Cirrus@Austlit

A made-for-television film in which Melanie, an unmarried woman working for a women's magazine, falls pregnant and learns to juggle her work with single parenthood.

Source: Memorable TV (http://www.memorabletv.com/global/australian-tv/the-alternative/). Sighted: 24/1//2011

'Grapevines riddle the underworld. Some of the stories spread are rumour, some are authentic. When word on the vine spreads as far as Bluey's superior, Superintendent Willis, there can be no doubting its authenticity. He races Bluey into action to prevent an underworld contract killing.

'The word is out - Vic Nelson, a Melbourne crime boss, has been fingered for death.

'In Bluey's book, if the contract was fulfilled, it couldn't happen to a better bloke. Bluey hates Nelson and all he stands for. And in Nelson's assessment of Bluey, that feeling is reciprocated.

'But Bluey isn't the only one who would be cheering on the killers if Nelson were to die feloniously. Helen, a delicate, willowy girl of 18, has the strongest motive in the world to want Nelson dead.

'Walter Kite is a mumbling, insipid enough type, but he is Helen's protector and it only takes a gun to turn a weakling into a superman.

'Even the hippie-style preacher, expounding the virtues of love and peace would see it as a service to mankind if Nelson were no longer with us to corrupt.

'In fact, few people in Melbourne would not regard the world a better place without Nelson. And Bluey has to find ... and find out quickly ... who it is who has set Nelson up for death!'

Source: Synopsis held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection (RMIT).

The script held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection contains the following character notes (excluding regular characters):

'VIC NELSON: Early/middle forties. A man of immense personal charm. He's good-humoured, good-looking and an easy knack of making people like him instantly. He dresses exceptionally well in expensive, modern clothes. All in all you couldn't wish to meet a nicer guy — except that he's a Melbourne Crime boss with a very nasty and quite sadistic history that goes back many years. He's clever, cunning and ruthless, but somehow manages to remain pleasant for all that. He's been arrested and charged many times, but never been convicted or done time. Bluey and Nelson have a bitter personal enmity that goes back two decades.

'SUPERINTENDENT WILLIS: A well-groomed man in his early fifties. A public servant type of cop. A back-room boy who exists in the rarified atmosphere at the top of Russell Street where crime is dealt with in the abstract and "future directions" are considered. Some political pressure or passing whim will sometimes occasion him to descend four floors and instigate an investigation, but for the most part his hands (and fingernails) remain clean, his well-cut clothes unsullied and his contact with everyday crims minimal. Which is not to underestimate the man. His public service facade is no more than a pose to disguise a mind which is quick and agile. He is, after all, a natural-born survivor perched on top of the tree.

'HELEN: 18 years old. A delicate, willowy girl with sad eyes and a troubled life who says no more than a dozen words in the entire script and should thus be capable of making a visual impression which is both haunting and sympathetic. She's been brought up in an orphanage, has considerable personality hang-ups and now lives on hippie-starvation level in cheap attics or damp cellars. Cheap, worn-out, hippie-style clothing. Has begged on the streets when times have been bad.

'WALTER ARTHUR KITE: Aged 23. Looks after Helen in a protective sort of way since any true relationship with her would be impossible. Kite's no picture of health himself - he's a mumbling, stumbling sort and they live rough together. Long, straggly, untidy hair and clothes. This couple should be sympathetic in an "Orphans in the Storm" sense.

'MAD SAL': Early 50's. Eccentric in shape, manner, speech and habits. Sal' is completely off her head. Don't look for any hint of sense in her because she's as mad as a coot. She's under the impression that she's been dead for twenty years and that her body is an electrical machine. Don't try and tell her otherwise.

'TINY: Early twenties and a thug. So-called because of his size which is as big as possible. A heavy under the employ of Vic Nelson who would do absolutely anything his boss would tell him without a second thought. Dangerous, nasty and mean, but put him in a suit and tie for tidiness sake.

'GRANT: Thirties. Nelson's second heavy. Not such a brute of a man but just as nasty. Nelson's given him a good living for a dozen years or more and that's bought total loyalty. If anything, Grant is the brains of the duo. The two of them have a running back-chat consisting entirely of sexual innuendo.

'SANDY: Aged 19 or so. With her friend, Liz - these two girls are a couple of fun characters who live in a strange living space above a shop. Sandy is the boss out of the two and gives the impression of being fun, bubbly, good-humoured, scatty and mildly eccentric. Not to say sexy.

'LIZ: Sandy's friend. Same age and similar. Not freaks, just fun.

'PREACHER: Any age. Hippie-style street corner preacher given to expounding the virtues of love and peace to anybody that will listen. Not too much of a maniac.

