(Nick: here’s a guest post [lightly edited to house style] from Melbourne-based Cipher Mysteries commenter Jo, introducing Hickey Taylor to the Somerton Man discussion. Over to you, Jo…)
Stuart Webb recently re-posted “the family photo” on Derek Abbott’s Facebook page, along with a query about one of the people on it: Hickey Taylor. My first reaction was that “Hickey” and “Taylor” sounded like two old farmers from Camperdown (there are lots of Hickeys and Taylors there…) but commenter Poppins cleverly pointed out that Hickey Taylor was in fact a stage manager and occasional actor for J.C. Williamson’s. So… who was Hickey Taylor?
Henry Herbert “Hickey” Taylor, 1903-1962
Though born in Tasmania, Taylor’s electoral roll enrolment address across several decades is his parents’ home at 56 Surrey Road, South Yarra, right up to his death in 1962, when he was living with his widowed mother, Isabel. He spent long periods away from South Yarra with his work.
Taylor’s AusStage listing has him as being in Adelaide from the late 1940s to late 1950s – however, this was as an actor up until 1947, and then as a stage manager from 1949. If you dig through J.C. Williamson’s programs [he joined the company in 1925], you can also see that he spent long periods in Perth, e.g. as stage manager for “The Girl Friend”.
Perhaps most intriguingly, he was also the stage manager for the Adelaide run of “Under the Counter”(but not the Melbourne run), which ended on 30 November 1948. This, of course, places him in Adelaide at the time of Carl Webb’s death.
It seems that Hickey Taylor may also have been a drag performer, or to use the language of the 1940s, a female impersonator. The Australian Queer Archives has an interview listing [p.66] (I haven’t yet managed to secure a listening appointment but have contacted them and am trying, hopefully with Poppins).
Taylor worked in his stage manager capacity with some of the most celebrated Southern Hemisphere female impersonators of the time – e.g. Phil Jay and John Hunter of the Kiwi Revue shows.
As an aside, there have been books (and even Masters theses!) on the soldier female impersonators – theirs was a skilled and well regarded craft. They could also often be a tough bunch. Brent Coutts’ book “Crossing the Lines” is probably the most comprehensive review of the Kiwis.
I viewed Hickey Taylor’s probate document, as well as his hospital death report from the Alfred Hospital at the Public Records Office of Victoria. He died of heart complications – an unexpected death of septicaemia – in 1962. (I’m still digesting the report and will send my photos to Nick.) Dr Colin Ernest Seabridge, the Alfred Hospital’s Resident Medical Officer wrote “I find it impossible to state the cause of death.” There are a lot of similar words and phrases to Charlie Webb’s death and inquest documents.
Taylor was known to the hospital, he was “a depressive, with suicidal tendencies”. He had been “under psychiatric treatment.”
He left his estate to his widowed mother and his brother and sister, this included two houses – 34 and 36 Fawkner Street, South Yarra (worth a small fortune now!)
Connections and Speculations
Was Hickey Taylor the source of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayam? (Commenter Em and I believe so!). We know that it was printed by New Zealand company Whitcombe and Tombs and that an identical copy has never been found. (Was it a limited army print run?) I haven’t been able to find Taylor on any New Zealand Immigration and Passenger lists in the 1940s, so I would say if the Rubaiyat came via Hickey Taylor it might well have been via a Kiwi Revue member, such as renowned female impersonator Phil Jay, who played in the same cast as Taylor in “The Girlfriend“.
We know that Charlie was fond of solving Norman McCance’s newspaper bridge problems, but there’s also a picture in the Sydney Sun of Hickey Taylor playing bridge in 1937:
We can hypothesise about the relationship between the two men and also about Carl Webb’s manicure, careful shave, well-developed calf muscles and wedge shaped feet, noted at the time of his death. We could speculate whether this was the end of an affair, an assisted suicide or a case of moving a dying Charlie somewhere where he could be found without linking him to his theatre friends. Perhaps someone else deposited the suitcase at the station? If we think about the laws and climate of the time, an anonymous death makes a certain amount of sense: Victoria only removed the death penalty for sodomy in 1949. It was only between 1975 and 1997 that Australian states and territories gradually repealed their sodomy laws and began gay law reform.
It also appears that Carl may have told his family he was in Cottesloe, working as an electrician, as per the solicitor’s advertisement regarding Gladys May Scott’s will (posted on Derek Abbott’s Facebook page by Lachlan Kelly). Where was Carl between the end of 1946 and November 1948 and what was he doing?
The Tidying-Up-At-The-End Bit
I think the first Cipher Mysteries post I ever read was “On Carl Webb, Truth and Beauty” (5 August 2022) where Nick warned us against “The one true narrative”:
Maybe we can now each spin our own tidy yarn tying together personally preferred loose threads…But… by doing this, I think we’d be dancing around some sinkhole-sized gaps, not in our preferred story (which will always sound nice to our own ears), but in Carl Webb’s actual story.
What was the American connection? Had Webb travelled to America? Did Doff give Webb the Rubaiyat? Did Webb have a replacement partner lined up? Might he actually have been gay, and married Doff to hide his sexuality? What instruments did he make … Did he have a police record?
My own interest here was first sparked when Bromby Street was mentioned: I initially felt sure the Somerton Man case had something to do with signals intelligence (there were at least fourteen different signals intelligence related sites in the local area during World War II). But I think we should now add a relationship with Hickey Taylor to the list of possible narratives to consider. Might the story have more in common with that of poor Alan Turing, needlessly persecuted because of his sexual preference for men?
I suspect this one may have legs (with well-defined calf muscles?).
Finally: thank you John Sanders for initially pointing out that Gerald Keane had travelled to New Zealand – I think that put us on this track, and thank you also Poppins for finding Hickey Taylor. Punters: keep the commentary “noice” or Aunty Jack will “rip your bloody arms off!” (Sorry Nick, Aunty Jack is an old Australian reference, from before my time here!) And thanks Nick for promoting my comment to a post; it gives a good opportunity for further sleuthing and mature reflection.
Nick asked if I had found any performance photos of Hickey. I haven’t but think that J C Williamson’s Gilbert and Sullivan operettas would be the go. There are Gould League Lover of Birds badges up for grabs for anyone who finds one!
Nice work, Jo and Poppins; this line of inquiry makes sense on all kinds of levels.
While Charlie may have had some kind of presence in Cottesloe (such as a PO box or a forwarding address), my enquiries here in WA have turned up nothing.
A thought: I wonder if Hickey Taylor happened to be in Sydney during WW2, like Jessie Harkness and other members of the broader Tamam Shud ensemble.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/229728449 – stage manager in 1951, never missed a day!
I should perhaps also add that the Henry Herbert Taylor in Cottesloe appears to be a different person entirely.
A fond farewell to the irreplaceble and unforgetable Barry Humphries aka Dame Edna Everidge. Happy onward Journey to inarguably the most revered Australian entertainer of our times.
Nice article. In the end, it turns out that the Somerton man was a woman turned into a man. Nice plot. But what about today, there are a lot of men converted into women in the world. And vice versa. His legs were like a ballerina’s. Maybe he also had pink underwear in his trunk.
@Jo
Excellent post! I wish I had time to dig into this alternative line of inquiry.
According to Stuart on Abbott’s FB group, the well-defined calf muscles could be a genetic trait in the family.
But if Carl was a female impersonator, that could explain why no one recognised his photo in the newspapers. Maybe his impersonation was superb!
Jo
I am sure that you are completely justified in passing over my meagre contributions to the SM debate here on CM – such as my findings about Jack Keane and the Borovansky Ballet/J. C. Williamson’s or my speculations about whether Charlie was gay/a cross dresser – but I just can’t sit back when you pinch my Aunty Jack quote without even a nod in my direction.
As Ann O (I have to admit that was me) I replied to Pat on September 28, 2022 at 1:39 pm: on the ‘Kevin Alexander D’Arcy’ thread.
“But if you don’t keep reading my comments, in the words of ’70s Aussie TV legend Aunty Jack (like me a man masquerading as a woman), “I’ll rip yer bloody arms off!”
I do still drop in here on the odd occasion when I’m at a (very) loose end. I usually refrain from commenting as I am well aware of my rep as a “fly in the ointment” but viewing some of the recent posts on the ‘Somerton Man/Jim Beaumont Connection’ thread I’m not sure my absence has helped to improve the tone.
Personally I’ve never had a “hickey”, on my neck or anywhere else – thank God!
so are we assuming that CW went to Adelaide for Hickey – a love connection that was doomed and as he lay dying in his lovers arms , two tortured souls, Hickey slips in the piece of paper , the now haunted words -its all over now (the pain) Tamam Shud. (I am not crying, you’re crying ). Are we also assuming that somehow Gerald Keane knew about Carl’s demise and kept it to himself due to religious convictions. Was it Hickey that sort out Nurse Jo Thomson/pharmacists for the ” medicine” Did Hickey commit suicide using the same poison used on Carl ? (Why am I getting flash backs of a ‘A Single Man’)
But seriously like all cross dressers Carl would have to have had a stage name…..what was it, i wonder?
Em: personally, I’m not assuming anything at the moment. But I do wonder if there was a party after the last Adelaide performance of Under The Counter.
@ Steve – it’s good to see you back on here! I actually didn’t remember that you’d introduced Aunty Jack before. They were very popular in their day so it’s just one of those references that gets dropped all the time by friends my age who grew up in Australia! I arrived in Australia on grand final day as a teenager, in 1981, so just missed out there! Collingwood had just lost against Carlton. The streets were full of glum and angry looking people, wearing black and white striped tops with numbers on their backs. Many of them had tattoos (before they were fashionable) and it was kind of obvious that there was no NHS dental service over here!
I don’t claim to be particularly original in my findings & insights and historical knowledge & understanding are always provisional, contingent on the next piece of evidence or a better understanding. Of course whatever story I’ve pieced together has been shaped by everything many of you have posted previously. You’ve made many valuable contributions & I’m sorry that I’ve read many of them on the run (or in the tram). The bloke who taught me to teach history has a popular saying, “history is a magpie discipline”! Oops there’s a bloody Collingwood reference for you!
@ Nick – now there’s an idea!
@ Em – I did spot a Carl Miller on the Australian Queer Archive listing for drag performers (1920s) but then realised that it’s probably a reference to UK playwright & historian Carl Miller who wrote “Stages of Desire” – a history of queer theatre. It seems that the Kiwi Revue performers simply used their own names and had a repertoire of characters. They seem very gender fluid or non conformist. There are stories on Trove of them also being tough soldiers & dandy young men. I keep trying to reconcile Charlie Webb manual labourer & football player with female impersonation and drag, which I think was probably a private sideline/social thing as I imagine it was fairly risky beyond established theatre & military revues. I’ve reached out to the Australian Queer Archive to try & get a historian on the case. I spoke to Stuart Webb before posting as who knows where this might go, I like what I’ve seen or heard of Stuart and Cristy and ultimately this is their family’s story. Stuart confirmed that the family were all talented musicians and performers, even Russell played the pianola before cinema performances.
