Fictional Biography | Wold Newton Resource Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Wold Newton Resource Wiki Share Fictional Biography is a genre wherein an author writes an account of a person's life where that person is actually a fictional character (or leastways, is generally thought to be). An example would be the satirical Augustus Carp, Esq., By Himself: Being the Autobiography of a Really Good Man, published anonymously in 1924 (later confirmed to have been written by Sir Henry Howarth Bashford). In Wold Newton circles, however, the general assumption is that the book will have been written about a pre-existing figure. The genre is rather a wide one. At one end there will be books that are essentially critical studies of a character, or perhaps examples of "The Game", the scholarly-yet-creative research into the life and career of Sherlock Holmes. While such books are biographical, it would be difficult to actually describe them as fully-fledged biographies. At the other end of the scale can be found novels that have simply been presented in an unusual way, where the style of the biography largely gives way to narrative.

Somewhere in the middle are straight biographies, where the authors have used the source texts as though they were historical documents, and in many of these cases the authors have taken the explicit position that they are writing about real people. Wold Newton scholarship directly derives from two fictional biographies by Philip José Farmer, Tarzan Alive and Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life. There have, however, been many others, both before and after Farmer, at various points in the scale. The list below is based upon the information supplied on Win Scott Eckert 's The Wold Newton Universe website , which listing he expanded in his book Crossovers. Further examples have been added directly to this article. Contents [ show ] "Biographical Note" by Paul Austin Delagardie, in Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers (1927) A brief, and amusingly self-serving, biography of Lord Peter Wimsey , written by his uncle at the request of Dorothy L. Sayers . Sleuths: 23 Great Detectives of Fiction & Their Best Stories ed.

Kenneth MacGowan (1931) Sleuths was a collection of short stories about fictional detectives by various hands, but with the gimmick that each piece came with a Who's Who-style mini-biography of each detective. The Gay Adventurer aka The Life and Exploits of the Scarlet Pimpernel by John Blakeney (1935) Published while the Baroness Orczy was still writing stories about Sir Percy Blakeney and his descendents, and not always consistent with them. It is generally assumed that “John Blakeney” was actually her son John Orczy Barstow. The book is available online here . "A Probable Outline of Conan's Career" by P. Schuyler Miller and John D. Clark (1938), variously revised under other titles by L. Sprague de Camp (1952 onwards) The original article is online here . Yankee Lawyer: The Autobiography of Ephraim Tutt by Ephraim Tutt (i.e.

Arthur Train) (1943) A popular entry Train's long-running series of stories, in which he passes the baton to Tutt himself in order to tell the story of his life (and, in doing so, point out where Train has misrepresented him in print in the past). Readers were left somewhat confused as to whether Tutt was a fictional character, or whether he had been real all along.... Four-&-Twenty Bloodhounds by Anthony Boucher (1950) Verne Chute's Shadrack Arnold George Harmon Coxe's Dr. Paul Standish Q. Patrick's Lt. Timothy Trant Kelley Roos's Jeff and Haila Troy Stuart Palmer's Hildegarde Withers Explicitly-modelled on Sleuths, Boucher composed (allegedly drawing his information from question sheets completed by the detectives themselves) similar Who's Who-style entries for each work in his anthology of detective fiction - with three exceptions.

Ellery Queen refused to supply any information, sending Boucher a facetious letter instead, which is reprinted complete with signature; The Mysterious Traveller is said to have supplied biographical information so disturbing that it could not be published, with Boucher announcing that he had had to send a copy to Miskatonic University instead (one wonders how many readers in 1950 recognised the joke here); Brett Halliday supplied no further information beyond his Michael Shayne story which recounts how the two men got to know each other. Maigret’s Memoirs by Georges Simenon (1950) Much like Train before him, Maigret has a go at his chronicler and insists on writing the story of his life himself. Simenon later allowed Julian Symons to write an associated pastiche, “About Maigret and the Stolen Papers” , in his Great Detectives (see below). Colonel Chinstrap by Ted Kavanagh (1952) The autobiography of Colonel Humphrey Chinstrap, the dipsomaniac army officer from I.T.M.A., the BBC radio series that got the British through World War Two. Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street by William S.

Baring-Gould (1962) Arguably the culmination of all Sherlockian speculation - although by no means the last - Baring-Gould draws together much work by himself and other hands to tell the story of the Great Detective's family, career, and retirement. The book is notable for popularising the idea that Nero Wolfe was Sherlock Holmes 's son. Elements from the Professor Challenger stories, and from three notable pastiches, are also included. Nero Wolfe of West Thirty-Fifth Street by William S. Baring-Gould (1969) Whereas Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street was a straight biography of the late Sherlock Holmes, Nero Wolfe of West 35th Street is more a collection of essays about the still-living New York detective , each one dealing with a different aspect of Wolfe's career, life, and circle. The Life and Times of Horatio Hornblower by C. Northcote Parkinson (1970) Although books in a similar vein had been written before, the idea behind The Life and Times of Horatio Hornblower seems to have been a new one to its readers. Parkinson took the character of Horatio Hornblower , the protagonist of the historical novels by C.S.

