Aug 13 Thursday

Sold Lawrence Mss [Manuscript] for £1000 (£884 clear).
Mad day at Denham Studios. Korda sent car. Watched Rembrandt1 being filmed: only Laughton & Elsa Lanchester on set. Same passage 8 times or so. Laughton discussed Claudius. Korda promised money, sen[RG] wanted to send car for Laura, wanted to give Jenny a part. Saw Vincent the decor job[RG] chap who wanted to be an artist again. So did Laughton. Mad restaurant meal filled with costumes of Elizabethan film, Swedish police & Russian refugees, English waiters etc. Vivian Leigh supplying dirty rhymes.
×××× [indecipherable] Evening, after tea at Barbillion's, spent with Harry Kemp and Sterling the osteopath (at Cafe Royale) just going back to Spain with Friends' Ambulance2 .

Editorial Notes

1a film directed by Alexander Korda. eds (RPG 248).
2Friend's Ambulance Unit attached to the 16th French Infantry Division eds.

Hands Referenced

    • Annotation: ink correction
    • Character: regular
    • Ink: black

People Mentioned

  • Laura

    Riding, Laura
    (1901-91) American poet. Laura Riding (née Reichenthal; then Laura Gottschalk).

  • T.E.

    Lawrence, T. E.
    'Lawrence of Arabia.' Met Robert in Oxford in the early twenties. Made Robert his biographer and had him write "Lawrence and the Arabs." WG

  • Korda

    Korda, Alexander
    Director of the film version of I Claudius.

  • Laughton

    Laughton, Charles
    Actor. Was to play 'Claudius' in the film version of R.G.'s book, "I, Claudius".

  • Elsa Lanchester

    Lanchester, Elsa
    Actress. Was co-star with Charles Laughton in Korda's film "Rembrandt". R.G. watched them rehearse a scene on the set. Diary entry: August 13, 1936. eds

  • Jenny

    Nicholson, Jenny
    Jenny Nicholson: oldest daughter of Robert by Nancy Nicholson.

  • Vincent

    Korda, Vincent
    Alexander Korda's brother KG

  • Vivian Leigh

    Leigh, Vivian
    Actress. R.G. had lunch with in London. Diary entry: August 13, 1936.

  • Harry Kemp

    Kemp, Harry
    Poet. Met Graves and Riding through James Reeves in August 1936, just after their arrival in England. In their previous correspondence, Riding had been intrigued by his falling-out with Communism. He became associated with their circle, collaborating on various projects. (RPG 248-49)

  • Sterling

    Sterling
    An osteopath who was leaving for Spain with the Friend's Ambulance when R.G. met him in August 1936.

Bibliography

    • Title: Claudius [the film: based on I, Claudius, directed by Alexander Korda, starring Charles Laughton. It was never completed.]