Tribute to David Gordon TVW stills photographer

Ron Frank has kindly provided the following tribute to David Gordon TVW stills photographer.

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 had none for many years.

Steve Thompson was his assistant.

The cameras he used were:

• Canon 35 mm
• Speed graphic 4×5
• Linhof 6 x 9
• Plaubel 6 x 7

There was a large array of lenses at his disposal.

Previously he had been employed by British admiralty photographing many aspects of weapons research.

He had served an apprenticeship as an electrician following his father but preferred to work as a photographer.

He married Harriet and had two children, David who graduated from UWA having gain a PHd in fresh water biology and Elizabeth who worked in a Perth bank.

There are several grandchildren.

He nursed his wife till she died at home from Cancer.

Ron Frank

Published in The West Australian on March 31, 2012

GORDON (David George):

Passed away peacefully 29th March, 2012 aged 97.

Dearly loved husband of Harriet (dec), much loved father of David and Elizabeth, and companion of Wyn. Loved father- in-law of Lise and Philip. Cherished grandfather of Andrew, David, Katherine, Emily. Great grandfather of Oliver and Edward.

So dearly loved, so sadly missed.

GORDON (David):

A past Member of the RSCDS WA Branch (Royal Scottish Country Dance Society. Western Australia Branch Inc.) who was highly regarded for his contribution to Scottish country dance music in WA. Sympathies to Wyn and his family from RSCDS WA Branch members.

GORDON (David):

Deepest sympathy to Wyn on the death of her fiance and both families on the sad loss of David. He was a true friend and a proud Scotsman.
Bill, Fay and family.

David GORDON (Funeral notice)

The Funeral Service to celebrate the life of Mr David George Gordon, late of Balcatta will be held at KARRAKATTA Cemetery, on THURSDAY (5.4.2012) commencing at 10.00am.

No flowers by request, Memorial Donations to The Bethesda Hospital Palliative Care Unit would be appreciated.

Funeral Arrangements in the care of Elaine.

SUBIACO 9388 1623

• 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 one of three key former TVW executives to work for Rupert Murdoch after Robert Holmes à Court’s Bell Group took over TVW Enterprises. During this time Bill was the Managing Director of ATV Channel 10 in Melbourne, Max Bostock was the Executive Director of Network 10 and later CEO, and interestingly, Sir James Cruthers followed Bill into the fold in 1983 by accepted a position at News American Publishing Inc as personal advisor to Rupert Murdoch, working with Murdoch for seven years in New York, London and Los Angeles.

Oddly enough, back in 1959 Sir James application for the first television license in Perth defeated the Murdoch backed Western Television Services Limited application. The successful company was TVW Limited, for which Sir James was the first General Manager.

It was Max Bostock and Bill McKenzie who played key roles in the soap opera Neighbours moving stations from Seven to TEN. When the show moved to TEN in 1986, its new home was the ATV studios in Nunawading, Victoria, a station for which Bill was the Managing Director.

TVW Program (Film) Department

Bob Pennell
▪ 1959-1961 Film Manager

Gerry Bahen
▪ 1961-1966 and 1974-1977 Film Manager

Bill McKenzie – (1959-1982 Cruthers era)
▪ 1959-1982 - Film Manager (1964-1968), Assistant Station Manager (1968-1974), General Manager SAS 10 (1974-1977), Group General Manager TVW (1978-1982)

Graeme Plummer
▪ 1961-1980 Program Clerk then Program Manager

David Mott
▪ 1978-1994 Film Vault assistant - Assistant Program Manager - Program Director. David Mott is now Network Ten’s chief programming officer. He has led Ten’s programming team since October 1997, having joined the network in 1996 as deputy network program director. His television career spans 30 years, beginning at TVW-7 Perth, where he served as program director before moving to ATN-7 in 1994 to take up the chief programming position. At Ten, David is responsible for the Ten, Eleven and One channels. He is the man responsible for bringing Big Brother to Australian screens, then later killing it off. He is also the man responsible for putting The Biggest Loser and MasterChef on TEN’s menu.

Bill McKenzie explains that,

“The first (TVW) ‘Program Manager’ was actually called Film Manager and it was Bob Pennell. Jim Cruthers was actually the hands on programmer from the very first day until he retired in 1981 although a few people held the title.”

Bill has kindly provided the following anecdotes, after reading our last story which made reference to him previewing In Melbourne Tonight before broadcast…

The IMT previewing bit stirred a memory of Bob Pennell editing all the KRAFT references from THE PERRY COMO SHOW from the Kraft Music Hall in 1959/60. The 16mm print always arrived Saturday morning for telecast Saturday night. Because BST had decided against all forms of sponsorship Bob had to put silver paper on the optical sound track each time KRAFT was mentioned by Perry Como …and he mentioned it often. Anyway Bob eventually missed one or the silver paper fell off. There was all hell to pay and the inquest went on for a week .

Remember when the same episode of COLES 3000 Pound Question, later COLES $6000 Question went to air on consecutive Wednesday`s ? Again the inquest went on for a week. Not too funny at the time !!!!

Perry Como (1912 – 2001) was an American singer and television personality who trained as a barber, yet established a very successful career in theater, night clubs, radio and television, recording and Las Vegas appearances. He even appeared in a number of movies. Como has the distinction of having three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in radio, television, and music. Soon after his movie appearances in the 1940’s, he pioneered a weekly musical variety television show, which proved to be one of the most successful in television history. There were a number of incarnations broadcast on CBS and NBS, before the incredibly popular The Perry Como Show, premiering on Saturday, September 17, 1955.

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 US host to date.

This format was established By Steve Allen, and continues to this day in the US on NBC. There’s an opening monologue, celebrity interviews, audience participation, comedy elements, guest musical performers and a house band. Down under, Graham Kennedy made IMT his own and the show went national, though experienced parochial audience opposition at first, but its popularity soon built after six months. TVW began showing Kennedy material in 1960 in the form of his kine-recorded programs (film recorded from a TV screen) until the arrival of videotape facilities at Seven in Perth in 1962. By 1963, his taped show was being airfreighted in. Kennedy’s occasional ribald live antics could thus be pruned here. Bill McKenzie would preview the program in the videotape section and insure that a safe version was broadcast in Perth. Perth audiences therefore missed out on Kennedy’s famous “crow call” (“faaaaaark”) controversy and his explicit appearance in a tight-fitting leotard.

By 1965, TVW was producing its own tonight show in Studio One with Gary Carvolth as the host. A number of earlier shows were produced in the smaller Studio Two, but this was too constrained for space to comfortably accommodate the band, and often had sets and cameras protruding through the big double doors. An early incarnations utilised Eric Walters, Bon Maguire and Janet Prance, until Gary Garvolth took over.

“Spotlight” was the first variety show in 1959, followed shortly after by “Relax with Rolf”, then “Tuesday Date” in 1960, produced and directed by Brian Williams. Phillip Edgley, Rolf Harris and David Farr were early comperes. “Teen Beat” was the first teenage show until replaced by “Club 7 Teen” presented by Gary Garvolth and directed by Max Bostock from 1963 to 1964. In 1965 Gary hosted “In Perth Tonight” whilst Johnny Young took over “Club 7 Teen” with Gordon McColl directing. At various times “In Perth Tonight” had a variety of directors including Richard Ashton and Max Bostock, particularly after Brian Williams left in 1967, though it was Brian who established it. By 1968, Garry Meadows was hosting “In Perth Tonight” with Keith Mackenzie directing.

It was during Brian’s period that the crew travelled to Rottnest to record segments for a show. The recording was brought back to the studios for compilation into a complete program. It was a time when Kevan Johnson was providing choreography for the Channel Seven Dancers, who also performed on this episode along with popular singers, as the crew moved around the island to take full advantage of the scenery.

Mike Humphry was one of the key people on this outside broadcast, and provides details of this production.

In 1965 we recorded several segments for a variety program on Rottnest Island. The O.B. Supervisor at the time was F. John O’Callohan (Johno) and the director was Brian Williams and I was O.B. Tech. The one camera O.B. van was transported to the island by an Army Duck. The camera was a PYE 3 inch Image Orthicon camera and the videotape machine was an RCA TR5.

The one camera O.B. van was a 4WD International Harvester vehicle. This van (with generator) was the only vehicle transported to the island. We didn’t have a full production. Just prerecorded segments for a later program. The segments were mimed, playing tapes from a reel to reel machine to a PA speaker. Lindsay Smith, Russell Sage and talent went to the island on a day trip. Brian, Johno and I arrived a day earlier (to survey) and left a day later.

On the return trip

The Perth afternoon newspaper, the Daily News, reported on December 23rd, 1965, that TVW audio operator Lindsay Smith and Rottnest Ferry deckhand Trevor Kitcher were thrown overboard when a king wave hit the 42 foot ferry Temeraire, on the return trip from Rottnest to Fremantle, following the recording of an episode of In Perth Tonight on the holiday island. During the same incident, cameraman Russell Sage suffered cuts, and the three were taken to Fremantle Hospital for treatment.

It was 8 pm when Lindsay and the Rottnest Ferry deckhand were swept overboard. They grabbed at the glass screen of the flying bridge, which then broke cutting them with splinters. The ferry turned and headed towards them as they swam in the rough sea for up to ten minutes as they were washed about 30 yards (27 metres) from the boat. Lifebelts were thrown and they were hauled back on board. Russell received a cut forehead from flying glass. Scarves and handkerchiefs were used as tourniquets and bandages. All were treated at Fremantle Hospital, where Lindsay was detained. The incident occurred about 6 miles (9.6 kilometres) from Fremantle. Several of the dancers, singers and make-up artists were sea sick before the incident.

One of the Channel Seven Dancers performing during the show was Janet Ladner (now Boyd), who has kindly explained the on board predicament for the cast on the trip back:

I was only telling friends recently about our trip to Rottnest Island with the crew from Channel 7. We had a lot of fun dancing in the sand dunes at Rotto, not an easy task though I must say, but somehow we managed it.

If I remember correctly, we left Rottnest a little later than was expected, and the sea was already a little rough and a bit scary, for the dancers at least. There was a pole right in the middle of the area where we were sitting, and that pole had a very frightened dancer wrapped very tightly around it for most of the journey…..yes it was me!

