Rev. Leonard Payne’s Plagiarism — An Update & A Thank You

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Kafkaesque

The outpouring of support after yesterday’s post on Leonard Payne’s admitted theft of 190 pages of my work has meant more than I can properly express. I don’t think I can thank you all enough or properly. Whether you commented here, on FB, on Twitter, or by email, your words felt like a soothing balm or a hug. I was particularly touched by an email from Belgium where the person found me because of Tom Ford (and his Bitter Peach) but stayed for Apollo and my writing. Thank you — to each and every one of you.

Many of you have suggested I sue the not-so-good Reverend. I wanted to address that point tonight in an update that also includes new things that I’ve learned about Mr. Payne.

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Theft, Leonard Payne, & The AbdesSalaam Attar Book

Posted on March 16, 2021 by Kafkaesque

An interesting thing happened to me yesterday: a very kind reader of the blog informed me that roughly 190 pages of a 254 page-length book that he recently purchased was taken from my writings on this free site. Not sentences, not paragraphs, but practically everything I’ve ever written on AbdesSalaam Attar was presented in its entirety. And the thief —Leonard Payne— actually confessed to all of it in his introduction!

Leonard Payne’s book, Perfumes: The World of AbdesSalaam, the front cover. Source: Amazon.

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“The Dog Ate My [Chanel] Homework”: Apollo

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Kafkaesque

I never thought I’d ever use “The dog ate my homework” — that old hoary chestnut, cliché, and excuse that some kids use when they haven’t done their homework— but Apollo actually ate my homework! Well, to be precise, he ate a good third of my draft of the Chanel Le Lion review. No, I’m not joking.

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Areej Le Doré Chinese Oud

Posted on March 3, 2021 by Kafkaesque

Chinese Oud, the latest release from Areej Le Doré, is a perfect example of a self-taught perfumer honing and refining his style over time to become the equal of many professional, big house noses today. The opulent parfum is the result of a collaboration between Russian Adam and his friend, Jamira Oud, who distilled and worked on many of the rare Chinese raw materials, including wild, aged, nearly extinct Hainan agarwood which is considered by many collectors to be one of the top varietals in the world due to its unusual floral, fruity, and citrus tonalities.

I’m going to tell you upfront, right from the start, that I loved Chinese Oud and I thought that it was not only complex but also one of the more approachable, versatile, refined, non-blocky, and smooth floral leather ouds (or floral oud orientals) from Areej Le Doré.

Chinese Oud, 10 ml bottle version. Photo: Areej Le Doré

Chinese Oud, 10 ml bottle. Photo: my own.

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