Author: ian

Australia met Great Britain in the final of the Tooheys World Cup, this afternoon, at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Australia won narrowly by thirteen points to twelve, having led by ten points to seven at half-time. The score had remained unchanged for the last fifteen minutes of the match. The ‘Kangaroos’ — as the national team at rugby league is known — scored three tries to two, which was a feat made all the more meritorious by the fact that the visitors had won the scrums by a margin of sixteen to six. Russell Gartner and John Kolc each scored a try for Australia in what was their first international appearance.

I gave the walls of the kitchen their first coat of Dulux’s ‘Tusk Ivory’. As I am somewhat of a perfectionist, and as I have had little to do with painting, I am sure it took me considerably longer than it should have.

Andrew Harwood asked the questions of the children on this evening’s edition of “It’s Academic”, from half past five. After the news, Channel Nine presented coverage of this afternoon’s international, which was spread out over a period of two hours. Commentary was provided by Ron Casey and a former champion of the game, Bob Fulton.

General practitioners and their prescribing of drugs is the focus of “4 Corners”, from half past eight on Channel Two. “The Perils Of Pauline”, a film that bears the copyright of 1967, follows on this same channel from ten minutes past nine. It features the singer and actor, Pat Boone, Pamela Austin and the British star, Terry Thomas.

Although we had awoken at half past seven, we lay in bed and wrestled until eight. After breakfast, Tiki sandpapered the ceiling in the lounge while I painted the cornices of the bathroom’s ceiling. I had to perform the splits to get to that area above the bath, having placed one foot on the tiled ledge while the other remained on the ladder. To make my situation doubly precarious, Tiki entered and allowed her hands to roam.

Before she left to visit her parents, at a quarter to one, Tiki undercoated the cupboards in the kitchen. Meanwhile, I continued to paint and finished the ceiling in the bathroom, as well as its counterpart in the lounge.

I listened to 2SM and Frank Hyde’s broadcast of the match between Manly-Warringah and St. George, from Brookvale Oval. The former led by seven points to two at half-time, only to have St. George draw level, early in the second half. However, from that point onwards all of the scoring was done by the home side as it drew away to win by twenty-five points to seven. Manly’s hooker, Max Krilich, was named as the ‘Man Of The Match’.

St. George was in second place on the competition’s ladder prior to its defeat this afternoon. Channel Two presents an edited replay of this match from six o’clock. This is followed by the ABC’s news from seven and, on Channel Nine, from half past the hour, by “Hawaii Five-O”. The movie, “Fantasy Island”, which was only made this year, screens from half past eight. It features Ricardo Montalban, Hugh “The Life And Legend Of Wyatt Earp” O’Brian, Carl Lynley, Victoria Principal, Sandra Dee, Bill “My Favorite Martian” Bixby, Eleanor Parker and Peter Lawford. Hugh O’Brian’s character slides down a steep hill on an upturned table to avoid being shot.

It has been a cool, sunny day. “The Bugs Bunny Show”, at 5.00 p.m., was followed by “The Flintstones”. A repetition from Bill Peach’s series, “Holiday”, was screened on Channel Two from six o’clock. It conveys the viewer to Noumea, New Caledonia, and thence to the Wrest Point Casino, which was under construction when I visited Hobart, in January of 1972.

At seven o’clock, on “Willesee”, Paul Makin interviewed a seemingly drunk Joe Cocker. “This Day Tonight”, at half past seven on Channel Two, concentrates on the strike at the Mount Newman Mine, near Port Hedland in Western Australia, which has lasted for five weeks. “In The Wild” with Harry Butler follows from eight. Harry ventures to Barrow Island, which is just off the north-west coast of Western Australia, where, among other things, he catches a goanna, or monitor lizard, to mark it with paint from an aerosol container. This will allow him to identify it in the future. Goannas are capable of growing to a length of nine feet.

Channel Seven, from half past eight, is showing the second episode of “Captain And The Kings”. We missed the first, last Monday, as we paid a visit to some friends of ours. The miniseries stars Richard Jordan and Barbara Parkins.

