[Dixielandjazz] Wally Fawkes and the man who wasn't Irving Berlin

[ROBERT R. CALDER]

The story might be well known, of how Winston Churchill had been receiving these despatches from the USA through the early years of the Second World War (before December 1941) with the signature I. Berlin,  and when Mrs. Churchill reported to her husband that Irving Berlin was in London, which he was on account of his considerable contributions to wartime good causes, Churchill confused this with the I. Berlin of the despatches. 

And invited him to lunch
And was thoroughly boggled when he asked this I. Berlin what was his most important work of the past few years and was told "White Christmas"

So was the story retailed much later with much amusement by Isaiah Berlin, on a website dedicated to whom there is a request for information about the original publication of a cartoon image by Trog (aka Wally Fawkes) which is properly admired by readers of said Isaiah Berlin, philosopher and sage and notable outside of jazz for asserting the morally improving character of some music (as played by Adolph Busch ) and the acute observation that some live performances by Toscanini were somewhat "overfried" (not to be confused with 78rpm surface hissssss!).

Perhaps someone can tell IsaiahBerlinians where the Wally aka Trog image of their hero was copied. 

I would guess it was an issue of the journal ENCOUNTER 

There might be a few of us who were Wally and even Wally-and-Humph fans before knowing anything about jazz, since I remember the cartoon strip FLOOK (pictures Wally, words sometimes Lyttelton) from about as early as I remember anything. 

WALLY THE WONDERFUL 

Robert R. Calder