BIOGRAPHY
I was 18 months old when ‘Senior’ placed me in the lap of Marilyn Monroe and 39 when Richard Dawkins had me expelled from New College, Oxford. Between these two moments, I have lived a life that most mortals can only dream of.
As a drug policy researcher, I believe I have something important to share about the illegality of narcotic drugs and why it is detrimental. It is not detrimental because the use of narcotic drugs is a good thing, but because the illegal status of narcotics leads to (i) lower marginal costs for all crimes and (ii) greater illegal surpluses seeking illicit investment opportunities. This results in ‘a life-support for evil’ and more misery for everyone. Solve ‘the illegality issue’, or at least ‘the drug illegality issue’, or pereat mundus!
My drug policy texts and opposition against illegalisation went unappreciated in my native Sweden, possibly leading to the loss of my Swedish citizenship. In response, I created a bucket list designed to make me a ‘hard-not-to-listen-to-person’ when all was done. I then wrote a successful coffee table book on art investment for financing and embarked on 15 years of bucket-filling adventures.
Completing most items on my ‘somewhat juvenile’ bucket list has afforded me a life that seems almost impossible today. As I fill my ‘buckets,' I have narrowly escaped violent death on at least a dozen occasions, almost always due to luck rather than intelligence or any heroic qualities.
Rather than recounting the details of my adventures, which often invite scepticism, let me present my buckets (later reduced from twelve to ten), most of which I have filled:
√ 3 years at Oxford
√ B.A. in Philosophy
√ B.A. in Writing
√ English as my written language
√ Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary and Modern Thought memorised
√ Athlete
√ Kiss a princess
√ Surf Pipeline
√ Cross the Sahara
? Shoot a man-eating tiger (sigh)
Ø Visit 200 countries (174)
Ø Act James Bond (no)
I have chronicled several of these ‘bucket fillings’ in the second part/my part of The Tale(s) of Two Knaves, where I have ‘borrowed’ stories from The Drug Problem and The Caspian Connection.
The Tale of Two Knaves is a collection of 50 adventurous short stories by a father-and-son duo (24 by Senior and 26 by Junior) that also serves as a family chronicle featuring intros and outros. Several stories read like treatments and may appeal to producers. The text spans over 111 years and offers a novel format. It is also available without biographical remarks or as freestanding short stories in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Swedish.
The Caspian Connection is an adventure series designed for the screen, where I imagine myself as Odin’s son, stripped of my memory and cast out into the world of ‘mere mortals, ' knowing only that I am ‘different. ' Thus, I do not know what the reader knows—that I will not be allowed back into Valhalla until I have become a force for good—as she follows me, in the guise of Karli Nobel, as I embark on my adventures.
Additionally, I have worked on all the texts, scripts, and rights of my father, Andres Laszlo Sr., a great writer who was never properly introduced to the English-speaking world. Senior’s works—three movies, two scripts, one theatre production, and seven fiction books—have all been translated into English and edited or adapted to the point that they can be presented as new books. Thank you, video.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Svenskt Konstglas(Sellin & Blomqvist, 1991) is a book that celebrates the glory of Swedish art glass from the early to mid-20th This ‘coffee table book’—which gained great popularity and achieved one of the highest prices ever for a book in its genre—aimed to raise awareness among my fellow Swedes that Swedish art glass from 1925 to 1950 was the best in the world, encouraging them to protect our cultural heritage. The book is available second-hand on platforms like eBay and Swedish Tradera.
- Other Art Glass Books:A follow-up, Svenskt Konstglas II, could become a viable project if Swedish art glass were to experience a renaissance. Material for such a book, as well as a book on Flygsfors: Coquille, has been gathered and prepared.
- The Challenge is a children’s book inspired by Andres Laszlo Sr.’s bestseller/blockbuster, My Uncle Jacinto. Senior’s 17,000-word text, set in 1940s Madrid, La Quinta, and focusing on bullfighting, becomes a 75,000-word story in Junior’s hands, set in Cape Town, Mandela Park, and the 2010s, focusing on boxing. It is a book for readers of all ages, available in English (The Challenge), Italian (La Sfida), German (Die Herausforderung), Spanish (El Reto), French (Le Défi), and Swedish (Utmaningen). The story is available either as plain text or with 70 illustrations in the same style as the cover; it also comes as a film script in English and Spanish.
- The Drug Problem argues that the illegality of narcotics creates more harm than a more liberal approach would. It does not attempt to determine whether narcotics are good or bad, but demonstrates that the negative consequences of illegalisation could well outweigh the positive. This controversial yet entertaining book is the first in a planned series: Dysfunctional Discourses. Part I of this first book is also available in Spanish (El Problema de la Droga).