@ Furphy – yep, I reckon you could be on the money again. We need to check JC Williamson programs for wartime Sydney & possibly Pakie’s guestbook!
@ JS – apparently as a Melbourne Grammar school boy Barry Humphries to dress in a Merton Hall (Melbourne Girls Grammar) uniform, with a cushion up the front. He was once seen dressed like this, crossing Prices Bridge with a dolls pram, which he flung off over the side and into the river! ( I usually avoid jokes about pregnant school girls as I’ve been there!). Yes, Australia has lost arguably its best ever cultural attaché! Vale Bazza, Les, Edna, Barry et al.
@ Steve
Maybe this will assuage any FOMO you may feel!
https://www.etymonline.com/word/hickie
In the 1920s it was an object you didn’t know the name for… as in doohickey.
If the admins of Derek Abbott’s Identifying the Somerton Man facebook page weren’t taking down my posts or pushing them into the pending bin, I’d be suggesting cross checking a few JC Williamson credit lists (for Hickey and/or Kiwi Revue members) and running a few scripts through a language processing program, looking for the code as a script or staging mnemonic – eg The Girl Friend. I did an intuitive read of Kiwi Revue programs with no low hanging fruit to pick…
(Derek had used the AuStage listing to provisionally observe that Hickey Taylor wasn’t in Adelaide in November 1948; I advised looking through J C Williamson’s programs and posted a link to the program for Under the Counter, which has Hickey Taylor’s Stage Manager credit).
Jo: from your bridge pic it appears that Hickey (birthmark) Taylor was on the short side around 5′ 6″ with black hair and a dark complexion. His family were likely of Protestant and Jewish mix going by details of a burial notification I’ve (well) spotted giving preference to C of E over a Star of David embossed familial grave marker. As for the original Hobart born family, all passed on in Melbourne, bar Albert Jr. MM who died at Passendale in 1917, then followed in turn by Albert Sr. in ’35, Lizzie (Isabelle) ’66, Flora ’67 and Ernie in 1984, they can be readily found in a number of suburban cemeteries which of course you’ll have kept in your own reference notes. From the one unclear portrait I’ve seen, I’d still be satified with my selection for H. H. Hickey Taylor (if present) as being ‘Thing’ our bloke in the pork pie hat sitting sour faced alongside Digger Martin and above Dan’s two ladies at the sign post end of the pic.
Charlie’s tendency towards morose anti social behaviour does not come across as typical of homosexual man to man type models who might be characterised as being of socially outgoing behavior, amicable disposition and humerous in their outragious effemininity. However that does not mean he wasn’t into the other form of depravity (1948) of being a cross dresser in which discreet members got to strut their stuff at one of JAS Coutts High Heel clubs without fear of being seen by the missus. Needless to say they were very popular with a certain class of mostly professional gentlemen having a lust for fetish style sexual gratification with only too willing like minded ladies. I did write all this up years ago when I first came on the SM scene for it made perfect sense, including having our man getting around in sheilas clobber to avoid being identified. Alas no one took any notice so nobody ever knew about it until now…anyhow if you’s want a sample of such behavioural oddities that you may find enlightening please check out this from around 2012, ‘Tamam Shud and a Bizarre Connection’ http://staringfromtheabyss.blogspot.com/2012/05/tamam-shud-and-bizarre-connection.html
I don’t know whether it has been posted elsewhere before: A 1945 photo of Hickey Taylor (2nd image, rightmost photo): https://digital.theatreheritage.org.au/pages/view.php?search=&k=&modal=&display=thumbs&order_by=resourceid&offset=480&per_page=240&archive=&sort=ASC&restypes=&recentdaylimit=&foredit=&noreload=true&access=&ref=515
Great research Jo, it’s all very interesting, hey …. Hickey’s in the family photo, he lived about 7 minutes drive from Bromby Street, he worked with Gerald and JC Williamson, looks like he enjoyed a game of bridge and was in Adelaide at the time of Carl’s demise …. how very curious. Good on ya for going to Prov Vic …. I was gonna head there in a few weeks. Cheers
Thomas: very well found! I’ll add the picture to Jo’s post, I’m sure she won’t mind. 🙂
@ Thomas – genius!
Gould League Lover of Birds Badge for sure!
(someone will have to explain this reference to people newer on here – it’s a bird conservation club badge someone thinks that a schoolboy is wearing in a Swinburne Tech School photo – very popular in the 1920s – Sanders was sure Charlie would have been a collector)
Hickey Taylor beautifully made up as Lieutenant La Vergne!
@ Nick – it would be good if this could be added to the post, if possible!
The Desert Song, also resonates with the Rubaiyat of Omar Khyam in terms of its date, setting and imagery.
I’m seeing things like: Margot, Red Shadow, General, One Alone (song), ballet dancers. I wish we could access a script!!
@ Em – It does feel very sad and haunting, a possible story of gender non conforming men of another time…
Just a thought – is there anyone on here from Canberra? (eg Byron Deveson?) If we really thought The Desert Song might be a hot lead it could be worth checking if there is a script or book at the National Library of Australia’s JC Williamson archive… For me it’s sitting on amber right now…
Sanders, if you’d studied the literature before opening that yawning rotten gravelike aperture you call a gob, you’d be well aware of the close links between homosexuality and depression. This was particularly prevalent when sodomy was a capital offence. It’s a great shame that stupidity is not.
Now a journalist colleague of mine is presently telephoning and interviewing the suspects in the Family Murders and it has become clear to her that the late the Hon. Don Dunstan MLA engaged in regular sex with boys. His legalisation of sodomy for the over seventeens was a mere fig leaf which did nothing to legitimise his filth.. Who can forget his resignation speech – delivered by the old fruit in his pyjamas.
Bananas in pyjamas.
When you deliver your resignation speech could you please do it in full army dress? Ie gum boots, stubbies and a ceremonial dunny brush. Could it be soon?
The Snoswells would love to hear it.
Wowee, magnificent find Thomas.
The Desert Song play, from Quebec archives:
https://numerique.banq.qc.ca/patrimoine/details/52327/2401591
@Jo (if you’re not already across it) on the NLA there’s a ‘Lady Viola Tait’ Collection of mainly photos and portraits but a few other things. Not sure exactly what you’re looking for but it includes photos of “Hickey” (and “Hicky”) in productions including The Desert Song (around 1930) – but not sure if this is relevant (the way “Hickey” is used it suggests it’s a surname). There’s also a few pictures around 1948/49 taken at or near Theater Royal, Adelaide (mainly of Whitehorse Inn Theatre Company, I think).
I haven’t closely followed the theatre threads, so not sure that anything I’m mentioning is of any use….
Unfortunately the collection has no obvious order (other than the order in which NLA processed them) and there’s some 700 items – so me skimming over them understanding very little of what’s been discussed and what might be of interest probably isn’t much use….
Wonders will never cease. John Sanders has provided a LINK!
@Jo
Only joking (as usual) about Aunty Jack. Enjoyed your piece on Hickey. Yes, I was aware that hickeys were love bites (Buzzcocks ref maybe?) but the idea of ANY sort of physical contact with other human beings has always given me the heebie-jeebies. Hence the “thank God” remark. No FOMO here!
https://cat2.lib.unimelb.edu.au/search~S30?/Xthe+desert+song&searchscope=30&SORT=D/Xthe+desert+song&searchscope=30&SORT=D&SUBKEY=the+desert+song/1%2C412%2C412%2CB/frameset&FF=Xthe+desert+song&searchscope=30&SORT=D&6%2C6%2C
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Desert_Song
It should be easy to get the book of the Desert Song – I’m going to try for one of the Victorian College of the Arts copies for a quick browse next weekend. (My day job is getting quite busy and like others I have teenagers to wrangle).
It would be great to have more eyes on this for anyone who is interested. I’m probably prone to a bit of magical thinking right now!
The Desert Song was influenced by stories of Lawrence of Arabia amongst other things. My copy of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khyyam was given to me as a birthday present in the 80s by a friend. Her sister gave me Seven Pillars of Wisdom for my 21st! I’m seeing both of them on Saturday for one of their birthdays.
Hickey Taylor lived down the road from my old landlord, Herbert Johns, who ran a wood yard on Surrey Road. His widowed mother began the business in the 1930s and Mr Johns was still running it into the early 1990s. He had been renting my old house out since 1946 – we had an amazing rental deal. It was a house that was quickly snapped up via word of mouth – dodgy members of the Painters and Dockers Union lived there in the 1970s (its also where I found my 1935 copy of the Sands and Mac directory of Victoria). I was the last tenant, Herbert Johns died in 1997, leaving a considerable property portfolio to the Anglican Church. I originally lived in the Clara Street house with my very eccentric brother, who died there, of suicide. My brother was in several bands and was a great song writer. He wasn’t a habitual cross dresser but I did “inherit” a blue and white spotted “Amanda Brown dress” (of the Go Betweens) that he’d bought with the intention of wearing on stage. He was very into Islamic art and architecture and painted a great Arab street scene mural next to the front door of our house, on the little porch separating our house from the one next door (another Mr Johns property).
https://numerique.banq.qc.ca/patrimoine/details/52327/2401591
The Desert Song – book
The Desert Song book – nothing that leaps out from a skim read… : \
The code does, however, look more and more like an actor’s mnemonic and stage placement notes IMO.
My cipher mysteries participation is getting a little like Hickey Taylor “25 years and never missed a day!” Sorry Nick!
There is nothing obvious re mapping the code against the Desert Song lyrics…
I had an idea though…
If there are others who think that the code may be an actor’s mnemonic we could slowly pick off other plays and operettas from Hickey Taylor’s credit list, possibly those of others such as Phil Jay and let each other know which we were tackling and what our results were – using this thread.
Whilst this wouldn’t tell us how poor Charlie died it might just crack the code (it might not…) and would provide further context for his death. If we were successful it would mean that some of the wilder speculation could move out of contention and newer histories and ideas could take the (pun alert) stage.
It actually didn’t take long for me to skim read Song of the Desert whilst I (pun alert) shud have been doing other stuff! I’d actually really like Ciphermysteries to get there on this one Nick has toiled long and hard putting up with us lot and many of you, my fellow commenters, are an international band of fair, decent and occasionally quite witty sleuths. And yes, some of us are a moderator’s immoderate equivalent of purgatory and yet he keeps on keeping on…
Mistrel Gannet
How’s yer fake ‘boobies’ y’old poxy doxy. Keep up your slatternly discourse of vile gutter humour by all means. Such vile displays of gross indecency have been sadly lacking of late due to all the infighting amongst our punters, along with some laxity in moderation. In that regard I don’t mind continuing to be the main brunt of your disgusting commentaries, dialogue of which even a Welsh rugby boyo might take offence…but not this old sodger of the Queen what knows all the risque sea shanties, learnt by rote from hearing them boistously blurtedmout by the pretty boygirls of brutish Brit. Marines at the old Terendak Sailing Club Melaka in the sixties. They were the days my friend, wish they’d never ended.
