Tribute to David Gordon TVW stills photographer Ron Frank has kindly provided the following tribute to David Gordon TVW stills photographer. David Gordon – TVW stills photographer in 1972 Photo courtesy of Steve Thompson It is my duty to advise you that yet another of the TVW workers has passed away. David Gordon who was the stills photographer employed at TVW for many years He ran the darkroom. He shot many of the stills that the station used. He processed all his own work in a small area among side the news photographers room. He used all his own gear as the station...

Bill McKenzie filled many key executive rolls at TVW and later become the first Managing Director of NEW-10 in Perth. 1959-1963 Joined TVW June 1959 and worked in Traffic, Programs & Publicity. 1963 Sydney Sales Manager TVW7 1964-1968 Film Manager TVW7 1968-1974 Assistant Station Manager TVW7 1974-1977 General Manager SAS 10 Adelaide 1978-1982 Group General Manager TVW Enterprises Ltd. 1982-1986 Managing Director ATV 10 Melbourne 1986-1987 Chief Executive Network 10. 1988-1995 Managing Director NEW 10 1995-2000 Vice President and MD The Disney Channel Australia Bill was...

1965 Rottnest Island IPT OB Mike Humphry has kindly provided us with a flashback to 1965 when TVW was producing the popular tonight style variety show called “In Perth Tonight” (IPT). It was based on Graham Kennedy’s “In Melbourne Tonight” (IMT) which commenced in 1957, one year after television was launched in Australia. Both IMT and IPT were based on the American ‘Tonight Show’ format, where the first host was Steve Allen (1954–1957). By the time TVW got on board with the format, the US show was being hosted by Johnny Carson (1962–1992), their longest-serving...

TVW Engineering Reunion 2012 A reunion of mainly 1960s and 1970s TVW Engineering and Operations folk was held in Kings Park, Perth, at the Botanical Cafe on Friday 2nd March, 2012. TVW Engineering Reunion 2012 WA TV History A reunion of mainly 1960s and 1970s TVW Engineering and Operations folk was held in Kings Park, Perth, at the Botanical Cafe on Friday 2nd March, 2012. It was an opportunity to catch up with former TVW chief engineer John Quicke, who employed a number of those present. John Quicke and Bert King in 1962 1970, Chief Engineer John Quicke checks...

AMMPT Appeal for Storage Space The Australian Museum of Motion Picture & Television (AMMPT) promotes an awareness of Australia’s contribution to film and television, and in doing so has collected a vast range of memorabilia from film and TV cameras to cinema projectors and all the paraphernalia associated with these industries. Sadly, the association does not have a permanent home, yet through the kindness of members and sponsors, has found safe places to store the many artefacts which allow the history to be told in exhibition form. 2009 AMMPT Exhibition Unfortunately,...

Chronicling History with the TV News Camera Today’s News is tomorrow’s history and the television newsrooms are prolific documenters of what takes place each day, recording events and conveying them to the public. The news camera folk are capturing not only events of the period, but also creating time-capsule elements with each story reported. That’s if their record is kept by News Departments who value the historic significance of their material. This video is a compilation of news bulletin video taken in the early 1970’s by cameramen at TVW Channel Seven in Perth. The...

First Australia to UK Satellite Hook-up in 1966 The historic first satellite telecast between Australia and England took place on Friday, November 25th, 1966. The ABC had a hook up with the BBC, whilst TVW Channel 7 hooked up with the UK commercial station ITN. This opportunity was part design and part accident as when the world’s second planned commercial communication satellite Intelsat II F-1 was launched October 26, 1966, it was supposed to go into a geosynchronous orbit, but the rocket engine employed to achieve this failed to do so. Its thrust terminated approximately 4...

A cross nation telecommunications link was established before a sealed road Former Seven News Editor Stuart Joynt remembers many events. One being the sealing of the Eyre Highway. The WA component of the Eyre Highway The isolation of Perth was gradually being reduced by not only improved telecommunications links with the rest of the country in 1970, and flowing on from that the rest of the world through growing satellite traffic, but also the belated sealing of the Eyre Highway which crosses the continent, connecting the east to the west. It was finally completed in 1976. Stuart...

A Revolution in Telecommunications Satellite communications were pioneered in the midst of the Cold War. The Russians launched Sputnik in 1957 which then worried the US leadership and security community, with it orbiting over head. Nikita Khrushchev was leader of the Soviet Union from 1955 until 1964, succeeding Joseph Stalin. During his period of influence there was the 1956 uprising in Hungary against Communist rule which was brutally suppressed, the 1960 shooting down of an American U2 spy-plane over the Soviet Union, the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961, and the Cuban Missile Crisis in...

John K. Watts – the “Know All” who became a legend Some people are only a legend in their mind, whereas John K. Watts became a true legend in his lifetime, based on his worthy sporting pursuits and his marvellously merry and humour filled persona. He didn’t let the truth get in the way of a good story, though many tales were based on real happenings, others were just good fun, whichever the case, they were all very entertaining. John K Watts The one time carpenter, policeman, WAFL and VFL footballer and Perth radio and television star, John K. Watts was born...