Someone kept telling me to sit down, and that we would be safe, but I didn’t take any notice and hung on for dear life. When the freak wave hit us, everyone was flung around the boat, everyone but me, I was fastened to that pole so hard, I barely moved, and didn’t realise for a few moments that we had lost some people overboard.

The boat was turned around as we went back to find our missing crew, it was then that a few more people joined me to hang on to the pole. The trip home couldn’t end fast enough, and when we reached out destination, I couldn’t wait to get off.

The small OB van was used for a variety of purposes and the TR5 was employed to record everything from WAFL football matches to the Claremont Speedway. It was also taken out to record commercials in car sales lots and other similar venues. The van was often parked in the staging area with an operator recording commercials when the TRT-1Bs and TR3 videotape machines in the pre 1968 old videotape area were working at capacity.

More often than not it provided a recording facility for OBs attended by TVW’s larger van, which was constructed for the 1962 Perth Commonwealth and Empire Games. This served the station well, until the definitive OB van was built in 1970 to prepare for the introduction of colour in 1975. TVW was preparing for this event from as early as the late 1960’s when a RCA TK27 colour telecine chain was purchased, followed a few years later with an RCA TR70 colour videotape machine.

In 1971, TVW purchased SAS Channel 10 in Adelaide and Mike Humphry relocated to Adelaide, as did TVW’s old OB vans, being rebadged in the SAS colours and logo.

At the time Perth’s TVW Channel 7 owned the Ten licence in Adelaide, ADS Channel Seven in Adelaide was owned by Kerry Stokes.

The Australian Broadcasting Authority granted the application to switch signals and call signs. So on December 27 1987, both stations changed call signs and network affiliations with the Seven Nightly News anchors presenting Ten’s Eyewitness News, and vice-versa. ADS-10 was then purchased by Frank Lowy, who earlier bought TEN in Sydney and ATV in Melbourne from Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation. The following year, Lowy bought the newly opened NEW-10 to complete the Ten Network.

It was a time when many changes of ownership were taking place within the television landscape and the gradual emergence of the Seven Network under one owner.

TVW Tonight shows over the decades…

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.

More than one former chief engineer was there with Kevin Bicknell and Geoff Mortlock also in attendance. Missing was the inaugural chief engineer Graham Davey, followed by Dave Watson and Ted Snell, though much of the time John held a caretaker role until being appointed permanently. It was during John’s watch that many innovations took place. The design of TVW’s first outside broadcast van for the 1962 Commonwealth and Empire Games at Perry Lakes and Beatty Park in Perth, the introduction of videotape, the expansion of facilities to include Studio 1 and a new operational area, newsroom and news studio, the shell for Studio 3, Radio station 6IX’s new studios at Tuart Hill, a tower for OB purposes, an enlarged props area, the first satellite link between WA and the UK, to the initial purchase of colour enabled equipment starting with an RCA TK27 telecine chain and TR70 videotape machine, the upgraded presentation facilities for semi-automation called F.R.E.D. to the building of the Entertainment Centre, and many more events.

There was a good representation of folk from all technical disciplines from studio, outside broadcasting and transmitter installation, maintenance and operations.

During the early years, the Engineering Department encompassed a wide range of crafts till 1968 when the Operations Department was created with Kevin Campbell as the first supervision, and later department manager, before rising to be Managing Director of TVW Enterprises. Keith Spice followed in the operations supervision and manager roles before moving onto greater management roles in the company.

Kevin joined Channel 7 in 1964 and worked continuously with them for 35 years. In that time he was appointed General Manager SAS Channel 7 Adelaide (1977), General Manager Channel 7 Perth (1988), Managing Director Seven Network Sydney (1988) and Managing Director Channel 7 Perth (1991) until his retirement in 1999. Kevin was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in the 1998 Australia Day Honours List for service to charitable organisations, to television administration and to the community. In 2000 he received the Australian Sports Medal and the Centenary Medal in 2001 for service to business and the community in Western Australia, and in 2003 The Fiona Stanley Medal in recognition of his contribution to child Health in Western Australia.

A number of key staff moved to STW Channel 9 and played pivotal roles in everything from pioneering the stump camera used during cricket matches. Bob Penno, and Cedric Wood were a significant two.

Ross McDonald created TAIMAC which for many years played an important role servicing the WA Turf Club, WA Trotting Association and WA Greyhound Racing Association with on-course television, public address and photo finish facilities. The company also provided broadcast feeds to the television stations to telecast various races. Ross was a Technical Director in the Studios and OBs from 1960 to 1962. After leaving Seven, John Quicke joined Ross at TAIMAC, which interestingly is a combination of the founders names: Ernie Taylor and Ross McDonald. Both TVW pioneers, with Ernie joining STW-9 in 1965.

TVW veteran Phil Salinger is still active and maintains key technical and production roles with Capital Community Radio Inc., Perth’s radio station for seniors located at Wireless Hill. Phil was a Senior Technician who worked at the TVW transmitter and studio from May 1959 to July 1969, and was involved in both the installation of the transmitter and operating it.

Kevin Bicknell was not only a chief engineer of TVW but also known as one of Western Australia’s foremost radio frequency systems engineers and cable infrastructure for broadband and entertainment purposes. Kevin and Jerry Clifton established Broadcast Engineering Services which installed the two Mandurah radio stations and much of the cable requirements for more than 50 suburban locations.

Kevin was one of the VHF Group, who formed in 1955 with the idea of furthering experimentation in amateur radio and in particular in the region of the higher frequencies. They also played a key role in the establishment of the Wireless Hill Telecommunications Museum. Kevin can be found in the centre of the below photo, which represents members during the group’s formative years.

Allan Smith was with the engineering department from 1965 to 2004, and is still occasionally called on by Seven for various projects. Allan points out that the accountants that now control a number of firms have downscaled the support staff who maintain automated systems. Allan now fills that gap providing services on a contract basis. In the early days at Seven, Allan was extremely adept at setting up complicated audio projects. He knew the patch-field inside out and every component in between. He delighted in big projects that involved public address, an outside broadcast and studio elements, such as the ‘Hole in One’ days. One invaluable novelty introduced by Allan was the ‘Taffy Stopper’ which was purpose built for the lion skin clad John Cousins, for the affable but highly audible children’s character had a laugh that would fill the largest auditorium, when unfortunately speaking into a delicate microphone that was under his nose. He could drown out the loudest crescendo of a symphony orchestra, and in doing so bend every VU meter needle and send the program into total distortion, whilst overwhelming any sounds the other cast members made. It was a nightmare for the audio operator. Allan’s wise solution was a compressor than only acted on Taffy’s excesses, thus enabling the rest of the dialogue to be heard.

Peter Croft worked through a whole range of eras at Seven from the early labour intensive valve powered days, through the incredible growth that was TVW Enterprises and associated technological developments that made it an autonomous and successful business to the takeover and assets stripping period, and until it is now largely an outpost of the Seven Network. Peter has worked as a technician, presentation controller, videotape and telecine operator, master control supervisor and digital systems supervisor from 1966 to 1999. He is to be thanked for providing us with a great pictorial essay of TVW over the decades in the article: Peter Croft – Evolution of transmission facilities at: http://watvhistory.com/2009/03/peter-croft-evolution-of-transmission-facilities/

Lindsay Smith worked as an Audio operator from 1961 to 1968, before furthering his career in the electrical field. The story Lindsay Smith – TVW Audio Operator 1961-1968 deals with this period at: http://watvhistory.com/2009/09/lindsay-smith-tvw-audio-operator-1961-1968/

Lindsay was one of a number of TVW folk involved in the outside broadcast which covered the hunt for murderer Brian William Robinson. Others involved included Cedric Woods, Ross McDonald, Vic Jones, Colin Gorey, Don Hanran-Smith, Darcy Farrell, Bob Cribb, Peter Goodall, Paul Kinna and John O’Callaghan, in December 1963. More can be found on this subject in the story Hunt for murderer Brian William Robinson OB at: http://watvhistory.com/2009/10/lindsay-smith-seeks-feedback-on-hunt-for-murderer-brian-william-robinson-ob/

Bob Penno was a technician in studio maintenance, OB’s and at the Bickley transmitter from 1963 to 1965.

Bob and Cedric Woods were both electrical apprentices in the WA Government Railways. Like Cedric and others, Bob also joined STW where he became assistant chief engineer to both Gus Slater and Tom Provan, before becoming chief engineer.

Gordon McColl worked at TVW from 1959 to 1975 doing everything from opening night cameraman, floor manager, presentation coordinator, program director to News studio director and news cine cameraman. Many of the early photos on this web site are courtesy of Gordon, as are a number of recent photos.

Bert King worked in Engineering at both the studio and Bickley transmitter between 1960 and 1971. Bert played a big role in the early days of outside broadcasting, having installed TVW’s first OB van, which was designed by John Quicke. Bert’s other activities include amateur radio (as applies to many of the early TVW technical staff) and was involved with setting up the Kalamunda community radio station.

Vic Jones started in TVW Accounts (1960-1961) before making the transition to Engineering (1961-1962) to become a gun Audio man (1962-1966, 1984-1995, 2007-off & on ’till recently). During the 1960s, Vic was in a band called The ‘Thorts’ which made a number of appearances on Club 7 Teen, then directed by Gordon McColl. A show that Vic was often the audio operator for. The band consisted of Ray Van Ross (lead singer), Vic Jones (bass guitar), Les Watling (drums), Nigel Van Ross (rhythm guitar), and Harry Allen (lead guitar). Vic reflects on the early days of Audio and its evolution till now at: http://watvhistory.com/2009/10/vic-jones-tvw-1960-1966-1983-1995-2006-‘till-now-reflects-on-the-early-days-of-audio/

Thorts on ‘Club 7 Teen’ in 1965 – “Bumble Bee”

WA TV History
The ‘Thorts’ which made a number of appearances on Club 7 Teen, then directed by Gordon McColl. A show that Vic was often the audio operator for.

Thorts on ‘Club 7 Teen’ in 1965 – “I Want You For My woman.”

WA TV History
The ‘Thorts’ which made a number of appearances on Club 7 Teen, then directed by Gordon McColl. A show that Vic was often the audio operator for.

