New Zealanders Go To Sydney For Night Clubs

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 16, Issue 15, 3 November 1950, Page 6

New Zealanders Go To Sydney For Night Clubs

New Zealand tourists arriving at Sydney are soon swallowed by that metropolis sprawling around the harbour, and consequently have riot made a particular impression anywhere in the city. Anywhere, that is, except the nightclubs. A New Zealander in Sydney can tread the halls of learning, inspect the wheels of commerce and so on without being hailed as a familiar type. Once he sets foot in the nightclubs, however, he discovers he is following a trail blazed and wellworn by countless of his fellow countrymen. There is no doubt that among the businessmen most pleased by the opening of the direct air link between Wellington and Sydney were nightclub proprietors. For them it means more business. An Australian tourist publicity agent, whose work has taken him to both sides of the Tasman, says: “Australians go to New Zealand for the scenery; New Zelanders come to Australia for the nightclubs.” This statement is only a generalisation, of course, but it is substantially true. Messrs Sammy Lee and Abe Saffron, proprietors of two of the leading nightclubs, say that the average New Zealand tourist ' arriving in the city heads for the night spots with the singlemlndedness of a devout Mohammedan journeying to Mecca. The film, “Weekend in Australia” made to attract tourist trade from New Zealand, recognises this national characteristic by featuring a nightclub sequence. The clubs, it is commonly agreed, are dedicated to the task of extracting the greatest amount of cash from a customer in the shortest possible time. Cost for a couple to spend an evening is estimated to run up to £lO and more. Only a person of considerable courage, sufficient to withstand the most dominating waiter, expects to escape with a bill of about £3 only. The clubs are imitating the popular conception of American originals, their bands are imitating American bands (orchestrations are taken straight from popular records), the musicians and ’ singers are imitating Americans in style and dress. This highly derivative product of alert but absolutely unoriginal talent can be entertaining, and nearly always interesting . . . from various points of view. In fairness it must be said that the clubs serve good food and liquor courteously, and provide bright flesh-and-blood entertainment, with the inevitable chorus line. To patrons, of course, they spell excitement, perhaps a sense of high living. To the New Zealand tourist, apparently, they offer that and one thing more: the sense of doing something he had no opportunity of doing in his own country. This last factor is earning Australia quite a lot of New Zealand money.