A Young Girl in 1941 with No Waist at All
Encyclopedia
"A Young Girl in 1941 with No Waist at All" is a short story by J. D. Salinger
, published in Mademoiselle
in May 1947. The story has not been published in any anthology. It is of literary interest today largely because the character of Ray is seen as an early version of the character Seymour from Salinger's better known work "A Perfect Day for Bananafish
".
(who coincidentally shares the character's last name) which was adapted into the film Field of Dreams
.
W.P. Kinsella, who had never met Salinger, created a wholly imagined character (aside from his being a recluse) based on the author of The Catcher in the Rye
, a book that had great meaning to him when he was a young man. To get a feel for Salinger, he re-read his body of work.
"I made sure to make him a nice character so that he couldn’t sue me."
Salinger had also used the surname shared by writer and protagonist in The Catcher in the Rye (Holden Caulfield
's friend Richard Kinsella).
Known for his litigiousness, Salinger contacted Kinsella's publisher via his attorneys to express outrage over having been portrayed in Shoeless Joe and intimated he would sue should the character "J.D. Salinger" appear in any other medium, should Shoeless Joe be adapted.
In the novel Shoeless Joe, Ray Kinsella seeks out J. D. Salinger, although in the film this character was renamed Terence Mann as the movie producers were worried over being sued by Salinger. The producers believed that it was not significant to jettison Salinger, as they figured only 15% of the potential audience would know who the author was. Kinsella told Macleans Magazine in a 2010 interview on the death of Salinger that many of the book's readers believe that Salinger is a wholly fictional character.
Kinsella denied that Salinger, as a writer, had any real influence on his own writing.
J. D. Salinger
Jerome David Salinger was an American author, best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, as well as his reclusive nature. His last original published work was in 1965; he gave his last interview in 1980....
, published in Mademoiselle
Mademoiselle (magazine)
Mademoiselle was an influential women's magazine first published in 1935 by Street and Smith and later acquired by Condé Nast Publications....
in May 1947. The story has not been published in any anthology. It is of literary interest today largely because the character of Ray is seen as an early version of the character Seymour from Salinger's better known work "A Perfect Day for Bananafish
A Perfect Day for Bananafish
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, originally published in the January 31, 1948 issue of The New Yorker. It was anthologized in 1949's 55 Short Stories from the New Yorker as well as in Salinger's 1953 collection, Nine Stories...
".
Shoeless Joe/Field of Dreams
The story is also of interest to film buffs. The story's main character, Ray Kinsella, is also the name of the main character in the 1982 book Shoeless Joe by W. P. KinsellaW. P. Kinsella
William Patrick Kinsella, OC, OBC is a Canadian novelist and short story writer who is well-known for his novel Shoeless Joe , which was adapted into the movie Field of Dreams in 1989...
(who coincidentally shares the character's last name) which was adapted into the film Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams is a 1989 American fantasy-drama film directed by Phil Alden Robinson and is from the novel Shoeless Joe by W. P. Kinsella...
.
W.P. Kinsella, who had never met Salinger, created a wholly imagined character (aside from his being a recluse) based on the author of The Catcher in the Rye
The Catcher in the Rye
The Catcher in the Rye is a 1951 novel by J. D. Salinger. Originally published for adults, it has since become popular with adolescent readers for its themes of teenage confusion, angst, alienation, language, and rebellion. It has been translated into almost all of the world's major...
, a book that had great meaning to him when he was a young man. To get a feel for Salinger, he re-read his body of work.
"I made sure to make him a nice character so that he couldn’t sue me."
Salinger had also used the surname shared by writer and protagonist in The Catcher in the Rye (Holden Caulfield
Holden Caulfield
Holden Caulfield is the 16-to-17 years old protagonist of author J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. He is universally recognized for his resistance to growing older and desire to protect childhood innocence...
's friend Richard Kinsella).
Known for his litigiousness, Salinger contacted Kinsella's publisher via his attorneys to express outrage over having been portrayed in Shoeless Joe and intimated he would sue should the character "J.D. Salinger" appear in any other medium, should Shoeless Joe be adapted.
In the novel Shoeless Joe, Ray Kinsella seeks out J. D. Salinger, although in the film this character was renamed Terence Mann as the movie producers were worried over being sued by Salinger. The producers believed that it was not significant to jettison Salinger, as they figured only 15% of the potential audience would know who the author was. Kinsella told Macleans Magazine in a 2010 interview on the death of Salinger that many of the book's readers believe that Salinger is a wholly fictional character.
Kinsella denied that Salinger, as a writer, had any real influence on his own writing.