The story of “The Desert Song”: https://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_d/desert_song.htm
Steve Hurwood: actually, John Sanders mentioned a specific interesting post by name and I inserted the link for him. 😁
Drinks on me tomorrow Dusty, all day.
Maybe the SM was dressed to kill?
Thanks Milongal!
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-148778923/view
Hickey as St Joan
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-148779022/view
Hickey in Whoopee 1930
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-148782020/view
At Mark Foy’s at 5.30am, 1930
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-148779629/view
Some blokes on the Transcontinental to Perth – just for Colonel & the Dude!
Sorry, but I’d rather be gaoled at Her Majesty’s pleasure than prosecute an American war at LBJ’s. Thickums here probably waited all night in an orderly queue of one to sign up. Mind you It would have been great news for his carer.
ANZAC Day is a day to reflect upon the sacrifices made by the menfolk of our great and world-changing Empire, not the remnants of de Gaulle’s mistakes in Indochina. In any case this is a man who rejects his King and can therefore go to buggery.
John Sanders has alleged that the Beaumont children are alive and well and that they exist as the Snoswell family. He claims that Grant Beaumont is a South Australian realtor. This is appalling beyond measure.
Thankyou
So long as you’re picking up the tab old boy, I’ll be having one ot two for your old man and uncle Colin, both of whom did their duty and more in our time of need. And God Bless all our Sailors, Soldiers, Nurses, Wacs and galant Fly Boys..including Flt. Sgt. Patrick Joseph Cramer DOW, RAAF Bomber Command. Where would we be without them… Lest We Forget
…At least you could have posted on the appropriate thread page Minstrel Janet, I could certainly do with support like your’n. Any adverse publicity from a cad of such low esteem can only help to get the BC case moving in the right direction. Thanks for your service too old malingerer.
It is also widely believed that the corpse came to Australia from America. And she was of unknown origin. It might want to contact the FBI archives. There was also one weird one. He walked in women’s underwear. I think his name was J.Edgar Hoover. He certainly knew him, so there could be some important clue in that archive. Finding that Edgar’s love journal might shed some light on this old case.
I’ve mentioned that Hickey Taylor lived in the same street as my old landlord, Herbert Johns (d 1997). In fact he lived dead opposite! The area has changed quite a bit. Mr Johns’ wood yard is now a small park, next the the railway line. The wood yard was a wild Stig of the Dump kind of place with random buildings and recycled doors. It was hard to see where the house began and the yard ended. The houses were very close to the Municipal Tip – which is now the Clara appartments. My reading of this area as it would once have been is that Hickey’s parents would not have been affluent. His probably wouldn’t have been a middle class acting family background. (I reckon the two Herberts probably gave each other tips in buying up a few houses when the going was a lot more accessible than now!)
(An old actor lived in my current house in the 1920s-40s, involved as a producer and actor in middle brow theatre, he also advertised his services in correcting speech impediments – a bit like Lionel Logue of The Kings Speech!).
Also, a call out for help in locating a copy of the Girlfriend book – ie script and lyrics (Rogers and Hart 1926). It doesn’t seem to be one that was popular post WWII. Hickey played in the 1948 Perth season, alongside Phil Jay, renowned Kiwi Revue “female impersonator”. I’ve found pictures of the front cover of the program via the JC Williamson collection on Trove but not much else… The songs don’t intuitively map against the code.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Girl_Friend
Sensation #Jo that shot of the lads in front of the “Transcontinental” that according to the Colonel NEVER EXISTED !!!!!!
” Transcontinental !!!! never was one still isn’t a Transcontinental, no such thing !!!” exclaimed Sanders in his most self righteous tone.
Seeing the Colonel proven wrong just never ever gets old.
Love it !!!
Can’t help wondering exactly when the Taylors moved across the bight and did they come as a family unit or did Hickey (Mk. 2) act as scout. Seems that dad was a shoemaker by trade (SM wore B204 brogues) but, was said to have also been first sports editor with the Tasman. Mail Pictorial publication. They were known to be living at their new? Warwick St. Hobart address in mid 1923 so it’s somewhat surprising to learn they had settled in Mebun just in time for Hickey to be in the Webb family photo circa. 1925, the year he got his fortunate start with J. C Williamson; Speaking of which the company apparently didn’t feel the need to give him any accolades for his long service when he died on the job in ’62…mongrels. NB: The original Hickey Taylor was likely to have been brother Albert who died in 1917.
Jo: you chose to open the pen latch and let your spruce goose loose to resume the abuse sweetheart. So much for your Miss goodie two shoes bullshit desire to put the show back on track to where a little friendly chiding was as bad as things got. Now everyone even Dr. moderator seems to be out to kick heads and put the boot in for good measure, and so much for any chance of let up from the dud. I’ll do my best to ignore his taunts and maybe he’ll get back to his dead as a dodo T. Keane interstate auto thief non event and allow me get on with my own little fantasia fest. Yeah “f….n colonel Sanders and pigs might lay golden eggs again one day like they were meant to.
I was looking at the story of Hugh Hastings trying to figure out when he wrote Seagulls over Sorrento (SoS) and why it was based on missile testing – almost like Woomera. I found it in the Times archive and it first appeared 1949 so not later in the 1950s as you might assume from most theatrical sites.
I wondered whether SoS had been a steal from an Australian writer – let’s call him Carl who had been involved in Woomera missile testing but died 1948. SoS sounds like a clever way to associate morse code with the title of a play about the navy, a ship and an emergency. I wondered whether the theatre poster exploited the link?
Hugh never had success again but his 1-off success made him a lot of money as it was one of the longest-running theatre shows in London – possibly ever!
His later scripts seemed to be derivatives of SoS. Like he never had script ideas himself. I think Seagulls over Saigon may have been the same script searching and replacing Sorrento with Saigon.
Hugh Hastings was a Williamson. His great uncle JC before him had a 1-hit wonder Struck Oil. Both claimed to have been call-boys in the theatre. I think it has a different meaning to call-girl. It means he had to shout a lot I guess.
But perhaps hanging around a theatre in 1948 a writer might ask you to hand over their play to the theatre director. You might decide to read it first with time to spare hanging around corridors.
You have to wonder why he changed his name to Hastings from Williamson – perhaps he didn’t own a typewriter so it was easier to change his name than the script. But it must have been written around 1948 I guess to appear in 1949 in the UK.
https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-australian-tv-plays-seagulls-over-sorrento/
@ David – Interesting! It seems that SoS was based on Hastings’ wartime naval experience? He had been in Britain since the mid 1930s. I did notice one of the characters was called Cleland! Also, that the original cast included William Hartnell aka the original Dr Who!
Are you able to access the book for The Girlfriend (1926) through a UK uni? (script and lyrics – playwright Herbert Fields; music and songs Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart) . I’ve found the lyrics but they will take a while to arrive… There might not be anything of relevance but it could be worth a try for the code as a script/song mnemonic…
@ JS – I’ve don’t always understand or agree with you – especially the understand bit but I do acknowledge that you’ve often helped things along – the ROK, Leslie Scott… and you have the long view of what’s been discussed before. And the Dude? Remember those two coffee cups he once used to demonstrate perspective to PB? I reckon one of those coffees was for you! With sugar or salt in it? Take your pick!
In case you didn’t see it via FB.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XyDFRTCVta3w0oru6nZEZDYw0Yaq8RF6/view?usp=sharing
this was the only book chapter I could find.
@ Jamie
I think you are in the US? Just wondering whether you or your partner have access to any performing arts college libraries (eg through a US university). It could be a way of finding the book for The Girlfriend (1926) – still pursuing that script or song mnemonic idea… which could be another dead end. I think the US could be the go as it was originally Broadway production. There are a couple of 1926 copies of the lyrics available on Amazon, but not available for delivery to Australia… I haven’t been able to find the full book anywhere yet.
https://www.amazon.com/Friend-Richard-Lorenz-Lyrics-Rodgers/dp/B0014ZGCZW
@ Jamie and others
Sorry, meant to add this to my comment, above. I’m sure Lady Viola Tait’s photos are of our Hickey and that he is the young man in the family photo! (Confirmation bias?). I. think she must have been fond of him to simply notate the photos as “Hickey” using his first/stage name.
With the disclaimer I’d normally tend to lean toward ‘HooHaa’ for this sort of stuff, this intrigues me enough to bring it back up. I’ve mentioned this before, but wondering what the broader audience thinks of it….
briansprediction com/displayimage.php?album=106&pid=87959
It’s an American ‘psychic’ (or more dreamer) who seems to have come up with the code a few years ago. It’s interesting because it seems to interpret the ‘W’ as ‘M’, and I’ve always been interested by:
– Some similarity (e.g. MLIAO spreads out a bir more, the ‘C’ after the ‘Q’ is small, the some letters are similary inconsistent (lots of different ‘A’ and ‘B’). ‘S’ looks like ‘5’)
– The presence of the additional ‘NSAM BIMP’
There is a suburb in QLD Alexandra Hills with postcode 4161, but that might be nothing (I think sometimes he has several unrelated themes on one ‘dream;)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/233540975?searchTerm=henry%20herbert%20taylor
I wonder whether this is Hickey – in Hobart in December 1924, organising a dance for 50 with only 29 tickets in his takings box?
Great find Milongal and Jo, love those photos, good to see one without his theatre makeup on.
Have you looked through these Jo? One of them has sheet music in them, I haven’t looked through them all yet. Hickey would have been very familiar with The Girl Friend, he had an acting role in it back in 1928 and stage managed it over the years and had bit roles too when he was also stage manager.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3007582742/findingaid?digitised=y#nla-obj-3024517739
I had no idea what a stage manager did, found an old article about it if anyone’s interested … could be a clue to the code if it’s connected to stage managing The Girl Friend.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-581008548/view?sectionId=nla.obj-583155663&searchTerm=stage+manager&partId=nla.obj-581040629
Great research Sanders re Tasmania and Hickey’s family. I also enjoyed your biographical instalment. Perhaps we’ll get some more little snippets at some point. Good on ya.
Pb: you’ve gotta give it to Nick the dud with his ‘any arse will do’ approach to life. Especially with his signature “you’ve got me all wrong Pete” when he’s in a spot, then sucking up to a bloke whos better knowledge he’s just shit canned. Only wish I had the foregiveness in my crook heart to overlook such gross behaviour, alas it ain’t in me.
Thanks Poppins
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3055389935/view
This copy has the full program 🙂
Although AusStage has Hickey as an actor and singer in the 1948 Perth production of The Girlfriend, the program only has him as a stage manager. I’m guessing that if he did sing and dance in the show it would be in the Ensemble and Chorus parts, I think I can eliminate a couple of the popular songs (The Girlfriend, Blue Room) so that narrows things down in terms of reviewing anything for a code mnemonic. Another option could be Phil Jay playing Richard Dennison (he was a Kiwi Revue member so could the the source of the ROK) – he only as a few songs too. I’ve got music and lyrics on order from overseas (not too expensive)- so can quickly check the other songs once it arrives a few moons from now. I don’t know that I’ll find a complete play book – the production changed quite a lot after a 1987 UK run, when the Girlfriend and Kitty were combined as one ’20s themed musical, so it would have to be an old copy and less likely to have been digitised!! Almost thinking of getting a haircut and reprising my old Louise Brooks style bob – she was an influencer par excellence!