Peter Hobson worked in Engineering from 1962 to 1990. Peter Joined TVW the year videotape technology was introduced to the station with two RCA TRT-IB predominantly valve two inch quadraplex videotape machines. Recording and replay operations were an integral part of a technician’s role in those early days, until the creation of the Operations Department when some staff concentrated on the operational component of the station, whilst others specialised in equipment installation and maintenance.

The above photo was taken in 1968, shortly after all the presentation orientated operational equipment was relocated in a building extension, in preparation for colour and semi-automated presentation. In the rear left can be seen one of the low-band TRT-IB black and white videotape machines, purchased for the Commonwealth Games in 1962. A 35mm slide projector can be seen on the left, which was part of a PYE black and white telecine chain, dating back to the station opening in 1959. To the rear of the photo can be seen the box shaped caption scanner which contained the station clock, two magazines of cardboard caption cards, and the scroll used for closing credits. This dates back to when all artwork was done by hand using ink and paints. The caption scanner also doubled as a pie warmer.

Kerry Cook worked first in Audio until becoming a shift supervisor in Master Control from 1960 to 1971. It was Kerry who designed and built TVW’s first cueing system. Prior to this device, staff had to use a stop watch and keep an eye on the clock, or rely on verbal cues coming from telecine or videotape, as to when a commercial break was due. Kerry’s unit employed silver tape on film and tone cues on the videotape cue track to trigger a visual countdown with audible alerts to herald each break. Kerry eventually continued his career at ABW Channel 2, working in most areas associated with TV presentation.

John Morcombe was a Videotape and Telecine operator then OB operator from 1970 to 1972.

Not only did John work in the videotape and telecine areas of TVW, but also spent a period operating the TV facilities at Goldsworthy, which also included a technical component keeping all the equipment working. John moved to the ABC and gained qualifications as an Engineer, where he went on to design and program clever devices in radio and was their D-Cart expert… when the ABC’s design laboratory came up with one of the very first networked digital audio recording, editing and distribution systems.

Cedric Woods was a Technician Grade A at the TVW Transmitters, then a Senior Technical Director in the studios from 1961 till moving to STW in 1965.

Cedric was STW studio supervisor from 1965 to 1967, and largely responsible for the initial studio installation and equipment commissioning before the station opening and then performed ongoing maintenance until joining the Mount Lawley Technical College as an instructor in radio and TV trades. Whilst there, Cedric worked though the various grades of lecturer in engineering, followed by the senior lecturer in broadcasting, communications and television. Cedric gained a degree in engineering and bachelor of education before becoming the head of the department. Then became superintendent of engineering and computers. Cedric later became a consultant working on the City of Perth closed circuit surveillance system. Following this he became the head of research and development with Ultrak of America, with the opportunity to travel the world. Later, Cedric came out of retirement to tutor in communications for the navy.

Max Taylor’s profession is in the electrical trades and as thus worked in studio Lighting from 1965 to 1974.

Max joined Seven at a time when there was a big exodus of staff to STW9 for its start up. Among those leaving were Cedric Woods and Bob Penno, who were present at the Kings Park Gathering. Two former electricians who helped build the station before moving into Engineering and operations work were George Baker and Colin Gorey who unfortunately missed the get together. Colin is a great friend of Max’s brother and both were involved in the Canning Volunteer Fire Brigade. Their fathers were also close friends and fought together during the war. Other noted electricians were John Butt, John Busher and Lindsay Smith. Lindsay was also present at this gathering, though sadly the well liked John Butt and John Busher are no longer with us. John Butt went onto being a qualified technician, telecine and Master Control operator before Technical Directing and sorting out the staff rostering and facilities use. John Busher was a studio lighting man. Max gained qualifications as an electrician and when George Baker, Colin Gorey and John Busher moved to STW in 1965, Max joined Seven in the lighting section and performed much of the electrical work. Later Max started his own electrical contracting business, after gaining further qualifications at night school, and ran that for 20 year before selling it and then working for the City of Perth for 17 years.

Danny Piccin worked for Engineer from 1985 to 1989.

Keith Spice worked at TVW from 1970 to 1989 before transferring to Seven Network’s operations in Sydney.

Keith is a Scarborough lad who won a Commonwealth Technical Scholarship at Scarborough Senior High School in 1965, completed a one-year full time Pre-Apprenticeship course in Radio & Television Servicing at Mount Lawley Technical College in 1966 under the tutorage and guidance of a young Cedric Woods, and served his apprenticeship from 1967-1969 with Anthony Michaels Pty Ltd in Perth.

He applied to join TVW Channel Seven in 1970 (was interviewed and employed by Seven’s Chief Engineer John Quicke) specifically to manage the shared TVW/STW closed circuit television facilities at Mount Goldsworthy for 6-months, and on his return joined TVW’s Outside Broadcast Department reporting to OB Supervisor Vic Kitney.

Keith was transferred to TVW’s Videotape Department in 1972, became Videotape Supervisor in 1976, and Operations Manager in 1979, following in the footsteps of Kevin Campbell’s identical career progression path to that point in time.

Transferred to Sydney in 1989 as the Seven Network’s Broadcast Operations Manager, he became Production & Operations Director of ATN Channel 7 Sydney in 1990, and was appointed to the Seven Network Olympic Unit in 1998 as Head of Olympic Production Planning and On-Site Operations.

He was invited to join Global Television Pty Ltd as their Senior Executive Manager in 1999, and was appointed Chief Operating Officer of Global Television in March 2000. He retired in December 2003 and returned to WA in August 2005.

Keith lives in Mandurah with his wife Anne, and is an active member and Past President of the Port Bouvard Pistol & Small Bore Rifle Club.

Hymie Miller has participated in a most varied career from early sales experience, which possibly contributed to his amusing attempts to sell various bits of TVW infrastructure, to an active involvement in the education field, in later years. From 1959 to 1961 he enjoyed a variety of employment opportunities that included Pharmacy Apprentice, Bairds Hardware sales, Boddington Farm Hand, Encyclopaedia Sales, Simms Metal Labouring & Boans Fabric Sales. In 1962 Hymie joined the Electrical Engineering Department of UWA as a Laboratory Assistant and was later employed as a Technician.

In 1969 Hymie was fortunate enough to secure employment with TVW Channel 7 as a Senior Technician.

It was 4 years later in 1973 when he accepted the challenging position of Assistant Engineer at STW Channel 9.

The hunt for people who could lecture in Colour Television saw Hymie join the TAFE system in 1975, where he lectured in over 40 different subjects of the Certificates & Diplomas in Electronic Engineering firstly on the Mt Lawley Campus and later at Carine.

Hymie also lectured part time at Curtin in Educational Technology.

After pulling the pin in 2000, he have spent the freedom years enjoying a variety of tasks as a Handyman.

Hymie Miller Remembers:

• I remember Jim Cruthers telling me when I shifted employment from 7 to 9 that “the door is always open” and that he wished me well.
• I remember climbing the steel ladder on the outside of the building to reach the wooden platform so that we could haul up the Microwave Links to receive live OB’s. It was a petrifying experience and I later learned that I had a condition known as Benign Positional Vertigo.
• I remember once when the main links to the transmitter failed Geoff Mortlock had me holding some patched together microwave detector in front of the dishes to confirm the signal was “OK leaving this end”.
• I remember early morning start ups, going around the racks tapping heated valves, testing for micro phonics.
• I remember during the period of the Moon landings we used to rig Microwave links from OTC up the road back to the station & then have to de-rig for use at the speedway or the trots etc.
  One day Geoff had a brain wave & invented a booster amplifier that we fitted in line between two 100 metre cables that we could role out and stretch across the road between OTC & Master Control. One lazy Sunday morning shift I grabbed a length of piping and, using a fire hose, managed to illegally shove the cable under the roadway so that we just had to fling it over the fence at OTC when we wanted a feed.
• I remember receiving mild concussion after being whacked in the head by a 50 mm diameter brass fitting on the end of a link cable swinging down the side of a city building.
• I remember, also on a weekend duty shift, (not long after a group of us passed the C class driving test by driving around the block at Midland) taking the new articulated semitrailer OB van for a bit of a spin. As I headed down the rather short steep hill towards Gay St I lost the down shift through the 17 gears and came screaming down the hill with trailer brakes locked, pumping cabin brakes like crazy. With the half a million dollars worth of equipment on board I managed to round the corner with not all wheels touching the ground. It was a very nervous trip back to the OB bay.
• I remember conversations in the workshop hideaway with a young Brian Bourke expressing his contempt for the then political leaders of the day. He called them all some pretty bad names.
• I remember manufacturing a mechanical revolving Channel 7 logo that we put in front of a slide projector camera.
• I remember Albert Pressland as a secretive monitor genius.
• I remember early morning kids shows with Jenny (Clem) Clemeshia.
• I remember a storeman who thought that every item of equipment he handed over was his own personal property.
• I remember it is time to stop remembering.

Photos courtesy of Keith Spice, Peter Croft, Kerry Cook, Mike Humphry and Channel Seven.

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.

Unfortunately, one of the key sites in Kwinana is no longer available and AMMPT needs to urgently move part of the collection to a location which offers 15 to 20 m² of secure and environmentally stable storage space somewhere in the Perth metro area.

AMMPT is therefore appealing for help on this important heritage matter.

The association can be contacted at: ammpt@iinet.net.au

Postal address:

P.O. Box 476, Leederville, 6903,WESTERN AUSTRALIA,

Phone (618) (08) 9310 3377. GMT +8

Any assistance on this matter will be greatly appreciated.

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 News Editor at the time was the legendary Darcy Farrell, who set up the first television newsroom in Western Australia.

TVW News cameramen during this era included Peter Goodall, Michael Goodall, Lu Belci, Bryan Dunne, Tom Hall, Don Hanran-Smith, Gordon McColl, Alex McPhee, Bill Meacham, Brad Pearce, Steve Thompson, Stan Jeffery, Steve Jeffery, Roger Dowling, Ian McLean and Matt Williams. Special mention needs to be made of Keith (Dig) Milner, as Darcy Farrell reminds us that all of the 1960 Rome Olympics coverage was shot by Dig, who sadly was killed in an air crash later that year. His footage included Syd Donovan’s interviews with superstar crooner Bing Crosby and champion boxer Cassius Clay (later known as Muhammad Ali). Another sad note is that Matt Williams died after a long illness with lymphoma, not long after a car accident which claimed the lives of all but one of his family.

