# The Jade Necklace explained — Short Fiction

> Chapter companion for Short Fiction by Ring Lardner.

## What happens

The narrator, a secretary/valet to L. N. Bauer of Colossal Films, recounts the studio's scheme to compete with Supreme Pictures by signing the handsome Irish actor Maurice Kavanaugh. After buying the rights to a story called 'Harridan' to spite Supreme, Bauer reworks it into a film titled 'The Jade Necklace,' set in Japan, and convinces the author to let them use his idea without his name. The chapter satirizes the film industry's obsession with looks, publicity, and beating rivals at any cost.

## Themes in this chapter

### Satire of Media and Business

The chapter satirizes the film industry's cynical approach to storytelling, where a story's title is twisted to fit a star, and authors are bought off to suppress their names.

### Celebrity and Artistic Integrity

The focus on Kavanaugh's looks and the studio's willingness to alter a story to showcase him highlights the tension between commercial appeal and artistic integrity.

## Character check-ins

### Mr. Grant

Narrator of the chapter, a secretary/valet to L. N. Bauer at Colossal Films.

### Mr. Edwards

The author of 'Harridan' who is persuaded to sell his story and allow his name to be removed from the film adaptation.

### Mr. Lester

Mentioned as a friend of Bauer who recommends stories for stars.

## Key lines

> No, I’m not with the Griffin people anymore. I’m in the picture business⁠—Colossal Films Incorporated. Class, hey?

The narrator announces his new job at a film studio, emphasizing its prestige.

_Opening line establishes the narrator's position and the setting._

> Well, L. N. cabled to a friend of his in Dublin, a fella in show business there, and asked him to recommend who was the handsomest actor in Ireland and the fella cabled back that there was a young actor named Maurice Kavanaugh who was the handsomest actor in Ireland or anywhere else.

Bauer contacts a friend in Dublin to find the most handsome actor in Ireland, leading to the discovery of Maurice Kavanaugh.

_Highlights the studio's priority on physical appearance over acting ability._

> “We’ve changed your story a little,” says L. N. , “but we’re basing it on your idea; that is, I got the idea for the picture we’re making from the title of your story. One of the meanings of ‘Harridan’ is ‘vixen’ or ‘jade.’ Well, I couldn’t figure out anything along the lines of a vixen, but jade was a setup. Everybody knows what jade is. So I gave Driscoll and Benham a rough outline of what I had in mind and the picture’s about half done already. The gang sails the day after tomorrow to shoot the balance of it⁠—in Japan.”

Bauer explains how he took the title 'Harridan' and turned it into a completely different story about jade, set in Japan, without regard for the original plot.

_Illustrates the studio's cavalier attitude toward source material._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_62_se/chapters/the-jade-necklace
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_62_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_62_se/chapters