[Ads-l] Anecdote: Lady X Will Be At Home Thursday Between 4 and 6

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

Pete Morris asked me off-list to explore an entertaining anecdote
about George Bernard Shaw. Here is a link to the new Quote
Investigator article.

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2022/10/01/likewise/

Here is the earliest citation I found.

[ref] 1939 September 12, The Morning Post, Walter Winchell On
Broadway, Quote Page 17, Column 3, Camden, New Jersey.
(Newspapers_com) [/ref]

https://www.newspapers.com/clip/110553854/winchellshaw/

[Begin excerpt]
This George Bernard Shaw story is making the rounds, after publication
in British mags.... A rich woman who liked to gather as many
celebrities as possible at her home showered Shaw with invitations for
months without success ... Despite her failure, she persisted, and one
day sent Shaw a card inviting him to tea. It read: “Lady X will be at
home Thursday between 4 and 6” . . . Shaw sent it back with the
comment: “Mr. Bernard Shaw likewise.”
[End excerpt]

The next citation appeared in “Reader's Digest” in October 1939.  See
the QI article for details. This citation acknowledged the Austrian
newspaper “Neues Wiener Tagblatt”. There is a freely accessible
archive of “Neues Wiener Tagblatt”, but I was unable to find the
German version of the anecdote. Others might find it.

https://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno?aid=nwg

Garson

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