 

Many of Sydney’s public school teachers are on strike, again, today. Announcer, Bob Rogers, was sacked by radio station, 2GB, today for having allowed a four-letter word, uttered by John Singleton, to go to air on his show. Mr. Singleton is highly regarded within the field of advertising.

I joked with a workmate that the Vietnamese refugees, who landed at Wyndham, in Western Australia, the other day, must have felt like turning around and heading back. Having visited Wyndham, in 1972, I know what is (or should I say isn’t?) there!

Would you believe that my visit there was a part of a tour around Australia, by bus, that had a duration of sixty-three days? If the tour had not received an injection of new faces, in Alice Springs, I truly believe that those primal instincts that are affiliated to violence would have come to the fore. Mind you, even with the new members on board, these remained fairly close to the surface. Needless to say bus tours of nine weeks ceased to operate not long afterwards. Our coach (we weren’t allowed to refer to it as a bus) captain (driver) did not help when he would insert a tape and play, every single morning without fail, Bert Kaempfert’s “Swinging Safari”.

The coach broke down twice. Firstly, we were stranded five miles to the west of Croydon in North Queensland after the company’s visiting liaison officer, who wasn’t authorised to drive during the tour, had swerved the vehicle to avoid contact with a wild pig at four o’clock in the morning. That action damaged one of the coach’s springs and we were subsequently stranded in the heat and dust for twelve hours before makeshift repairs allowed for the vehicle to be driven, albeit in a crab-like fashion, to Normanton where a replacement spring was fitted.

In Onslow, Western Australia, we had to spend two unscheduled nights as this time a new spring had to be flown up from Perth. This delay meant that we were subjected to being driven throughout a night or two in order to make up for the time the tour had lost.

The most unexpected situation in which we found ourselves was shortly after we had passed the landmark of Pyramid Hill in Western Australia. Suddenly, the coach chugged to a stop and it was then that the coach captain announced that the vehicle had run out of petrol. He proclaimed that we were low on drinking water too! A fact that aroused a measure of panic from within some of the passengers, as it was, indeed, a desolate and isolated landscape.

Fortunately for all of us another vehicle arrived within minutes and the coach captain departed with it, having stated that he would be returning in a taxi along with the much-needed fuel from the town of Roebourne some thirty-two miles distant. In the two and a half hours that passed not one other vehicle was sighted.

When talk of us all dying of thirst had begun to arise, I distanced myself from the stranded vehicle and those congregated about it and passed the time, as best I could, by throwing the odd stone and trying to occupy my mind with other thoughts.

Here are just some of my photographs taken during those nine weeks:

 

“Flashez” is followed by “Last Of The Wild” which, this evening, is about the birds of the Arctic. Bob Rogers appeared to be upset over today’s events when he was interviewed during the news on Channel Seven, at half past six. During “Willesee” Paul Makin tells the former prime minister, Gough Whitlam, that he looks like foreman material in his new clothes.

“Good Times” is followed by the second half of “Charlie’s Angels”, from eight o’clock, on Channel Nine. “Alfred The Great”, a motion picture that bears the copyright of 1969, follows. David Hemmings, Michael York and Prunella Ransome are among its cast.

 

Although it remained fine, a bitterly cold wind blew.

This afternoon, I priced a Slumberland ‘Gold Seal’ mattress and base ( five feet by six feet eight inches) at four hundred and fifty-nine dollars, in Bob Pollard Discounts, in Caringbah.

The ‘Sahara Desert’ edition of “Last Of The Wild” airs on Channel Two. At seven o’clock, Michael Willesee interviews the Australian authoress, Colleen McCullough, about her highly successful book, “The Thorn Birds”, which has just earned her five million dollars.

“Lucille Ball’s 25th Anniversary In Showbiz” followed, however, we departed from it, at eight o’clock, showing a preference for “Peach’s Australia”, in which Bill Peach visits the Gulf of Carpentaria and the towns of Burketown, Normanton and Croydon. He is seen experiencing the wild ride aboard the train which travels between the latter two.