Jo: crickies, guess I’m almost on par with you based on my two NSW Intermediate Certs. one internal t’other external, eight subjects (latter non sat) plus a you beaut Military First Class Cerificate of Edication, that being based on the combined pair. I almost feel like I’m a college graduate and why not.
@ Poppins – thanks for the 1926 Stage Manager article! I think the code could easily be Hickey scribbling notes from a producer or noting things as he goes. It certainly sounds like a hard job – lots to remember, wrangle and organise! The 26 years on the job gives a sense that he was dedicated and good at his job!
@ Nick – I wonder if the Stage Manager also organised the after show parties and get togethers?
I don’t know that we’ll get to the bottom of this but I really do think the theatre context is a plausible one. Hell, someone could get a good script out of this, with a great sound track!
@ JS – my learned colleague? The Mr Taylor snr shoemaker information is interesting – where did you find this? I’ve sometime thought about Rosenberg’s Shoes, which I think is now the oldest business in Chapel Street, Windsor (its been going since the 1930s – now specialising in large sizes and bespoke shoes). There is a great interview with the David Rosenberg, the current manager, in a documentary that a friend made – Chapel of Chic by Lesley Rosenthal. I’ve got a brief cameo as a chic 1930s mother, along with two of my children, my son in a dressing gown eating an ice cream and one of his sisters in an early 1930s pram (her twin sister was having a rare sleep, so missed out on a role! Those days were such a blur I can’t remember who was asleep and who was in the pram! We filmed in an old pram shop in Dandenong…).
Jo:
Not sure if you’ve found everything you’re looking for just yet…? Unfortunately, being Nova Scotian, I don’t think The Chin and I can help much with searching through American physical records…
Hot take here, guys!
The unnamed fellow in the Webb family photo, sat above the lady in the light hat… could that be Hickey Taylor? He does look older and heavier than I would have expected, but once I got past that and compared their features and head shapes, I think he’s a pretty good match particularly to Taylor’s trio photo and to his headshot from the Desert Song program. And we can see in that lattermost picture, as well as from him in St Joan, that he seemed to be on the heavier side for at least a period in his life.
The other points against it being him that I can think of, the hair and apparent older age, could also be addressed: being in show business I wouldn’t be surprised if he sometimes made use of hairpieces and the like, and though he looks old, Roy (beside him) honestly looks pretty old to me in that photo as well. Taylor was born just the year prior to Roy, and I don’t think either man looks definitively a whole lot older or younger than the other.
It’s not the most glamorous of outcomes, but I think we may have found our man…
Imo, seems a little desperate guys. It was hard enough wrapping my mind around the fact might be just some hick. To be so involved in theater and have not one outsider call the paper to report knowing him… is kind of crazy. It does fit the well exercised calfs thing though. My hunch before was a little known, though well exercised performer in sort of a “salon” type of context. I have heard of such things existing in the literary world, it could be in dance as well. You know, like folks that get together and put out the cheese to give it a “time to breath”, I have read about it. Not my crowd. Would be for the discreet elite, only.
Hmm… I guess I mean SM could have slipped in and planned to leave after doing one or two shows (somewhere), with very few being aware of his existence at all.
From what you say, it sounds like if Hickey knew SM at all he would mak3 sure the authorities were informed quickly. I have a mild bias, my dad knew this American fellow through school,Rip Taylor, who was a Gong show alum. Perhaps they were relatives. Who knows.
@ Matt – Hickey seems more like a mainstream performer and busy stage manager with lots of credits, so need to know more about his drag history. There don’t seem to be credits for Carl, so any involvement in the world of “female impersonation” would be private or social vs public. Hickey Taylor was back in Adelaide at least by September 1949, as a stage manager for Oklahoma.
Hickey and Gerald were maybe working on The Desert Song 28/29, rehearsals in Melbourne per chance.
In this program it lists him as Harry Taylor. At image 26 there’s a pretty clear photo of them all in costume, just have to rotate it, it’s upside down. It names those blokes from the trio photo as Richard Tovey, Stan Griffiths, and there’s Rege Gordonov who was the man outside Foy’s with Hickey.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3030326003/view
Whoops, in same program Harry Taylor also plays another role, that of Hadji – there must be a portrait photo of him somewhere.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3030295833/view
Jo, I take what has been said with his possible queerness very seriously. I see this thing was obviously of much more major concern then, than it is now. I am *guessing* this thing would have been filtered out by now, and before the “spy theory” had a chance to blossom. I also guess, I don’t think SM was having “just a bit of fun” with his code, in death, though not impossible. I think as I mentioned before it was just this extraordinary mystery that may never be explained. If you guys are getting bored with the SM at all, you might look up Hugh Draper, who escaped the Tower of London, by perhaps magical means. Booga Booga,
@ Poppins – perhaps his stage name was Harry Taylor at that stage? Well spotted with Rege Gordonov! Don’t you love the photo of Margot being swept away by the Red Shadow! Have a biscuit! 😂
Jo: I must confess to having guilded the lily slightly in respect of Albert Taylor Snr’s occupation of boot maker but, on fair grounds (ptp) none the less. In a 1920 application for government death benefits for Albert Taylor Jr. MM KIA, sought on behalf of the old cheese he declared under Oath that his trade and calling was as a (humble) boot repairer. This was highly likely imho, in order to gain curry with said payment authority. As it turned out mum had her grant of nearly a hundred nicker approved without delay and Albert thus resumed his post editoral profession of bespoke shoe maker. Whether or not he took his profession with him to Victoria sometime after 1923, I have no idea but it would not surprise.
Poppins:
Great spot! With the role of Hadji in mind, he might be one of the soldiers who’s a little more dolled up. I am drawn to the fifth face from the left in the lowest row (the second one holding up his gun). With the makeup, he matches Taylor’s 1945 program headshot really nicely! If not him, the only other possibility I might see is the fellow in the back, just above him?
So then, is this our Taylor as well? Seems he was a bit of a lyricist if so:
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-167475632/view?partId=nla.obj-167475641#page/n0/mode/1up
Sorry, I’m likely mistaken… apparently there were a couple other similarly-named Taylors on the scene before Hickey’s arrival:
https://ozvta.com/practitioners-t/
This is why I stick to pictures and leave the researching to the pros!
Harry Taylor was not Hickey Taylor…
https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/contributor/452106
Just poppin’ a couple of docs up here for those researching Hickey Taylor & family in the search for clues – “Harry” is mentioned a few times, unfortunately no statement – but it is interesting he’s referred to as “Harry” – not Henry or Hickey, and appears to be travelling a lot at the time. Sound like a real nice family too …. so it looks like young Phoebe just wanted to be free. Hope Ernie found happiness later, seems to be a good bloke, and Phoebe for that matter.
https://imgur.com/pxUttlW
https://imgur.com/4gl6YE5
https://imgur.com/Clwlzgg
https://imgur.com/zWlq30d
https://imgur.com/d6ARLzV
https://imgur.com/Ck6TcU1
Poppins: just a thought or two on Hickey Taylor, first being that for some reason many Henry’s were called Harry e.g., the Beaumont Satin Man suspect Harry @ Hank Phipps born Frederick Henry 1917. As for Henry Taylor our part time actor, and as I’ve hinted to previously, it may have been a stage name he took on in memory of his brother Albert ‘Hickey’ Taylor who died at Passendale in 1917 and WW1 photo reveals a facial birthmark. In 1922 on being presented with Albert’s memorial plaque, he signed Harry Taylor not Henry.
Thanks Sanders. Ooooh, I’d be keen to see the photo of Albert that ye has seen, and the memorial plaque signing by Harry from 1922 ….. where’s dat?
Poppins: Albert was with pals squatting outside their digs in France and most likely from the AWM or else a Hobart paper. As for Henry signing as Harry Taylor for the plaque I’m almost certain it’s with Albert’s service papers.
One person I came across by chance was Gerald Glaskin who was a prolific gay author living in Cottesloe where Carl was said to be hiding out as an electrician to avoid paying Dorothy.
Glaskin kept challenging the system but failed and left to live in Holland.
But the themes in his short story writing were interesting and often aimed at women with romantic encounters. I guess women’s magazines paid better for short stories. In 1935 as a child he won a beachball but it was only 2nd prize – I bet Harold Creeper was a name he hated. Creeper seemed to be a winner of other types of competitions – sport. Glaskin took another knock in his childhood when they said no letter was good enough for a prize.
In 1944 it was said Glaskin was a pilot officer in New York.
In 1946 they said he had a distinguished career with both the RAAF and R.AN.V.R. But likely he was a navigator.
1955 he was a stockbroker in Singapore but had written his first book about the problems for ex-servicemen and women 1946 to 1948. I guess some aspect was autobiographical ‘A World of our Own’. It might be worth a read to see the atmosphere in Australia at that time and the problems of PTSD. Somewhat like Carl’s behaviour going to bed at 7pm.
I have to say I was impressed with his short story writing. His teacher said the limit for class story submissions was 2 pages and for Gerald 10.
Poppins: the ‘Harry’ as opposed to Henry Tayylor signing for Albert’s plaque is not in the file and I can’t see the the photo which did take awhile to find back in April when I was still inquisitive about ‘Hickey’ in the Webb family pic, more fool me. However, from the file there be two discriptions from on Albert’s induction papers alongside noticeable marks & scars ‘brown mark on left cheek’ which I may have mentioned earlier.
Good on ya Sanders, I’m up to speed now – headed to Tassie births, deaths and marriages for the kick off ….. Born 28 Feb 1897. Private No.4083 of the 47th Battalion late of 15th Battalion, known as Albie, died 12 October 1917 at Passchendaele. His mate said he was very dark skinned with a round dark birthmark on cheek – 59 pages in the NAA. Sad end for young Albert.
David Morgan: check Gerald Glaskin out re two arrivals in Perth of the good ship ‘Ellen Bakke’ out of Penang. Can’t be a joke, shades of the Audie Murphy film ‘To Hell And Back’.
Poppins, JS,
in the past in Australia it was not uncommon for the name Henry to be “abbreviated” to Harry. I have noted that the name Henry seemed to become less popular after WW1 so I expect this war was the reason for the Germanic sounding Henry being swapped for Harry.
Byron: the short form of Harry for Henry (Heinrich ruler) seems to date from at least medieval times in merry England eg., each and every King Henry, I through VIII was nicknamed Harry. So looks as if our Henry Hickey Taylor was at times also known as Harry Hickey Taylor, that is if we can go with gothic logic.
@Js,
They said Glaskin suffered serious injuries in the RAN and didn’t tell the RAAF. He had lost the use of his arms for a while. Great for a pilot or navigator. He also supposedly started his writing career at that point by dictating his story from his hospital bed to a man who had lost his legs. It could all just be a great fake backstory he had created. It could be he was really in intelligence and he could make up his own military backstory.
