NEWS FLASH...
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Wouldn't you agree that Rags to Riches stories inspire and motivate us?.
You only have to think of Ophrah Winfrey and Bill Gates to name a few who have in recent times achieved their "American Dream"
By creating role models, who with hardwork, courage and detemination overcome the odds and become rich and famous , you can believe that somewhere in the universe opportunities exist waiting for takers to achieve their ultimate dreams. .
My most impressionable rags to riches story comes from the 1954 Gregory Peck movie called The Million Pound Note based on the short story "The £1,000,000 Bank-Note" by Mark Twain.
Two rich brothers, Oliver and Roderick Montpelier, wage a bet with each other whereby they get their bank to issue a million pound note . Oliver says that the mere possession of this symbol of wealth will enable anyone to have anything he wants, without having to cash the note, whilst Roderick maintains that to not cash the note will render it useless. Bear in mind this is London at the turn of the 20th Century where social status and snobbery is how society functions..
Along comes Henry Adams, a penniless sailor from America who is stranded in London with no money to return home . The brothers give him an envelope with a sum of money to be opened later. Starving, and freezing in the dead of winter Henry thinks that the envelope will likely contain sufficient money to cover a meal at a nice warm restaurant. Scruffily dressed he enters a restaurant and is warily eyed by the Restauranteur and his wife and banished to a back table where he eats his hearty meal.
When Henry gets the bill, he opens the envelope, given by the brothers Montpelier and to his utter surprise there is a clean crisp million pound note which he duly presents to the propreitor for his dinner. On confirmation that the note is genuine, and with a hint that this scruffy man is in all liklihood an eccentric millonnaire from Amererica, Henry's world changes. He is treated like royalty and viewed as a man of enormous means, given credit, doors and power are suddenly wide open to this simple impoverished sailor. And still he holds onto the intact million pound note, without having to cash it. At one stage the banknote is whipped out of his hand by a gust of wind and a battle ensues between Henry and the wind, to catch the banknote. Fortunatly the sailor prevails and holds tightly onto his million pound banknote.
Newspapers write articles about the American with the million pound notbanknote. Henry receives invitations to meet local society circles and during one of these events he meets Portia Lansdowne, who is the niece of the Duchess of Cromarty. While hobnobbing with societies elite he meets many characters, including an American investor Lloyd Hastings who is looking for capital for an investment in a gold mine. Hastings pursuades Henry to allow him to use, by now famous name in exchange for some gold stock. Very quickly the stock rises with Henry discovering that he has has in fact just gained sixteen thousand pounds from the stock that was bought in his name. Another character who crosses his path is the Duke of Frognal who has a bone to pick with our hero Henry. The wily Duke plots to have the banknote stolen and then spreads rumors that the note no longer exists. . Creditors descend on Henry while his new friends turn their backs on him and to be sure they regard him as an imposter. He promises to pay all his bills from the sale of his stock, but as you can imagine the rumors have caused the shares to become worthless. But honesty prevails and the Duke returns the banknote to Henry just as Portia rushes to his side telling him she loves him rich or poor. The shares stabalise with Henry earning a fortune selling his gold stock. Henry and Portia finally return the intact million pound banknote to the Montpeliers and our once penniless sailor drives off into the sunset with his lovely Portia .
May you all be blessed with health and prosperity for 2010
Elaine
