You Know Me Al (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)

At a glance:

Characters Discussed

Jack Keefe, a right-handed White Sox pitcher. In his letters to Al, Jack gives a full account of his adventures; he also reveals himself to be a shameless braggart and chronic self-excuser. With complete lack of reticence, he discusses his foolish episodes with his girlfriends, his troubles with his baseball career, and later his marital misadventures and his in-law troubles. Jack is a powerful pitcher, but his laziness, alibis, stinginess, and egotistical gullibility make him the rather pathetic hero of this satire.

Al Blanchard, Jack Keefe’s correspondent, patronized and used by Jack. Al is the recipient of the letters that elaborate every detail of the pitcher’s life. Apparently, Al never does see through Jack.

Florrie, Jack’s wife and Allen’s sister-in-law. Disgusted with Jack’s stinginess, Florrie leaves him when he is sold to Milwaukee. She rejoins him when she learns she is pregnant. She names the baby after Allen.

Allen, Jack’s brother-in-law, also a pitcher.

Marie, Allen’s wife.

Violet, a girlfriend who abandons Jack when he is sent back to the minor league.

Hazel, another girlfriend, who marries a boxer.

Al, Jack’s son.

Bibliography:

Elder, Donald. Ring Lardner. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1956. The first full-length biography of Lardner, with extensive details about the writing, contents, and publication of Lardner’s Jack Keefe stories. Excellent analysis of Lardner’s use of language.

Evans, Elizabeth. Ring Lardner. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1979. A good, short critical introduction to Lardner’s writings, themes, strengths, and weaknesses. Includes an evaluation of Lardner’s fiction.

Patrick, Walton R. Ring Lardner. Boston: Twayne, 1963. A helpful, brief critical interpretation of Lardner’s literary contributions, with meaningful analysis of the several Jack Keefe stories and novels.

Robinson, Douglas. Ring Lardner and the Other. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. Treats Lardner’s works with critical seriousness. Probes Lardner’s psychological reactions to his upbringing and emphasizes that his status as a minor writer resulted from a conflicted childhood and adulthood. Sees You Know Me Al as a pivotal revelation of Lardner’s interest in characters whose faults inhibit success in sports and in life.

Yardley, Jonathan. Ring: A Biography of Ring Lardner. New York: Random House, 1977. The most complete biographical account of Lardner. Revealing critical analyses and comments on all of Lardner’s works, including You Know Me Al.