….Also applies to Harry Windsor born Prince Henry Windsor of Sussex with the same pet name rules being consistant with his forebears going right back to Henry VIII and beyond.
Thanks Byron and Sanders.
Harry’s referred to as just “Hick Taylor” in this article – a cast member of Under Your Hat in Adelaide for the Goodwood Orphanage in 1939.
There was a fella named Verdon Hick Taylor from Williamstown, h’mm, could that be the source of the Hickey, some relation per chance?
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/131930132?searchTerm=hick%20taylor
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/23218738?searchTerm=verdon%20hick%20taylor
More variations of spelling – he’s Hickie this time – h’mm, you wouldn’t think it’d be that hard to get his name right, hey, but apparently not so ……..
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/11342747?searchTerm=hicky%20taylor
And he’s Hicky here:
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130788871?searchTerm=hicky%20taylor
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130334621?searchTerm=hicky%20taylor
@ Poppins – the last article looks like a reference to Under the Counter! “He was the stage manager to Cicely Courtneidge and Oklahoma before being recalled to Gilbert and Sullivan!”
Jo, yes indeed he was definitely working with Cicely in Adelaide when Carl died …. I wonder what became of Hickey’s photo albums and boxes of memories …. a shout-out to Hickey Taylor’s relatives/connections could reveal a photo of Carl and possibly Gerald and crack the Carl Webb mystery once and for all. Wish I had twitter ‘X’ power and followers, but I ain’t got nothin much goin’ on in the social media.
@ Poppins – I couldn’t find any nieces or nephews, only the brother & sister named in Hickey’s will.
Speaking of “x” – I think the x in the code is theatre shorthand for “cross the stage” & that’s why the code is written in two parts – representing two sets of lines or lyrics.
Hi Jo have you got their names?
Poppins: Think you’ll find that Ciceley flew out of Adelaide on 29th November the day before Somerton Man was found dead on the beach, so If your refering to Carl then the assertion re Ciceley doesn’t gel with the given agenda. In Hickey’s case that be a different matter altogether as he wasn’t need for the upcoming short Melbourne season so he probably stayed on in town and may have been there for SM’s curtain call.
@ Em – they were Florence Ethel Clark (sister) and Ernest William Taylor (brother). The sister – Florence Ethel Kate Taylor Clark is on FamilySearch: https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/sources/LZP7-LWQ
And there’s a photo of Florence Ethel on Findagrave and apparently another brother, Alfred Gerald.
https://findagrave.com/memorial/231287405/florence-ethel_kate-clark
Yes Alfred was killed in Belgium. Not sure Florence had any kids as regularly cisited the Sommers, the husbands sister. Michael Summers could be contacted for more info. Ernest William wife called Yvonne could be interesting if she had any chidlren.
Pat: Albert James Gerald Taylor’s photo at age 20 was taken on the Belgium line just prior to his death in 1917 and far as I’m aware there was no brother Alfred.
Jo, X cross the stage could be spot on. It’s also interesting that the first letter in each line could be a direction, hey, Right, Top, Left, Top – the M on each line being for Movement or Mechanist …. need to find an old stage manager/mechanist to view the stage play and see what they say about the cipher ….. too easy, lol.
@ Pat – Alfred is the brother who died during WWI, in 1917.
“They would not listen, they’re not listening still. Perhaps they never will.” Last chance for @ Jo, Pat & Em to get the message. Henry (aka Hickey & Harry) Taylor bn. 1903 had only two brothers, Ernest William bn. 1900 and Albert James Gerald bn. 1897. There was no brother named Alfred (Gerald) as you would have punters believe; this despite attempts to inform otherwise…and politely too.
This must be his wife Yvonne, buried next to him. I have requested a photo.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/215703013/yvonne-hayek
Sorry fot the typo, son Albert James.Gerald Taylor…
Not her.
https://billiongraves.com/images?t=med4227446&col=1&cat=149006&rec=4981531
Ofcourse it was a typo JS….too many names floating around
Anna: Three typos same dead thread, same three amigos up to no good as usual.
Before going to Adelaide, Miss Cicely and many other members of ‘the company’ had cocktails at Mrs and Mr F Pentland Watson’s flat in Cottesloe. Mr F Pentland Watson was the local representative of J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/47139656?searchTerm=%22Under%20the%20counter%20%22
The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 – 1954) View title info Tue 2 nov 1948
Page 19
WOMAN’S REALM
SOCIAL NOTES
Miss Cecily Courtneidge, star
of “Under the Counter,” Mr.
Thorley Walters and many
other members of the company
were the guests of Mr. and
Mrs. F. Pentland Watson on
Sunday afternoon. The artists
were taken for a drive to Ana
luen, where they had afternoon
tea. Later, at Mr. and Mrs.
Watson’s fiat at Cottesloe, cock
tails and a buffet meal were
served. A number of frienids
of the host and hostess assisted
by acting as “chauffeurs” to
members of the company. Those
who offered their cars and ser
vices were Dr. and Mrs. H. C.
Callagher, Dr. and Mrs. J. Gor
don Hislop, Dr. and Mrs. H.
McMillan and Mr. and Mrs. E.
K. Woodroffe.
On 7 Nov 1948, manager of the tour, Mr. A Helmrich said in Kalgoorly the cast will number 35, with 9 stage hands and 6 electricians.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/59488828?searchTerm=%22Under%20the%20counter%20%22
STAR WANTS TO
SEE GOLD MINE
British comedienne Cicely Courtneidge will
appearln “Under The Counter” in the Kalgoor
üe Town Hall next Thursday and Friday nights.
* ** Manager of the tour, Mr. A. Heimlich, who arrived in
‘Kalgoorlie during the week, said the cast will number 35,
w¿t|t 9 stage hands and 6 electricians.
“Kalgoorlie is the only provincial town in Australia ,m
‘ which the. company will play,” he stated.
“Kcason tor »uss vomi
neidge’s visit it to see a WA
goldmine.”
A varied itinerary has been
arranged for the visiting star,
who will be welcomed on aiv
rival by the Mayors of Kal-
goorlie and Boulder and a
representative -of the Kal-
goorlie Road Board.
Miss Courtneidge will also
be given a civic welcome bv
Kalgoorlie Mayor R. G. Moore.
Carl could have been working as stage electrician and doing some stencil work for stage manager Hickey Taylor.
Mrs and Mr F. Pentland Watson’s daughter Paula Grantley Shelton married Mr E. G. Way, of the American Civil Air Transport in China on 30 March 1949 in Canton and died on 29 December 1949 in New Jersey, US. Sad… but her parents were entertaining the the cast of Gilbert and Sullivan opera during the opening of the Perth season in 1950 and many other parties, as well as having hols in Europe in 1952. Trove is fascinating!
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/79819952?searchTerm=%22F%20Pentland%20Watson%20%22
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/22801317
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/84372054?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FD%2Ftitle%2F275%2F1950%2F05%2F27%2Fpage%2F7965556%2Farticle%2F84372054
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/265909886?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FD%2Ftitle%2F275%2F1952%2F09%2F12%2Fpage%2F29730737%2Farticle%2F265909886
At least her mother had a happy ending!
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/248924025?searchTerm=%22grantley%20shelton%20%22
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/46252963?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FW%2Ftitle%2F30%2F1947%2F01%2F03%2Fpage%2F3777626%2Farticle%2F46252963
Mrs. F. Pentland Watson, Marion, née Kelly, had a previous marriage to Dr. Grantley-Shelton who died in 1944.
They lived at Glenferrie Road from 1917 to at least 1946. Richard August Webb must have known them from the time he was a baker/pastrycook at Glenferrie Road.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/152193900?searchTerm=%22grantley%20shelton%20%22%20%22marion%22
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/243423674?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FH%2Ftitle%2F1190%2F1933%2F09%2F11%2Fpage%2F26424012%2Farticle%2F243423674
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/22232684?searchTerm=%22grantley%20shelton%20%22%20glenferrie
Pat you are a genius! I think we are getting closer
Pat: it’s given that Richard Webb ran the bakery in Springvale Rd., Springvale from 1928 to 1938, ten years, after which time he retired, moved to Moonie Ponds and died in April 1939. So then, when did he become a baker/pastrycook in Glenferrie Rd. Hawthorn which is a hike from Springvale far as I can tell, and how did he get to know your Dr. Grantley Shelton for that matter. Maybe I missed something?
@ Em, I wish, but yes we’re getting closer. If only the real geniuses would come back… misca, Angela, Furphy, RichardD, SteveH, Behrooz and others … Each one of them has made invaluable contributions to this investigation.
@JS
Richard August Webb
27 Oct 1919
R. A. Webb (Hawthorn)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/4665338
27 Oct 1920
R. A. Webb (Hawthorn)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/4575153
1921
Malvern, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
64 Glenferrie Road. Source: Vic Electoral Roll.
1923
R. A. Webb, pastrycook , Glenferrie Road, Malven, invited to Shepparton)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/179140312
1924
Oakleigh, Victoria, Australia
50 Kangaroo Road. Occupation: Cook. Source: Vic Electoral Rolls (1924-1927).
PS.: I don’t know why I bother to reply to you tbh.
I don’t know if Richard August Webb owned the pastrycook at 64 Glenferrie Road or if he was an employee. Anyway, he left the premises in 1924.
In 1925 it belonged to C. DOIDGE, Wholesale & Retail Pastrycooks.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/165135091?searchTerm=%2264%20glenferrie%20road%22
Pat: for my part I don’t know why you see fit to carry on with your frivolous trivial pursuit unrelated to Somerton Man. What is even more confounding is why in the heck I bother to constently pick you up on your fake Brazilian bullshit (besteira).
@ Pat – I think you’ve found our “electrician Cottesloe” as per Gladys Scott’s probate ad!!
@JS
It could be that RA Webb had multiple shops and that it was a brand name like you never saw Marks or Spencer in all their shops. It could also mean Carl opened his own pastry shop and had eaten his own pastry before he died.
@ JS
Maybe it’s because you have nothing else to post and you can’t stop being a bully? Anyway, I’m done with you. And I will keep posting because I don’t indulge bullies..
@ Jo
I can’t say it’s definitely a connection but I will keep digging!
Seems as if Cottesloe Frank’s ‘second hand rose’, lady Marion’s daughter Paula from her first marriage to Dr. Grantley-Shelton and our Pat’s ellusive Dorothy Jean Robertson, almost shared a birthday, latter being born the day before on 18th July, 1920. Pat knows, that with Dorothy Jean/Jane/joan anything goes; whether right or not?
Prize winner, Henry H. Taylor, Henley, West Ulverstone, in 1919.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/170947281/20370737
Sorry, not Hickey.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/68831195?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FA%2Ftitle%2F46%2F1943%2F11%2F13%2Fpage%2F5768346%2Farticle%2F68831195
If you are a little bit techie and you want a quick way to retain the links you search for e.g. “Hicky Taylor” rather than copy and paste….
