[The butler] was certainly a well-preserved antiquity, with an air of serene yet somehow guarded responsibility; in different clothes he might have looked a cabinet minister, in contradistinction to those cabinet ministers who, even in their own clothes, look like butlers.
Random Harvest (1941), James Hilton
I frequently refer to Random Harvest as my favorite work of fiction; fortunately, Australia’s Project Gutenberg helpfully provides the full text.
James Hilton wrote several books, some of which were made into movies; his novel Lost Horizon originated the term Shangri-la. The movie versions of both Lost Horizon and Random Harvest star Ronald Colman, a fine British actor who made a smooth transition from silent films to talkies with his lovely, Toucan Sam-inspiring voice.
Don’t view Random Harvest without having read the novel first, as the film spoils the plot twist badly.
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