Forester , and wrote such a straight biography that some reviewers missed the point and thought Hornblower had actually existed. Rumours exist of a similar tome by one "C. Windgate". Tarzan Alive by Philip José Farmer (1972) See main article Tarzan Alive . "The Obscure Life and Hard Times of Kilgore Trout" by Philip José Farmer (1973) Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life by Philip José Farmer (1973) See main article Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life . James Bond: The Authorised Biography of 007 by John Pearson (1973) John Pearson was a colleague of Ian Fleming and wrote his biography. James Bond: The Authorised Biography reveals that Pearson started to get peculiar correspondence once his Fleming book was out, which lead him to discover that James Bond is not fictional at all. It is interesting to note that before Fleming's literary estate took an interest, Pearson anticipated that the book would have to be a parody in order to reach print. It is interesting to note that Pearson's book was published around the same time as Farmer's, as the latter also includes - consistent - information about James Bond's ancestry.

America's Secret Service Ace by Nick Carr (1974) About Operator #5 . An Informal Biography of Scrooge McDuck by Jack Chalker et. al. (1974) Based on the comics by Carl Barks , who is recorded as having said that he considered Disney's anthropomorphic animal cartoon characters as being, essentially, portraits of human beings in caricature . "Edgar Rice Burroughs: A Brief Biographical Sketch" in A Guide to Barsoom by John Flint Roy (1976) Wold Newton scholars have also considered the differences between the real-life Burroughs and the narrator of his books in their article Burroughing Beneath the Page . I, Sherlock Holmes by Michael Harrison (1977) In essentials, this is a novelisation of Harrison's earlier work of Sherlockian speculation The World of Sherlock Holmes, with conclusions that he had reached found to be confirmed by the Great Detective 's own memoir, preserved in the British Library. The Wimsey Family by C.W. Scott-Giles (1977) Penned by the Fitzalan Pursuivant of Arms Extraordinary, based on his longstanding correspondence with Dorothy L.

Sayers about the ancestry of Lord Peter Wimsey . John Steed: An Authorized Biography, Volume 1 - Jealous In Honour by Tim Heald (1977) This was the first biography written by Tim Heald - with input from both Patrick Macnee (who features as a character, as does his father) and Brian Clemens. Only the first volume of the life of John Steed , central character of the television programme The Avengers, was ever produced, and only one edition was printed; nevertheless, Mr. Heald is probably nowadays known best as a biographer, although few of his other subjects can have had the same pre-existing acquaintance that he had with John Steed. The book, which lacks any of the fantastic elements the television show is now best known for, is notable for its cameo appearance by James Bond and, somewhat bizarrely, a crossover with Evelyn Waugh 's first novel, Decline and Fall. A rarity, it is described in hushed tones on various websites, such as here .

The Private Lives of Private Eyes, Spies, Crime Fighters, and Other Good Guys" by Otto Penzler (1977) A large-format illustrated book, covering 'The lives and times of the world's 25 best-known fictional crime fighters'. Each section offers an overview of a character or characters, as well as a brief in-universe biography: The Shadow by Maxwell Grant Michael Shayne by Brett Halliday (this entry essentially a real-world version of Halliday's contribution to Four-and-Twenty Bloodhounds) Virgil Tibbs by John Ball (some of this entry is quoted in the TV Tropes website's article on the "Literary Agent Hypothesis" ) Dick Tracy by Chester Gould Inspector Van der Valk by Nicolas Freeling Biggles: The Authorized Biography by John Pearson (1978) The conceit of this book is that Captain James Bigglesworth, the World War One flying ace whose adventures were described by W.E. Johns , lived near Pearson following his retirement. The book is not much liked by Biggles fans, as it takes considerable liberties with Johns's works. Jeeves: A Gentleman's Personal Gentleman by C.

Northcote Parkinson (1979) In this book Parkinson assembles episodes from P.G. Wodehouse 's Bertie Wooster stories into a continuous narrative, as well as adding incidents of his own. Not perhaps a successful imitation of Wodehouse's style, although the all-star cast audiobook adaptation in particular occasionally raises a smile. Notably, Lord Peter Wimsey , Bunter , Hercule Poirot and Father Brown all appear. Northcote Parkinson cites his inspiration as Geoffrey Jaggard's concordance-cum-book of quotations, Wooster's World (1967). He also cites a number of fictional sources, including a spurious biography of Lord Peter Wimsey , Whimsical Sleuth by Wallace Edgar .

The Great Detectives: Seven Original Investigations by Julian Symons, illustrated by Tom Adams (1981) A coffee-table book of original critical, speculative and creative material, written with the permission of the daughters of Agatha Christie , Rex Stout and Raymond Chandler , and the co-operation of Georges Simenon and Frederic Dannay , comprising: "How a Hermit was Disturbed in His Retirement" (short story in which a very young Miss Marple meets the elderly Sherlock Holmes, also anthologised elsewhere under the title "The Adventure of Hillerman Hall") "About Miss Marple and St. Mary Mead" (a reminiscence written at Symons's request by the Reverend Leonard Clement, narrator of the first Miss Marple novel The Murder at the Vicarage "In Which Archie Goodwin Remembers" (Symons interviews Archie Goodwin while visiting the United States, and learns the fate of Nero Wolfe ) "Which Expounds the Ellery Queen Mystery" (still in America, Symons researches the life of Ellery Queen , and finds evidence to support his theory that the detective was actually two different men, Ellery and Dan.