The documentary, “The Fight Against Slavery”, is also shown on Channel Two, from half past eight. After that we returned to Channel Seven, from 9.30, to watch the motion picture, “The Blob”, which was produced in 1958, and traces the efforts of a community in its attempts to rid itself of a jelly-like mass. It stars Steve “Wanted Dead Or Alive” McQueen, in his first major role.

Tiki drove to work and we sat in the car so I could listen to “You’ve Got Your Troubles”, as it was being played on 2KY. It was a hit in 1965 by the British group, The Fortunes, and since then has remained as one of my favourite recordings.

https://youtu.be/FuJWaVWHIFU

It has been another bitterly cold day, with a maximum of just twelve degrees Celsius.

When I told the gentleman at Col Buchan Discounts, in Miranda, that five hundred and eighteen dollars for the same brand and size of mattress and base did not compare favourably with the price on offer at Bob Pollard Discounts yesterday, he went away and returned to say that he would match it.

On “Willesee”, at 7.00 p.m., John Singleton and former Miss World (of 1972), Belinda Green, are seen to be riding around with the show’s reporter and resident funnyman, Paul Makin, in the back seat of a Rolls Royce. “Across The Top”, with adventurer, Malcolm Douglas, from 1967-’68, is shown from half past seven. He and his mate take the viewer on an arduous journey to Arnhem Land, the Gulf of Carpentaria and Cape York. Tony “The Persuaders” Curtis stars as a con man in “McCoy”, which is screened from half past nine. Apparently it did not appeal to the American public, a year or two ago, and only a handful of programmes in the series was produced. We, too, could understand why and turned off the television.

I listened to 2DAY FM’s morning programme, “Yesterday’s Songs”, which is hosted by John Bond, who was formerly with 2WS. Once it had finished, Tiki and I set out to walk along the local streets and also purchase a copy of “The Sun-Herald” newspaper, at a cost of fifty cents.

After I had mowed the lawns this afternoon, and our unheralded visitors — who sought to borrow four hundred dollars, which falls due tomorrow — had left, I turned on Channel Ten’s edition of its “Eyewitness News”, which was read by Katrina Lee, from half past five, with Ron Casey delivering the sport report. He warned the viewer that he was to give the score to this afternoon’s crucial match, played at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Because I wanted to watch this evening’s replay ‘live’, I hastily switched to Channel Seven. Only to return to Channel Ten, for the replay, to have the ever controversial Mr. Casey needlessly advise me of its outcome, by stating that he could tell Katrina was a supporter of Canterbury because of the smile, he said, was on her face.

The Premier of New South Wales, Neville Wran, has announced that stringent new laws which are designed to clamp down on the use and possession of guns, are to be enacted to curb violence between gangs as well as restrict anti-social behaviour within the community. The announcement comes in the wake of last Sunday’s so-called “Fathers’ Day Massacre” at Milperra, in western Sydney. Rival gangs of bikies opened fire on one another in the car park of the Viking Tavern. Six fatalities resulted from this shootout, including that of bystander, Leanne Walters, who was just fourteen years of age when she was struck by a stray bullet. Twenty other members of the gangs required hospitalisation.

The New South Welsh Government has restored the right of the general public to access information in regards to the registration of motor vehicles. This ignores the finding of its own Privacy Committee, that this is an invasion of privacy. The Committee recommended last year that members of the public should not be able to obtain the name and address of the owner of a vehicle just by citing its registration number at any Motor Registry Office.

Mr Fred Silvester, the former director of Australia’s Bureau of Criminal Intelligence, has claimed that there were grave suspicions that one of Australia’s largest yearly horse races had, on one occasion been rigged. Mr Silvester’s claims add further to the cloud that already hangs over the proper conduct of racing at certain major racecourses in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. His comments follow in the wake of last month’s debacle in Brisbane when a runner, which possessed the greater ability, was substituted for a horse named “Fine Cotton”. The substituted horse duly won the race, landing a substantial sting on unsuspecting bookmakers.

