YOUNG TALENT TIME TELLS ALL (2001) FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY (2000) RED CROSS: A SYMBOL OF PROTECTION (1988).
YOUNG TALENT TIME TELLS ALL (2001) produced by JEREMY KEWLEY first aired on Network Ten in Australia on Monday October 29, 2001.
When it debuted, the one hour television documentary hosted by John Bowles was watched by 1.68 million Australians, making it Network Ten’s highest rating special of the year.
An extended version of the documentary is available (along with loads of bonus features!) on the DVD – YOUNG TALENT TIME: THE COLLECTION released by Universal Pictures.
You can watch the full extended 1 hour 10 minute version of YOUNG TALENT TIME TELLS ALL here:
For the documentary, we found the long-considered lost short film CARAVAN HOLIDAY (1972) featuring the Young Talent Team and John Young which you can watch here:
George
Wallace – larrikin, comedian – an original. Using rare photographs, home movies, feature film footage and contemporary interviews, FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY, traces his colourful life. This one hour documentary looks at George’s influence; redresses his place in history and proudly presents a sample of his work for the audiences of today. Professionally, George found success on stage, in motion pictures and on radio. From his early beginnings in country travelling shows and vaudeville, he became Australia’s first genuine box office comedian of the sound era, starring in five feature films. When his first feature, “His Royal Highness”, was released in England he was hailed as one of the biggest comic finds in a decade. But his deeply ingrained Australian manner was to bring about the biggest disappointment of his life when he finally made his stage assault on England. Privately, George Wallace was a complex man whose life was a battle for recognition and acceptance. From a miserable childhood in Sydney, he escaped to the outback of Queensland to find work as a cane-cutter at the age of thirteen. His one marriage, which produced a son, was a short-lived failure. Domesticity took second place to the stage. Plagued by ill health in his later years, George was described by some as jealous, uncouth and a slob…and by others as kind, talented and hysterically funny. George Wallace was an influential comedian whose persona was unashamedly Australian. He was a creative force who wrote his own material from vaudeville sketches to feature film scripts. He was a painter, a musician, a skilled tap-dancer and a composer – who gave Australia its wartime anthem “A Brown Slouch Hat.”
FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY, narrated by Bill Kerr, first aired on ABC TV on Wednesday the 12th of April, 2000 at 8.30pm.
Comments and reviews “…thoroughly entertaining documentary…” (Tony Johnson, Sunday Herald Sun) “…packed with detail…” (Darrin Farrant, The Age Green Guide – Pick of the Day) “…provides a fascinating insight into a world long gone…” (Greg Hassall, The Sydney Morning Herald) “…reverent and thoroughly researched…” (Garry Mansfield, Herald Sun TV Guide) “…some marvellous reminiscences…” (Gerri Sutton, Who Weekly) “…a well researched and fascinating biography…” (Brian Courtis, The Sunday Age) “…superb…” (Robert Fidgeon, The Herald Sun) “… absolutely one of the very best compilation films I’ve seen. Bill Kerr’s narration was spot on. A terrific tribute to George and those around him…” (Tony Buckley, Anthony Buckley Films Pty Ltd)
FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY was later released on DVD through Roadshow and Reel DVD and on VHS through Ronin Films.
Watch the documentary teaser for FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY below:
Narrated by Peter Adams, it features interviews with Max Gillies, Toni Lamond, Charles Norman, Pat Norman, John Murray, Les Tanner and Frank Van Straten.
Note: Timecodes are displayed at the bottom of some footage.
Watch a clip from the completed documentary FUNNY BY GEORGE: THE GEORGE WALLACE STORY here:
In 1988 Pearly White Productions was commissioned by The Australian Red Cross Society to produce the short documentary THE RED CROSS: A SYMBOL OF PROTECTION.
Distributed by The Red Cross (International), the 8 minute documentary is aimed at educating children and young people as to how The Red Cross works in times of war and turmoil and also gives a brief background to how The Red Cross began.
It is based on the book HUMANITARIAN LAW IN ARMED CONFLICTS by Gretchen Kewley.
Watch the 8 minute THE RED CROSS: A SYMBOL OF PROTECTION documentary below: