George Bernard Shaw Quotes
Playwright
Born On
1856-07-26Died On
1950-11-02Birth Place
Portobello, Dublin, IrelandDeath Place
Ayot St Lawrence, EnglandBirth Sign
leoFather
George Carr ShawMother
Lucinda Elizabeth ShawSpouse
Charlotte Payne-TownshendNationality
IrishEducation
Wesley College
Apart from his literary prowess, Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw also gained a lot of prominence for his dry humor and sarcasm. This aspect of his personality was very evident during Shaw's interactions with those who wished to use his literary works to gain commercial success. One such instance was during the meeting between the renowned American movie producer, Sam Goldwyn and George. Sam contacted Shaw to buy the rights for a few of the acclaimed author's plays. The writer put forth an extensive set of rigid terms, which Goldwyn presumed he could haggle about. The Hollywood stalwart tried deterring the playwright from his stance by saying, "Think of millions of people who would get a chance to see your plays who would otherwise never see them. Think of the contribution it would be to art." To this, the master of wit replied, "The trouble is, Mr. Goldwyn, that you think of nothing but Art and I think of nothing but money." However, the attitude of Shaw was completely different when the then struggling Hungarian filmmaker, Gabriel Pascal approached the writer. Pascal expressed his interest in producing the dramatist's plays. When asked how much money the film-maker had for funding the works, Gabriel replied, "Fifteen shillings and six pence - but I owe a pound." His brazenness impressed Shaw to such an extent that the author went ahead and paid the one pound to the film-maker to clear off all debts. Their association resulted in the highly acclaimed 1938 British film, "Pygmalion". They also went on to create magic with subsequent movies such as "Caesar and Cleopatra" and "Major Barbara".