Previously shore-bound female naval ratings will be able to go to sea and handle firearms from January of next year. However, they will continue to be made exempt from combat and duties that are related to combat.

Rod Taylor, 54, the Australian actor who became a star in Hollywood, is tasting further success via the ratings that have the television series, “Masquerade”, riding high in the popularity polls which are conducted upon American viewers. “Masquerade” has him cast as an agent with the unlikely name of Lavender. Rod first came to the attention of viewers of television, in the early 1960s, in his ‘tough-guy’ role in the series, “Hong Kong”. He is actually on our screens this evening, from half past eight, in the Australian film, “On The Run”, which was produced in 1982. It is a thriller about a farmer who harbours a secret persona, that of a ruthless murderer. Although, it has Rod cast as an Australian, he sounds more British than anything.

“Eisteddford ’84” opens at the Opera House today. The feast of entertainment is to continue for three weeks and involve more than twenty thousand persons from the performing arts. The Eisteddford has run for thirty-five years and individual winners in the inaugural event, in 1949, included Dame Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge.

British actor, Oliver Reed, 46, has been released from gaol, having spent forty-three hours in a cell on the island of Guernsey. Oliver had been caught railing in the street dressed only in his underpants. Meanwhile, here in Australia, Doug Walters, an idol to many followers of cricket, has reportedly been found to possess the ability to down seven middies of beer in one hour and yet still only register a reading of .014. Authorities have, therefore, found it to be necessary to warn those drinkers who drive not to attempt to emulate Mr. Walters for should they it would be highly likely that they, when breathalysed, would display a reading of alcohol in their blood greater than the legal limit of .05. Doug presently features in the commercial which promotes the consumption of Tooheys Lite.The advertisement is a part of a promotion designed to saturate our television screens in an attempt to increase the consumption of beers which possess lower levels of alcohol. Tooheys’ principal rival, Tooths, is to launch a new beer, that contains a reduced amount of alcohol, this week.

In his new book, “Java la Grande – the Portuguese Discovery of Australia”, which is to be released this week, an octogenarian cartographic detective, Lawrence Fitzgerald, a retired army brigadier, claims that the first European to discover Australia was Christovao de Mendonca, in the early sixteenth century.

This week’s Top 40, provided by radio station 2UE, has “What’s Love Got To Do With It” by Tina Turner at No.1 ahead of the debutant, “Careless Whispers”, by George Michael, and “I Can Dream About You” by Dan Hartman. Last week’s No.1, “Wake Me Up (Before You Go Go)”, by Wham, the British male duo of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, has slipped to be in seventh place. “Dancing In The Dark” by Bruce Springsteen has ascended by five places to sit at No.5, while “When Doves Cry” by Prince has fallen by the same amount to sit at No.8; one place above “Ghostbusters”, by Ray Parker Jr., which was ranked thirteenth last week.

Vickie Sue Robinson’s revival of Lulu’s classic from 1967, “To Sir With Love”, has fallen by seven places to stand at No.12. Australian entrants include Jim Barnes’s “No Second Prize” at No.14 (down from thirty-seventh place), The Eurogliders’ “Heaven (Must Be There)”, which has fallen by three places to No.25 having spent fourteen weeks on the chart to date, and Cold Chisel’s “Flame Trees”, which has debuted at No.33.

Actor, Sean Penn, 24, has become the latest heart throb in Hollywood following his performance in “Racing With The Moon”. His films prior to this have been “Taps”, “Crackers” and “Bad Boys”. His main competition appears to be coming from the likes of Kevin Bacon, 25, (“Diner” and “Footloose”); Matt Dillon, 20, (“Little Darlings”, “The Outsiders” and “Rumble Fish”); Daniel Stern, 27, (“Diner”, “Breaking Away” and “Blue Thunder”); Mickey Rourke, 28, (“Body Heat”, “Diner”, “Rumble Fish” and who is soon to be seen in “The Pope Of Greenwich Village”; and Kyle McLachlan, 25, who is to make his debut, on the big screen, in the epic, “Dune”.

