A reader: “Isn’t Mosley the one parodied by Wodehouse and decked or
blackmailed or whatever by Gussie Fink-Nottle?”
I don’t recall that, though I am not as well-versed in Wodehouseiana as I
should like to be. I wouldn’t be surprised, though. Wodehouse is widely
supposed to have been a naif in matters political: yet when the topic comes
up in his stories, he is usually very much to the point–subtle, funny, and
true. Recall Jeeves advising Bertie Wooster that Nietzsche is
“fundamentally unsound.”
Some years ago I read a biography of Sir Oswald. The only thing I remember
is that he was a terrific womaniser. His pickup technique at a party was to
fix his stare on a woman and just keep staring until she fell into his
arms–or, I suppose, told him to keep his friggin’ eyes to himself. Those
eyes had considerable power, though, and those long, intense, exophthalmic
stares netted him many a society beauty. After reading about this, I tried
it once or twice (being single at the time), with sensational lack of
success.