Frederic Dannay's opinion is also sought) "About Maigret and the Stolen Papers" (a short story crossing-over Maigret and Hercule Poirot ) "The Life of Hercule Poirot, based on the notes of Captain Arthur Hastings" (Symons meets the elderly Captain Hastings , and takes over his project to put together a full biography of the Belgian sleuth) "About the Birth of Philip Marlowe" (Symons meets the man on whom Raymond Chandler based Philip Marlowe ) Star Trek II Biographies by William Rotsler (1982) The author of tie-in fiction to the movies Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was encouraged by his editor to take a closer look at the lives of the crew of the USS Enterprise. Although much of his book has since been contradicted, Rotsler is famously credited with coining Lt. Uhura's first name . The Brownstone House of Nero Wolfe, as told by Archie Goodwin by Ken Darby (1983) A fictional biography of Nero Wolfe's house, also revealing much about both Wolfe and Archie's lives.

Flatly contradicts both Symons's book and Robert Goldsborough's continuation novels regarding the fate of Wolfe and Archie. The Private Life of Dr. Watson by Michael Hardwick (1983) This novel has the doctor recall his somewhat racy adventures in youth, before he encountered Holmes. The title is a riff on The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes - the novelisation of the film of that name had been written by Michael and Mollie Hardwick. Suspects by David Thomson (1985) Not, unfortunately, consistent with the Wold Newton Universe. The narrator of this novel writes biographies of different movie characters, expanding on what is known from the films, and gradually the articles begin to bleed into each other. The follow-up, Silverlight, took a more conventional style, and mainly covered figures from the Wild West, both historical and fictional. Sherlock Holmes: My Life and Crimes by Michael Hardwick (1986) Although the book opens as an autobiography, discussing - for example - Sherlock Holmes's early work with the Pinkertons, it rapidly turns into a novel as Holmes reveals to the reader the true events of the Great Hiatus.

The Life and Times of Miss Jane Marple by Anne Hart (1989) The Life and Times of Hercule Poirot by Anne Hart (1990) Essentially an analysis of the stories and characters as fiction. Arthur Daley Straight Up: The Autobiography by Paul Ableman and Leon Griffiths (1991) This book begins as a narrative of the youth of Arthur Daley, the car dealer from Minder, but ultimately turns into a selection of his adventures, probably derived from television episodes. Interestingly, the cover bears a recommendation from Derek Trotter, the central character in Only Fools and Horses. Other television shows have produced books in a similar vein to Straight Up - finding a way of adapting what is on the screen into a book without just producing flat novelisations or script books, but this is perhaps the closest to actual autobiography. Leopold Bloom: A Biography aka The Life of Leopold Bloom: A Novel by Peter Costello (1992) A straight biographical study of the protagonist of James Joyce 's Ulysses. The Reminisences of the Hon. Galahad Threepwood by N.T.P.

Murphy (1993) Ostensibly a later edition of the book consumed by the pig Empress of Blandings in Wodehouse's Heavy Weather, and finally revealing the truth about Parslowe and the prawns, and what happened to Lord Ickenham and Pongo at the dog races, this book is actually about the real-life characters who haunted the Pelican Club at the end of the nineteenth century. The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck by Don Rosa (1994, 1997) A surprising but legitimate entry, Rosa carefully constructed stories for the Uncle Scrooge comic based on references to Scrooge McDuck's early life as revealed in the early Carl Barks comics, much as other fictional biographers drew non-fiction styled histories from their original sources. Holmes and Watson by June Thomson (1995) The Eyes Of The Fleet: A Popular History Of Frigates And Frigate Captains, 1793-1815 by Anthony Price (1996) A study of a selection of naval heroes of the Napoleonic Wars - men such as Pigot, Cochrane, Hoste, Pellew, and... um...

Hornblower. Radio's Captain Midnight: The Wartime Biography by Stephen Kallis (1999) Basil Brush: My Story by Andrew Crofts (2001) Even puppets have turned to the written word to tell their life-story. The World of Austin Powers by Andy Lane (2002) Life Beyond the Box (2003) A pair of BBC television programmes, rather than books: "Norman Stanley Fletcher" told the life story of the central character of the prison sitcom Porridge, revealing details of his early life, and the fates of the main recurring characters of the series. It starred the surviving members of the original cast. "Margo", conversely, featured none of the surviving cast of the sitcom The Good Life, and was a deconstruction of the snobbish Margo Leadbetter, revealing the skeletons in her cupboard. Nancy Drew, Confessions of a Teen Sleuth: A Parody by Chelsea Cain (2005) Les Nombreuses vies d’Arsène Lupin by André-François Ruaud (2005) Volume 1 of a series of fictional biographies published by the French imprint la bibliothèque rouge.