Among the films that are screening in cinemas around Sydney are: “The Bounty”, “Romancing The Stone”, “Beat Street”, “Terms Of Endearment”, “Footloose”, “Return Of The Jedi”, the South African film, “The Gods Must Be Crazy”, “Tex” (Matt Damon and Meg Tilly), “Police Academy”, “Purple Rain” (Prince), “Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom”, “Splash”, “Greystroke The Legend Of Tarzan”, “Cannonball Run II” and the Australian film, “Street Hero”.

The levels of pollution in Mexico City are said to be six times higher than those levels that are legally allowable in Europe. Seventeen million people are crowded in with half of Mexico’s heavy industry. Experts on health estimate that six thousand infants die there annually as a result of diseases that are directly attributable to pollution.

New Zealand’s Labour Party has urged the Government to withdraw from A.N.Z.U.S., the defensive alliance its country has with Australia and the United States. The party’s eight hundred delegates have also voted to close America’s base in Christchurch.

Michael Shea and Victor Chapman, two top royal aides, are reportedly to be rebuked for allegedly revealing intimate details of Prince Charles’ and Lady Diana’s married life to the American magazine, “McCall’s”. Amongst the revelations was one that the Princess detests public engagements and yet another that claims that she flies into rages and sulks when the Prince will not allow her to have her own way. Prince Charles, is also stated as being of the concern that Princess Diana is starving herself.

Evangelist, Billy Graham, has arrived in Moscow, on a visit that is scheduled to last for eleven days. Meanwhile, five thousand police and security officers have been deployed in and around Quebec as Pope John Paul II begins a visit that is to last for twelve days. The visit marks the first to Canada by a Pontiff.

The increasingly bitter six months’ dispute between the striking British coal miners and the State Coal Board is to return to the negotiating table although few people expect any major headway to be made.

Actress, Eileen Brennan, who portrayed the stern captain in the military television series, “Private Benjamin”, as well as the film, has checked into the Betty Ford Center to overcome her dependency on prescriptive drugs. Eileen received painkillers for injuries she received when struck by a car.

Due to a ruling by an industrial tribunal, Ann Watson, a typist, has received three thousand dollars in compensation as a consequence of being sacked. Her former employer, Birmingham Insurance Brokers, in London, had given its employees nine months’ notice to refrain from smoking, nonetheless, Mrs. Watson was unable to forgo the habit and was dismissed.

Comedian, Rod Quantock, the zany writer and leader of those behind the popular television series, “Australia You’re Standing In It”, has told of how he wanted to abolish the cult duo, Tim and Debbie, in the shows second series but could not bring himself to do so. Debbie is played by Rod’s wife, Mary Kenneally, while Tim is portrayed by Steve Blackburn. Also retained in the new series is the infamous Dodgey Brothers.

The presenters who are currently employed on the popular children’s series, “Simon Townsend’s Wonder World!”, appeared today at “The Sun-Herald’s Teddy Bears’ Picnic”, at Wentworth Park. They are Brett Clements, Melinda Rutter, Edith Bliss and Phillip Tanner. The picnic is a project that is in aid of the Children’s Hospital, in Camperdown. Other presenters, from television, who appeared, included Jonathon Coleman, Miss Helena from “Romper Room”, the cast from “Shirl’s Neighbourhood” and Humphrey B. Bear, who never speaks.

As previously stated Canterbury-Bankstown, coached by Warren Ryan, defeated the Parramatta “Eels”, coached by John Monie, and will now meet the winner of next week’s clash between the “Eels” and the St. George “Dragons”, in rugby league’s grand final in a fortnight. Yesterday, the “Dragons” defeated South Sydney, at the Sydney Cricket Ground, by twenty-four points to six before a crowd of 32,162. Today’s match attracted 30,044. Canterbury 16 (M. Potter, C. Mortimer, S. Folkes tries; C. Mortimer 2 goals) defeated Parramatta 8 (R. Price try; M. Cronin 2 goals). Canterbury’s halfback, Steve Mortimer, who was carried off on a stretcher prior to the game’s conclusion, received the the ‘NEC Big Game’ man of the match award, worth five hundred dollars.