All footage shown here was shot on 16mm black and white film, as it was the age before electronic news gathering (ENG).

TVW News Archives – Circa 1970-71

WA TV History
The era of television news gathering with film cameras.

Vision includes:

• The Perth Causeway from the air
• Adelaide Terrace before the redevelopment
• Government House
• Building of the Perth Concert Hall
• Alexander Forrest statue outside the entrance to Stirling Gardens
• Perth shoppers walking the city streets
• Barracks Arch view down St George’s Terrace
• Wellington Street before the bus station and Entertainment Centre
• View up King Street
• Perth railway station platforms and diesel trains
• Perth GPO in Forrest Place
• Kings Park view of Perth and Narrows Bridge
• Boans 75th anniversary parade in 1970
• Trina Brown and Percy Penguin
• Tom Wardle the Lord Mayor of Perth and Lady Mayoress
• Perth Zoo showing children on miniature train and Zoo animals, including smoking gorilla
• Queen’s Gardens
• Canning Dam and Mundaring Weir overflowing
• Opening of State Parliament by the governor Major General Sir Douglas Anthony Kendrew
• Brief glimpse of the Nickel Queen movie premier

Peter Goodall demonstrates TV News cine cameras

WA TV History
Veteran cine cameraman Peter Goodall demonstrates a range of early cameras from an era when film was the prime visual source of television news coverage.

The first camera shown is the Bell & Howell 70DR which had an impact when television stations ventured out of the studio and incorporated film into the nightly news programs. Some of the most dramatic close combat footage from the Vietnam war was shot using these cameras.

The second camera is the Paillard Bolex automatic loading non reflex 16mm camera which was also a good animation camera.

The third camera shown is the Cinema Products CP-16 Sound Camera, which was primarily designed for television news filming and were quite popular before the advent of portable videotape Electronic News Gathering (ENG) formats, as well as for documentary and drama production. They featured a magnetic audio system with a built in mixer that recorded onto special pre-striped 16mm single perforated magnetic sound film. It accepted a 400 foot film magazine.

The medium on which our television news coverage was documented has undergone many changes from 16mm reversal film with optical, magnetic or double system sound tracks. Other valued historical content was recorded on two inch wide videotape. Film went out of fashion with the advent of electronic news gathering and the format for recording this has undergone a number of changes to where we have abandoned analogue in favour of digital technology and all its benefits.

As videotape equipment and electronic cameras became smaller, film was displaced by the new medium, which required no processing. The early 16mm black and white film was shot on reversal stock, which meant that the film shot by the camera was developed using a variety of chemical tanks to produce a direct positive image. That same film would then be edited and finally taken to telecine, where the moving image was projected onto an electronic camera tube, to produce the television image. The reversal film process avoided the need for a negative stage, which then would have required time consuming printing and further developing to achieve the normal positive image.

This means that this State’s history has been recorded on a diverse range of media, which in many cases is volatile. Magnet emulsions shed oxide over time, putting in danger any old recordings made on videotape, double system, magnetic stripe or audio tape.

Many of the television news stories held by the WA State Library are missing the sound tracks by virtue of the double system sound not being part of the transfer to DVD.

From 1959, TVW meticulously kept their news film, sound film and scripts in thousands of cans, each representing a news bulletin. A wonderful resource for a historian. Though in later years an abortive attempt was made to extract the silver content from some of Seven’s film library, fortunately only a proportion of the archive was destroyed. Silver was also extracted during the film processing stage at Seven’s Group Color division, using an electrolysis process. This used a well established technique which caused no harm to the processed film.

Thankfully to the culture of the Sir James Cruthers era, much archival material still exists at TVW, though his beloved museum of aircraft, locomotive, trolly bus, significant vehicles and much memorabilia has been dispersed during the Robert Holmes à Court reign. We are fortunate that dedicated staff hid important artefacts to ensure their survival.

Now the ravages of time will be the enemy of their survival, unless ongoing conservation becomes a routine.

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 seconds after ignition, rather than the needed 16 seconds.

The world’s first commercial communication satellite, called Intelsat I (nicknamed Early Bird), was launched into geosynchronous orbit above the Atlantic Ocean by a Delta D rocket on April 6, 1965, and was transmitting successful between America and England.

Intelsat II (Early Bird 2) was designed to stay over the Pacific, which was hoped would give communications between Australia and North America. If plans had succeeded, the link with Britain could have been completed across America and via the Atlantic satellite. But instead the second satellite went into an elliptical orbit which shifted every few hours, continually changing the area of communications.

1966 Intelsat II Orbit Problems

WA TV History
The ABC’s Tony Evans and Overseas Telecommunication Commission’s Jim Robertson explain…

Despite its non-synchronous orbit, the satellite was used briefly to transmit live television and other communications traffic.

Before the satellite was out of range, an agreement was secured by Australia to allow television stations in Western Australia to use the doomed satellite for a direct broadcast to Britain, before it drifting away over the Indian Ocean.

At short notice, a large contingent of ABC engineers and technicians with an EMI equipped Bedford outside broadcast van, link truck and support vehicles drove the 900km from ABW Channel 2 in Perth to Carnarvon.

It was not only a pioneering event for technology, but also for the personnel involved. Many of the OB crew were also the technical staff who installed the facilities at ABW Channel 2 in Perth, prior to its opening on Saturday 7th May, 1960. Engineering people such as Allan Hullett, Mike Altria, Warwick Davies, Cecil Andrews and Warren Jacobs.

Added to this there were additional technical folk: Bob Brown, Gordon Fremantle, Tony Hall, David Meadowcroft, Ted Simmonds, Bob Stanton, Fred Woodward and Derrick Wright.

The production staff included Kim Corcoran (Presenter and Executive Producer), John Wynne Jones (Director), John Penlington (Interviewer), Dr Peter Pockley (ABC-TV Science Unit) and Voja Milasich (Production Assistant).

Then there was the support staff of drivers and riggers including: Frank Cox, George Dean, Carl Hannapel, Ray Lockhart, Peter Roberts, Fred Taylor,

The outside broadcast was in competent hands.

We are fortunate that this content still exists so that we can pay tribute to the ABC’s professionalism, which extends back to those early days and give credit to the highly respected staff members who made it happen, of which most are no longer with us. Fortunately the survivors were able to tell their story so that we may commemorate the event.

Derrick Wright and Warren Jacobs explained events leading up to this historic occasion. When it was thought that the satellite would obit above the pacific, the television signal from Australia would need to be in the American standard of NTSC 525 lines with a field rate of 60 hertz, as the signal would need to pass through America and then onto Early Bird 1 for transmission to Britain.

But when Early Bird 2 went into an elliptical orbit, there was a window of opportunity to transmit direct to the UK using the PAL 625 line and 50 hertz field rate. It was Warren who configured the OB equipment back and forth in anticipation of this. The BBC had introduced the 625-line system in 1964. Earlier the BBC used a 405-line system, which was introduced in 1936 (it was considered “high definition” at the time, in relation to the crude Logie Baird 30-line and 240-line mechanical television systems that preceded it).

Fortunately the Early Bird 2 satellite orbit predictions proved true and for up to twenty one minutes, there was a one-way television video and audio link, with return audio program and two way communications between Carnarvon and the Goonhilly Down Earth Station in the UK, which enabled content exchange with the BBC studios in London. The highlight was a direct telecast between the ABC and BBC, which reunited British immigrants living in Carnarvon, WA, with their relatives who had been brought into the BBC studios in London.

It was 2.25 pm in Carnarvon and 6.25 am in London.

Of the British migrants who spoke to relatives, two worked at the tracking station. They were an engineer Alan Gilham and a technician Frank Vinton. Both men were interviewed with their wives and children. Four months old Ian Vinton was held up to camera so that his relatives in London could see him for the very first time. Among them included both grandfathers, a grandmother and an aunt. Unfortunately, it was only possible for the London folk to view and hear their relatives in Australia, whereas the London families could only be heard and not seen here. Though the picture link was only one way, a composite recording showing both sides of the conversation was jetted out to Australia for broadcast.

Then it was time for a mother, aged 86, to be reunited with her son Les Brightwell, who was the owner of a prosperous business in town, Carnarvon Motors. His aged mother also got to see and speak with his Australian wife, whom Les married ten years earlier. When Les Brightwell sailed from Britain in 1947, he did not get the opportunity to say goodbye to his mother, making this reunion particularly poignant.

First Australia to UK Satellite Hook-up in 1966

WA TV History
For up to twenty one minutes, a one-way television link was set up between Carnarvon and the Goonhilly Down Earth Station in the UK. The highlight was a direct telecast between the ABC and BBC which reunited British immigrants living in Carnarvon with their relatives who had been brought into the BBC studios.

Carnarvon is a coastal town situated approximately 900 kilometres north of Perth, Western Australia. It lies at the mouth of the Gascoyne River on the Indian Ocean and survives on agriculture, fishing, mining and tourism.

Carnarvon is located in one of the few places on earth where a spacecraft from the Apollo mission could be tracked all the way from the earth to the moon.

In 1964, the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) set up a tracking station nearby to support the Gemini and Apollo space program which successfully landed the first men on the moon in July 1969. It replaced the Muchea Tracking Station, which had been used during the Mercury missions. The tracking station was closed in 1974. Only the foundations of what was an historical site remain.

Some 5km north from the former NASA tracking station is the first earth station built in Australia by the Overseas Telecommunications Commission (OTC), located on Brown’s Range, a sandy ridge of 15-30m elevation close to and east of the Carnarvon township. It was established in 1966 to support the NASA Tracking Station and land cables connected the two stations together.

In May 1973, the NASA and OTC facilities were involved in the launch of Skylab, the first US Earth-orbiting space laboratory, which orbited the Earth till 1979. On re-entry, the heaviest fragments of Skylab’s debris fell into the Indian Ocean, though a large amount of debris fell in a swath from the coastal town of Esperance to the Nullarbor Plain, beyond the community of Balladonia to Rawlinna, a railway siding on the Trans-Australian Railway. One of the pieces was a large cylindrical oxygen tank that burst on striking the ground, breaking into two fragments which bounced in different directions. The largest fragment, the main body of the tank, found its way into the special Skylab collection of the Esperance Museum. The smaller fragment, the end cap of the oxygen tank, remained undiscovered until the early 1990’s when it was found by a stockman.