Many volumes address not only the title character but other characters on a similar nature, and feature French translations of pastiches familiar to a Wold Newton audience. Les Nombreuses vies de Sherlock Holmes by André-François Ruaud & Xavier Mauméjean (2005) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 2. Les Nombreuses vies d’Hercule Poirot by André-François Ruaud & Xavier Mauméjean (2006) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 3. Les Nombreuses vies de Fantômas by Étienne Barillier (2006) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 4. 'Indiana Jones: Biografía' by Marcus Brody, ed. Pau Gómez (2006) Originally written in 1948 by a close friend and colleague of Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., together with a 1993 postscript by Jones himself, this book has only even been published in Spain, in Spanish, without the authorisation of Lucasarts.

Les Nombreuses vies de James Bond by Laurent Queyssi (2007) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 5. I am the Doctor: The Unauthorised Diaries of a Timelord by John Peel (2007) Ostensibly interviews with ten incarnations of the Doctor - and one of his companions - this book is just lists the barest details of the plots of all broadcast television stories. And for some reason, each Doctor is able to describe the circumstances of his regeneration into his subsequent body... Les Nombreuses vies de Maigret by Jacques Baudou (2007) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 6. Les Nombreuses vies de Dracula by André-François Ruaud & Isabelle Ballester (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 7. Les Nombreuses vies de Frankenstein by André-François Ruaud (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 8. Les Nombreuses vies de Malaussène by Nicolas Lozzi (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 9.

Les Nombreuses vies de Conan by Simon Sanahujas (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 10. Les Nombreuses vies de Nero Wolfe, un privé à New York by André-François Ruaud (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 11. Les Nombreuses morts de Jack l’Éventreur by André-François Ruaud & Julien Bétan (2008) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 12; regarding Jack the Ripper, the notorious murderer often used in fiction pitched against figures such as Sherlock Holmes. Eclectic Gypsy: An Unauthorised Biography of Doctor Who by Dave Thompson (2008) A spoof of the whole idea of a fictional biography, citing interviews with dead Time Lords and articles from unlikely interstellar publications (and occasionally mocking one or two specific fans).

Roy of the Rovers: The Unauthorised Biography by Mick Collins (2008) Somewhat like John Pearson, Mick Collins began by writing a biography of a real person, with "his bestselling All-Round Genius about a real life sports man who resembled a comic strip hero[; in Roy of the Rovers], Mick Collins turns his attention to a comic strip hero that many thought was a real life striker". Le Dico des héros dirigé by André-François Ruaud (2009) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 13, being a dictionary of heroes - "A comme Adamsberg, B comme Belphégor, C comme Chéri-Bibi, D comme Dickson, E comme Emmanuelle, F comme Fu Manchu, G comme Green Hornet, H comme Holmes et ainsi de suite." Les Nombreuses vies de Miss Marple by Jacques Baudou (2009) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 14. Les Nombreuses vies de Cthulhu by Patrick Marcel (2009) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 15; addressing the workings of a universe where loom the Ctuhlhu Cult Deities.

Les Nombreux mondes de Jane Austen by Isabelle Ballester (2009) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 16; addressing the lives of Elizabeth Bennet and other figures from Austen's works. Les Nombreuses vies de Harry Potter by André-François Ruaud (2009) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 17. The Lineup: The World's Greatest Crime Writers Tell the Inside Story of Their Greatest Detectives, ed.

Otto Penzler (2009) For Otto Penzler's latest anthology of fictional biographies, some contributors chose to write about how they developed their characters, and others opted to continue the polite fiction that they are chronicling the lives of real people: Jack Taylor by Ken Brown Jack Reacher by Lee Child Harry Bosch by Michael Connelly Charlie Parker by John Connolly Elvis Cole and Joe Pike by Robert Crais Lincoln Rhyme by Jeffrey Deaver Inspector Morse by Colin Dexter Charlie Resnick by John Harvey Bob Lee Swagger by Stephen Hunter Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus by Faye Kellerman Alex Delaware by Jonathan Kellerman Dismas Hardy by John Lescroart Tess Monaghan by Laura Lippman Rambo by David Morrell Spenser by Robert B. Parker Lou Boldt by Ridley Pearson Charlotte and Thomas Pitt by Anne Perry Aloysius X. L. Pendergast by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child John Rebus by Ian Rankin Precious Ramotswe by Alexander McCall Smith Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte: His Life and Times by Michael Duke (2010) A biography of Arthur Upfield 's Bony , with particular reference to his Aboriginal background.

The author concedes that Bony is a fictional character but that he intends to pretend he's real. The publishers have made an excerpt available online here (which, interestingly, compares Bony's relationship to Upfield with John Steed and his biographer Tim Heald....). Les Nombreuses vies de Nestor Burma by Jacques Baudou (2010) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 18. Les Nombreuses vies du polar provençal by Nicolas Lozzi (2011) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 19; discussing the detectives of Provençe. Sherlock Holmes, une vie by André-François Ruaud & Xavier Mauméjean (2011) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 20. Arsène Lupin, une vie by André-François Ruaud (2011) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 21. Hercule Poirot, une vie by André-François Ruaud & Xavier Mauméjean (2012) La bibliothèque rouge, Volume 22.