Canterbury-Bankstown: Michael Potter (fullback); Peter Mortimer and Steve O’Brien (wingers); Andrew Farrar and Chris Mortimer (centres); Terry Lamb (five-eighth); Steve Mortimer (halfback); Paul Langmack, Steve Folkes, Daryl Brohman, Peter Kelly, Mark Bugden and Peter Tunks (forwards) – Parramatta: Paul Taylor (fullback); Neil Hunt and Eric Grothe (wingers); Michael Cronin and Steve Ella (centres); Brett Kenny (five-eighth); Peter Sterling (halfback); Ray Price; John Muggleton, Peter Wynn, Paul Mares, Steve Edge and Stan Jurd (forwards).

Further news on rugby league includes that on the Western Suburbs “Magpies” club, whose home ground is Lidcombe Oval, and how it is scheduled to return to court next week in a bid to have the ruling that it be axed from the competition rescinded.

The Collingwood “Magpies” (23-15-123) kicked ten goals in the final quarter to end Fitzroy’s hopes of glory in the Victorian Football League, this afternoon, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Collingwood will now meet Carlton in the first semi-final, next Saturday. The Essendon “Bombers” meet the defending premiers, the Hawthorn “Hawks”, in the second semi-final, on Sunday. Yesterday, at VFL Park, the “Hawks” defeated Carlton by thirty points. Hawthorn’s inspirational captain, Leigh Matthews kicked six goals.

In Division 1 of the English soccer Arsenal and West Ham lead the ladder narrowly, on ten points, from Nottingham Forest, Sheffield, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Queens Park Rangers, all on nine. In the National Soccer League, Sydney City sits atop of the ladder on thirty-eight points, with Olympic on thirty-three, Leichhardt twenty-nine and Marconi twenty-six. Wollongong, on twelve points, sits at the bottom of the competition, in twelfth place.

The price of gold closed in New York, on Friday, at $US336 per ounce and in London on $US339.75. America’s rate of unemployment remained steady in August at seven and a half per cent. The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials fell by 11.48 points to close at 1,207.38; its lowest level since the 15th of August when it stood at 1,198.98. In London, the market closed on 851.7 having added 2.8 points. The All Ordinaries index closed on Friday at 725.0, a fall of 8.2 points. BHP $10.30 -15 cents, CSR $3.15 -5, ANZ Bank 4.78 -12, Coles $3.85 -15, Santos $6.98 +18, Westpac Bank $3.73 -7 and Boral $3.72 +7. The Australian dollar closed on Friday at 83.02 US cents.

This week, the Federal Treasurer, Paul Keating, is expected to announce that foreign banks will be given entry into Australia, with the Bank of China expected to be granted a licence.

A row is set to erupt over the issuing of rights to the de facto wives of Members of Parliament to travel overseas with their husbands at the taxpayer’s expense. The leader of the Federal Opposition, Andrew Peacock, has attacked the decision by the Government of Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, to give de facto wives this entitlement, which was later approved by the Federal Remuneration Tribunal.

John McEnroe has comprehensibly defeated Czechoslovakian Ivan Lendl, the player ranked as the world’s second best, 6-3 6-4 6-1 to capture his fourth men’s singles title at a U.S. Open and in doing so further cements his ranking as the world’s top male professional. His defeat marks the third consecutive year in which Ivan has been beaten in this same final; the previous two at the hands of Jimmy Connors. The two American left-handers have won every final since the championships were moved to the hardcourts of the National Tennis Center, in 1978. Ivan Lendl holds the crown from the French Open, having defeated today’s victor in that final earlier this year.

Channel Nine’s “60 Minutes”, from 7.30 p.m., includes a segment on ‘Teen Mums’ in which reporter, Ian Leslie, interviews girls who have become pregnant in their early teens. One is as young as eleven, but she is not interviewed.

Democrat, Walter Mondale, the underdog in his bid to become the next resident in the White House, has verbally attacked President Reagan over what he says is his plan to emasculate America’s system of social security. The system cushions millions of workers in their retirement.