You know when sometimes you have two friends from competely different circles, and they just don't get on? Two people I greatly admire are H. Rider Haggard, the author of 'lost world romances' such as Allan Quatermain, and Charles Chaplin, the silent film comedian (etc.). While looking up something else in Haggard's diaries, I re-discovered this entry from 12 September 1921:

"The Press of England seems literally to have gone mad over the cinema star, Charlie Chaplin, and so have other people. Thus the Mayor of Southampton received him publicly on his arrival from America. Hideous pictures are published too of this very undistinguished-looking person, surrounded by crowds with folly stamped on every face. It really is extraordinary and as the Morning Post points out a great testimony of the power of the Publicity Agent who is working up all this excitement underneath."

I think he underestimated just how much people genuinely loved Chaplin, especially as he was coming back home after years in America. Sir Haggard was fairly elderly at this time, but there might have been a period earlier in his life when he wouldn't have minded a similar public reaction, but certainly not as a 'cinema star'. He evidently saw his prolific output of literature as a few steps above the art of the screen, though later his own adventure novels would go through a stage of being considered 'pulpy' - just about the same time that Chaplin's films were being branded intellectual (by some). Haggard's books would eventually re-emerge as classics too.

I hoped to see some mention of Rider Haggard in Chaplin's autobiography, but the only thread-thin connection I'm aware of is a photo of Charlie seated next to actress Alice Delysia, who played Ayesha in a 1916 version of Haggard's 'She'. Haggard was not beyond enjoying filmed versions of his own work, but was plagued by those who sought to adapt them illegally. Of the 1916 version Haggard wrote (5 Jun 1916) "The She film is going very well, nearly two million people having paid to see it already."

Here's a link to a related entry.

If you're a regular visitor you'll have noticed more site troubles. I was so disappointed with Easily's customer service last week that I haven't even complained this time, I've just signed up to a new webspace supplier and am moving everything over. There may be some slight disruption (still trying to sort out what to do with my email), but it has gone pretty smoothly so far. Eventually I will be moving all Rainbow Orchid stuff over as well, even though that already exists on a different account - which is fine, just a bit... well, cheap.

Episode two of The Rainbow Orchid now has its French translation available. Click on the little French flag in the control panel to read it (or click here to go directly to the new translation). Once again, my sincere thanks to the Forum Ligne Claire for their wonderful work.

From PaulHD...

What were you doing 10 years ago?

I was working weekends as a porter at a mushroom farm, and trying to move out of a rented house I shared with an old friend, but we'd gone in different directions and had become, well, incompatible, I suppose. I was rehearsing to be in my first Shakespeare play, as Florizel in The Winter's Tale. I was drawing a short comic strip for Stephen Prestwood's Dark Zone. I was in a band called Jupiter Liar, playing bass, and I was just about to go off for a week to see Elyssa who was working in France.

What were you doing 5 years ago?

My brother and I had written an interactive Food Safety training course and it had just been bought up by a health and safety company. We were made directors of its new software department and were developing new products. We had a salary and our own office. I had a go at a 24-hour comic (which you can see here) and raised over £700 for charity in the process. I'd just started yoga, and also registered rainboworchid.co.uk as a domain name. Just coming up was the next London Chaplin Festival where I met some familiar faces (Dominique) and some new faces (Linda).

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Elyssa and I had sold our house but our own new purchase had fallen through, so we were living with Ellie's mother and her husband in Lingfield. I was very busy with quite a few jobs, all with deadlines at the end of April. I'd just decided to take up playing the theremin, and I was teaching myself php and MySQL by coding my own blogging system and members' area for the Rainbow Orchid site.

5 Snacks you enjoy.

I like crunchy savoury (perhaps even cheesy) things. I'm not sure I could be specific about five. Chocolate is good (is that a snack?).

5 Songs (you think) you know by heart

'Trail of the Lonesome Pine' (Laurel & Hardy version), 'Sunshine of Your Love' (Cream), 'War Pigs' (Black Sabbath), 'Fly Me to the Moon' (Sarah Vaughan version), 'Dido's Lament' (Henry Purcell).

5 Things you would do with a lot of money

Make sure family and friends were sorted. Publish Rainbow Orchid as a full colour album. Do something good (either to help the environment or international poverty - hopefully both). Buy a Rickenbacker bass guitar. Collect some very nice Second Afghan War items and open a small museum.

5 Things you would never wear

Anything trendy or deemed cool by magazines and columnists. Anything with ostentatious labelling. High heels. Baseball cap (or most hats, except a bobble). Sunglasses for any other reason than the sun is blinding me.

5 Things you should never have worn

A grass skirt and coconuts. Those tight white shorts while trampolining, on a full bladder, when I was 5. A succession of flowery/brightly coloured shirts to fit our band's image. My shoes, yesterday, when a spider was living in them. That Action Man head on the end of my tongue, when I was 9.

5 Things you enjoy doing

Creating comics. Karate. Yoga. Researching the Second Anglo-Afghan War 1878-1880. Playing musical instruments.

5 Bad habits you have

Procrastinating. Not liking the phone. Staying up too late. Never learning to use my little finger on stringed instruments. Taking notice of negative comments and not fully believing the positive ones.

5 people you would like to do this

How about charlesgirledna, Diana Kennedy, Subtle Superhero and Kelvin Green. But I'd be intrigued by anyone's answers from my blog links, so go for it.

Received a response from Boots today, regarding the previous post:

"I have spoken to some of my colleagues regarding this and we believe that if a [sic] item has been copyrighted then a certificate or some kind of paper work would have been given to you to show this. To save any further inconvenience in the future if you take this with you next time you visit the store I'm sure this would sort the problem out. It also might be worth speak [sic] to the store manager to see if you can make them aware of this, as they may be able to make arrangements for you about the copyrighted work."

So as the owner of the copyrighted work, I have to give myself a certificate of authentication to prove that the work is, indeed, mine. I'm going to make a jolly nice certificate, complete with wax seal and ribbon. Not really.

Today I went to Boots to pick up a couple of 10 x 7 prints that Ellie had dropped off on CD last week. While I was in the queue (with my brother), the lady at the front tried to get a family portrait copied. Obviously a studio print, the staff member said she couldn't do any copies as the photo was copyright, and I started talking to my brother about how many people get turned away, disappointed, completely unaware that their family photos actually belong to the photographer or their studio, and that's where they need to order extra (generally expensive) prints from.

When I got to the front of the queue I said I was there to pick up two 10 x 7 prints, under my wife's name. The staff member returned saying "sorry, we could only do one as the other image was copyright." I was trying to remember what the images were as I paid and we left the shop, and halfway home I had to admit - one of the images was a wedding photo by a local photographer. But then I remembered what the other one was, I was experimenting with a blow-up Rainbow Orchid panel, and suddenly wondered if they thought that was the copyrighted image. I opened the envelope, and sure enough, they'd printed the copyrighted wedding photo and refused to print my own artwork.

I returned to the shop, not to complain, not at all annoyed, and said I appreciated them protecting my copyright of the image, and wondering if there was a way I could get my prints done, and prove I was the copyright owner. The senior member of staff I was passed onto was obviously a bit flummoxed, and eventually told me just to tell them the image was my own, but looking slightly doubtful that this was a very satisfactory answer, because I may not be telling the truth - how are they to know? A good point. I've written to Boots to see if they have anything to say on the subject; it's all very amusing, but an interesting predicament too.

Part two to this story here...