So they look like this (but formatted like an excel sheet):
Title Date URL
G. & S. opera ‘more popular’ 1950-04-06 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130334621?searchTerm=%22hicky%20taylor%22
S.A. SINGERS TRIED FOR STAGE SHOW 1950-05-05 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130788871?searchTerm=%22hicky%20taylor%22
Under Your Hat’ Company At Goodwood Orphanage 1939-08-30 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/41087872?searchTerm=%22hicky%20taylor%22
THEATRE ROYAL COMPANY TO APPEAR AT ORPHANAGE. 1939-09-01 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/167761954?searchTerm=%22hicky%20taylor%22
BIG ATTENDANCE AT GOODWOOD ORPHANAGE CONCERT 1939-09-08 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/167762007?searchTerm=%22hicky%20taylor%22
The code below is a Google App script. But first you need your own Trove api key but it is easy to get if you open a Trove account. You can research that.
Then click extensions, apps script and then paste the code below over the top of the starter code shown.
The next is the tricky bit…but you need to name the blank sheet and the app e.g. Trover (whatever…). Then when you save it you will have horrible warnings. But you have to do the opposite of your instincts – like clicking No instead of Yes. so that you are allowed to run the code. There are no secret bits of code in it to take all the money from your bank account…honest…
To run it return to the sheet and click custom menu and the side bar option. Then enter your search phrase e.g. “Hicky Taylor”.
If you want to keep the sheet – duplicate it – and the use the original to run again with a new search phrase e.g. “Charles Webb”.. and so on.
The code was created ENTIRELY by Bing Chat. I just asked for it.
But you would need to be a risk-taker to proceed.
// Your API key
const apiKey = ‘TROVE api key HERE’;
function onOpen() {
var ui = SpreadsheetApp.getUi();
ui.createMenu(‘Custom Menu’)
.addItem(‘Show Sidebar’, ‘showSidebar’)
.addToUi();
}
function showSidebar() {
var html = HtmlService.createHtmlOutputFromFile(‘Page’)
.setTitle(‘My custom sidebar’)
.setWidth(300);
SpreadsheetApp.getUi()
.showSidebar(html);
}
function searchTroveNewspapers(query) {
const apiUrl = ‘https://api.trove.nla.gov.au/v2/result’;
// Specify that the Trove API should return responses in XML format
const params = encodeURI(‘?q=’ + query + ‘&zone=newspaper&key=’ + apiKey + ‘&n=20&encoding=xml’);
const url = apiUrl + params;
const response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url);
const xml = XmlService.parse(response.getContentText());
const results = xml.getRootElement();
let records = results.getChildren(‘zone’);
if (!records || records.length === 0) {
// Handle no records case
return;
}
records = records[0].getChildren(‘records’)[0].getChildren(‘article’);
const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActive();
const sheet = ss.getActiveSheet();
// Clear the sheet and add a header row
sheet.clear();
sheet.appendRow([‘Title’, ‘Date’, ‘URL’]);
// Output results to sheet
records.forEach(record => {
// Check if the attributes and child elements exist before trying to access their values
const titleElement = record.getChild(‘heading’);
const title = titleElement ? titleElement.getText() : ”;
const dateElement = record.getChild(‘date’);
const date = dateElement ? dateElement.getText() : ”;
// Use the url attribute instead of troveUrl
const urlAttribute = record.getAttribute(‘url’);
let url = urlAttribute ? urlAttribute.getValue() : ”;
// Prepend the base URL of the Trove website to the relative URL and insert /article/
if (url) {
url = ‘https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article’ + url.split(‘/newspaper’)[1];
// Append the search term to the URL of the article using ? instead of &
url += ‘?searchTerm=’ + encodeURIComponent(query);
}
sheet.appendRow([
title,
date,
url
]);
});
}
David Morgan: don’t think it’d work for me, I ain’t not the techie type and have not the foggiest idea how to ‘copy and paste’. Think I’ll leave all that geeky URL caper to the real pros, eg, Jo and Pat, knowing they wouldn’t lead me further into into any of their dark dreary Webbs.
Atta girl Pat; one must have the pluck to fight and a will to win out against the bully boys I always say. With a mix of the right stuff, true grit and by maintaining a stiff upper lip you can take in their stride all the harsh albeit well intended constructive critisism meted out and more power to you..if only you eased off on your fruitless digging up of skeletons and opted for chasing down solid leads of astute punters that show more promise.
What do you mean spy theories? Or the fact that CW might not be CW due to 3inches. These solid leads are nothing but delusions of people that have either nothing to do and lile to overcomplicate things. Pats lead shows more promise that many of your nonsense. You are impeding investigations by limiting and boxing in view points. Is your goal to be the only one on this website discussing the SM? I guess talking to yourself is something you do well. Enjoy.
@JS,
Yes, the code was for the younger folks (under 65) who might want to build a set of links for the whole plot.
I am trying to see whether technology can help solve crime and as I don’t have the ability to code it myself i use multiple AI slaves. The Trove idea was a first simple test to see whether AI could get it right.
For example, I was experimenting plotting the locations of SM on a map using AI to find the centroid etc. I don’t know whether there is any significance in it but the police profilers use these techniques with a sort of blind faith that X marks the spot.
Em @ Anna: only person here still talking up ‘spy theories’ or CW not being CW due to 3 inches (height difference?), far as I’m aware, would be Peter Bowes who is a self confessed writer of fiction and nothing more. Unless you include occasional visitor and respected retired scientist Byron Deveson who has always supported the espionage theories of Gordon Cramer, who has himself not been a contributor to “this website” for years. If you could be more explicit on that point that would be nice; and should you ever think of anything relevant to the original Somerton Man case worth that’d be even nicer but, as they say pigs might fly.
‘Astute punters’? 😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣
Hear, hear Em. 👏🏻👏🏻
SteveH, if you’re still reading this nonsense, it reminds me of a Pink Floyd song “Free Four”.
The memories of a man in his old age
Are the deeds of a man in his prime
You shuffle in the gloom of the sick room
And talk to yourself as you die
Can someone in Australia try to find this PhD thesis?
Chorus boys and tight-waisted young men: an exploration of Melbourne’s camp subculture during the interwar period: 1919-1939. Author: Wayne Murdoch.
https://minerva-access.unimelb.edu.au/items/c25f22a5-f493-5646-b9f6-46318dfac218
Pat: ‘Kamp Melbourne’ by Wayne Murdoch appears to be his thesis ; published in hard cover at only $125.95 through Amazon,a must have for queer sub-culture devotees, like your good self perhaps.
Normally when someone on familysearch has a detailed genealogy where the family didn’t do the research there is usually only one answer. The person being researched was LDS or Mormon, Carl Webb is probably the exception.
But for the LDS there was another hero of Glenelg – a story of redemption. Their hero was Archie Oliver Pudney. In the 1920s Archie ran a business that went bankrupt. In the 1930s he was a petty criminal getting fines and in and out of jail – the usual plots of deception, cheque fraud and running a fake lottery. Finally, his wife had had enough and divorced him. So Archie was now a homeless criminal in a sense at the end of the pier or jetty before jumping in.
In April 1948 – using his full name Archibald Oliver Pudsey he was stranded on the Glenelg Jetty. He was there initially with a policeman but the policeman left the scene and Archie was left on the surviving part as the rest of the Jetty fell into the rough sea. He was alone until young swimmers attempted to get him to jump into the sea. He refused to be rescued. He survived eating the head of a dead fish and burnt some paper he found from a notebook not a persian poetry book. I assume he had matches. He was rescued in a small rowing boat after being there for several days alone facing his demons.
I imagine as Archie disappeared from the newspapers he didn’t commit further crimes and we have to imagine he was redeemed. He likely became an upstanding citizen attending LDS services and presented as a man who had faced his demons and found God. There has to be a reason familysearch wanted to research his family history without family involvement but call him Archie not Archibald – they always seem to do a name change when someone is redeemed.
I have been researching one other Victorian LDS family and trying to show a link to Mr Cruel but it is all circumstantial and no real evidence of a link. But again another story of redemption and name change of a child rapist where the family is fully documented by the LDS back to the 1700s.
Still waiting in Customs (I guess) for my copy of The Unknown Man which I really didn’t need to buy. Arrived in the US August 10. Ebook sellers have to love this nonsense. Used book sellers not really. I have not ordered books from overseas because of these hassles. Maybe TSM was a derelict Customs agent people got tired of his slacking.
Information kindly provided by Mary on Findagrave:
Yvonne Taylor
There is only one Yvonne Taylor recorded as buried at Cheltenham and she is with her husband Fred so not Ernest’s husband. according to the Electoral rolls, wife of Ernest Taylor was Yvonne Patricia Taylor and she was living with him from at least 1963 but their marriage doesn’t appear on the Vic BMD and death is after the records available from BMD. There is a possible probate for her in 1994 –
https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/F97D42D2-F2E1-11E9-AE98-43A1DA5F8ADF
Pat: thank heavens for that, most of us were worried that your Yvonne Taylor may well have been Ernest’s husband, so thanks to Mary we can set our naughty minds at rest and look elswhere for trivia.
Matt: I think I prefer the style of hysterical fiction that Peter Bowes offers in his own hysterical ‘Bookmaker of Rabaul’ novel, as opposed to Gerry Feltus’ official cover-up format that doesn’t offer much hope for an ‘Unknown Man of Somerton Beach’ Toro Toro Toro solution any time soon.
….well actually Pat there seems to be at least two Yvonne Taylors at Cheltenham, Yvonne B. and Yvonne Lilian but, Mary can be forgiven in excluding both as likely connected to Herbert Hickey Taylor’s older sibling Ernest (male?) due to both their age discrepencies.
Pat: unless you’ve something more relevance to the SM case, yet another Ernest William Taylor was just brought to my notice which is right up your alley. He was living in Claremont St. South Yarra in 1928 when he petitioned his Phoebe Victoria for divorce on grounds of her desertion, the couple having been married in Hobart 1922 when he was 23 and the wench not so sweet sixteen. Sounds like he might be your man although I’m not anxious to confirm without more solid evidence. I’ll leave it up to your good judjement.
Poppins: looks like you had given us the full monty on Ernest and Pheobe Taylor’s separation just a few weeks back which leaves few ongoing doubts about Ernest, leastwise in regard to his first marriage; So now Pat can put aside her woes and get on with other more relevant matters. Sorry, I should have paid more attention to the Hickey thread instead of concentrating on other important aspects of the ongoing Somerton Man identification dilemma etc.
Unless there was another Henry Herbert Taylor in Hobart who was into dancing, I think Hickey Taylor joined J.C. Williamson’s firm in 1926, not 1925 as stated in the post.
He was the co-owner of a ‘Children’s School of Dance’ from 3 Sep 1924 to 25 Jan 1926, when the renamed ‘The Majestic Academy’, under Storr’s Buildings at Liverpool street, was under new management.
