Taught Chinese To Handle 'Planes

Radio Record, Volume VII, Issue 6, 18 August 1933, Page 12

Taught Chinese To Handle 'Planes

Aeronautical Adviser to a Chinese Dictator Visits the DominionChristchurch Girl’s Part in English Repertory Movement.

The photographs which appear in to-day’s pictorial supplement

were taken by Mr.

S. P.

Andrew

of Wellington.

ET us introduce to you in this paragraph a man who has had more excitement in his 86 years of life than most men even read about-Captain Talbot-Lehmann, who will give a series of talks from 2YA in the next three weeks. Captain Lehmann, while still a beardless youth, received a commission in 1915, and served in several of tne Royal Air Force squadrons, including the famous 56th-the single-seater fighting squadron, in which Captain Albert Ball, V.C., made his name. Some years after the war finished Captain Lehmann went to China, where, without knowing a word of the language or having entered the country. before, he was appointed aeronautical adviser to Marshal Chang MHsiao-liang, the selfappointed dictator of the couniry. * * bd DURING his service.in No. 2 Squadyr 1of the R.A.F., Captain TalbotLehmann was one of the « officers who volunteered to carry out bombing oper. ations at the time of the Somme push, in order to prevent the German rein-

forcements from coming up. On this occasion ‘his. first attempt to blow up an important ‘ ‘railway juncture by bombing from 8000 feet proved futile, and onthe: second ‘occasion, to make sure of doing the job, it. was necessary to descend to 200 feet." This he did successfully, and was subsequently awarided the Military, Cross:for his efforts. ue ; : HERE soe many things’ about Rugby football that Dan McKenzie doesn’t know, and his ‘talks on the-laws of Rugby from 2YA have been eagerly listened:to by thousands of Rugby fans all over the Dominion, For 16 years Mr. McKenzie acted as senior referee in Wellington, and ‘since 1911 he has been a- member of:the executive of the New Zealand Rugby Referees’ Associa: tion. He’ was appointed president of that body: 18:years ago, and ‘continued to' hold it*down: until 1920, when: it-was

decided to make the position a rolling one. Mr. McKenzie then consented to act as chairman of the execuitve-his old position under a new name. Rugby is Dan’s hobby, and more than one club has appealed to him to settle a dispute on the finer points of the game. LJ # "THE Seanntn’s lilt has gone from the sea shanties to-day-the pull is not there-the heave is not there. Why. bless my soul, you could waltz to ‘Roll-

ing Home to Rio’: as it is sung nowa-days-and I’m sure a sailor doesn’t want to waltz round a capstan." In these words did. Captain Gillespie Ed. wards, veteran of the ocean wave and a recent teller of sea stories. from 2YA, mourn the passing of the ‘real dyed-in-the-wool shanties. This cheery deepsea sailor spent 15 years in the Far East, and it was here that he _ discovered:that many of the shanties that are being sung to-day were borrowed from the who have been singing the same "heave and pull’ songs for thousands of years.’ In his first visit to Rio de Jareiro there was a revolution in progress. The banks had been thrown open and bundles_ of Brazilian notes lay in the streets. The sailors filled their pockets with them and took them on to Shanghai, where their value was normal, and where these sons of the sea acted like mil lionaires for a day or two. Captain Edwards should be well worth listening to when he gives his next radio. talk, , * = * HREBD years spent at the notorious ~ , prison camp at Irkutsk, Siberia. are among the experiences of the noted pianist, Helmuth Hoffmann, who is at present living in Dunedin, and who will-be heard in:numbers composed ‘by Bach, Busoni, Liszt, and Chopin from 4YA on Sunday, August 20. Although Mr, Hoffman is a German, his early days were spent in St. Petersburg. where he studied’ under the famous Professor Essipoff. A few months before the war broke out he- transferred to the- University and Conseryatorium of Music in Stuttgart. Joining, the army, he was captured by: the. Russians and spent three years at Irkutsk. Upon release he joined the Imperial State Academy of Musie and remained there till 1927, when he received a diploma_the highest musical-honour on the Continent. -In -1980-the. outside . world called, and, after a concert tour of the Dutch East Indies. he came to Austra lia-and New Zealand. The latter coun: try Mr.. Hoffmann considered most attractive, and, as affairs are so unset: tled ‘in his native Germany, here -he -has:remained.,.

HROW bricks at. him if you like, but the man who invented the phrases "Makim’ Whoopee’ and "Blessed Event" has been discovered. He is Walter Winchell, prominent American newspaper man and radio star. Winchell creates new expressions and words every day, and some of them (like the examples above) have become world-famous. On the air he originated the call "Okay, Mr. and .Mrs. America’-heard by some New 4Zealand listeners from Californian — stations. He lives at a killing pace and is credited with finding out the news and. publishing or broadcasting it before it happens! % % Nt WELLINGTON seems to have had all the innings in the past with the girls who have made good on the London stage, but Christchurch can boast of a daughter who has made a name for herself on the English stage and who is at present revisiting her childhood home. Marjorie Bassett may not have reached the heights of Marie

Ney or Isobel Wilford, but she has a lengthy list of successes to her credit. Miss Bassett left: New Zealand in the early ’twenties to study at the -Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, and amorg her fellow students were Charles. Laughton and Adrienne Allen. One of her first engagements was with Sir John Martin Harvey,-and she remained in the veteran :actor’s company for two years. From "The Only Way" (Sir John has played the part. of Sydney Carton in this play for. 87. years, and still crowds are turned away ‘Waoen it is staged!) Miss Bassett turned to modern farce, playing the part of Gertrude Twine.in "Rookery Nook"-at the Aldwych. For the last year or two repertory has claimed Miss : Bassett’s attention-a strenuous career, but an .interesting one which takes-her into every: corner of England,