Further volumes are in preparation; Tarzan , notably, is to be one of the figures covered. I, Partridge: We Need to talk about Alan by Alan Partridge, with Rob Gibbons, Neil Gibbons, Armando Iannucci and Steve Coogan (2011) Alan 's follow-up to his earlier, pulped, Bouncing Back, is probably the first legitimate fictional autobiography on this list, covering his complete career without resorting to simply novelising episodes of his radio, television or Youtube series. The Doctor - His Lives and Times, ed. James Goss & Steve Tribe (2013) A licenced work in a similar vein to Eclectic Gypsy, interspersed with real-world commentary on the television show Doctor Who including contributions from writers, cast and crew from across its fifty-year history.

Let Me Off at the Top: My Classy Life & Other Musings by Ron Burgundy (2013) Older, more American, classier and much more successful than Norfolk's greatest son (one cannot but wonder whether this book was directly inspired by I, Partridge), "Ron Burgundy have asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work." Through It All I've Always Laughed - Memoirs of Count Arthur Strong by Steve Delaney (2013) Facsimile of a hand-corrected typescript by the legend of showbusiness himself. My Prefect Cousin: A Short Biography of Paul Hamilton by Kevin Eldon (2014) Kevin Eldon tells the story of the performance poet (whom he, Kevin, in turn, performs in stand-up) Paul Hamilton. Roy of the Rovers: The Official Autobiography of Roy of the Rovers by Roy Race (2014) England's best-loved footballer tells the story of his life.... well, somebody does.

The original hardback edition published by Century credits accustomed ghostwriter of biographies Eddie Grant with putting the text together, but the 2015 paperback by Arrow is credited to 'Roy Race with Giles Smith'. The Autobiography of James T. Kirk: The Story of Starfleet's Greatest Captain ed. David A Goodman (2015) The life story of James Tiberius Kirk, as written by the man himself shortly before his tragic death aboard the USS Enterprise-B. The volume includes a Foreword by Dr. Leonard H. McCoy, and an Afterword by Spock of Vulcan. The Gay Adventurer The Gay Adventurer by John Blakeney There can't be too many literary creations who have been the subject of a biography in their own right - at best, most characters have to be content with having their adventures and personalities analysed and dissected by academics in the hope that they can shed some psychological light on their creator's life. Perhaps the best examples of this are Ian Fleming's James Bond and Conan Doyle's larger-than-life Sherlock Holmes.

But there is one fictional character, at least, who can boast his own biography: Sir Percy Blakeney, better known as that scourge of the French revolutionaries, the Scarlet Pimpernel. In The Gay Adventurer (Long, 1938), John Blakeney provides a very readable and intriguing account of Baroness Orczy's most famous creation. The entire book is carefully pulled together using incidents from Scarlet Pimpernel novels, with only the occasional added linkages to provide coherence, and it's well worth giving a brief account of the Pimpernel's life according to Blakeney here, bearing in mind that the whole book was meant as a tongue-in-cheek affair and that it is widely assumed that John Blakeney was the pseudonym of Baroness Orczy's son! Although the Pimpernel's ancestors can be traced back to a John Blake who was born in the village of Blakeney, Suffolk, in 1559, and included a British Ambassador to Holland, the most famous Sir Percy Blakeney was born in England in 1760.

He had an unhappy and unsettled childhood, due largely to the fact that his mother went insane at his birth, and this manifested itself in some childhood pranks which bordered on the level of serious misbehavior. On one occasion, for instance, he kidnapped a local girl, stripped her and tied her to a tree, just so that he could then bravely rescue her - many French aristocrats would later be very thankful for this early practice! SWORDSMAN To curb his son's natural excesses, his father arranged for Percy to be taught fencing and he eventually became an excellent swordsman, but not before he had caused the loss of a young rival's arm. After school at Harrow (where he formed important friendships with the likes of William Pitt and Andrew Ffoulkes, both of whom would be useful in later years), Percy's father died leaving him a very rich young man. He eventually entered Parliament but resigned two years later having had enough of the rogues and scoundrels, and the hypocrisy of the members - they on their part were glad to be rid of such an effete dandy.

In 1787, almost in spite of himself, he became engaged to Lady Mary de Courcy, but because she was such a "gas bag" he broke off their relationship and fled to Paris. Here he was given a job by Pitt who needed reliable information as to what the French were up to, and it was here also that he met Marguerite St. Just who was to become his wife and great love throughout his adventures as the Scarlet Pimpernel. After the fall of Robespierre and the end of his exploits as the Pimpernel as chronicled by Baroness Orczy, Percy fell back into his restless, easily bored ways until, in 1797, as Napoleon's expansionist forays were beginning, he re-equipped his yacht, the Daydream, as a ship of war and began to work as a raider against the Emperor's fleet. After several successful raids in which he named himself the Nightmare, his ship was sunk and he had to be rescued by a passing English Frigate. The admiral of this ship was none other than Nelson. Following this incident, Sir Percy settled down with his family and friends until his death in 1823.

