[1989.0137] John Henry Austral gramophone records

Description

IdentifierUMA-ACE-19890137Extent13 Gramophone recordsLinear Meterage0.13Scope and ContentJohn Henry Austral was a regular program on radio station 2GN; Austral was a fictional character who introduced a fifteen minute dramatised radio programme described as being "part serial, part satire [and] part soapbox". A total of 200 programmes were broadcast twice weekly over the period Apr 1947 to Dec 1948. It was created by Solomon (Sim) Rubensohn of the Hansen-Rubensohn advertising firm, written by Percy (Pip) Cogger and the character of Austral was performed by Richard Matthews. Each episode ran for 15 minutes, in the format of a dramatised radio serial. It featured the ‘neighbourly but knowledgeable’ John Henry Austral, who, through dramatisations and dialogues with friends and acquaintances, expounded the Liberal vision for Australia and the perceived failings of the federal Labor government. The programmes were financed by the Liberal Party and played an important part in Menzies' election at that time. These carefully scripted radio dramas often picked up on an everyday complaint, such as the time women wasted standing in queues for food rations, so as to comment on current affairs and criticise the socialistic and bureaucratic policies of the Labour government, as well as alluding to the influence of communism. The program is regarded as significant in the history of Australian political campaigns because of its centralised structure, its format and its apparent success.
Comprises 13 broadcast gramophone records, including 2 duplicates. There are 22 unique episodes: 'Does Shopping Shorten Women's Lives;' 'The Low Down on Communism;' 'Hello Suckers;' 'Where Was Your Son Last Night;' 'Creeping Paralysis;' 'Van Winkle Wakes Up;' 'Threat from the Wilderness;' 'The Enemy Within;' 'Freedom isn't Free;' 'Outside the Law;' 'Pattern For Peace;' 'Guilty Men;' 'The Strongest Link of All;' 'How to Plan a Revolution;' 'Educate or Perish;' 'Let's Get Busy;' 'Who Owns Big Business;' 'M.H.R.;' 'Mission from Moscow;' 'Your Land & Mine - John Batman;' 'Island Adventure;' 'The Decline and Fall of Mr Quid.'Access StatusOpen for public accessAccess ConditionsAll recordings digitised and available onlineRequest Access to RecordsRequest records from this Accession

Provenance

CreatorThe Liberal Party of Australia

Dates

Date1948

Description Control

Previous System ID1989.0137State of Listnot specifiedSource of DescriptionWard, Ian. "The Early Use of Radio for Political Communication in Australia and Canada ..." Australian Journal of Political History 1999Descriptive NoteAVAILABLE ONLINEOther Finding Aidshttps://digitised-collections.unimelb.edu.au/handle/11343/38/

Start typing here to find a location	Latitude	Longitude	Zoom	Actions

loading google map....

Save Cancel

University of Melbourne Archives

Archives

Menu

[1989.0137] John Henry Austral gramophone records