THE MAOe gPARK 50 YEARS OF RADIO IN AUSTRALIA R.R.WALKER One of the amenities which our modern world takes so much for granted is radio. Yet it is a highly complex and sophisticatedbusi- ness which requires technical pro- ficiency,outstanding personalities and polished showmanship. Radio in Australia began fifty years ago with crystal sets and pri- vate licences. In a comparatively short time it has developed into a vast wave of sound which rolls in from widely separated cities and towns throughout the country. To celebrate radio's Golden Jubi- lee, R. R. Walker, who has had much to do with the world of radio, has set down here a full and col- ourful description of this popular medium. He recalls the challenges of War and television;the financial and production triumphs and failures; the characters - Jack Davey, Bob Dyer, Norman Banks - and count- less other guests, invited and un- invited, to Australian living rooms. More than a history, this book is alsoa personal record of times past and present - and a forecast of things to come. Jacket Design: 0. J. Dale PRINTED IN AUSTRALIA $5.95 Pricerecommended butnotobligatory THE MAGIC SPARK The story of the first fifty years of Radio in Australia R. R. Walker MELBOURNE THE HAWTHORN PRESS First Published 1973 © R. R. Walker SBN 7256 0116 7 Registeredatthe GPO Melbourne for transmission by post asa book Wholly set up and printed inAustralia by The Hawthorn Press Pty Ltd 601 Little Bourke StreetMelbourne 3000 THE MAGIC SPARK By the same author COMMUNICATORS - People, Practices, Philosophies in Australian Advertising, Media, Marketing WRITING FOR RADIO RADIO FOR THE RETAIL TRADE PATTERSON TELEVISION REPORTS 1-17 Contents CHAPTER PACE 1 Wherever You Go, There's Radio 1 2In the Beginning 4 3The First Bold Voices 8 4Quiet, Please! 12 5Stage Two -A & B 20 6 Tea & Wireless 26 7The Big Leap Forward 31 8The Roaring Thirties 36 9A Nation on Guard 40 10Stand by Studio - Stand by Recorder 51 11Twinkling Stars 55 12The Television Terror 64 13Surrogate Lovers, Sedulous Apes 68 14Jack Davey and Friends 73 15Relaying to Stations 77 16The Voice of Authority 81 17United They Stand 85 18Profit and Loss 91 19The Magic of Sound 98 20How Many listen? 104 21Out in the Country 113 22The Speech of Angels 122 23Here is the News 129 24The Flashing Light is On 137 25If You Can't Laugh, Smile 146 26The Sound or the Fury? 154 27The Crystal Ball 159 Appendices 167 Index 185 Conspectus The Trail -Blazers, the Experimenters, the Ham Oper- ators, the first stations up till the close of the 1920s Chapters 1-5 The confident voice, development of programmes to the end of the thirties Chapters 6-8 War and Peace, Controls and Censorship, the inde- pendent production houses Chapters 9-11 Pre-and Post -TV, theAnnouncers,theGreat Performers Chapters 12-14 The Networks, Organizations, Economics Chapters 15-18 How Radio works, AM and FM, Ratings, Country Radio Chapters 19-21 The Basic Tripod - Music, News, Sport Chapters 22-24 Trials and Errors, the persuasion of sound, the Future Chapters 25-27 Illustrations FACING PAGE The earliest known photo of an Australian broadcast, taken at 2FC after AWA built the station on the roof of Farmer's store 2 Earliest known photo of the control room of 2FC, Farmer's Broadcasting Service, 1923 2 On sale in 1926 for £90 was the Radiola Super Six, a six- valve super -heterodyne receiver 3 For £3, wireless enthusiasts could buy this early AWA crystal set 3 `Even a child can do it'- so ran the teaser underlining the simplicity of tuning in on a 1923 Radiola two -valve receiver 3 Australia's first motor -mobile broadcasting station, 1931. Vic Dinenny, an instigator in its development, is in the centre 18 In 1932, 3YB switched from free wheels to fixed bogeys, until finally coming to permanent rest in Warrnambool in 1936 18 A group of some of the best-known voices in radio in the 'thirties 19 Three of the early stars of Sydney radio 19 Delegates to the 1936 Federation Convention to Adelaide 34 Pre-war; those seated were all contributing to the success of independent production 34 One of radio's many 'Uncles', Uncle Col, who also doubled as station manager, broadcasts with 'Kitty' during a children's session 35 Norman Banks, during a 3KZ quizz 1942, is flanked by Bob Baeck, now manager of 3XY, and Keith Dare, broadcaster and writer 35 The Magic Spark FACING PAGE One of the great war -years adventure serials, 'First Light Frazer' 50 John Bhore, key character in BEA's 'jimmy Colt' falls ill - episodes are recorded at his bedside 50 The opening of 2GB's studios in Bligh Street, Sydney, March 1932. A. E. Bennett was one of the most signifi- cant figures in early radio 51 George Edwards and Nell Sterling responding to congratu- lations to celebrate the eighth anniversary of Dad & Dave 51 'We Three' - a greatly successful musical show of the 'fifties 66 August 1952. Morris West, Arthur Upfield and Phil