In a coincidence, the Miss Universe pageant was held a few days later, on 20 July 1979 in the Perth Entertainment Centre and a large piece of Skylab debris was displayed on the stage.

The Indian Ocean and the Shire of Esperance were the main recipients of the airborne wreckage, which came as a surprise for the residents, so a light-hearted $400 fine was imposed on NASA for littering, by the president of the local town council at the time, Mervin Andre. The tongue-firmly-in-cheek fine remained unpaid for 30 years, until April 2009, when US radio show host Scott Barley, of California-based Highway Radio raised the funds from his listeners to his breakfast program “Barker and Barley in the Morning”, and paid the fine on behalf of NASA.

Skylab paid in full

The US finally pays its overdue littering fine to the Shire of Esperance, Western Australia, after 30 years.

The authorities in Esperance contacted Barley with an invitation to be the guest of honour at their 30th Anniversary celebration. Not only did they fly him and his wife Down Under and pay all costs, but it was also arranged to have him present the $400 in the form of an oversized cheque.

The OTC Satellite Earth Station at Carnarvon closed in 1987 in favour of a new earth station at Ceduna.

Footnote:

A number of the historic Carnarvon OB team were at the ABW2 50th Reunion on Sunday 16th May 2010.

ABC reunion photos courtesy of David Carlisle

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 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 reminds us,

“Don’t forget the amazing live crosses from Eucla to both Adelaide and Perth for In Eucla Tonight, with Stuart Wagstaff, put on to celebrate sealing of the Eyre Highway. Keith Spice will recall the astonishing achievement. Lots of good stories about the broadband going only one way at a time, cutting off most of WA to get pictures in from Carnarvon for one of the Ali fights, and booking the bearer years in advance for Wimbledon, Test cricket and the Melbourne Cup.”

Keith Spice explains that,

“Preceding the telecast of “In Eucla Tonight” was a doco I think was made by Keith Mackenzie and Michael Goodall called “No More Bulldust”. It was the history of the Eyre Highway up to the day of the sealing of the road. The actual sealing ceremony was recorded earlier in the day, at around midday, and the tape sent back from our Eucla base, where we had microwave comms to the Telstra broadband tower, for transmission that evening. Let me go through my pictures and old files and things and see what I can find and remember.”

Keith kindly located considerable footage of the event. The opening of “In Eucla Tonight” and most of the documentary “No More Bulldust”. Sadly about an hour of the tonight show is lost and the conclusion of the documentary.

“In Eucla Tonight”

• Director: Keith Mackenzie
• Producer Brian Smith
• Floor Manager: Jeff Thomas
• Presenters: Stuart Wagstaff, Sandy Baker and Graham Bowra
• Camera: There were a number of OB cameraman of which Steve Lowe has been identified
• Operations Coordinator: Keith Spice
• Engineering: Tim O’Dea
• Engineering: Peter Nicholls

“No More Bulldust”

• Reporter Howard Sattler
• Narrator Noel O’Connor
• Director Keith Mackenzie
• Cameraman Michael Goodall

This historic footage was preserved by Keith Spice and kindly converted for our use by Bob Finkle.

• Pic 1: L to R Brian Smith, Keith Spice, Peter Nicholls (red jumper) and two others enjoying a cold beer after a hot days work
• Pic 2: L to R Keith Spice (leaning on the planes tail) next to Brian Smith and the woman on the right is Jane Reilly and the woman in the middle is Lyn Mortimer (production assistant) from SAS Adelaide. Jane is now weather presenter at ADS10.
• Pic 3: Keith Mackenzie, Brian Smith and Peter Nicholls (red jumper) lifting a pole with a truck tyre attached
• Pic 4: Graham Bowra
• Pic 5: Reg Whiteman and Keith McDonald coming off the plane
• Pic 6: L to R is Stuart Wagstaff, Brian Smith, Sandy Baker, Jane Reilly and SAS crew
• Pic 7: John Lyons (Production Manager) carrying the light
• Pic 8: Tim O’Dea & Brian Smith up the tower

Mike Humphry kindly provided photos and details of SAS’s technical involvement,

“Bob Pratt and I drove the SAS O.B. van from Adelaide.

SAS provided the van with CCUs, TR60 VTR and Ikegami link. TVW supplied cameras and most of the crew.

We had a very early start to set up for the SAS Earlybirds program, followed by the TVW Earlybirds.

We then drove to Wigunda for the official opening.

After recording the opening we drove back against a strong headwind to the border only just in time to feed out on the bearer to TVW and SAS.

Word spread through CB radio about ‘In Eucla Tonight” and semitrailers lined both sides of the road for hundreds of metres.

Dozens of tough looking truckies crammed into the dining room for the show.

Stuart Wagstaff said he had never felt so intimidated.”

Murray Jenning kindly provided some anecdotes regarding Eyre Highway before it was fully sealed,

I crossed it first in a friend’s reconditioned Holden ute in December, 1962 when there was only a 70 mile stretch of bitumen before we hit the bulldust and potholes. At one point, during a cold drizzle, our wipers stopped working, so we disconnected them and tied string to each of them, the driver and passenger pulling the strings back and forth…

Then, I drove back from Sydney with my 9 year-old son in an elderly Hillman Super Minx in December 1972, when the S.A. side was still unsealed for three hundred miles. We scored a blowout, and we cheered when we reached the bitumen at the W.A. border.

It was all good fun, camping out in the cold and wet, watching the changing colours of the saltbush, spinifex and scrubby trees as the sun climbed in the sky…

About the participants

Graham Bowra, who started in radio at 6TZ-CI in Bunbury before he spent many years as one of the 6PR Good Guys in the 1960’s, and worked for STW back in 1966, as well as 6PM-AM, and from 1980 to 83 with 6KY/STW, warmed up the crowd for Stuart Wagstaff for “In Eucla Tonight.”

Stuart Wagstaff has for many years been one of Australia’s favourite personalities, from the late 1950’s stage shows such as J. C. Williamson’s production of “My Fair Lady” playing Professor Henry Higgins, through out Australian and New Zealand, and the stage musical “The Sound of Music”, to dramatic and variety appearances on television since the 1960’s. His fame increased on replacing the ailing Eric Baume as the “Beast” on the Channel 7 daytime show, “Beauty and the Beast” from 1965, which included a stint hosting the show from Perth’s TVW studios. Among many things, he was a regular host of “In Melbourne Tonight” and a friend of the legendary Graham Kennedy. Wagstaff was also a permanent panellist on Kennedy’s 1977 comedy game show “Blankety Blanks”. After Kennedy’s death in 2005, he hosted his tribute special “Graham Kennedy: Farewell to the King.” On 26 January 1998 Wagstaff was created a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for “service to the community, particularly through the Channel 7 Perth Telethon Trust by raising funds for charities that support children’s medical research.”

Sandy Baker started with TVW in 1971 presenting “Children’s Channel Seven” after Trina Brown married. Sandy was the children’s hostess when colour television was introduced in 1975. Percy Penguin was suited to black and white, being the colour penguins are. Sandy then introduced the more colourful Fat Cat, who soon became a national star. Sandy went on to host “Stars of the Future” and won three Logie Awards for being the most popular female on Western Australian television. On the morning of the Highway ceremony, Sandy presented the WA version of “Earlybirds” whilst Jane Reilly presented the SA show.

Reg Whiteman brought Fat Cat to the event and fellow dancer, children’s performer, choreographer and senior producer Brian Smith (TVW 1969-1988) was there to coordinate the production. Keith McDonald was another performer there for the show.

Senior director and producer Keith Mackenzie (TVW 1966-1982) not only directed the documentary “No More Bulldust” but also the tonight show component. The floor manager was Jeff Thomas (TVW 1971-2000) and the production manager John Lyons also took an active role. One of the live cameraman was Steve Lowe, with the documentary shot by senior cinematographer Michael Goodall.

The multifaceted Keith Spice (TVW 1970-1989) worked many roles at Seven from studio and outside broadcast technician, videotape and telecine operator, editor and supervisor, presentation co-ordinator, operations supervisor and operations manager. Keith was also there to provide support, as was Tim O’Dea who filled the roles of engineering director and station manager (TVW 1976-2000). Engineering’s Peter Nicholls was present, as were a number of sister station SAS staff from Adelaide.

Its interesting to note that Keith Spice worked in Engineering and Operations at TVW in Perth before transferring to Sydney as Seven Network Broadcast Operations Manager. In 1990 he was appointed Director of Production and Operations for ATN7 Sydney where he remained until moving to Global Television (based in Sydney) in 1999 as Chief Operating Officer. He retired from Global in 2003. In the process, Keith made the transition from technician and operator to senior management.

Sandy Baker reminisces

In 1976, the popular Channel Seven Perth children’s hostess Sandy Baker was called on to assist Stuart Wagstaff present a tonight style show from the Western Australian and South Australian border, thousands of miles from anywhere.

Sandy Baker on 1976 Sealing of the Eyre Highway

WA TV History
The occasion was the sealing of the final stretch of the Eyre Highway in 1976.

The occasion was the sealing of the final stretch of the Eyre Highway in 1976. Named after Edward John Eyre (1815-1901), the Eyre Highway was constructed during World War II. Eyre was the first European to cross southern Australia from east to west, travelling across the Nullarbor Plain from Adelaide to Albany. The almost 2000 mile journey in 1840-1841, lasted four and a half months.

The Eyre Highway traverses the Nullarbor Plain (Nullarbor is latin for ‘no tree’) and is the main east-west link between Australia’s east and west coasts. The Nullarbor Plain itself is the world’s biggest piece of limestone, 200,000 square kilometres.

Eyre Highway ceremony

The completion of the Eyre Highway was celebrated on 29 September 1976 at Wigunda, on the Nullarbor where the WA bitumen met up with the newly completed SA laid road.

Western Australia had earlier completed their component in 1968 and pushed over the border into South Australia, into the region of Wigunda.

