Oofy Prosser
| Oofy Prosser | |
|---|---|
| Drones Club character | |
| First appearance | "The Knightly Quest of Mervyn" (1931) |
| Last appearance | Ice in the Bedroom (1961) |
| Created by | P. G. Wodehouse |
| Portrayed by | Richard Dixon |
| In-universe information | |
| Full name | Alexander Charles Prosser |
| Nickname | Oofy |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | British |
Alexander Charles "Oofy" Prosser is a recurring fictional character from the stories of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being the millionaire member of the Drones Club. He is also a friend of Jeeves's master Bertie Wooster. The most wealthy and envied member of the Club, he has the nickname "Oofy", which is British slang for "wealthy" or "made of money".[1]
Life and character
Often described as the Drones Club millionaire,[2] Oofy Prosser is the richest member of the club. Oofy and the second richest club member, Monty Bodkin, are apparently significantly wealthier than any other members, since it is stated in the novel Pearls, Girls and Monty Bodkin that Oofy Prosser and Monty Bodkin are "the only two really moneyed members of the Drones Club".[3]
Because Oofy is both constantly being asked for £5 or £10 and a miser for loans, "a man in whose wallet moths nest and raise large families", he is considered ugly on both the inside and the outside – the pimples on his face being quite famous.
Bertie compares him with Reginald "Kipper" Herring in Jeeves in the Offing; "Kipper" (with his cauliflower ear) would have been an unsafe entrant to have backed in a beauty contest, even if the only other competitors had been Boris Karloff, King Kong and Oofy Prosser ....
However, Oofy can be a big spender (serving strawberries in winter, at a cost of around a pound sterling each), or a fierce gambler (in a casino, or on bets).
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Appearances
Oofy is featured in:
- Mulliner Nights (1933)
- "The Knightly Quest of Mervyn" (1931) – Mr Mulliner, rewrite of Drone Freddie Widgeon story "Quest"
- Eggs, Beans and Crumpets (1940)
- "All's Well with Bingo" (1937) – Drone Bingo Little
- "Sonny Boy" (1939) – Drone Bingo Little
- Uncle Fred in the Springtime (1939) – Uncle Fred and Blandings novel, action started by Pongo, Horace, and Oofy at the club
- A Few Quick Ones (1959)
- "The Word in Season" (1940) – Drone Bingo Little
- "Oofy, Freddie and the Beef Trust" (1949) – Drone Freddie Widgeon with Oofy Prosser
- "Leave it to Algy" (1954) – Drone Bingo Little with Oofy Prosser
- "The Fat of the Land" (1958) – Drone Freddie Widgeon
- Nothing Serious (1950)
- "The Shadow Passes" (1950) – Drone Bingo Little
- Ice in the Bedroom (1961) – novel about Drone Freddie Widgeon with Oofy Prosser
Oofy is mentioned in:
- Young Men in Spats (1936)
- "The Luck of the Stiffhams" (1933) – Drone Stiffy Stiffham
- Eggs, Beans and Crumpets (1940)
- "Bingo and the Peke Crisis" (1937) – Drone Bingo Little
- The Code of the Woosters (1938) – Jeeves (ch. 4)
- A Few Quick Ones (1959)
- "Jeeves Makes an Omelette" (1958) – Jeeves
- Jeeves in the Offing (1960) – Jeeves (ch. 3)
- Galahad at Blandings (1964) – Blandings
- Plum Pie (1966)
- "Jeeves and the Greasy Bird" (1965) – Jeeves
- "Stylish Stouts" (1965) – Drone Bingo Little, also recycled as "The Great Fat Uncle Contest"
- Pearls, Girls and Monty Bodkin (1972) – Drone Monty Bodkin
- Aunts Aren't Gentlemen (1974) – Jeeves (ch. 16)
Adaptations
Oofy Prosser was featured in 8 episodes (out of 23) of the 1990–1993 British TV series Jeeves and Wooster (in seasons 1–2 and 4, aired 1990–1991 and 1993 in the UK), played by Richard Dixon.
See also
References
- Sources consulted
- Reggie (2007-03-16). "Wodehouse Who's Who: Oofy Prosser". Blandings, a Companion to the Works of P. G. Wodehouse. Archived from the original on 2007-07-22.
- Endnotes
- ^ "Prosser" was also late 19th century British slang, meaning a "beggar", one who cadges loans, and thus his surname puns on standard English beggar and beggar, slang for a "bloke" or "chap"; the entire name thus meaning "wealthy bloke".
"oofy". CollinsDictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition. Retrieved October 21, 2012.
oof, n, Slang: money (C19: from Yiddish ooftisch, from German auf dem Tische on the table (referring to gambling stakes))
– [Adjective "oofy" being slang for "wealthy" or "loaded", literally "monied" or "made of money".] - ^ For example, Oofy is called "the Drones Club millionaire" in "Leave it to Algy", and "the club millionaire" in "The Fat of the Land" and Aunts Aren't Gentleman, chapter 16.
- ^ Wodehouse, P. G. (1974) [1972]. "Chapter 3". Pearls, Girls and Monty Bodkin (Reprinted ed.). London: Penguin Books. p. 30. ISBN 9780140038354.
External links
- Hutchinson, Kyle (2006-05-11). "Wodehouse Characters: Oofy Prosser". The P. G. Wodehouse Story Index [database].