The Complete Pat Hobby Stories: 17 short stories about a hack screenwriter in Hollywood (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Hollywood Studio Satire of a Washed-Up ScreenwriterBy F. Scott Fitzgerald
Length5h 50m
About this audiobook
Collected here, the seventeen Pat Hobby stories form Fitzgerald's mordant late-career anatomy of Hollywood, seen through the bleary eyes of a washed-up screenwriter clinging to the margins of the studio system. Written with comic precision and an undertow of melancholy, the stories transform hackwork, drunken improvisation, and professional humiliation into a sharp satire of American cultural production. Their episodic structure and clipped magazine style reflect both the demands of popular publication and the fragmented realities of Depression-era film work. F. Scott Fitzgerald, already famous for The Great Gatsby and his chronicles of the Jazz Age, wrote these stories near the end of his life while struggling financially and personally in California. His own experiences as a contract writer in Hollywood—where literary prestige often counted for less than speed, adaptability, and obedience—clearly inform Pat Hobby's failures. Yet Fitzgerald's self-knowledge gives the portrait unusual poignancy: Hobby is ridiculous, but also a distorted mirror of artistic dispossession. This collection is recommended for readers interested in Fitzgerald beyond his canonical novels, as well as for students of Hollywood history, modernist satire, and authorship under commercial pressure. It is funny, bitter, and unexpectedly humane.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.8 (2.9K)
Includes Goodreads, LibraryThing, Amazon, StoryGraph
GenreGeneral Fiction, Humor
Length5 hrs 50 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 20, 2013
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Complete Pat Hobby Stories: 17 short stories about a hack screenwriter in Hollywood (Annotated)
14The Homes of the Stars.
2Introduction
15Pat Hobby Does His Bit.
3Author Biography
16Pat Hobby’s Preview.
4Historical Context
17No Harm Trying.
5Synopsis (Selection)
18A Patriotic Short.
Show all chaptersShow less
6The Pat Hobby Stories.
19On the Trail of Pat Hobby.
7Pat Hobby’s Christmas Wish.
20Fun in an Artist’s Studio.
8A Man in the Way.
21Two Old-Timers.
9“Boil Some Water—Lots of It”.
22Mightier Than the Sword.
10Teamed with Genius.
23Pat Hobby’s College Days.
11Pat Hobby and Orson Welles.
24Analysis
12Pat Hobby’s Secret.
25Reflection
13Pat Hobby, Putative Father.
26Memorable Quotes
The Greatest Works of F. Scott Fitzgerald - 45 Titles in One EditionF. Scott Fitzgerald52h 38m4.4 (124)$1.99 · $0.00
The Greatest Tales of F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott Fitzgerald13h 51m$1.99 · $0.00
THE VEGETABLE, OR FROM PRESIDENT TO POSTMANF. Scott Fitzgerald4h 54m3.5 (171)$1.99 · $0.00
BABYLON REVISITED & OTHER TALESF. Scott Fitzgerald12h 5m4.1 (7K)$2.99 · $0.00
THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTONF. Scott Fitzgerald2h 46m3.7 (88K)$1.99 · $0.00
THE JAZZ AGE COLLECTION - The Great Gatsby & Other TalesF. Scott Fitzgerald34h 8m$2.99 · $0.00
The Beautiful and Damned & The Great GatsbyF. Scott Fitzgerald20h 30m4.1 (2.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise (Musaicum Classics Series)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 25m4.3 (2.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Beautiful & DamnedF. Scott Fitzgerald16h 24m3.9 (153K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Complete WorksF. Scott Fitzgerald167h 5m4.5 (153)$1.99 · $0.00
The Pat Hobby Series (All 17 Titles in One Volume)F. Scott Fitzgerald5h 48m3.9 (2.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
ABSOLUTIONF. Scott Fitzgerald2h 16m3.2 (179)$1.99 · $0.00
FITZGERALD: The Spire and the Gargoyle & Other TalesF. Scott Fitzgerald3h 1m$1.99 · $0.00
The Non-Fiction Writings of F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott Fitzgerald12h 46m$1.99 · $0.00
The Greatest Tales of F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott Fitzgerald7h 57m4.3 (19)$1.99 · $0.00
The Posthumous Stories of Fitzgerald: 13 Stories in One EditionF. Scott Fitzgerald6h 5m$1.99 · $0.00
Zärtlich ist die NachtF. Scott Fitzgerald16h 40m4.0 (426.3K)$1 · $0.00
TALES OF THE JAZZ AGEF. Scott Fitzgerald11h 38m3.9 (17.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
THIS SIDE OF PARADISEF. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m3.8 (92.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
THE GREAT GATSBYF. Scott Fitzgerald7h 12m4.0 (6.7M)$2.99 · $0.00