Jones discussing plans for the serialisation of Upfield's 'Boney' series 66 Race callers Bert Bryant and John Russell; still together twenty years after this was taken at the Melbourne trots in 1953 67 `Deadly Nightshade' was one of the great dramatic serials of 1955 67 The great Tub -thumper, Eric Baume, who was heard regu- larly for more than a quarter of a century over Austra- lian stations 82 The ravages of illness are beginning to show in the face of Jack Davey in 1958 82 1956 saw the beginning of television and also SUZ's Nicky and off-sider, Graham Kennedy - top of the broadcast polls 83 John Dunne, one of the early 'greats' of the business talks with Patricia Moore, star of Carnival 83 John Dease and one of the early panels of the 'Quiz Kids' 98 Dick Fair, appearing as guest on Australia's Amateur Hour with Terry Dear and John Tuttle. He hosted the show before Terry 98 George Edwards as Dad of Dad & Dave, gave his views on `What I think of the news' on several stations throughout Australia 99 Mal Verco with his famous doll 'Ginger' 99 Eric Welch, race caller, boxing and wrestling broadcaster, quizz panelist on Information Please 114 One of Australia's longest running radio 'epics', the ABC's Village Glee Club. It ran for twenty-four years 114 Illustrations FACING PAGE The Colgate-Palmolive Radio Unit, circa the late 'forties115 Bobby Limb with child contestant, in one of the last of the big -name programmes, 'The Vincent's Show', circa 1960 130 1960 Bob Dyer's Pick -a -Box was nearing the end of its long radio career 130 Sydney's Des Hoysted, one of the top race callers of the present era 131 Delegates to the 1960 Convention of the Federation of Australian Commercial Broadcasters at Terrigal, New South Wales 131 Modern OB set up in the home of Graham Kennedy when he was running a programme 1970-71. With him are Brian Newington and Tim Lynch 146 Country radio 1973 style. Susan Irvine, broadcasting from 4T0 Townsville as 'commander -in -chief of the Army request session 147 Four of the current top names on the broadcast scene: Bob Rogers, Gary O'Callaghan, Bob Francis, Allan Lappan 162 ABC's operetta series 'Deep In My Heart' 163 Gerald Lyons during his talk -back session 163 John Eden, with Geoff McComas, on his breakfast show on 3DB 178 A jovial Jimmy Hannan, also star of television, during his 3UZ morning session 179 ILLUSTRATION CREDITS AWA, the Age, the Listener In, the Broadcasting Control Board, Percy Cambell (2GB), Bert Button (2ST), Lewis Bennett (3UZ), Bob Baeck (3XY), Phillip Jones (4MK), Rob Ellenby (Associ- ated Broadcasting Services), Grace Gibson, Lee Murray, Phillip Geeves, Marjorie Williams (BEA), 0. J.Dale, 2GF, Harry Griffiths (George Patterson), 5AD, 2UE, 3AK, Geoff Palmer (3DB). i Acknowledgments Apart from the friends, colleagues, correspondents, production houses, stations whose names are mentioned in this book, source material, illustrations, quotations were gathered from a wide range of publications, organizations, authors. Among them Amalgamated Wireless (Australasia) Ltd, especially archivist Phillip Geeves; As- sociated Broadcasting Services; the Age; the Argus; the Adelaide Advertiser; Perth West Australian; Brisbane Sunday Mail; Hobart Mercury; The Listener In; Radio Pictorial, Radio Times; Radio Call; Radio; the Sydney Morning Herald; Broadcasting & Tele- vision; Broadcasting Business; Advertising News; Advertising Age; Encyclopaedia Britannica Year Book; Fortune; The Ukelele Player under the Red Lamp (Alexander Macdonald); Those Vintage Years of Radio (John Snagge, Michael Barsley); Mo's Memoirs (Roy Rene); Broadcasting in Australia (Ian Mackay); Radio in Australia (W. A. McNair); The Jack Davey Story (Lew Wright); Introduction to Mass Communications (Various); Advertising- Mass Communication in Marketing (C. A. Kirkpatrick); Under- standing Media (Marshall McLuhan); A Pictorial History of Radio (Irving Settel); Australian Broadcasting Control Board; Australian Federation of Commercial Broadcasters; Australian Post Office; Australian Radio Advertising Bureau; Melbourne Herald Librar- ian (Roy Terry); Melbourne Public Library; The Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics; The Australian Association of Advertising Agencies; George Patterson; McNair Surveys; Ander- son Analysis; Annual Reports of ABCB (with additional help from J. Doherty and J. Wilkinson). 1 Author's Note In commissioning this book the Federation of Australian Com- mercial Broadcasters agreed to give the author free rein. Conse- quently, some ofthe views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Federation or its individual members. Indeed, there would be strong disagreement withsome of the comments made. It is to its credit, however, that the Federation was prepared to allow the radio story to be told with due regard for its weaknesses as well as its strengths- as seen through the eyes of this writer.