Man Gives an Old Friend a Royal Tour of L.A.

Theirs is an L.A. twist on “The King and I,” a tale of two old friends whose relationship has spanned the globe . . . and the distance to a throne.

On a 1975 trip to the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, businessman Arnold Semler met a sultan--or local governor--who immediately impressed him with his charm and calm down-to-earth spirit.

The pair kept in touch over the years--two graying grandfathers who, in letters and telephone calls, shared stories of their numerous children, who quickly grew and had kids of their own.

Semler had no inkling that his sultan pen-pal would one day be crowned king of all Malaysia, in a ceremony that took place in Kuala Lumpur in 1994.

This weekend, Semler, now 83, and his family played host to 75-year-old King Tuanku Jaafar Abdul Rahman--known as King Jaafar--and his wife, the Raja Permasuri Agong.

While not quite carrying the status of British royalty, the couple live a jewel-studded regal life among several palaces. So it was with the U.S. Secret Service in tow that the king-for-life and his consort played “tourist for a day” in Los Angeles with their local friends as guides.

During their three-day visit, they window-shopped on Rodeo Drive, where even they found prices expensive. They visited the Semlers’ son’s ranch in Malibu. They saw the revival of the musical “Show Boat” downtown, and toured Universal Studios, where they hopped on the “Back to the Future” ride, which the king declared “breathtaking.”

Semler said Jaafar’s visit was unofficial, a chance to escape the confines of the palace and the constant attention the royal couple get in Malaysia. After all, Semler said, even a king needs to let his hair down once in awhile.

“Every so often, the king likes to get away from all the stiffness of royalty,” said Semler, a Studio City resident and manufacturer of communications equipment. “They can do that with us.”

On Friday, Jaafar--who in 1994 was crowned with a black and gold silk headdress with an Islamic crescent and a 14-point diamond-studded platinum star--asked his hosts what he should wear to Universal Studios.

“I told him to just wear a Windbreaker and a pair of casual pants,” recalled Semler, “just like all the tourists do.”

For Semler, the visit was yet another reminder of how his old friend has kept both feet on the ground while his status has soared.

The British-trained lawyer and former Malaysian diplomat was sultan of the Malaysian state of Negri Sembilan when he met Semler at a party in 1975.

At an official ceremony at the then-sultan’s palace, the man who would be king walked arm-in-arm with the American businessman and his wife, Blessing, as he introduced the couple to about 400 guests.

“You’d expect a couple in their position to be stiff, but they weren’t, not from the first day,” Semler recalled. “She likes to laugh a lot. They’re both good golfers.”

Semler couldn’t attend the 1994 coronation because of health reasons but visited Jaafar in February with his family. Semler recalled being seated in a waiting room at the main palace, thinking “Now, how do I greet a king? Do I genuflect or what?”

Jaafar answered the question immediately, Semler recalled, striding toward the American, his hand outstretched, exclaiming “Arnie, my old friend!”

This weekend, Semler attended to details of the king’s visit like a nervous bride.

At a Friday night restaurant reception, he worried about everything from the food to the tickets to “Show Boat.”

A beaming Blessing Semler watched her husband entertain his old friend.

“They’re just two grandfathers with a lot in common,” she said of the men, who have 27 grandchildren between them. “There’s a bond there. Maybe it’s because they’re both family men. But it’s been an awful long time.”

Semler doesn’t know when they will meet again. But he remembers their parting in February in Kuala Lumpur when, on impulse, he took the king’s hand and began reciting a Rudyard Kipling poem his father had taught him.

“I remembered the words, that went something like ‘If you can walk with kings and still not lose the common touch, you will be a man, my son,’ ” recalled Semler. “And as I stood there shaking hands with him, he began to recite the poem right there with me.

“He knew the words too.”