The Promotion of the Admiral, and Other Sea Comedies

Set against the neon and squalor of San Francisco's Barbary Coast, this is the story of Shanghai Smith: a rough, shrewd boarding-house keeper who has nursed a grudge for fifteen years. The object of his vengeance is Admiral Richard Dunn, the man who once thrashed Smith in a fight and humiliated him before witnesses. When Smith learns the admiral is arriving in port, he sees his chance. The plan is simple: shanghai the admiral onto theCalifornia, a notoriously brutal ship crewed by men who answer to no one. What follows is a comic collision of worlds: naval dignity meets Barbary Coast cunning, while mistaken identities and desperate schemes pile one upon another. The admiral, to his credit, proves more resourceful than Smith anticipated. The humor crackles through every reversal, every failed ruse, every moment where the proud officer must navigate a world where men are shanghaied for money and respect is measured in fists. It's a joyful, anarchic tale of wounded pride, elaborate revenge, and the unexpected resilience of a British admiral in the roughest corner of America.