- Illegality is a Scam challenges the prevailing idea that drug illegalisation reduces use, as harassment of the supply chain leads to higher prices. It argues that illegalisation creates millions of criminals, fosters corruption, and reduces the marginal cost of crimes. The book is available in English, Spanish, and Swedish.
- Andres Laszlo Jr.: Short Stories is a collection of stories inspired by his real-life adventures, including several drawn from The Caspian Connection and The Drug Problem. The stories, which often read like cinematic treatments, showcase Junior’s often somewhat insane but frequently entertaining adventurous life. The text is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Swedish.
- The Tale of Two Knaves is a collection of 50 father-and-son short adventure stories (24 by Senior, 26 by Junior) that doubles as an unusually structured family chronicle using intros and outros. Several stories are crafted to appeal to movie producers. The stories span 111 years and are presented in a novel format. The text is also available without biographical remarks and as individual short stories. The text is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Swedish.
- The Caspian Connectionis an adventure series where Odin’s son, unaware of his father’s identity, navigates the temptations of the 21st century. Two books are written with ‘cine’ in mind and are presentable in English (The Seventh Lot and A Question of Honour), with a Swedish version a few months behind. The backstory, anchored in Islam and Norse religion/myth, is detailed, well-researched, and plausible.
- Dysfunctional Discourses II: Why & How?(unfinished) will explore how and why human societies organise themselves dysfunctionally, with examples such as drug illegalisation. The text will first be available in English.
TRANSLATIONS & ADAPTATIONS
Junior has translated and adapted all of his father’s fictional texts from Spanish to English, providing them with content editing that only two of the seven texts had previously received. He has also compiled The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr. in English and (unedited) Spanish
- My Uncle Jacintois a translation and minor adaptation of Andres Laszlo Sr.’s Mi Tio Jacinto. This new English version has also been translated into French (Mon Oncle Jacinto), German, and Swedish. The story follows a down-and-out bullfighter, Jacinto, and his nephew as they prepare for a comic bullfight. The text is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Japanese, and Swedish.
- Paco Never Failsis a translation and significant adaptation of Andres Laszlo Sr.’s Paco el Seguro. The story revolves around Paco, a “prolific” father, who discovers that the child his wife is carrying isn’t his. This adaptation highlights elements appealing to filmmakers—or perhaps even better, TV-series producers—such as the suicide/murder mystery aspect and the peña. The text is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Catalan.
- Senior’s Short Storiesis a translation and adaptation of Andres Laszlo Sr.’s Solo el Paisaje Cambia. These often heavily revised stories, now tailored for the screen, constitute part one of The Tale of Two Knaves. The text is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Swedish.
- Mother Unknownis a translation and significant adaptation of the only major Senior novel that hasn’t yet been turned into a movie; a script was in progress at his demise. The text, which follows a man’s search for his son’s unidentified mother in post-war Europe, has only now become available in English. The text is also available in Spanish, French, and German.
- Doña Juanais a novella closely resembling a theatrical play, highlighting Senior’s past as a playwright. It narrates the story of a young girl who—helped by Don Juan, who travels through time and space to assist and seduce her—ultimately ‘out-don Juan’ him. The text is available in English, Spanish, German, and Swedish.
- Doña Juana(theatre play) is a reconstruction of the novella of the same title, transforming it into what it might have once been. The storyline is solid enough to support a musical; some minor musical work has been completed. The script is available in English, Spanish, and Swedish.
- The Seal Castleis an autobiographical text told from the protagonist’s perspective. Set against the backdrop of the famous Turkish Baths of Budapest, it features a cast of eccentric characters living on the margins of society. The Crab’s Rhapsody can be seen as ‘part II’/the continuation of The Seal Castle. Both texts are available in English, Spanish, and German.
- The Crab’s Rhapsodyis an autobiographical text set in bohemian and artistic Paris, just before the outbreak of World War II. It depicts various quaint aspects of Parisian life, from the monumental to the mundane, as the city navigates the trauma of impending occupation in a remarkably resilient manner. The Crab’s Rhapsody can be seen as ‘part II’/the continuation of The Seal Castle. Both texts are available in English, Spanish, and German.
- The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr. is a compilation of all Senior’s literary texts. The English versions have been edited and adapted, while the Spanish texts remain unchanged, with only some language updates.
- Note:Only Svenskt Konstglas has been ‘properly paper published. ' All other 70 or so books and scripts have been published on Amazon but swiftly taken down. They were never promoted, and aside from copies purchased by the writer and translators, fewer than 100 copies were sold before they were taken down, averaging less than two copy per title. Therefore, for all practical purposes, all books by Andres Laszlo Jr., other than Svenskt Konstglas—including his adaptations of his father’s texts—remain unpublished. More information about Senior’s and Junior’s books can be found on andreslaszlo.com or by searching for “Andres Laszlo Jr.” on Spanish Amazon.