The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 – 1954)
Tue 2 Sep 1924
Page 1
Advertising
MESSRS. H. H. Taylor and W. J. Hook
open their New and Up-to-Date
Studio of Dancing Wednesday Evening,
September 3, Storr’s New Buildings, Liver-
pool-street. All the Newest Mainland
Dances taught.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/23761181?searchTerm=%22Storr%27s%20Buildings%22%20%22taylor%22#
The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 – 1954)
Mon 25 Jan 1926
Page 8
Advertising
DANCE TO-NIGHT, and Every Mon-
day, Wednesday, Saturday Nights,
Majestic, under Storr’s Buildings, late H.
Taylor’s Room. Under new management.
Ladies 1/. Gents 1/6. Lal Collis pianist.
LES AIKEN.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/29127767?searchTerm=%22Storr%27s%20Buildings%22%20%22taylor%22#
There are lots of ads througout 1925, with Jack MacLoughlin as Pianist and H. H. Taylor as Principal.
DANCING TO-NIGHT, THE MAJES-
TIC, Storr’s Buildings, Liverpool-st..
Also GRAND DANCE SATURDAY
NIGHT. Latest Music by J. MacLough-
lin. H. H. TAYLOR.
The Majestic Academy, Storr’s Buildings,
Liverpool-st. Learners’ Classes every after-
noon. Also arranged Mon., Thur., Fri.
evenings. Henry Taylor, Principal. Jack
McLoughlin, Pianist.
DANCING, DANCING, TO-NIGHT.
The Majestic, Storr’s Buildings,
Liverpool-st. Also Grand Dance, Wed.
and Thurs. evenings. Learners’ Class
every afternoon (excepting Monday). H.
H. TAYLOR.
DANCING, TO-NIGHT, Annual novelty
and Jazz Night. Majestic Academy
Dancing, Storr’s Buildings, Liverpool-st.
Chocolate Waltz, Jazz, Caps, Streamers.
Dance Thursday. Learners’ Class every af-
ternoon. Private lessons arranged. Latest
music by Mr. J. McLoughlin. H. H.
TAYLOR.
He was the winner of the EUCHRE Tournament.
The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 – 1954)
Thu 19 Apr 1923
Page 8
Advertising
EUCHRE Tournament, To-night, Vic
toria-hall Four good prizes each
night. Starting of Second Competition
To-night. First prize for highest points
for four nights, Ham; also Second Prize
Mr. H. H. Taylor, winner of last competi-
tion, 39 points.-A. RIGBY.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/23627778?searchTerm=%22H.H.%20Taylor%22#
Examiner (Launceston, Tas. : 1900 – 1954)
Tue 22 Apr 1924
Page 5
THE PROGRAMME.
THE PROGRAMME.
Tasmanian Championship Recitation.
Gentlemen. (a) Non-humorous, (b)
humorous. Mr. H. Taylor, Hobart. (b)
“A Tram Ride;” (a) Selection from
“The Lady of Lyons.”
Mr. H. Taylor (b), 79 points .. .. 1
Mr. H. Taylor (a), 78 points .. .. 2
Judge’s Decision.
Mr. Hall prefaced his remarks by ex-
pressing himself at a loss to under-
stand why it was that in the Tasmanian
championship in elocution there was but
one competitor, while in the juvenile
section there was a fair number. Did
young fellows think it was derogatory
to their dignity or effeminate to appear
iu competitions of this sort? It was
really extraordinary. The only compe-
titor in this “B” section work was very
good. He (the judge) would suggest,
however, that the competitor would use
a little more dash. Humour should be
in no sense dull. With regard to cross-
conversation, it was as well to drama
tise at no greater angle than 45 degrees.
It was quite possible for the voice to
be lost in the wings unless this rule
was observed. The award would be 79
points.
In the non-humorous section Mr. Tay-
lor was not quite so successful, but his
was a capital selection. His fault, which
was his chief fault –lack of ease– was
particularly noticeable in this item, be-
cause it depended for its success upon
the fervour with which it was given.
The competitor was too cold in his ap-
peal to the girl for forgiveness for his
act. He was careful –too careful– and
he would suggest the development of
the vocal scale above the medium. How-
ever, his performance was very pleas-
ing, and he was well worthy of the
championship prize with 78 points, mak-
ing a creditable aggregate of 157 points.
Tenor Solo, “The Minstrel” (A flat)
(Easthorpe Martin). Mr. L. F. E. Rose
(Launceston). Mr. K . B. Goyne (Laun-
ceston). Mr. A. Harris (Launceston).
Mr. K. B. Goyne, 83 points .. .. .. 1
Mr. A. Harris, 80 points .. .. . .. .. 2
Mr. L. F. E. Rose, 75 points .. .. .. 3
Contralto Solo,. “Saphic Ode,” D
(Brahms). Miss Doris Wilson, Latrobe;
Miss Rene Trenmayne, Launceston; Miss
Mabel Roper, Launceston; Miss Nora
Shirley, Hobart.
Miss Nora Shirley, 90 points .. .. .. 1
Miss Doris Wilson, 80 points .. .. .. 2
Miss Mabel Roper, 79 points .. .. .. 3
Judge’s Decision.
He had asked the society to make the
innovation this year in providing a
judge’s award sheet to each competitor,
remarked Mr. Heinze before giving his
decisions in the contralto and tenor
solos. His object in doing this was to
lay down concisely before each compe-
titor an exact record of where errors
were made, and in this manner he hoped
that mistakes might be more easily
eradicated for, after all, the main ob-
ject of conmpetitions was to educate
rather than to just give first, second,
or third prizes. Competitions promot-
ed keenness in the communitiy and
were an incentive to amateur competi-
tors in their art. He trusted that the
judges’ sheet would be helpful to com-
petitors.
The feeling in the contralto solo was
much better than in the tenor solo,
added Mr. Heinze. The tenor solo was
a work of most delightful beauty, but
each singer, with the exception of one,
attacked it in no special spirit at all.
If singers would only look at the ac-
companiment of the work they would
see that it had most delicate charms.
There were moments when the tenor
voice could be as tender and beautiful as
a contralto, and one contralto, he might
mention, was of a wonderfully tender
beauty. The tenors who sang this song
would do well to read it again. Mr. K.
B. Goyne made the only attempt to give
any sort of delicacy or chanrm to the
song. He had a rather lovely, tender
voice, but it wanted bringing out. Into-
nation was good, but more delicacy
could be emparted. His voice was forced
in the upper register and he would ad-
vise the competitor to relax his throat
muscles. He would allot him 83 points.
Mr. A. Harris had a voice that
was fair in quality, but the muscles of
the throat were too tight again. A
false accent was put on in page three.
The award was 80 points. Mr. Rose
had a false voice, and the throat mus-
cles contracted in the upper register.
No charm whatever was imparted into
the song, He would allot 75 points.
All three competitors in the contralto
solo were suffering from nervousness,
said the adjudicator. This was a very
diffcult tiing to overcome. He would
advise competitors who suffered from
nervousness to sing before strange
people. It was unforturnate that an
adjudicator could not make allowance
for nervousness, as the song must be
judged on its merits. Miss Nora Shir-
ley, in bar 20, said “her-when,” which was
wrong. Otherwise she was good, the
final verses being splendidly sung. With
a little more colour it would have been
an excellent performance, and he would
allot 90 points. Miss Doris Wilson
had a voice of quite charming quality,
but it was wanting in volume in the
lower register. The two bars 11 and
12, were very good. Intonation was not
good at the commencement. Enuncia-
tion was quite good, and he would give
80 points. A voice of fair quality was
possessed by Miss Mabel Roper, and the
enunciation was good, except in one in-
stance. He would award 79 points.
Brass Quartette. (conductor allowed).
Burnie Municipal Band Quartette.
Piano Duet (open). “Pas des Es-
charpes.” Misses R. Higgins and M.
Mance (Launceston).
Tenor Horn Solo. “Caprice” (Cyril
Jenkins). Mr. A. Buck (Devonport),
Mr. C. J. Stebbings (Mowbray), Mr. N.
Howe (Burnie).
Sacred Solo, gentlemen. “Great Lord
of Life” (any key). Florene Aylward,
M. K. B.. Goyne, (Launceston), M. L.
J. Trudgian (Launceston).
Recitation, humourous, ladies and
gentlemen. Own selection, Miss Muriel
Miller-Alexander (Launceston), “The
Waybacks;”Mr. H. Taylor (Hobart)
“The Last Half-Hour”.
B Flat Cornet Solo. Amateurs. “When
You and I Were Young, Maggie” (E. T.
Goldman). For those who have never
won a first prize at any public com
petition. Mr. C. Gooding (Launceston),
Mr. J. C. Russell (Launceston).
Recitation, with musical accompani-
ment. Humorous selection. Miss
Revis Mance (Launceston), “Little Mary
Fawcett;” Miss B. Balfe (Launceston),
“A Littlo Bit of String.”
Grand Champion Solo. Ladies’ own
selection. Open to all. (a) Opera or
oratorio; (b) ballad (not to be from
opera or oratbrio). Miss Ruby Hig-
gins (Launceston), (a) “Rejoice Great-
ly;” Miss Maleita A. Waldon (Launces-
ton), (a) “Far Greater In His Lowly
State;” Miss Nora Shirley, (a) “Ah,
Rendima.”
Poetry. gentlemen. Open to all. Own
selection. Mr. H. Taylor (Hobart)
“The Arsenal.”
Sacred Song, ladies. “Cast Thy Bur-
den” (Hamblen). Miss Ruby Hig-
gins (Launceston), Miss Maleita A. Wal
don (Launceston).
B Flat Cornet Solo. Open. “Vic-
tory,” original fantasie and air varie
(Herbert L. Clarke). Mr. A. Clarke
(Burnie).
Euphonium Solo. “My Skiff Is On The
Shore” (William Seddon). Mr. Victor
Clarke (Burnie), Mr. O. H. Hind (Bur
nie).
The competitions will be continued
this afternoon at 2.30 and this evening
at 7.30.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/51304631?searchTerm=%22H.%20H.%20taylor%22#
The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 – 1954)
Tue 19 Jan 1926
Page 8
Advertising
DANCING NOTICE.-Mr. HENRY H.
TAYLOR wishes to thank his Pupils
and numerous Friends for 1925. Studio
will be Closed, as he is leaving for the
Mainland, and hopes to return to Hobart
in the near future with the Latest Main-
land Steps. Thanking one and all again
for support during my term of Dancing.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/29127155?searchTerm=%22Henry%20Taylor%22#
@ Pat – great finds!!
All these so called Hickey Taylor associations with dance studios, eucre comps. and unlicensed ticket vending based on his being one and the same as another having the name Herbert H. seen in Tassie papers circa. 1923/25, be a tad short on proof.
The JCW 1925 contracted fellow of that monicker born in 1903 would have to have been pretty busy along with his pre mainland career path being established to get time off from his own newspaper job in Hobart to fit it all in, especially at such a youthful age. Who Knows?
Every week I get an email to tell me to download Ruth Balint’s article on the SM. Why has no-one been able to locate her and ask her about the police file she found in Feltus’ drawers he forgot to publish info about in his book?
