From the New Zealand TV Weekly. December 30, 1968
Auckland
This is the time of the year when TV folk are bustling off to earn nice money appearing at the holiday resorts, and when the studios are lapsing into their summer torpor. However, some folk have long-term jobs on hand. Producer Kevan Moore, for example, is on a contract to improve the TV image of National Party people with next year's elections in prospect. The Opposition is also polishing up its individual telly image, but won't say who is the guiding hand . . . . Noticed in Sydney recently: An elderly British film, True as a Turtle, which had former Auckland Town and Arounder, Colin Hillmore recently compere of a junior programme in Sydney-rowing stars June Thorburn and John Gregson out to their yacht. When the film was made, Colin was a student in Southampton. He and June were friends from childhood in India . . . . also noticed in Sydney: Angela D'Audney, former AKTV2 continuity announcer, on view in the local version of Personality Squares and also in People in Conflict. Her husband, Haddo, has followed on his local announcer-interviewer chores with similar work on Radio ZUE . . . . Back from the U.K. to visit her family comes Merida Webb, wife of former In The Groove producer, Peter Webb, now working in an Independent TV job in Britain. Merida has been helping him with some assignments, including a Japanese award-winning sex education series. Ballerina Merida has also danced on TV in Britain . . . . Says visiting colour film expert, John Waner: Colour is booming in the States and, until it is available on TV locally, we don't know what we're missing. His advice is to get colour now and let the set buyers catch up. Not quite the way the NZBC thinks . . . . Seems to be an undue amount of well-meaning clucking going on regarding the requirements for children's TV. Certainly, standards need to be kept high and attention paid to quality. But it is doubtful whether a thousand of the sort of advisory boards which some folk keep suggesting weuld help in any way. Might make more sense if a junior advisory board was set up, instead of the gaggle of socialogists, psychologists, educators and so forth which is proposed.
Wellington
Wgtn The NZBC has made solid progress during 1968 with its news and current affairs programmes on Television, but the coming year could be even more significant. It is known that the new controller of news and public affairs, Mr J. E. Hartstonge, is backing some enterprising new concepts and is inspiring his staff with his enthusiasm and willingness to listen to what the people below want to do . . . . Paul Cheeseright, ,who has done such excellent work as a producer with Checkpoint and more recently has made occasional appearances in Gallery, is stepping into Lindsay McCallum's shoes in editing In the News on radio. Paul has been with the head office current affairs section for nearly four years. If sometime in the future Television begins to mount a programme similar to radio's Checkpoint, one would imagine that Paul will be involved in it . . . . Versatile sports officer, Rob Crabtree, who has been with the NZBC since leaving the Hutt Valley High School six years ago, has announced his engagement to Miss Christine Russell Page, daughter of Brigadier J. R. Page and Mrs Page. They plan to marry in March . . . . Cricket fans will be disappointed to hear that the NZBC has to limit live telecasts of cricket matches. Apparently protesting parents have complained that cricket has interfered too much with children's programmes, and have found it difficult to cope with rebellious infants. However, there will still be a fair cover of cricket matches, with special attention to the test matches with the West Indies . . . . Cycling still seems to rate tops with the producers of sports programmes. Perhaps the NZBC research people could do a spot check and find out how popular these are . . . . Fred Barnes did a splendid profile in Country Calender of Sir Andrew Linton, doyen of the dairy industry. The interview showed careful research and preparation. One critic argued that it was over-scripted, but in fact the end result was a deeper knowledge both of Sir Andrew's personality and the work he has done. Other interviews would benefit from the same kind of thorough preparation . . . . The On Camera contest to find the perfect kitchen has clearly aroused tremendous interest. It was extraordinary to see the amount of work involved, and clearly sometime in the future there will be scope for expanded programmes of this type, with their keen viewer indentification . . . . Winner of The Perfect Kitchen contest was Mrs E. A. Kelly, of 37 Orangi Kaupapa Road, Wellington.
CHRISTCHURCH
Although there are occasions when there is justification for. the contention of some South Islanders that Aucklanders believe New Zealand ends at the southern limits of their motorway, South Island talent is not being neglected on Late Show. De Larno, who made a clown of John Blumsky one recent night, is none other than Christchurch magician, Burns Scandrett, president of the Canterbury Magicians' Society. Mr Scandrett and TV are no strangers. The Late Show provided him with his 55th appearance before the cameras. He was resident magician for 33 editions of CHTV3's Junior Magazine and also made seven guest appearances on the Judy Anne and the Fang Family series. He has also appeared on Scottish ITV and on TV in the United States. He returns to Britain next year with TV work prospects . . . . Christchurch was well represented in the Compass confrontation of Broadcasting Minister, L. R. Adams-Schneider. Locals who got in questions were advertising man Ron Scott, one of the leading lights in the 1974 Empire Games for Christchurch campaign, recently retired Christchurch Star Editor, George Burns, and none other than former Town and Around frontman, Bernard Smyth . . . . The straight-from-the shoulder Brian Edwards TV interviewing technique is definitely catching on, as a group of Riccarton High School pupils clearly demonstrated with a barrage of curly questions directed at Edwards on Town and Around recently. As was to be expected, Edwards came up with straight answers to questions, shot in Edwards' fashion, about the Edwards' technique. This was good viewing . . . . Apart from David Pumphrey's compelling piece on climbing in the Southern Alps, the Landscape series has been nothing to rave about. Linda McDougall's study of an immigrant family was not only superficial but well and truly out of date, and the former CHTV3 staffer would have been the first to realise it if she had been on hand to view it--which she wasn't because she left New Zealand some 16~months ago . . . . The word is going around that Fendalton vicar, Bob Lowe would like to spread his wings rather wider in TV and do a secular version of his two David Frost-like As I See It religious programmes.
DUNEDIN
It goes without saying that the 15-minute religious programmes which are screened on Sunday evenings have long been in dire need of some new life. More recent offerings-Standing in the Rain and Adrift, for example- have shown an encouraging rise in standard, but since this trend towards improvement began, the outstanding programme has been, without doubt, that produced by DNTV2's Harold Anderson. Entitled Eye of a Needle, it was a modern version of the Bible story of the rich young man and, like the original, it did not have the happy ending
which so often turns these religious programmes into just another fairy story. We have our hard-hitting programmes on other social and economic topics-now it appears that at last we are to see the same honest treatment given to religion. The Eye of a Needle was written and produced by Harold Anderson as part of a production course which he took in Wellington a couple of years ago. While attending another such course in the capital a few months ago, he remade the programme and it was accepted for national screening . . . . It is to be hoped, incidentally, that if this improvement in religious programmes is to continue (and there is every indication that it will) a more realistic time will be chosen for its screening. At present it appears at 7 p.m., a time when many are at church . . . . Marshall Seifert of DNTV2 has proved a valuable asset to the Otago sporting scene since his arrival here from the United States. Not so long ago he represented the province at the national men's basketball tournament and now congratulations are in order for his selection to play in the Otago team at the national men's softball tournament which is currently taking place in Wellington.
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