Open Microphone

New Zealand Listener, Volume 36, Issue 929, 31 May 1957, Page 18

Open Microphone

NEWS OF BROADCASTERS ON AND OFF THE RECORD

NO COCKNEY

| ISTENERS who are following the exploits of Sidney James as the wide boy in Hancock’s Half Hour, and filmgoers who have seen him in any |of his many film parts, might find it

rather hard to believe that he isn’t a Cockney. With the accent,

| dry wit and all he seems to behave quite naturally as the Londoner born and bred, The fact is, though, that until about 11 years ago Sidney had not set foot in England, let alone London. Still

a little on the right. side of the .mid40s, he was born in Johannesburg. It’s not surprising that-he should end up a star of radio and films, for both his parents were vaudeville actors, though Sidney himself started out as a diamond polisher. Looking back he sums it up as "a very difficult trade and a very boring one." Sidney wasn’t the boy to take boredom lying down, so when he could he varied his working life with spells of stevedoring, coal-heaving and boxing. After serving in an anti-tank unit during the war, Sidney James went to England to make his way as an actor. He tried his hand first at burlesque, then in 1947 got his first film part in Night Beat. With a special talent for portraying pugnacious character parts, he has appeared since then in something like 30 films. One of his most recent shown in New Zealand was Trapeze, in which he plays a man trying to sell two full-grown pythons. Telling the Radio Times about his experiences while working on this film, he recalled how "three times those snakes got round my neck and. had to be

dragged off." And he added: "Funny ‘the things some people will do to earn a bob or two." ‘-

PIONEER

[LISTENERS throughout the Waikato heard -with regret recently of the death of J. S. Anchor, a pioneer of

tadio in "the district. He was aged 78. Mr Anchor settled in Hamilton 37

years ago and established first a radio business and later a _ broadcasting station, 1ZH, which he. ran with his

son for many years. During this time he helped many radio enthusiasts and gave much encouragement to local talent. In 30 years spent in Hamilton, before he retired to live at Tauranga, Mr Anchor was active also in the Church and local organisations; and he was an outstandingly successful bowler. *

RETURN VISIT:

"T DO not like to talk about myself," said Princess Gourielli-- better known as Madame Helena Rubinstein -when we met her in Auckland not long ago. Madame Rubinstein, who is in her 80s, told us this wasn’t her first

visit to New Zealand-she was here about 40 years ago. Although tired after a

flight from Australia that afternoon, Madame Rubinstein was most interesting and charming when

telling ‘us about her work and her four lovely. homes: a_ penthouse in Park Lane, New York; an © old mill redecorated just out of Paris; a house in Grasse, in the South of © France; and a new home in London which she intends to furnish with the beautiful Oriental-style furniture she bought on her recent visit to Hong Kong. After starting to. train as a doctor, which she hated-"every time I went into the operating theatre I fainted"Madame _ Rubinstein took up chemistry, and even today spends a good deal of her time in the laboratories working on cosmetic preparations. She is still studying and wisely says: "The more one knows the less one doesn’t know." Extremely interested in paintings, she helps to further the studies of young artists by awarding an annual scholarship. She herself has an extensive collection of paintings in each of her homes. Madame

Rubinstein has been heard from several stations recently in a Women’s Session interview.

HE idea that the harpsichord is a dry an clattering old survivor should by now have been dispelled, for the Goff instrument that arrived for the NZBS last year has certainly proved its musical worth. Among frequent broadcasters on this instrument has been the pianist Gwyneth Brown, who recently played the harpsichord part in (continued on next page)

(continued from previous page) the Frank Martin Petite Symphonie Concertante with harp and piano as the other solo instruments. Gwyneth Brown was able to study harpsiPIANIST chord technique with Dr Thornton Lofthouse when he was in New Zealand last year. Before that her studies had concentrated on the piano. Gwyneth Brown returned to New Zealand in 1954°after studying for two years in Paris on a Government bursary. There her teachers had included Lazare Lévy and Nadia Boulanger. Although now in her 70s and internationally celebrated in many fields of musical activity, Nadia Boulanger has undiminished energy, Gwyneth Brown told us. "As a teacher she is very vital arid manages to keep personal contact with her ‘students. She still conducts quite frequently, and her sweep and knowledge of music is encyclopaedic. She trains people of all ages from 11 on, she has composition classes, choral classes -what doesn’t she do!" Twenty years ago Nadia Boulanger was the first woman

ever to conduct. a whole programme at a concert of the Royal Philharmonic Society in London. Gwyneth Brown’s interest in choral singing is still strong. She is interested

in all kinds of music making and has recently become répetiteur for the New Zealand-Opera Company, for whom she will play the piano part in The Medium at the Auckland Festival.

GOONERY

* [Ts one thing to bid "Ying Tong Iddle I Po" for a fiendish Chinese upright rosewood piano. and quite another to make the same bid for top place on the Hit Parade, but it shouldn’t surprise anyone to hear that the Goons have

done both. The Chinese | upright rosewood piano incident doesn’t need to

be explained to those who follow J he Goon Show-it was repeated recently from YA and YZ stations-and now we hear that not so long ago one of the Goons laid a bet that he could produce a record, both unmusical and unintelligible, which would reach the top of the Hit Parade. "Ying Tong Iddle I Po," a completely nonsensical record, was the outcome, It got to the top of the Hit 1] Parade in Britain and sald in millionsmaking, we imagine, lots of pyorey, for someone. i