Heritage Newsletter Jan-Feb 2009
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HERITAGE NEWSLETTER OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS ASSOCIATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE ORGANISATIONS INC. SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2013 ISSUE No. 29 Men and women of the bush in early Australian cinema By Andrew Pike, OAM A summary of the Theo Barker Memorial Lecture delivered in Bathurst on August 16, 2013, presented by the Bathurst District Historical Society in conjunction with Charles Sturt University. WHEN I FIRST started researching the history of Australian film history in the late 60s, the landscape was very bleak. There were no film studies at any university, and no publications to act as a guide. I eventually located some oases in the desert – the pioneering research of Ross Cooper, Merv Wasson, Anthony Buckley, Joan Long and a handful of others, and some dedicated librarians (Larry Lake, Rod Wallace and Ray Edmondson) working within the film section of the National Library of Australia, doing their best to find resources to save films at risk of being lost. Ross Cooper and I decided to pool our resources to try to provide a Lorna Denver (played by Vera James) shows her skill at branding - a framework for our own research and scene from the 1921 film, ‘A Girl of the Bush’ hopefully to help others. Back through the decades to the Here in 1911 and 1912 was a rich Our book was eventually the result 30s and the 20s and the First World treasure trove of Australian cinema (Australian Film, 1900-1977, War years the story was always that had been forgotten, and was published by Oxford University much the same – just a thin unlike anything in later years, at Press). scattering of Australian films in least up to the late 60s where our Australian cinemas. searching had begun. In working systematically towards our listing, I began by working But then we reached 1912 and The landscape of film in 1911 and backwards from the late 60s, 1911, and suddenly we found 1912 was indeed strange – not only scouring capital city newspapers evidence of Australian films Australian films galore, but no sign and trade publications to find everywhere, scores of films, many of Hollywood. evidence of Australian films that had each month. been produced and released in the Instead theatres showcased films past. Our excitement was perhaps like from Germany, Sweden, Denmark, that of an archaeologist who digs Italy, England – and only a few short It was a long but exciting journey down through geological layers and films from America. back in time, and I became used to then suddenly reaches a layer finding only a small handful of films where there is evidence of a lost Silent cinema knew no language each year – maybe 6 or 7 in a good civilisation. barrier, and Australian films were a year, or none in some grim years. vital part of this cosmopolitan mix. HERITAGE 1 September - October 2013 Contents......... An opinion from the editor....... HERITAGE September - October Planning backflip: new 2013 laws in doubt --- but *P1 Men and women of the bush in early Australian vigilance imperative cinema by Andrew Pike *P2 Opinion - Planning backflip One of the first actions by the led by its then deputy, now mayor - new laws in doubt - but O’Farrell government when it Mark Greenhill did much to put the vigilance imperative by came to power some 2-and- a- case that this region has special John Leary half-years ago was to repeal the planning needs and that a “one-fits- *P5 State government sale of notorious Part 3A section of the all” code was not acceptable. Bridge Street buildings Planning Act which the ousted *P6 A grave story by Peter Labor government had allowed to A white paper outlining the changes Chinn be abused. attracted almost 5000 submissions, *P6 Mary Reynolds to “retire” hardly the “small vocal minority” *P7 The Paragon, Katoomba by The Liberal government promised suggested by a rapacious Ian Jack to return planning decisions back development industry. *P10 Valley Heights locomotive to the local community. depot centenary. One group alone, the Better *P11 Good speakers, entertain- The government has touted its Planning Network Inc. (BPN) has ment and lunch in a planning reforms as the biggest some 420 affiliated community heritage dining room changes to the planning regime in groups including BMACHO. *P12 RAHS annual conference- 30 years, to streamline approval Great divide:getting there processes and ensure The relentless work of Corrine from here theme development matches the need for Fisher from BPN has brought *P12 Pre conference drinks new homes and jobs. together a wide spectrum of *P13 Exposing our pictorial past stakeholders to oppose this *P13 Fish fossils in Canowindra Instead landmark planning reforms proposed legislation which even *P13 Leading professionals join have met with severe criticism at ICAC is