1976 Eyre Highway sealing ceremony

WA TV History
The completion of the Eyre Highway was celebrated on 29 September 1976 at Wigunda, on the Nullarbor where the WA bitumen met up with the newly completed SA laid road.

Present at the opening were the WA Minister for Transport Mr Ray O’Connor and the South Australian Minister for Transport, Mr Geoff Virgo and Highways Commissioner, Keith Johinke.

An early grader was left as a monument to the pioneering roadworks, with a plaque attached marking the sealed completion of the Eyre Highway. The grader was located at the scenic lookout rest area MM132.68 on Eyre Highway near Wigunda Microwave Tower, approximately 53 km west of Nullabor.

Unfortunately vandals later removed the plaque and by 2003, the badly corroded grader was scrapped.

Television coverage

“In Eucla Tonight” was a live television outside broadcast mounted by Perth’s TVW and its sister station Adelaide’s SAS to commemorate the sealing of the Eyre Highway between Western Australia and South Australia.

People from all around assembled on one cold windy night at the Border Village roadhouse right on the border of both States.

In Eucla Tonight -and- No More Bulldust

WA TV History
“In Eucla Tonight” was a live television outside broadcast mounted by Perth’s TVW and its sister station Adelaide’s SAS.

The show was hosted by Stuart Wagstaff with help from Sandy Baker. A documentary titled “No More Bulldust” was broadcast in the midst of the show to give a glimpse of how travel had improved from the time when the route was nothing but a potholed gravel road, often filled with a fine red dust known as “Bulldust”.

Earlier in the day, an open-air ceremony on the back of a truck was attended by politicians from both States. This was conducted at the point the Bitumen joined, at 160 kilometres into South Australia. This presentation was recorded, then transported back to a microwave link established at the Border Village, for transmitting 12 kilometres to a Telstra tower at Eucla, where it connected to the interstate broadband microwave system to enable the content to reach Perth and Adelaide.

Though named “In Eucla Tonight” that evenings live show was actually held at the border near Western Australia’s Agricultural Quarantine Checkpoint. The venue was the Border Village roadhouse, located 12 kilometres east of Eucla and 1,455 kilometres from Perth.

Soon after the sealing of the Eyre Highway across the Nullarbor was completed in 1976, the following letters appeared in the Melbourne Age:

“Sir, Few people living in Melbourne this summer could have failed to observe that the tendency of Melbourne’s weather to follow that of Perth by a few days as it usually does has not occurred as it usually does. I have devoted a considerable time to investigation of this phenomenon, discussing it with an applied physicist and other informed people and performing complex meteorological calculations. I have concluded that the root cause for the breakdown in our weather patterns is the recent completion of the bitumen surfacing of the Eyre Highway across the Nullarbor. The basic mechanism behind this effect revolves around the black body radiation from the road surface causing thermal updrafts in an unbroken line across the continent… The obvious solution to this problem is to paint the entire surface white to reduce the black body radiation and hence thermal updrafts…”

C A Mullett

“Sir, I was most interested in the theory advanced by C A Mullett in his letter (27/1/). My interest in the subject stems from my recent doctoral thesis in which I mapped the Nullarbor on a scale of 1:1. As the only place I could lay out my map was, naturally enough, the Nullarbor, I had considerable occasion on which to study the Eyre Highway and the black- body phenomenon. In my opinion, Mr Mullett has overlooked two important factors – the curvature of the Earth and the speed of weather transfer. The sealing of the Eyre Highway has reduced the weather differential between the two cities to 53.5 hours (a reduction of 4.93 hours)… The solution is to slow the weather to its former speed by installing “speed bumps” on the highway… If painted white, will also break the continuity of the black body radiation and will be the world’s longest pedestrian crossing in the Guiness [sic] Book of Records.”

U R Fysh”

Now the Eyre Highway features the world’s longest golf course: The Nullarbor Links

The Nullarbor Links spans two time zones and two states, South Australia and Western Australia, to measure more than the entire length of Britain. Golfers will stop at one roadhouse, play a hole, then drive on to the next tee – 100 kilometres (60 miles) down the road in some cases.

The eighteen holes spread over the 1,365 km (848 miles) long golf course, which was opened in 2009 – A par-72 course that can take three or four days to complete with each player awarded a certificate.

A spokesperson for the course said:

“The 18-hole par 72 golf course spans 1,365 kilometers with one hole in each participating town or roadhouse along the Eyre Highway, from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in South Australia.”

“Each hole includes a green and tee and somewhat rugged outback-style natural terrain fairway.”

The course was the brainchild of Bob Bongiorno, who was managing a roadhouse at remote Balladonia when he came up with the idea.

The idea was developed through discussions with a group of roadside businessmen, who wanted to slow down motorists as they crossed the plain.

Rather than watch them hurtle down the highway, they preferred them to stop, take in the sights and spend some money.

Hole 12 at Balladonia is named ‘Skylab’, as the United States National Aerospace Agency (NASA) space research laboratory re-entered the atmosphere and landed in fiery chunks around Balladonia on July 1979. The local shire ranger (Mr David Somerville) was photographed by the National Geographic Magazine, giving the director of NASA a littering ticket, which received huge international coverage (the council later waived the fine).

A fuel tank from Skylab is on display at the 12th hole.

It is claimed that the then US President (Jimmy Carter) personally rang Balladonia Hotel Motel to apologise for Skylab falling on them.

Footnote from Keith Spice who points out that,

“We did Earlybirds live for SAS then TVW on the morning of the opening. Which would also explain the presence of Sandy, Fat Cat, John Lyons and the Adelaide crew.

And I’ve just remembered something that kept the crew amused when they weren’t working (aside from having a few beers), and that was the story (hoax as it turned out to be) about the Nullabor Nymph.

At dawn and dusk we’d all be keeping an eye out for that mysterious half-naked blonde in the kangaroo skin outfit who ran with the kangaroos!”

It was a prank that successfully garnered much publicity to attract tourists through the area. The bogus claims that a feral blond, white woman was seen amongst the kangaroos, was seemingly backed up by some grainy amateur film showing the scantily clad woman holding a kangaroo by the tail.

After further sightings were claimed, the story was reported around the world, and journalists descended upon the tiny town of Eucla. Even the BBC sent a full TV documentary crew.

“Everyone wanted to find the nymph and all the time she was there, right under their noses, serving them tea and coffee at the roadhouse”, said Laurie Scott, one of the kangaroo shooters who started the hoax and who is now married to the nymph, as reported by the Advertiser Newspaper.

Other veterans who contributed to this story include Keith Mackenzie, Richard Ashton, Darcy Farrell, Jeff Thomas, Ron Christie and Ian Stimson.

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 1962, which brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

The launching of Sputnik then increased the rivalry between East and West, to add the space race to an existing arms race.

Sputnik

This was followed by the Russians launching a dog into space in November 1957, and the first human, Yuri Gagarin in 1961.

The competition between the Soviet Union (USSR) and the United States (US) for supremacy in space exploration not only led to many space achievements, including the US putting a man on the moon in 1969, but many technological advancements then flowing on to the great benefit of everyday life.

Youngsters now take it for granted when accessing overseas content at the point of a mouse and the click of a button, courtesy of the Internet, but it wasn’t always so.

Australia, and Perth in particular, was isolated by great distances until the advent of satellite telecommunications, which when a sudden moment of opportunity occurred in 1966, required a rushed 900 kilometres trip by television teams to Carnarvon to make the first live television contact with the outside world. A history making occasion that connected relatives from opposite sides of the planet together for a short but memorable time.

A moment that was surpassed the following year when the entire world was connected for a two hour satellite special.

The world may have been in turmoil, but the ‘All You Need Is Love’ message the Beatles left us with an the end of that special, is still relevant in the world of today.

Pioneering Satellite TV Program Exchange

In an article entitled “Extraterrestrial Relays”, that was published in the Wireless World magazine during 1945, Arthur C. Clarke wrote that by placing three space platforms into special orbits 22,300 miles above the equator, worldwide communications could be achieved.

The Russians caught everyone off-guard when they launched Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite to be placed into orbit, on October 4, 1957. The satellite emitted radio signals for 22 days, until the batteries ran flat. These signals were monitored by amateur radio operators throughout the world. It spent three months in orbit before reentering the Earth’s atmosphere and burning up.

The United States’ first satellite was Explorer I, which was launched on January 1, 1958. On December 18, 1958 the Signal Communication by Orbital Relay (SCORE) satellite was launched and broadcasted a message from President Eisenhower – “Peace on Earth, Good will toward men” – for 12 days until the batteries failed.

The first television signal was relayed from Europe to the an experimental satellite named Telstar in 1962. In the six months following the launch, stations in the United States, Britain and France conducted about 400 transmissions with multichannel telephone, telegraph, facsimile and television signals, and they performed over 250 technical tests and measurements.

The first geosynchronous communication satellite, Syncom II, was launched in 1963 and flew in an orbit circling 37,000 km (22,300 miles) over the Atlantic Ocean. Geosynchronous satellites appears to “hover” over one spot on the Equator. To do this, it must travel at the same speed as the Earth’s rotation. This enables a receiving dish on the Earth to point at the one spot in the sky rather than “track” its motion. This satellite’s first use was for US military communications in 1963.

The world’s first commercial communication satellite, called Intelsat I (nicknamed Early Bird), was launched into geosynchronous orbit above the Atlantic Ocean by a Delta D rocket on April 6, 1965.

The second planned satellite Intelsat II F-1 was launched October 26, 1966, but failed to achieve geosynchronous orbit due to short burn of its apogee kick motor (AKM), the rocket engine that is employed to put it into an orbit where its furthest from the earth. The apogee engine thrust terminated approximately 4 seconds after ignition. Normal burning time would have been 16 seconds. Despite its nonsynchronous orbit, the satellite was used briefly to transmit live television and other communications traffic. Three days after the launch, the Australian Overseas Telecommunication Commission (OTC) Satellite Earth Station at Carnarvon in Western Australia was established to meet the need for more reliable and higher quality communications for NASA’s Apollo Moon project.