No-one ever discovered the real identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel.... John Blakeney's book is so well put together that one would be forgiven for forgetting it was, in fact, a piece of fictionalised non-fiction! Indeed, even Baroness Orczy herself, who wrote the book's introduction, praises the author's researches, adding: "Of course, I cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of your information about these adventures but they seem to me to be quite consistent with the many fragments of his life-history known to me." One begins to wonder whether she herself thought the Scarlet Pimpernel was a real character! UNDERGROUND In her autobiography Links in the Chain of Life, Baroness Orczy explains how she first got the idea of the Scarlet Pimpernel. She saw a man in the Underground and such was his appearance that ideas immediately formed in her imagination. Her original manuscript was turned down by several publishers but with the help of her husband, Montagu Barstow, whom she had met while studying at Heathley School of Art, she changed her text into a play which was performed with instant popular success. Greening then offered to publish the original novel and this too proved highly successful.

It appeared in January 1905 and was followed by twelve more impressions that year, eleven in 1906 and 17 in 1907. By 1970 the book had gone through 85 editions and is still, of course, in print. In addition there have been films, plays and numerous translations throughout the world, including one into Russian which gave the Baroness particular pleasure. The book is a very enjoyable read which cleverly sets the scene for all the subsequent books by showing the two sides of Sir Percy Blakeney in well-timed juxtaposition. As the idle foppish dandy in England or the devilishly clever master of disguises in France, he holds our attention as time after time he escapes from seemingly impossible situations. Granted, he is helped by the fact that his enemies are never clever enough to outwit him. Even when Chauvelin has him at his mercy he manages to escape. Despite being a big man he is able to disguise himself as an old crone taking her plague-ridden cartload out of Paris past the drunken Bibot, or as the old Jew who rescues Marguerite at the end without our immediate recognition.

Read The Life and Exploits of the Scarlet Pimpernel Now! Sir Percy Blakeney / The Scarlet Pimpernel | People/Characters | LibraryThing Under the Red Robe by Stanley J. Weyman (1894) Character description The wealthy British fop Sir Percy Blakeney is known only to a few trusted friends as the Scarlet Pimpernel, who risks his life to save others from the French Revolution. Related people/characters BY WHICH NAME IS SIR PERCY BLAKENEY BETTER KNOWN? | OwnBond With Aamir Home / BY WHICH NAME IS SIR PERCY BLAKENEY BETTER KNOWN? BY WHICH NAME IS SIR PERCY BLAKENEY BETTER KNOWN? 289 Views May 30, 2016 The Scarlet Pimpernel. In the novels written by Baroness Orczy (Mrs Montague Barstow) he was the leader of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, a gallant band of Englishmen who risked their lives to save the innocent people who were being sent in droves to the guillotine by the ruthless men who had brought about the French Revolution.

The pimpernel is a plant which bears white, blue, scarlet flowers and Blakeney has adopted this pseudonym to disguise his true identity. In secrecy, as Sir Percy Blakeney, he is the effete dandy and fashion-plate whose friendship even the Prince Regent is happy to claim. Behind the plaintive indolent exterior of the courtier, however, there is a man of lightning brain and immeasurable daring who, time and time again, evades the well-laid plans of the crafty Citizen Chauvelin, agent of the dreaded Committee of Public Safety who rule France.Chauvelin begins to suspect Sir Percy when one evening at a ball attended by the Prince Regent, Sir Percy’s wife intercepts a note from her husband which he has written to Sir Andrew Ffoulkes, one of the Scarlet Pimpernel’s most trusted henchmen. The note requests Sir Andrew to meet the Scarlet Pimpernel in the supper room at the ball in two hours time.

Chauvelin, his hopes raised at the prospect of learning for the first time the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel, glides quietly into the supper room at the appointed hour but the only other person he can find in the room is that ass of an English aristocrat, Sir Percy Blakeney, who is sprawled seemingly sound asleep on a settee. Nobody else appears to keep the secret appointment with the Scarlet Pimpernel and Chauvelin’s feverish brain now has to grapple with the suspicion that the hated enemy of the French Republic is indeed none other than that posturing scion of the English nobility, Sir Percy Blakeney. Baroness Emmuska Orczy was born at Tarnaors, Hungary in 1865, the daughter of Baron Orczy. He was an enterprising farmer who was trying to introduce more modern farming but his reactionary workers did not welcome his innovations. They burnt his crops and the disgusted Baron took his family to England where they settled in London.

The Scarlet Pimpernel was written in 1902 but failed to attract the interest of a publisher until the play of the same name, written by the Baroness and her husband Montague Barstow, the illustrator, was produced. The play was an instant success and so was the book when it was published in 1905. Several Pimpernel sequels were subsequently published.Baroness Orczy and her husband went to live in Monte Carlo in 1918. She died at Henley-on-Thames, on November 12, 1947. Who was the Scarlet Pimpernel? Who was the Scarlet Pimpernel? The above passage contains some of the most famous lines of verse in English literature and is found in the classic novel, The Scarlet Pimpernel, by Baroness Emma Orczy. Who was this lterary character who has captured the imagination of generations of readers, has spawned movies and popular TV series, and even provided the inspiration for a hit Broadway musical?

