Pål H. Christiansen's fanblog

This interview has appeared in the a-ha fanclub magazine “Headlines and Deadlines” (12/2009) and had been taken by fan Mair Thomas (see our previous blogpost). Thanks to Mair as well as to Karen and Geraldine from the fanclub magazine. Anyone interested in purchasing a copy of this magazine can contact Karen Johnson at karenj71@ukonline.co.uk to receive further details.

HUNTING HIGH AND LOW
FOR THE TRUTH OF
HOBO HIGHBROW

It was a few minutes before twelve noon on an August shy sun day, to be precise the 20th of August, a dull overcast day. Sitting close to Henrik Ibsen’s monument in Oslo I suddenly saw a figure appearing to my left, a smart casual intellectual figure with a briefcase in his right hand. Who was he? He waved, I assumed towards me, so I waved back, got up and shook hands. We meet at last, I said to what the offer of a coffee I could not refuse. Away we went sitting in an open air café in the shadows of the Oslo national theatre close to the Bandstand. The waitress came over and took our order: two lattes, a few moments later they appeared. We started talking, but who was I talking to? The one and only Pål H. Christiansen or, as I now call him, the godfather of Hobo Highbrow?

It had taken six years for this meeting to happen when Pål said he only had an hour I started shooting questions quicker than you can say Paul Waaktaar Savoy Gamst.

M: What inspired you to write “The Scoundrel Days of Hobo Highbrow”?

PHC: Hobo first appeared in my debut novel published in 1988 called “Harry Var Ikke Ved Sine Full Fem”. I wanted to expand his character in a new novel. At the same time I was thinking about writing an essay or something about a-ha. So I decided to include a-ha in the novel and make Hobo a fan as the background for the book.

M: How did you come up with the characters?

I had received an award for a book in 2001 that had been very badly reviewed by a proof reader that now and then reviews books in VG. So I based Hobo’s character on a proof reader as a fun revenge. I’m not a proof reader myself but a journalist. Hobo is a kind of character who looks into the mirror and thinks he’s 14 while he is in his early forties. He is a fantasist. His girlfriend Helle is the complete opposite and behaving normally. Hobo is the mad one.

Most things I’m writing are pure fiction, but there are traces from my own life of course. In my first novel Hobo ends up living in an apartment I used to live in. This is the same apartment Hobo is about to leave in “The Scoundrel Days of Hobo Highbrow”. Haagen has some similarities with a real friend of mine who also plays the saxophone. We both studied law here at the university (Pål points over his shoulder to the university over the road), and we did do that bus ride to Tårnåsen.

With a sudden unexpected crash, my third question was now laced in an Oslo latte, table covered, a gasp of apologies from PHC, notes, shoes, bag and floor with a souvenir, even the most professional journalist feels embarrassed, and quotes his wife saying he is a clumsy to my reply it’s o.k. I’m used to working with children, another latte ordered as we continued the chat.

M: What was Paul Waaktaar’s response when he first read the book?

PHC: The publisher sent him the cover, which he liked, and then the manuscript. Lauren read it first, and when she told him he had nothing to be afraid of, he finally read the book. He told me later that the liked it and found it well written and entertaining. He wondered how I knew so much about him, but as I said I had just been reading newspapers and magazines and using my imagination.

M: What are your real thoughts or facts that you agree with Hobo?

PHC: I have sympathy with some of Hobos thoughts, but he is very extreme. I still don’t think a-ha is taken as seriously here as they deserve to be, even though they are popular. There are always people trying to drag them down.

M: If you could choose any of the jobs in the book which would they be?

PHC: Teacher or barman.

M: The game Scrabble features a lot in the book. Why? And if they made “The Scoundrel Days of Hobo Highbrow” into a game what would it be?

PHC: I think the game would be in the style of STIGESPILLET, a Norwegian ladder board game, because one moment Hobo is up and then down.
Hobo is concerned about words, a bit of an intellectual snob who wants everything with correct spelling. Hobo and Helle both work with language. I myself hate scrabble but my wife loves it.

M: Which came first: being an a-ha fan or the book?

PHC: I was a fan before but more of a closet fan. Back in the eighties and nineties and even the first years after the turn of the century there were few writers, artists or intellectuals in Norway admitting they liked a-ha. I simply didn’t knew any fans of a-ha before I wrote the book.

M: If they made “The Scoundrel Days of Hobo Highbrow” into a film: who would you choose as the actor to play Hobo, and would it be in English or Norwegian?

PHC: I would like to see it as a film,  that would be entertaining. It has the right combination of story and music. I would chose Henrik Mestad as Hobo as he is good an in the right age (in his 40′s). English or Norwegian, I would be happy in any case.

M: Last year you attended the Savoy, Magne.F and Morten concert for friends and family at Rockefeller. What was the experience like and how many concerts have you been to?

PHC: It was a great atmosphere, I had never been to an a-ha concert, I prefer to watch from a distance. I was invited by Paul. It was interesting to see a-ha as individuals and the electronic approved, yet when they are together they lift to a higher level.

M: So who is the real father of Helle’s baby?

PHC: Don’t you know?

For the entertainment value I am not going to reveal the answer only quote the reply Pål gave me in an e-mail previous to our meeting… “read the book again”.

Pål did reveal more details to me and he asked me to keep it to myself. As a trustworthy and respect people’s wishes that is what I will do.

M: What language would you like to see Hobo’s story to be translated to?

PHC: At the moment we’re publishing an Italian and a French fan translation on my fanblog. Another fan has announced to even make a Hungarian translation. And I really hope to see the book published in Portuguese one day.

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Time went so quick the hour turned and he said he had more time. It was such a good time. We got up and Pål said we could have some photos. As we walked to cross the road a lady from the café approached us and spoke to Pål in Norwegian… Had we forgotten to pay? No, Pål duly paid, we went on to take some photos where you might recognise the sites and locations from the book.

I thanked Pål for his time and doing this interview. As quick as he appeared we shook hands in Tanum and away he went.

How quick 90 minutes can pass…