions and Corrections..................................................... 46 The Other World.............................................................................. 46 The Tridget o f Greva (1)................................................................. 47 Editorial Emendations............................................................................. 48 On the Elevated................................................................................ 48 The Follies o f 1913.......................................................................... 48 Charles the First............................................................................... 48 Henry the First................................................................................. 48 Not Guilty......................................................................................... 48 ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Table of Contents—continued T extual V ariations..................................................................................... 49 The Bull Pen...................................................................................... 50 The T ridget of Greva (2)................................................................... 50 Thompson’s Vacation....................................................................... 52 Clemo Uti—“The Water Lilies” ..................................................... 53 I. Gaspiri.............................................................................................. 53 Taxidea Americana........................................................................... 53 Cora, or Fun at a Spa................................ 54 The Gelska Cup................................................................................. 54 Dinner Bridge..................................................................................... 54 Abend di Anni Nouveau................................................................... 55 Quadroon............................................................................................ 56 ON THE ELEVATED................................................................................................... 57 THE FOLLIES OF 1913: IN TWO ACTS AND FIFTEEN SCENES................... 60 CHARLES THE FIRST................................................................................................. 71 KING HENRY THE F IR S T ......................................................................................... 79 LA FOLLETTE OF 1917............................................................................................... 89 HORRORS OF WAR..................................................................................................... 92 BREAKFAST.................................................................................................................. 95 NOT GUILTY.................................................................................................................. 99 THE OTHER W ORLD.................................................................................................