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The Wrong Box (novel)
Encyclopedia
The Wrong Box is a black comedy
novel
co-written by Robert Louis Stevenson
and Lloyd Osbourne
, first published in 1889
. The story is about two brothers who are the last two surviving members of a tontine
.
The book is notable for being the first of three novels that Stevenson co-wrote with Osbourne, who was his stepson. The others were The Wrecker
(1892) and The Ebb-Tide
(1894). Osbourne wrote the first draft of the novel late in 1887 (then called The Finsbury Tontine), Stevenson revised it in 1888 (then called A Game of Bluff) and again in 1889 when it was finally called The Wrong Box.
, in a letter to his friend Edmonia Hill (dated September 17, 1889), praised the novel:
was filmed in 1966 starring Michael Caine
. The Robert Louis Stevenson website maintains a complete list of derivative works.
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
co-written by Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
and Lloyd Osbourne
Lloyd Osbourne
Samuel Lloyd Osbourne was an American author and the stepson of Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson with whom he would co-author three books and provide input and ideas on others.-Early life:...
, first published in 1889
1889 in literature
The year 1889 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:*Theodore Roosevelt publishes the first of four volumes of The Winning of the West, with three more by 1896.-New books:*Gabriele D'Annunzio - Il piacere...
. The story is about two brothers who are the last two surviving members of a tontine
Tontine
A tontine is an investment scheme for raising capital, devised in the 17th century and relatively widespread in the 18th and 19th. It combines features of a group annuity and a lottery. Each subscriber pays an agreed sum into the fund, and thereafter receives an annuity. As members die, their...
.
The book is notable for being the first of three novels that Stevenson co-wrote with Osbourne, who was his stepson. The others were The Wrecker
The Wrecker (novel)
The Wrecker is a novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson in collaboration with his stepson Lloyd Osbourne. The story is a 'sprawling, episodic adventure story, a comedy of brash manners and something of a detective mystery'. It revolves around the abandoned wreck of the Flying Scud at Midway Island...
(1892) and The Ebb-Tide
The Ebb-Tide
The Ebb-Tide. A Trio and a Quartette is a short novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson and his stepson Lloyd Osbourne. It was published the same year Stevenson died.-Plot:...
(1894). Osbourne wrote the first draft of the novel late in 1887 (then called The Finsbury Tontine), Stevenson revised it in 1888 (then called A Game of Bluff) and again in 1889 when it was finally called The Wrong Box.
Characters
- Joseph Finsbury
- Morris Finsbury
- John Finsbury
- Julia Hazeltine
- Michael Finsbury
- Gideon Forsyth
- William Dent Pitman
- Edward Hugh Bloomfield
Literary significance and reception
Rudyard KiplingRudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
, in a letter to his friend Edmonia Hill (dated September 17, 1889), praised the novel:
Adaptation
The Wrong BoxThe Wrong Box
The Wrong Box is a British comedy film made by Salamander Film Productions and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It was produced and directed by Bryan Forbes from a screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove, based on the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne.The cast includes a...
was filmed in 1966 starring Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
. The Robert Louis Stevenson website maintains a complete list of derivative works.