Hello there! My name's Harold, the humble host of Leather Oaks, which is both my home and my lifestyle. I'm not sure how many decades ago I discovered the pleasures and comfort of wearing leather, but I can say heartily that the feelings only grow!
Multimedia Harold ? ! ! !
Most of my site does have a rather static appearance. There are few GIFs here and there for folks who have the patience to find them. But with those exceptions, it's strictly been a one shot at a time sort of thing.
My few experiences with brave folk wanting to make movies about me (see below) began to engender a response similar to that which started this web site: I can do that! I can do Better than that!
So, I bought a SONY Handycam and started seeking things to point it at. Visitors to my Railroading section will find the first video lens subjects.
Still there were all these unfulfilled ideas for really great videos: Really weird things like talking statues, volleys of boots falling on an unsuspecting rubberman, perhaps a rubber-encased railfan waving at model trains. It seemed that maybe sometimes there would still be need for help! But a YouTube foothold has been established, and more weird ideas tastefully executed may be expected soon! Check out the Leather Harold Channel, if you've not done so before!
The Media are Looking! ! !
Hey Buddy, don't look now, but the Media are watching! It's true, and I've got the links to prove it!
There may still be one or two folks out there who don't spend time that SHOULD be productive Googling their wildest thoughts. Obviously, some folks in the Press actually get PAID for similar activities. Have you ever thought about who my "Target Audience" might be? Well, it wasn't actually Television Programs. No, indeed. I've not had a set connected to Cable or Antenna since 1978! But to date, there have been three TV shows to feature either me or Leather Oaks, the Web Site! The first was a WebCam TV interview with Martin Sargent way back in 2003! Martin was hosting a show called "Unscrewed" on the cable-only network, TechTV. I remember getting this e-mail from a stranger asking if I wanted to be on TV. And, oh by the way, do you have a Web Cam? And you do know how to operate Net Meeting, don't you?
It was really pretty dreadful in a fascinating way. They showed shots from my Web Site while Martin asked me questions I'd never thought of answering a stranger. There's actually a videotape somewhere. Here's a link to the Episode Description from their web site.
Now this is really Bizarre!
Yes, there is a magazine by the same name, published in London. And, you guessed it, my next touch with fame was when I received a note asking if an editor of the Magazine could phone me for an extended interview. And, "Oh yes, would you send us high-resolution copies of a dozen photos featured on your site? Here are their file names!"
Well, I looked up bizarre in my unabridged dictionary, and discovering that there were some ways in which that might describe me, took them up on their offer!
There was a four page article published, which they kindly gave me permission include on my site.
But wait, there's more! Their audience fairly screamed for further words from Leather Oaks, and I obliged. Eventually, there were around ten columns published under the name, "Harold's Bulge". I'll include those that I could locate.
Well, time marches on, and even Web history seems to repeat itself. Sometime a couple of Summers ago, I got an e-mail from Martin Sargent! Remember him? This time, he's starting a new program on a new network called Revision 3, and he'd like to come to Biloxi to interview me.
"Why, of course, Martin," I replied, thinking I had to do better in person than through Net Meeting. The appointed day came, and Martin showed up, accompanied by a cameraman and a producer. We spent about two hours exploring every closet and cranny of Leather Oaks, the Rural Location. The week after Hallowe'en, Martin sent me a link to the completed fourteen-minute show.
Even by the time Martin had gotten in touch with me, the last retrospective column in Bizarre Magazine was being published. (I never knew when they would acutally hit the newsstands!) But, the magazine did make it to Sweden. I got this early morning phone call from a Magnus Samuelsson with Channel Five in Stockholm. They wanted to interview me for a TV show I was told would be called the "One hundred most extraordinary bearded men in America"!
Well, I wasn't sure that I was in that high a standing among bearded men, but if they wanted to come see me, that would be okay. I was told to expect them sometime in early December, 2007. This sounded good, since I'd be less than a month from retirement if the stodgy Establishment folks found cause for concern.
Well sure enough one evening in December two completely delightful young men showed up, accompanied by one or two camermen and a producer. The production people just swarmed all over my house, while Fredrik Wikingsson and Filip Hammar very friendlily asked rather personal questions. I surprised myself by answering most of them intelligently! And as my closest brush with fame, I got to swim with a man (Filip) who has swum the English Channel! The program is actually called 100 Höjdare in Swedish, and my segment began the Sixth season of the series. There are two versions on YouTube: The one with English subtitles is my favorite!
JockUps!
If you're looking for my JockUps Site, Please click the Grey Pouch to the Right!