Surely it must be named as Dorothy Webb or Dorothy Robertson on the police file?
That’s an interesting find, Pat, and it’s definitely Hickey Taylor at the dance studio …. the three of ’em are in the electoral roll for 1925 in Hobart … We have Papa Albert, Ernest and Henry all ensconced at 128 Elizabeth Street …. Ernie the draper and Henry H. teacher of dancing. Sanders, your protest has been dismissed. All clear on the semaphore board.
https://imgur.com/a/lnsv7oM
Poppins: in re your “Sanders your protest has been dismissed”. What protest pray tell?
Couple of queries based on your Hobart residency chart but bear in mind they come from an inquiring mind and not being any sort of protest perse.. So we see Alfred Thomas, Alice May, Alex (F) and Isabelle all of whom seem to be domiciled at the 128 Elizabeth St. address, so perhaps you might like to fit them into the Hickey Taylor family pie just for the sake of completion..as if it matters!
Popps…A couple of Taylor related 1925 electoral roll inconsistentcies that seem unusual for official Govt. records if that’s what they purport to be, eg., The Taylors had moved to Victoria by 1923, that is according to the Military authorities who had mail to Alber Eckerman forwarded care of GPO Melbourne. If that ain’t enough there’s the spelling of Mrs. Taylor, she having been a plain jane Isabel not the more pretentious Isabelle; so ‘shows to go you’ that rolls are not always as accurate as we might expect.
@Sanders, fair enough, the word “protest” shall be withdrawn from the record and replaced with your “that’s a tad short of proof” …. Isabelle is Hickey’s mum, and those other Taylors are at another address in the street. William James Hook remained a dancing teacher for many years ….. can’t see that he ever married, and in later years is listed as a houseman.
Popps: in re your “little snippets” request directed for my attention; I’ve come up with the goods regarding Hickey’s chronology events. I may be wrong but seems that Jo’s man was MIA during the war years and stayed for the duration a full six years out of sight out of mind. The man’s history of committing acts of indecency was known to police and he would be aware of harsh penalties under prevailing old colonial statutes. Hickey’s only hope being to get out of Dodge before the encroaching war prevented any means of escape, he took his shot.T Timing was right so Henry got to spend the war in London where his behaviour would not likely have raised too many eyebrows if at all (know wa’ I mean?). So how did he get back home without getting lumbered on his arrival pray tell. I’ll leave that easy finale in your capable hands, then you’ll deserve the final Guild League badge before case ‘sine die’ adjournment next week.
Poppins…thats all fine & dandy but still leaves Isabel v Isabelle in the lurch, your Hobart nominal electoral roll saying one thing and Vic. PROV plus Death Records another. I also recall Jo in her guest appearance (this thread) as formost authority on all things Hickey Taylor that his dad was James and mum was…you guessed it.
Thanks Poppins!
The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 – 1954)
Fri 16 Apr 1897
Page 2
Family Notices
TAYLOR—JEFFREY.—On January 8, at St.
Andrew’s Manse, by the Rev. Dr. Scott,
Albert, only son of the late William Taylor,
to Isabella Emily, second daughter of
James Jeffrey. Both of Hobart.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/9395374#
.
Pat: January 8 1897 means a full three months to get the wedding details published which seems self serving, especially in that dad worked for the paper and that first born Albert (the original Hickey Taylor) was born not long after. Naughty twenty year olds couldn’t wait for a later date least it be too late to shut the gate.
…and when I said “lest it be too late” I meant it, in that baby Albert came along just five weeks after the wedding guests had smugly burst forth with ‘Oh Promise Me’
For the record: Henry Herbert Taylor, bn. 1903, theatrical emp, arrived Wellington 27 January 1946 per QSMV Dominion Monarch out of Southampton via Capetown, Fremantle, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney… civilian first class passengers comprised mostly dependants of Aust. and NZ. service personell…
….said service personnel were in the main from the NZ 28th Moiri Battalion of which the renowned Te Kiwis concert group were from.
….In departure to the norm for Dominion Monarch’s voyage to the antipodes was apparently via the Suez Canal and not The Cape, first point of call being Fremantle. My humble apologies.
Gould League badge Sanders! With a big fat tui on it! Or even a moa!!
Seems I may have missed the CM usually reliable snail mail for Hickey’s departure from Melbourne on or about 6 June 1940 unless I’m mistaken. It then would have coincided with close of the suez for safe sea travel hence the Dominion Monarch’s diversion to Liverpool along with the AIF convoys. Hickey wouldn’t have been idle over the next five years, and so we might expect to find ample references to his involvement in the wartime concert scene (te Kiwis) and troop entertaining which would have been right down old Hick’s alley
Hickey would have crossed paths with likes of Vera Lynn (White cliffs of Dover), George Formby (cleaning windows), Marlene Dirtybitch (Lili Marlene) or immortal Gracie fields the Lanceshire Lass (Sally Sally pride of our alley) … memories to die for no doubt and lityle ‘Johnny can sleep in his own little bed again’.
Gee thanks Jo. I’ll take pot luck with the bf Tui, there having been no proven sightings of the Moa since ornithologist J. Gould of League fame, apparently caught up with a nesting pair during a visit to New Zlnd in 1843 thereabouts?
Thought I might have tagged Hickey doing a stint with the ‘te Kiwis’ in Africa ’41 but turned out to be Bill Taylor on Sax (not sex) who was captured in Crete along with half of me dad’s mob. Briilliant article on foundation of the original band group and the subsequent history of the variety concert party, including a South Pacific theatre sub group plus a short sketch of it’s long success in post war Australia. Such a pity only F Hall seems to have heard of the revived ‘te Kiwis’ review that toured with American USO concerts in Vietnam. I had a Maori mate from the band Wayne (ex pusser) who died a broke man and blind in Saigon just ovrr a year ago, having not a Tui bird penny to his name and no support from an ungreatful nation who refused even to recognise his RNZN service nor to give him a decent send off.
Now, now Sands, I’ve been on the usual treasure hunt after your posts ….. a few things. I believe Agnes Mary Palmer Howitt is Alaric’s sister, not his daughter. I don’t think he ever married. P.13: Law notices. They seem to have gone on holidays together over the years, heck, one holiday was for 7 months – and it looks like Agnes remained in the family home at 4 Cliff Road all her life.
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=0pwQAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA13&dq=alfred+alaric+palmer+howitt&article_id=3274,304569&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiO19S9hMGEAxUYS2wGHQXWAIoQ6AF6BAgIEAI#v=onepage&q=alfred%20alaric%20palmer%20howitt&f=false
@Sanders, as far as I can tell there’s an 11 year gap between Hickey setting sail to New Zealand and Alaric boarding the Dominion Monarch – I haven’t found them together on the ship yet ….. it seems Hickey, along with Gladys Moncrief ( travelling under cover of the name Moore) and other cast members landed at Wellington, from Melbourne,on a ship named Durban Castle, 27 January 1946. I produce Exhibits A and B. I have 12 copies, Your Honour, if they may be handed to the jury members for their perusal, if Your Honour pleases.
https://imgur.com/a/PIWCPlh
https://imgur.com/a/aP0I1Zk
Some pics of Alaric …
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-383778128/view?sectionId=nla.obj-388089592&partId=nla.obj-383822413
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-372074049/view?sectionId=nla.obj-375854498&partId=nla.obj-372104677
Poppins: for starters, I can’t dispute the brother and sister, sans father daughter relationship which was based purely on the couple being listed as Mr. & Miss on the ships’s manifest with no age given. Yes you are also correct on the eleven year time gap between Hickey Taylor’s arrival in NZ and the Howitt trip home which zi didn’t dispute. As for ship names being different and arrival of both in Wellington just days apart, I confess I wasn’t to know, my belief being born of info obtained free on Google; that is until your excellent follow up confirmed the coincidental sailings and routes of both vessels. Sure hope my false assumtion doesn’t upset the state of play or for that matter anyone’s next cunning move against slanders.
https://imgur.com/a/GVUYPmw
@ Johnno – here’s a moa for you!!
However, it’s minus the feathers as Alaric has only yet been spotted with Ronald McDonald, Hickey isn’t yet within cooee! Please keep looking, I think you’re on the track, (winding back, to an old fashioned shack, along the road to Gundagai!)…
@ Poppins – Alaric hobnobbing with the Grimwades is serious socialising in Melbourne terms! I think John was a cousin of the wealthy and enterprising sons of Russell Grimwade, who bequeathed paintings, properties and money galore to the people of Victoria – especially to the National Gallery, Melbourne Grammar School and the University of Melbourne… serious financial, cultural and social capital here!
https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/grimwade-sir-wilfrid-russell-7054
John Keane’s reference begins to makes sense in these terms…
Poppins: you will of course have noted, though you conveniently omitted to say so, that both vessels arrived in Wellington on the very same day. So if it pleases Your Honour might I beg to presume that SS Durbin Castle and MV Dominion Monarch were likely in convoy having birthed on the very same day 27th January, 1946.
Ah…Gladys Moncrief as ‘Maid of the Mountains’ (Lehar) I still have her EMI records stored, Vilia and Love will find a way being my favourites. Oh how the old folks at home loved ‘our Glad’. And yes Gladys married name was Moore but she and Tom were done long before her trip tour of NZ after the war. Well spotted indeed and I’m beholden to you for that nice surprise Popps.
Curiously I was looking at Macdonald in Blackwood st. I couldn’t make out whether he was a retired military guy.
Poppins: double thanks in order for your takng umbridge of my flawed shipping news report on Hickey having by-passed Melbourne in his way from England to Wellington. Turns out my sources appear to have been in err and that he was never in GB during hostilities, that I sussed out by establishing that his friend and fellow returnee Gladys Monkrief hadn’t toured blighty since 1930. A little more digging, we find that both had appeared together in ‘Maid of the Mountains’ at Melbourne’s Tivoli theatre early in 1943 and if so how?. Seems that the friends could only have boarded SS Durban Castle on one of it’s Australian stops from Southampton. No other alternative seems viable, bearing in mind the abscence of commercial shipping between Europe and the Antipodes from 1941 to late 1945.
Defence has nothing to offer in reply, &c., Excellency and rests accordingly, if it so pleases this petty mucking kangaroo court.
Alfred Alaric (named for maternal uncle) & Agnes Mary (Maisie) Howitt, were of well connected Somerset u/m stock traced through William C., Alfred William & William the poet, historian and spiritulist (Wiki bio). Alfred (Ballarat 1852) went on to lead the official Burke & Wills search party and later recovery mission at ‘Dig Tree’ in the 1860s. Al’s dad was Frankston shire president in his day with both Al and sister Maisie being supporters of charities and MC’s at gala do’s (Frankston Summerville Standard NP). I don’t think either really amounted to much better though there would likely have been ansestrally derived property and accrued estate assetts coming in to tide them over in lean times. That they knew our Hick and my Gerald Keane would have to be a given one ccould say, considering the circles they each moved in…could even include Professor Derek Abbott’s SM imposter and morbid misding poet Carl-of-the-Hills.