The Pimpernel's character has his setting in the the streets of Paris, which are awash in blood as Robespierre and his henchmen send hundreds of French aristocrats to the guillotine. Against this backdrop one unknown Englishman and his brave band of followers leave their genteel lives behind to spirit the French royals to safety in England. The question that France's new leaders demand to know is: who is the Scarlet Pimpernel? The question the reader asks is: why does Sir Percy risk life and honor for a land not his own? Whatever the motivation, the story of the Pimpernel and his gallant crew as they outwit the Committee of Public Safety and its agent Chauvelin again and again, is absorbing reading. Aristocrats, clergy, shopgirls, even the Dauphin himself - no one is beyond the Pimpernel's aid. So who was he, this dashing character? The Scarlet Pimpernel is one of the most famous heroic characters in popular fiction of the past century.

Because the adventures of the Pimpernel were set in immediate post-revolutionary France, people these days tend to think the story has been around since the end of the 1700s, but the novel was first published in London in 1905. It's all very French and very genteel English, but it was actually written by a Hungarian woman who was an aristocrat by birth, and actually became the template for a succession of Hollywood and comic-book heroes. Baroness Emma Orczy (1865-1947), a "transplanted" Hungarian, wrote dozens of books but it is The Scarlet Pimpernel for which she is remembered. The book tells the story of Sir Percy Blakeney, a late-Georgian British society fop who is known more for being a dandy than having an semblance to a swordsman and hero. All is not as it seems, however, and Sir Percy leads a double life as "the Scarlet Pimpernel" -the rescuer of aristocrats and innocents during the Reign of Terror that followed the French Revolution. Sir Percy, feeling betrayed by his bride, French actress Marguerite St.

Just, is pursued by his nemesis, the French Republican agent Citizen Chauvelin. The central thrust of the Pimpernel - that of an unlikely everyman being capable of living a twin life, one of which is unbelievably heroic - has been copied time and time again since Baroness Orczy put pen to paper. How? Think about Zorro, Bruce Wayne/Batman, Clark Kent/Superman. The list goes on. The story has been dramatised on television and on the big screen several times (most notably in 1935 with Leslie Howard, Merle Oberon and Raymond Massey). In the '50s Marius Goring portayed what was arguably the best TV Pimpernel, after starring in a Scarlet Pimpernel radio series broadcast across the US. The 1982 TV series starring Anthony Andrews, Jane Seymour and Ian McKellen was hugely popular. The BBC made a six-part film in 1998 and 2000 starring Richard E. Grant, Elizabeth McGovern and Martin Shaw.

The Scarlet Pimpernel's more recent popularity and notoriety is a result of the Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical by Frank Wildhorn and Nan Knighton, which made its debut at New York's Minskoff Theatre in 1997. The Scarlet Pimpernel is forever being reinvented and will live on for new generations. ï¿½ words Copyright 2000-2007 ScarletPimpernel.com. All rights reserved. The league of the Scarlet Pimpernel (eBook, 2014) [WorldCat.org] Find more libraries Librarian? Claim your library to The league of the Scarlet Pimpernel Author: New York, NY : MysteriousPress.com/Open Road Integrated Media Inc., 2014. Edition/Format: eBook : Document : Fiction : English View all editions and formats Database: WorldCat Summary: The Age of Reason has come to France, bringing with it murder, cruelty, and terror. As the nation's aristocrats are paraded to the guillotine, their children are handed over to revolutionary citizens for reeducation.

Once a courtier at Versailles, Madeleine Lannoy now dances in the street, clinging to life so that she may one day visit revenge on Jean Paul Marat, the tyrant who stole her son. Her cause is hopeless until she meets a dashing Englishman named Sir Percy Blakeney, better known by his secret identity--the Scarlet Pimpernel. Read more... Rating: You are connected to the University of Washington Libraries network Hide local services for this item Show all links Add library to Favorites Please choose whether or not you want other users to be able to see on your profile that this library is a favorite of yours. Allow this favorite library to be seen by others Keep this favorite library private Find a copy in the library Finding libraries that hold this item... Details Baroness Orczy. Abstract: The Age of Reason has come to France, bringing with it murder, cruelty, and terror. As the nation's aristocrats are paraded to the guillotine, their children are handed over to revolutionary citizens for reeducation. Once a courtier at Versailles, Madeleine Lannoy now dances in the street, clinging to life so that she may one day visit revenge on Jean Paul Marat, the tyrant who stole her son.

Her cause is hopeless until she meets a dashing Englishman named Sir Percy Blakeney, better known by his secret identity--the Scarlet Pimpernel. Reviews Add a review and share your thoughts with other readers. Be the first. Add a review and share your thoughts with other readers. Be the first. Tags Add tags for "The league of the Scarlet Pimpernel". Be the first. Similar Items The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error A noblewoman discovers her husband is The Scarlet Pimpernel, a vigilante who rescues aristocrats from the blade of the guillotine.

Director: Harold Young Writers: Baroness Emmuska Orczy (by) (as The Baroness Orczy), Lajos Biró (scenario, continuity & dialogue) (as Lajos Biro) | 3 more credits » Stars: a list of 25 titles created 01 Feb 2013 a list of 33 titles created 23 May 2014 a list of 49 titles created 01 May 2015 a list of 31 titles created 11 months ago a list of 45 titles created 10 months ago Title: The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934) 7.6/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. The Scarlet Pimpernel (TV Movie 1982) Action | Drama | Romance During the French Revolution, a mysterious English nobleman known only as The Scarlet Pimpernel (a humble wayside flower), snatches French aristos from the jaws of the guillotine, while ...

