''Alf's Button'' is a 1920

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

comic novel A comic novel is a novel-length work of humorous fiction. Many well-known authors have written comic novels, including P. G. Wodehouse, Henry Fielding, Mark Twain, and John Kennedy Toole. Comic novels are often defined by the author's literary ...

written by

William Aubrey Darlington William Aubrey Cecil Darlington or W.A. Darlington (1890–1979), was a British writer and journalist who worked for many years as the drama critic of the ''Daily Telegraph'' newspaper. Life and career Darlington was primarily a journalist, worki ...

. A

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

comes across a magic

button A button is a fastener that joins two pieces of fabric together by slipping through a loop or by sliding through a buttonhole. In modern clothing and fashion design, buttons are commonly made of plastic but also may be made of metal, wood, ...

which summons a

genie Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources) – are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic mytho ...

to grant his wishes. It drew inspiration from

Thomas Anstey Guthrie Thomas Anstey Guthrie (8 August 1856 – 10 March 1934) was an English author (writing as F. Anstey), most noted for his comic novel ''Vice Versa'' about a boarding-school boy and his father exchanging identities. His reputation was confirmed b ...

's 1900 novel '' The Brass Bottle''.

Adaptations

In 1920 the book was adapted into a silent film '' Alf's Button'' which starred

Leslie Henson Leslie Lincoln Henson (3 August 1891 – 2 December 1957) was an English comedian, actor, producer for films and theatre, and film director. He initially worked in silent films and Edwardian musical comedy and became a popular music hall comed ...

and was directed by

W.P. Kellino William Philip Gislingham (c. 1874 in London, England – 31 December 1957, in London, Middlesex, England) was a British music hall musician and acrobat (part of the Famous Kellinos) and, using the name W. P. Kellino, film director. He founded ...

. The success of the film significantly boosted the book's sales. Darlington adapted his novel for a 1924 play of the same name. In 1930 a sound film adaptation '' Alf's Button'' was released, also directed by Kellino. A third film based on the story ''

Alf's Button Afloat ''Alf's Button Afloat'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen, Jimmy Nervo, Alastair Sim and Peter Gawthorne. In the film, the Crazy Gang go to sea, where one of them discovers a butto ...

'' was released in 1938 directed by

Marcel Varnel Marcel Varnel (16 October 1892 – 13 July 1947) was French film director, notably however for his career in the United States and England as a director of plays and films Biography He was born Marcel Hyacinthe le Bozec in Paris, France. Va ...

and starring

Bud Flanagan Bud Flanagan, (born Chaim Reuben Weintrop, 14 October 1896 – 20 October 1968) was a British music hall and vaudeville entertainer and comedian, and later a television and film actor. He was best known as a double act with Chesney Allen. Fla ...

and

Chesney Allen William Ernest Chesney Allen (5 April 1894 – 13 November 1982) was a popular English entertainer of the Second World War period. He is best remembered for his double act with Bud Flanagan, Flanagan and Allen. Life and career Allen was bo ...

References

Bibliography

External links

* 1920 British novels British novels adapted into films Novels by William Aubrey Darlington {{1920s-novel-stub