WhistlerAnn Patchett10h 45m4.6 (4.6K)$29 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
Remarkably Bright CreaturesShelby Van Pelt11h 17m4.4 (1.7M)$29 · $0.00
White HotIlona Andrews13h 18m4.5 (136.9K)$5 · $0.00
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m4.6 (773)$33 · $0.00
Cast in BloodMichelle Sagara16h 35m4.6 (607)$33 · $0.00
The Captain Blood Trilogy (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini29h 20m4.6 (1K)$3 · $0.00
Ship of the Line (Annotated)Cecil Louis Troughton Smith11h 13m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The George Orwell CollectionGeorge Orwell24h 46m4.5 (14.4K)$12 · $0.00
ShivajiRanjit Desai25h 13m4.6 (3.1K)$24 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 38m4.5 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
When God Calls the HeartBrian Bird, Michelle Cox3h 24m4.6 (439)$10 · $0.00
Five Little IndiansMichelle Good10h 34m4.5 (64.5K)$29 · $0.00
Lolth's WarriorR. A. Salvatore13h 20m4.6 (2.4K)$33 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m4.5 (359.1K)$33 · $0.00
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du BoisHonoree Fanonne Jeffers29h 49m4.5 (58K)$8 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett11h 23m4.5 (189.9K)$29 · $0.00
Glen AffricKarine Giebel22h 51m4.5 (3.2K)$46 · $0.00
Lost In TranslationAudrey Davis9h 15m4.4 (235)Free
1984 & Animal Farm (Annotated)George Orwell15h 54m4.5 (220.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
Kingsblood Royal (Annotated)Sinclair Lewis14h 42m4.6 (264)$2 · $0.00
This Is Going to HurtAdam Kay5h 47m4.4 (444.7K)$24 · $0.00
You Will Get Through This NightDaniel Howell6h 56m4.4 (11.8K)$24 · $0.00
Northanger Abbey (Annotated)Jane Austen10h 7m4.5 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
My Dear HamiltonStephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie23h 7m4.4 (63.6K)$46 · $0.00
THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS & SCREWTAPE PROPOSES A TOAST (Annotated)C. S. Lewis5h 6m4.4 (471K)$2 · $0.00
BufferingHannah Hart5h 55m4.4 (12.4K)$24 · $0.00
The Office BFFsJenna Fischer, Angela Kinsey8h 26m4.3 (45.4K)$26 · $0.00
The Collected Stories of Dorothy ParkerDorothy Parker8h 36m4.3 (13.6K)$1 · $0.00
LambChristopher Moore15h 22m4.3 (211.3K)$33 · $0.00
The Importance of Being Earnest (World's Classics Series)Oscar Wilde4h 10m4.3 (467.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
#IMomSoHardKristin Hensley, Jen Smedley7h 19m4.3 (7.3K)$24 · $0.00
Mixed PlateJo Koy8h 18m4.3 (7.1K)$26 · $0.00
Over the TopJonathan Van Ness5h 50m4.3 (87.3K)$24 · $0.00
It Never EndsTom Scharpling8h 53m4.4 (2.3K)$20 · $0.00
More Tales of the CityArmistead Maupin8h 23m4.3 (22.6K)$26 · $0.00
The Complete Provincial Lady Series - All 5 Novels in One Edition (Illustrated Edition)E. M. Delafield26h 33m4.3 (2.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
Joyful Recollections of TraumaPaul Scheer6h 38m4.3 (8.2K)$7 · $0.00
You may also like
Looking Back On The Spanish WarGeorge Orwell48m4.0 (536)$2 · $0.00
The Collected Works of George OrwellGeorge Orwell115h 35m4.5 (286)$2 · $0.00
The Pat Hobby Series (All 17 Titles in One Volume)F. Scott Fitzgerald5h 48m3.9 (2.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
In a Free StateV. S. Naipaul9h 3m3.7 (6K)$20
HUNGER (World's Classics Series)Knut Hamsun8h 18m4.1 (81.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
Notes from Underground & The House of the DeadFyodor Dostoyevsky18h 34m4.3 (3.4K)$2.99 · $0.00
An Unpleasant Predicament: A Nasty Story (Annotated)Fyodor Dostoyevsky3h 56m3.7 (6.6K)$2 · $0.00
FactotumCharles Bukowski5h 9m4.1 (88.3K)$24 · $0.00
AN UNPLEASANT PREDICAMENTFyodor Dostoyevsky3h 56m3.7 (6.7K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Enormous Room (Annotated)E. E. Cummings12h 4m4.0 (7.4K)$2 · $0.00
An Unpleasant Predicament: A Nasty Story (Unabridged) (Annotated)Fyodor Dostoyevsky4h 4m3.7 (6.6K)$2 · $0.00
Eminent VictoriansGiles Lytton Strachey11h 27m3.9 (5.4K)$2 · $0.00
Boule De SuifGuy De Maupassant1h 44m4.0 (16.6K)$15 · $0.00
AN UNPLEASANT PREDICAMENTFyodor Dostoyevsky3h 58m3.9 (7.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
No Way Out (Annotated)U. G. Krishnamurti9h 28m4.4 (329)$2 · $0.00
Elmer GantrySinclair Lewis19h 20m4.0 (28.2K)$1 · $0.00
Ball of Fat (Boule de Suif) - Unabridged English EditionGuy de Maupassant2h 59m3.9 (15.6K)$1 · $0.00
Pygmalion (Complete Illustrated Edition) (Annotated)George Bernard Shaw10h 56m4.2 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
BOULE DE SUIF & OTHER TALESGuy de Maupassant10h 50m4.0 (13.9K)$1.99 · $0.00
Coming Up for AirGeorge Orwell8h 29m4.0 (32.8K)$0.60 · $0.00