First Australia to Britain Satellite Hook-up – 1966

In late 1966, before Intelsat II F-1 was out of range, an agreement was secured by Australia to allow our television stations to use the doomed satellite free of charge. At this time a ‘sugar scoop’ antenna was put into operational to communicate with the Intelsat satellite, but they would only have a brief chance to test the satellite TV communications before the broadcast, and the satellite then drifting away over the Indian Ocean.

At short notice, a large contingent of ABC engineers, technicians with an EMI equipped Bedford outside broadcast van, link truck and support vehicles were driven the 900km from ABW Channel 2 in Perth to Carnarvon.

A smaller contingent was sent by TVW Channel 7 in Perth, with just one television camera and their small International OB van, pulling a power generator, followed by a support vehicle.

For up to twenty minutes, a one-way television link was set up between Carnarvon and the Goonhilly Down Earth Station in the UK. The highlight was a direct telecast between the ABC and BBC which reunited British immigrants living in Carnarvon with their relatives who had been brought into the BBC studios.

Meanwhile, TVW Channel 7 in Perth sent vision of Eric Walters reading from the front page of the Daily News to UK commercial station ITN, but on return the signal failed before anything of great use could be received. The flawed content from the UK was recorded in Seven’s small OB van on a RCA TR5 2 inch quadraplex videotape machine… for intended replay on its return to the Perth studios.

Former TVW News Editor Darcy Farrell reports that:

“However the audio was perfect so we put the whole package to air with supers (and a voice over)…”

The TVW crew consisted of Eric Walter (presenter), Michael Gale (journalist), Gordon McColl (camera), John Quicke (Chief Engineer) and Peter Hobson (technician and operator). Brian Treasure made the arrangements.

The Intelsat satellites were eventually used to blanket the globe in geosynchronous earth orbit over the Atlantic (Early Bird 1965), Intelsat II F-2 over the Pacific (Lani Bird 1967), and Indian oceans (1969 when Intelsat III F-3 was moved from over the Pacific to over the Indian Ocean in May 1969).

It was not until July 1970 that a micro-wave link enabled direct television program transmission between the east and the west coasts of Australia, but at great cost to book the Telecom bearer.

Meanwhile, the last section of the Eyre Highway linking WA and SA was finally sealed in SA in 1976. At this time TVW produced an outside broadcast tonight show from Eucla to commemorate the event, The show was called “In Eucla Tonight” and was hosted by Stuart Wagstaff with help from Sandy Baker. A documentary titled “No More Bulldust” was broadcast just prior.

In 1985, Australia’s first two satellites were launched (A1 in August and A2 in November) and the AUSSAT domestic satellite services commenced.

The domestic satellite launch significantly reduced the cost of program delivery to Perth from the east and vice versa.

Backtracking on the satellite history which impacted on Australia..

Further to the 1966 Intelsat II satellite failing to achieve geosynchronous orbit, leading to the historic Carnarvon event. Intelsat II F-2 was launched on January 11, 1967, into geosynchronous orbit above the Pacific near the International Date Line. Regular 24 hour commercial service via the satellite began January 27, 1967. The operation linked earth stations in the United States, Hawaii, Australia, and Japan.

After July 1970, programming received from the satellite over the Pacific could then be sent West via the micro-wave broadband link that crossed the Nullarbor.

Our World – 1967

Our World was the first live, international, satellite television production, which was broadcast on 25 June 1967. 14 countries participated in the production that was transmitted to 24 countries with an estimated audience of 400 million people. The program was coordinated by the BBC in London. The Soviet Union and several other Eastern bloc countries pulled out a few days before the broadcast to protest the west’s support for the Six-Day War. Western Australia missed out on this live event, and had to be content to view a replay after the videotape was air freighted to Perth.

The signal is carried by four satellites 23,000 miles above the earth, the Intelsat I (Early Bird) and The Intelsat III (Canary Bird) satellites over the Atlantic Ocean and NASA’s ATS-1 and The Intelsat II F-2 (Lani Bird) satellites over the Pacific.

Our World – 1967

WA TV History
Our World was the first live, international, satellite television production. It was broadcast on 25 June 1967.

The program begins by looking at some of the earliest arrivals on our planet with babies born around the world starting with Japan at 4:04am, then Denmark one hour before sunset at 8:06pm, next its 1:06pm in Mexico City, then 3,000 miles to the north at Edmonton in Canada where a Cree Indian baby is born, only four of some 1,800 born in the short time since the program began.

Its a summer evening in Paris, a winter morning in Melbourne, just before lunch in Vancouver, and the middle of the afternoon in New York as we see what our neighbours are doing across the world.

Participating broadcasting organisations included:

• Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC)
• Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF)
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC1)
• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
• NHK (Japan)
• National Educational Television (NET) (USA)
• Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF) (France)
• Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI)(Italy)
• Televisión Española (TVE) (Spain)

Some of the locations included:

• Abbey Road Studios, London, UK (Beatles’ segment)
• Glassboro, New Jersey, USA
• Parkes, New South Wales, Australia
• Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
• Tokyo, Japan
• Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Owing to language issues for Australians, interpreters translated the foreign commentaries for Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) announcers to provide an English voice-over where necessary. The ABC announcing team consisted of James Dibble, Margaret Throsby, John West and David Hawkes.

The program takes us from country to country including a pass through Italy where Franco Zeffirelli is on location for Romeo and Juliet, to the Abbey Road Studios in London and the Beatles making their recording of ‘All You Need Is Love’, to close the broadcast.

Here is the first 30 minute and the last 6 minutes of this historic and pioneering two hour television event.

Its worth noting that David Hawkes had a big impact on broadcasting training in Western Australia.

Though David began his broadcasting career in Queensland, he later became well known to WA viewers and listeners. David took over the 6WF (720) breakfast program from John Juan in 1974, presented concerts with the WA Symphony Orchestra, recitals for ABC Classic FM, hosted the program “Jazz on the Terrace” and provided commentary for countless outside broadcasts: Royal visits, Anzac Day, and other special occasions.

For ABC television in WA, David read the news, fronted the games show “Fair Go!”, co-hosted the cooking program “Two for the Pot”, presented concert telecasts from the Perth Concert Hall, was anchor for the current affairs show “State Wide”, and link for many election night Tally room specials.

David was also responsible for setting up the department of Media Performance, at the WA academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), in Edith Cowan University. WAAPA was established in 1980 to provide performing arts tuition comparable to the highest calibre of national and international training benchmarks to be able to meet industry needs around the globe.

Former ABC announcers filled the position of Head of WAAPA Broadcasting on all occasions to date.

• David Hawkes was the first Head of WAAPA Broadcasting
• Anne Conti was the second Head of WAAPA Broadcasting
• Earl Reeve was the third Head of WAAPA Broadcasting
• Murray Jennings was the fourth Head of WAAPA Broadcasting 1995-2005
• Whilst Peter Holland is the fifth and current Head of WAAPA Broadcasting

The school is located in the suburb of Mount Lawley, Perth, Western Australia. It is regarded as one of Australia’s leading performance training institutions.

WAAPA also teaches acting, music theatre, directing, dance, jazz and contemporary music, classical music, arts management, production, design, as well as broadcasting.

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.

The one time carpenter, policeman, WAFL and VFL footballer and Perth radio and television star, John K. Watts was born John Albert Watts on 21 January 1937 and later added the ‘K’ to convey “Know All”, for he is famous for his boasting and love of telling gags, many at his own expense. He was found at all the football club’s social events entertaining everyone with his stand up routine or “belting” out a tune on the piano. He wrote the East Perth, Swan Districts and Geelong Football Club theme songs. Entertaining qualities that would prove valuable in his future career.

John K. says that,

“I’ve got the biggest joke library in Australia… perhaps anywhere. I keep writing gags. I love telling gags and to keep in a happy frame of mind.

John K. Watts – the “Know All” who became a legend

WA TV History
Some people are only a legend in their mind, whereas John K. Watts became a true legend in his lifetime. Courtesy of Seven’s Today Tonight.

John was educated at Maylands State School along with another football legend Graham Farmer.

His father was a policeman and great gag teller, but unfortunately contracted tuberculosis and spent several years in the Worroloo Sanatorium during the war years, so his Mum went to work and John sold newspapers for a while at the Roxy Gardens in Maylands, at 240 Guildford Road, which is now a Coles supermarket. Meanwhile, during those early days, whilst John was busy out front selling papers, it was possible for the adventurous boys of the district to open the back of the men’s toilet, push the pan aside and crawl in through the hole, replace the pan and so gain free entry to the pictures at the Roxy.

He started playing football at a young age with Bayswater Junior Football Club and went by tram with his grandfather to watch East Perth play football at Perth Oval. His father was very good friend of Mick Cronin, the then East Perth coach.

After playing a few reserves matches, Watts debuted for the Royals on a half back flank against Subiaco at the age of 17 in 1954. Watts played 166 games as East Perth’s fullback from 1954-1962.

Though he began work as an apprentice carpenter, at age 19 he followed the family tradition and joined the Police Force in 1956. His father was a police superintendent and other members of the family (Charlie, Les, Bobby and Vickie) were members of the force. All he heard about was the depression growing up as a child, and the police force was considered a steady job.

Jack Sheedy was appointed East Perth playing coach for the 1956 season, following which they won 14 out of 19 home and away matches that season, to head the ladder going into the finals. It was also fifty years since the club joined the league (or association as it was then known), and to commemorate this the club opened a new brick grandstand at Perth Oval.

Royals were the outstanding side in the competition, reaching the grand final for wins in 1956, 1958 and 1959, with John K Watts a part of these Premiership Teams along with Graham “Polly” Farmer.

The well built six foot three and fourteen stone Watts played twelve games for Western Australia as the State full back. In one State game against Victoria John remarked that,

“They beat us by twenty nine goals. When the ball sailed through for another point for them. I was out on the flank as the goal ump reached for his flags, with the ball lying on the turf behind him. I shouted out to him: ‘Hey, ump, how about getting the pill for me, I’m buggered.’

‘Stuff the ball, how about giving me a hand with these *#@# flags, my bloody arms are dropping off’, came the reply.”