See full summary » Director: Clive Donner Professor Horatio Smith, while seeming very unassuming, rescues victims of Nazi persecution during World War II. Director: Leslie Howard Shaw's play in which a Victorian dialect expert bets that he can teach a lower-class girl to speak proper English and thus be taken for a lady. Directors: Anthony Asquith, Leslie Howard Stars: Leslie Howard, Wendy Hiller, Wilfrid Lawson King Henry VIII marries five more times after his divorce from his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Director: Alexander Korda A pair of lookalikes, one a former French aristocrat and the other an alcoholic English lawyer, fall in love with the same woman amongst the turmoil of the French Revolution. Directors: Jack Conway, Robert Z. Leonard Stars: Ronald Colman, Elizabeth Allan, Edna May Oliver A young man finds himself attracted to a cold and unfeeling waitress who may ultimately destroy them both. Director: John Cromwell The Scarlet Pimpernel (TV Series 1999) Adventure | Drama During the turmoil of the French Revolution, English aristocrat Percy Blakeney, often aided by his League of friends, secretly undertakes various daring missions as the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Stars: Richard E. Grant, Ronan Vibert, Gerard Murphy After greedy men have Edmound Dantes unjustly imprisoned for 20 years for innocently delivering a letter entrusted to him, he escapes to get his revenge on them. Director: Rowland V. Lee Divorce lawyer Everard Logan thinks the woman who spent the night in his hotel room is the erring wife of his new client. Director: Tim Whelan An Englishman on a Ruritarian holiday must impersonate the king when the rightful monarch, a distant cousin, is drugged and kidnapped. Directors: John Cromwell, W.S. Van Dyke Stars: Ronald Colman, Madeleine Carroll, C. Aubrey Smith Paris is Burning! Under the Iron Fist of Robespierre hundreds are executed, by the swift and bloodstained guillotine. Through these acts of injustice a new heroism is born - The League of The Scarlet Pimpernel. Director: Hanns Schwarz Edit Storyline London fop Percy Blakeney is also secretly the Scarlet Pimpernel who, in a variety of disguises, makes repeated daring trips to France to save aristocrats from Madame Guillotine.

His unknowing wife is also French, and she finds that her brother has been arrested by the Republic to try and get her to find out who "that damned elusive Pimpernel" really is. Written by Jeremy Perkins {J-26} The Scarlet Pimpernel. Who Was He... What Was His Strange Power? Genres: 7 February 1935 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Die scharlachrote Blume See more » Filming Locations: Mono (Western Electric Wide Range Noiseless Recording) Color: Did You Know? Trivia The original play opened in London on 5 January 1905, three years before it was novelized. See more » Goofs The ring in the Blakeney portrait varies between long shot and closeups. See more » Quotes Percy Blakeney : They seek him here, they seek him there, / Those Frenchies seek him everywhere. / Is he in heaven? Or is he in hell? / That damned elusive Pimpernel!

(Seattle, Wa) – See all my reviews One might want to pre-judge this movie on the basis of its release date (1934), but it would be a mistake to consider this movie as creeky and old. On the contrary, it remains so brilliantly focused and sharply contrasted, that the viewer can get lost within the film-strip of this fine Korda film. The sets are realistic and evocative. Some, such as parlors and ballrooms glitter like the jewels of their occupants, while others, like public taverns and "clubs", can be grimy with pipe smoke, ale, and mutton. The story is one of hidden identity, of unsung heroism, illusion, and danger......risk and reward, of good men doing what's necessary to save doomed people. It's also a moving love story. Central in all of this is Sir Percy Blakeney (Leslie Howard in his finest screen role). He is a Fop in the extreme. He poses, he prances, and he eternally fusses with his attire. Are his cuffs properly ruffled, so that when he takes snuff, "it's a swallows flight"? Neckwear is another preoccupation of Sir Percy's....

he even uses this obsession in one of the film's wittiest lines, "A man who can't tie his own cravat isn't likely to put a noose around the Pimpernel's neck, is he?" But, the paradox of course is that Sir Percy, his wife not even knowing, is the bane of the French Revolutionists, the Scarlet Pimpernel. He and his followers make repeated and risky trips across the English Channel to rescue those they can from the fate of the guillotine. This charade of Sir Percy's is the core of much of the film's hilarious moments. But it's easy for this movie to take quick turns from humor to grim seriousness. The love interest is the International beauty Merle Oberon, who is showcased exquisitly. She has developed a contempt for her foppish husband and his silliness, as she desperately tries to save her brother's life by trying to discover the true identity of the Pimpernel for villain Raymond Massey. She idealizes the Pimpernel who she often contrasts to her nit-wit husband, but as he tells her (and with some moment), "It's dangerous to fall in love with a phantom, m'dear.

For all you know he's a married man who is deeply in love with his wife." There is adventure and romance. A must see movie. 22 of 23 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes

Question: Fictional character Sir Percy Blakeney is better known by what name?
Answer: The Scarlet Pimpernel