reported as having warned National Trust Board all levels of the community. the Bill contains a high risk of *P14 Time for cleaning your corruption. museum by Peter Stanbury The central plank of the Coalition’s BPN’s campaign is not a ragtag *P15 Touring the past: Touring election promise — that local protest it is a professional exercise and history in Australia communities have more of a say in which could well be taken as a *P16 BMACHO committee the planning process did not rate a model for future actions against members demystify real mention in the draft Bill nor threats to individual and group social media the government’s white paper. dissent to bad legislation. *P16 Timeline for Mt Tomah and Instead it was proposed that 80 Blue Mountains Garden percent of development Planning and Infrastructure director- *P17 The Red Admiral to applications be waved through general Sam Haddad has admitted continue until year’s end under a proposal by which that the planned overhaul had *P17 Stories of Devotion will applications would be assessed “gone further than the government bring exhibition to end strictly against planning codes — intended” and department staff may *P17 Wendy Hawkes to talk “codes assessment” — rather than have unintentionally spread about the Cooks have to be considered case-by- “inaccurate or misleading *P18 Old Toongabbie Farm: an case by local government information” elusive vision byJan councils. Barkley-Jack It now appears that the NSW *P18 Scrutenizing paper-based Grave concerns had been Planning Minister, Brad Hazzard collections expressed that heritage and has done a backflip, lacking the *P20 Restoration of environmental issues would be support of cabinet colleagues for Springwood’s monuments sidelined to prevent the community major components of the Bill. *P21 Thomas Hobby makes his from opposing unwanted mark as Cox takes a development. But stakeholders and the ‘sickie’, August 1814 by community need to be vigilant and Peter Rickwood The changes would have erased keep up the pressure on local MPs *P21 Japanese culture at ecological principles which limited to ensure this toxic planning Norman Lindsay Gallery the community’s ability to protect proposal never becomes law. The *P22 Blue Mountains Explorers natural assets. proposed reforms empower Trail map idea developers not communities. *P23 Railway journeys to the Local government around the state upper Blue Mountains John Leary, OAM - was in revolt and full credit to President, Blue Mountains *P24 Fizzy soda water much councils in this region for their Association of Cultural Heritage loved by the gentry since stand. Blue Mountains City Council Organisations Inc. 1783 HERITAGE 2 September - October 2013 Continued from page 1 It was during the First World War that the high levels of production in Europe were disrupted and Hollywood stepped into the breach internationally, gaining a foothold that it never lost. The boom in Australian films faded away after two glorious years for reasons which are complex and had nothing to do with Hollywood, but to some extent the Australian films made in these boom years carried a seed which contributed to their own demise, as we shall see. ‘Australian The shearing shed at Freemantle Station, outside Bathurst, used as a location for the 1921 film, ‘A Girl of the Bush.’ Vera James as ‘the Girl’ films made in is in the centre. heroic figures in these bushranging With the sudden loss of the sagas alongside Ben Hall and strongest male characters in the those [early] members of his gang, and of course local bush genre, the men who were Ned Kelly. left seemed to be an empty shell. years were These bushranging films constituted Many of them seemed to become a distinctive local genre well before bland and polite, and were no Westerns became established in match for the later heroes of the Hollywood: we had our own stock American West such as WS Hart entirely for characters, our own stock situations and Tom Mix who took over the that owed nothing to American popular imagination during the war cowboys and Westerns. As one years. Australian filmmaker from those days, Raymond Longford, later recalled: With the bushranger ban, the “real “All they needed was (sic) horses men” of the bush disappeared, but audiences’ hired from stables in Redfern, some the women did not. uniforms, guns, a stagecoach, and Overseas sales were not part of the enough men to play troopers and The women who featured in many business model, and were rare. It rangers. of these early bush dramas appear was emphatically a local film to have followed a particular industry, making films for local “They would take their gear down to stereotype which survived in bush audiences – audiences that the the bush at Brookvale, outside dramas until the last great filmmakers could know and Manly, camp out for a week and - manifestation of the bush heroine in understand. without any script - make a film.