Paddy the Next Best Thing (novel)
Paddy the Next Best Thing (also written as Paddy-The-Next-Best-Thing) is a 1908 romantic comedy novel by the British writer Gertrude Page.[1]
.jpg.webp) Early edition | |
| Author | Gertrude Page |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Romance |
| Publisher | Hurst and Blackett |
Publication date | 1908 |
| Media type | |
The heroine of the story is Paddy Adair, the daughter of an impoverished Irish landowner near Carlingford. Her father, General Adair, had hoped she would be a boy, but is delighted by the high-spirited Paddy who dubs herself as "the next best thing" to a boy. Paddy falls in love with another landowner, who had once been involved with her elder sister.
Adaptations
Gayer Mackay and Robert Ord adapted the novel into a successful 1920 West End play of the same title.[2] The cast was:
- General Adair – J. H. Barnes
- Dr Davy Adair – Clive Currie
- Eileen Adair – Betty Faire
- Mary O'Hara – Margaret Nicholls
- Jack O'Hara – Anew McMaster
- Laurence Blake – Ion Swinley
- Doreen Blake – Eithne McChee
- Gwendoline Carew – Winifred Evans
- Lord Sellahy – H. V. Tollemache
- Micky – Hyland T. O'Shea
- Webb – Ethel Callanan
- Mrs Bingley – Christine Jensen
- Mrs Putter – Rose Edouin
- Paddy – Peggy O'Neill.[2]
The play opened at the Savoy Theatre on 5 April 1920, transferred briefly to the Strand Theatre in February 1922, and moved back to the Savoy in March, completing its run of 867 performances on 22 April 1922.[3]
The novel has been made into films on two occasions: a 1923 British silent film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Mae Marsh and a 1933 American sound film directed by Harry Lachman and starring Janet Gaynor[4]
References
- Block p.108
- "London Theatres", The Stage, 8 April 1920, p. 16
- Wearing, p. 18
- Goble p.357
Sources
- Block, Andrew. Key Books of British Authors, 1600-1932. D. Archer, 1933.
- Goble, Alan. The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter, 1999.
- Wearing, J. P. (2014). The London Stage 1920–1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-0-8108-9302-3.