After one successful premiership, the East Perth Football Club doctor Mick Lekias was walking around the change-rooms and questioned John as to what that was on the back of his neck? John said, “I don’t look around there pal.” He said, “Check with your mother and see how long you’ve had it.” His mother advised that he was not born with it, and it worked out that he had a melanoma, a malignant tumour associated with skin cancer. In such cases, the chance of a cure is greatest when the tumour is discovered while it is still small and thin, and can be entirely removed surgically. Mick’s brother John was a cancer specialist at St John of Gods and the police doctor both had a look at it and he was quickly admitted to hospital, where it was excised out.

After the 1962 season, John received good offers from St Kilda, Essendon, and Geelong.

In 1963 Watts was selected to play for the VFL for Geelong Football Club along with lifelong friend Farmer. He played 52 Games for Geelong, the most memorable being Geelong’s Premiership Team winning the 1963 VFL Grand Final

The same year, John wrote the club’s theme song as a replacement for the very quaint lyrics of their previous version. Earlier he had written the East Perth and the Swan Districts songs.

According to John, at Geelong… Sam Newman, who he played with, was the quietest guy – wouldn’t say boo!

“He always liked a gag and Polly would say. ‘Aye Sam come over here, Wattsy’s got a gag to tell you’. And you’d tell it to him on Friday, he would laugh Monday, because that’s when he would get it.”

“I couldn’t believe it was the same Sammy Newman that was later on the Nine Footy Show.”

Sam Newman’s mother and father both worked at Geelong Grammar as teachers, so he came from quite good stock.

In 1966, Watts moved to Tasmania to Captain/Coach the Hobart Football Club. In his first year he led them to a premiership.

During his football career, Wattsie was the only player to boast three premierships for three different teams in three states (East Perth, Geelong and Hobart).

In 1968, John retired from football.

After leaving football, Watts went on to have a successful career in radio and television. Over 30 years he worked for various Perth television and radio stations.

In the late 1960’s, there was a two minute segment on Channel 7 every Friday night previewing the weekend games and giving his tips, where for example, after putting out the good word on Subiaco to win on Saturday, he would wrap up by saying, “It will be Subiaco for sure, and if it isn’t them it will be West Perth.”

Then if West Perth won he would boast that he was right again.. “I told you it was West Perth.”

Former Channel Seven news studio director Gordon McColl reminisces that the Seven news editor Darcy Farrell would write some points which John would deliver with his usual flair. The late Bob Cribb was his producer.

Darcy reports that Bob was ahead of his time in recognising the great comedy talent of John Watts,

“Bob produced the J K Watts segments and became Wattsie’s manager. To this day, I’m still not sure who benefited the most: Wattsie or Cribbie?”

It was a different era back then for WAFL level football. The Weekend News on Saturdays carried all the WAFL scores and summaries on the centre green pages from the games just completed. There was also the West Australian, Sunday Times, Sunday Independent, Western Mail and Daily News back then, including the Westside Football paper on Thursdays. After the home games it was jam packed and standing room only in the Club house. Even after an away game, one had to race back to the Club to hopefully grab a table to order a meal. They didn’t skimp on the food and always very reasonable prices too.

Now people can access their footy news on an iPhone or an android after downloading a newspaper application to check The West online, Perth Now and WA Today.

In 1978, Bob Hope jumped at the opportunity to have the Channel Seven crew and facilities free of charge to produce his annual NBC special. Seven Chief Executive Max Bostock explains that Bob was always looking for ways to save a buck. He thought of the title BOB HOPE DOWN UNDER, and from the remotest Capital in the world, had something going for it. Particularly if it cost him nothing for travel, accommodation etc. Seven arranged contra with Qantas and local hotels and the deal was done. Bob was joined by Florence Henderson, Charo, Barbara Eden, Mary Anne Davidson, The Four Kinsmen, Australian singing sensation Kamahl, and Miss Australia Gloria Krope for 90 minutes of comedy and variety from the Perth Entertainment Centre. Through the late Brian Treasure, who was a great mate of John’s, he was asked to submit thirty or forty odd jokes for Bob Hope, of which he used about twenty to make a local reference. Though John emphasised that he didn’t have anything to do with the Balga gag.

In 1973, George Chapman put JK on air to do the 6PM breakfast show with Barry Martin, who had been working at 6KY as a disc jockey. Together they formed a unique partnership which made them the highest rating breakfast session from 1973 to 1978. Averaging 40 per cent in their ratings.

They took 300 listeners on a flight over Perth in a Boeing jet and packed the Perth Entertainment Centre out with an almost free Christmas Show, for a gold coin for charity, with the Will Upson Big Band and Lionel York.

Watts later went on to own an interest in a radio station and several of Perth’s hotels.

The dynamic duo then swapped stations to continue their mischief on 6PR.

The 6PR “Football World” panel show also included Wattsy and was broadcast on Saturday mornings. It was recorded every Friday afternoon at various pubs around town and replayed the next morning on radio.

Although politically incorrect and often controversial for its time, Watts always maintained that it “was all in good fun”. His jokes often pointed fun at other sporting codes, politicians, other footballers including Mal Brown and himself.

An example which made Watts and Martin popular with Perth audiences, yet alienated a number of indigenous listeners was a regular feature of 6PR’s morning program for a number of years until 1988, this was a ‘comic’ character named ‘King Billy Cokebottle’. This was a white Australian comedian who told jokes in the guise of an aborigine. Complaints were made about the character, claiming it epitomised the kind of happy-go-lucky black fool who served as the butt of racist humour. Others considered it a form of harmless satire, with a likeable caricature lampooning the cultural elements of a primitive and impoverished people who are living on the edge of civilisation.

When the comedian was banned from the Crown Casino in 2002 he explained his situation…

“I have an Aboriginal grandson . . . and my Aboriginal friends know what I am about. I don’t tell jokes about Aboriginals, I tell the jokes as an Aboriginal. I am not putting down Aboriginals.”

At the time, the Victorian Aboriginal Affairs Minister Keith Hamilton pointed at that when the issue was raised at an Aboriginal Advancement League lunch, some Aboriginal elders said they were “happy enough” to listen to the comedian and saw him as “a bit of fun”. Meanwhile the comedian counts Aboriginal actor Ernie Dingo among his many fans.

Here’s an example of Cokebottle’s humour so that the reader may form their own opinion: King Billy Cokebottle (Goat)

Cokebottle was not the only casualty at the time to disappoint followers of raw Australian humour. In 1980, despite having a number of close friendships within the Indigenous communities of northern Australia, the Federal Anti-Discrimination Board accused the Bulletin and Sun-Herald cartoonist Eric Jolliff’s Saltbush Bill and Witchetty’s Tribe of racism in the way he portrayed Aboriginal people in his cartoons.

Meanwhile, reflecting on his decorated career, John listed winning the 1963 VFL Grand Final and his award-winning breakfast radio program among his fondest memories.

John has studied humour and been a humorist all his life and he has loved it. It has pulled him through the tragic moments such as the passing of his daughter Donna. She was working over at Rottnest and was in an unfortunate accident with a vehicle which rolled on top of her. Then his youngest daughter Vanessa has multiple sclerosis, which worries him considerably. In addition, his tavern in Maylands (The Cascades Tavern) burnt down more than once. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2000 and then In November 2011, diagnosed with bone cancer.

Throughout all this, John has maintained a wonderful library of gags and has written for several comedians. He has always been more than willing to assist clubs in tributes and fundraising events, and his compering skills are always a guarantee that whatever event is planned will be a success.

There have been many happy moments such as when John was inducted into the West Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and The Wattsie and Martin 20-Year Reunion Show of 2010.

Meanwhile, this consummate entertainer, who turns 75 on January 21, is treating his most recent diagnosis in the same way he approaches each day with a bag full of gags.

“I’ve got over the initial shock, that lasted two days,” he said. “Every now and again I get a bit down, but I’m lucky because we talk about it and we think about it and then forget about it.”

A great example of John K Watts’ humour is the tribute he gave in 2008 when East Perth was celebrating the anniversary of two Premiership Teams, 1958 and 1978. As part of the celebration John wrote a profile about some of the 1958 Premiership players, which appeared in the East Perth newsletter “The Royals Mail”. Here are some of the best.

John K Watts
Perhaps the mighty Royals most devastating player. Could win a game off his own boot. Critics at the time bandied around words like Great, Fantastic, colossal, enormous, brilliant, but he preferred to be known simply as good old JK. During his career the taxi control board made him carry a sign on his famous East Perth number 28 jumper “Licensed to carry 17 passengers”. It was during this time that the Maylands Blind School used to regularly charter a bus on Tuesday and Thursday nights, down to Perth Oval, just so their members could hear him kick!

Graham Polly Farmer
The Greatest ruckman of all time. Mark, kick and handball to perfection, a great team man and supporter of all sports. His generosity knew no limits. During the 1962 Commonwealth Games, Collectors were going door to door seeking donations for the Olympic sized swimming pool at Beatty Park. Polly immediately gave them two buckets of water. His two latest books have won literary prizes – “The Polly Farmer Story” and “The Fear of Spending”

Jack Sheedy – Captain & Coach
Jack Sheedy (Mr Football) one of WA’s greatest. A relentless coach who didn’t know the meaning of defeat. Players found Jack easy to get along with once they learned how to worship him correctly. The difference between Jack and the Pope was, you only had to kiss the Pope’s ring. Jack used to say there is no “I” in team work, but there is in kiss my arse. At the players tea during one of the finals series, the players demanded to know if Jack was circumcised, because they reckoned there was no end to the prick.

Neil Hawke
A great Full Forward who immortalised the famous drop punt. A very mature player when he came to East Perth. It was revealed this was due to the, fact, that as a young bloke, he used to walk 10 miles too and from school in Adelaide, until he was in 3rd grade. Then he was old enough to get his driver’s license.

Jack Hunt
A very determined and consistent straight ahead player who never gave up. He was the sort of bloke who used to roll a smoke and get it half finished before anyone put a finger on him. His side step and straight left was as hard to pick, as a protestant at a catholic picnic.

Laurie Kennedy
Laurie could play anywhere – in the ruck, forward or back and was considered one of the Royals most versatile players. A great club man. On a publicity drive for the Red Cross, Laurie had his photo in The West Australian newspaper, donating blood in the East Perth club rooms after training. The following day an excited married couple from Dianella phoned the club wanting to thank Laurie for saving their pet galah.