The final play James wrote, “Guy Domville,”’was so clunky and melodramatic that when the author went on stage for a bow there were loud boos. Shaw, of course, did better and I think his estate may still be cashing checks for licensing Pygmalion to Lerner and Lowe. James’s desire to write a West End hit was prompted in part by his jealousy of Oscar Wilde’s success. His letters to young men, surprisingly ardent, reveal that James was likely also jealous of Wilde’s friendship with the beautiful Lord Alfred Douglas.
The final play James wrote, “Guy Domville,”’was so clunky and melodramatic that when the author went on stage for a bow there were loud boos. Shaw, of course, did better and I think his estate may still be cashing checks for licensing Pygmalion to Lerner and Lowe. James’s desire to write a West End hit was prompted in part by his jealousy of Oscar Wilde’s success. His letters to young men, surprisingly ardent, reveal that James was likely also jealous of Wilde’s friendship with the beautiful Lord Alfred Douglas.