Ephemera...

On the phone to the BFI library - planning my visit with precision and a firm grasp of what I need from them.

"We have thousands of documents relating to Rank. Much of it rare. Production notes. Ephemera. If you tell us what you want to look at we'll get it for you."
"I don't really know what it is I'm looking for until I find it."
"You don't really know what you're looking for?"
"Not really. Not until I find it. Say I say The Red Shoes?"
"Hold the line."

BFI film soundtrack muzak.

"We have thousands of documents relating to The Red Shoes. Much of it rare. Production notes. Ephemera. If you tell us what you want to look at we'll get it for you."
"I don't really know what it is I'm looking for until I find it."
"Oh."

Pause.

"I'm sure we'll have everything you're after. We have thousands of documents and other items. What sort of thing is it you're after?"

Pause.

"Can I call you back?"

(later I look up ephemera in my unreliable dictionary. It tells me it's a fly. I am obviously close to a nervous breakdown).

Radio's a strange medium. It seemed to go okay last night. But you walk out of the studio feeling rather peculiar, as if nothing's happened, because you said none of the things you planned to say. Such as the stuff about Rank's impressively sizeable nose (unattributed dialogue scribbled in notebook: "My, Uncle Arthur, you've got a right nose for business"). I did mention J Arthur's biggest legacy is an amusing bit of Cockerney rhyming slang. That should enamour me to his descendants as I seek their approval for my flour 'n' film drama.

J Arthur Rank, BFI, Red Shoes, ephemera