'UNIFORMED POLICEMAN: As young as possible. Just out of the academy and not up to facing Bluey at full volume. So young that his policeman's hat should look slightly ridiculous over his young face.

'EXTRAS (4): The preachers' congregation.

'VKC:

'STUNT DRIVER:

'STUNT MAN'.

King's Men was originally conceived as a fairly straight television police drama centred on a crusty, middle-aged, old-school police officer based in Sydney's Kings Cross area (and modelled in part on actual Kings Cross policeman 'Bumper' Farrell). But the studio, inspired by the success of American television program The Mod Squad, modified the concept, instead basing the program around a group of young police officers working undercover (albeit under the guidance of a crusty, middle-aged, old-school police officer), where each episode contained a standalone scenario involving the adoption of different undercover identities.

According to Don Storey, in his Classic Australian Television,

King's Men was not as good as Homicide or Bluey or any of the other police series from the Crawfords stable, but it wasn't bad either. The late change of direction to incorporate the undercover squad was a significant factor in the show's demise. If more time had been allowed for development, King's Men could have been a successful, polished product.

Instead, the program was pulled from the air in both Sydney and Melbourne after only a handful of episodes had been shown, and plans for a second series were cancelled.

Albert Moran, in his Guide to Australian TV Series, is less optimistic about the program, describing it as 'a very routine police series despite a veneer of dash and style.'

According to Moran, in his Guide to Australian Television Series, Bluey (and its Sydney-based rival, King's Men) 'constituted an attempt to revive the police genre after the cancellations of Homicide, Division 4 and Matlock Police'.

Don Storey, in his Classic Australian Television, summarises the program as follows:

Bluey is a maverick cop who breaks every stereotype image. He drinks, smokes and eats to excess, and therefore is rather large, but it is his unusual investigative methods that set him apart. He has bent or broken every rule in the book at some stage, to the point where no-one else wants to work with him. But he gets results, and is therefore too valuable to lose, so the powers-that-be banish him to the basement of Russell Street Police Headquarters where he is set up in his own department, a strategem that keeps him out of the way of other cops.

Moran adds that 'Grills, Diedrich and Nicholson turned in solid performances in the series and the different episodes were generally well paced, providing engaging and satisfying entertainment.'

The program sold well overseas, especially in the United Kingdom. But though it rated well domestically, it was not the success that the Seven Network had hoped for, and was cancelled after 39 episodes.

Bluey had an unexpected revival in the early 1990s when selections from the video footage (over-dubbed with a new vocal track) were presented during the second series of the ABC comedy The Late Show as the fictional police procedural Bargearse. (The Late Show had given ABC gold-rush drama Rush the same treatment in series one.)

A pilot for a planned TV series that the Seven Network declined to pick up, Me & Mr Thorne was set in the shop of an eccentric bookseller, who fancied himself as an amateur detective, and planned to draw his reluctant assistant into his pursuit of criminals.

'This episode involves the departure of Sergeant Pat Kelly from the police force.

'It is Sergeant White's birthday, and Kelly and the younger Detective Redford are woking [sic] out in a gymnasium prior to having lunch with the other members of the squad. Kelly, however, excuses himself on the grounds that he has another appointment.

'The pleasantries of White's birthday are contrasted with the tension and finally tragedy as Kelly first waits for the woman he had arranged to meet and then sees her shot outside the coffee shop where he has been waiting.

'Inspector Lawson can get little from Kelly about his relationship with the woman. She was a Czech, and Kelly met her in the course of his duties. Subsequent investigations, however, reveal that she was an illegal immigrant forced into helping a ring of drug pushers under threat of exposure.

'The police follow the trail of the drug ring to an airfield near Melbourne, and the gunman who shot Kelly's girlfriend appears, apparently expecting the arrival of some drugs. In a subsequent chase, Kelly is badly injured.

'The end of the episode is in strong contrast to the opening: Kelly is again in a gymnasium, this time not as the vigorous athlete we have already seen, but as a crippled man in a hospital welfare centre, determined to regain the use of his legs.'

Source: Synopsis held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection (RMIT).

The script held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection contains the following character notes (excluding regular characters):

'IEVA ZERVOS: 25. A Czech immigrant. Attractive. (Note "Ieva" is pronounced Yevva)

'FRANKOVIC: (Uncle) Late sixties. Also of eastern European extraction. Wealthy. Probably been in Australia since the War.

'GALACHI: (Tony) Late 30's. Italian immigrant. A criminal on the run.

'GUNMAN: 30ish. European. A professional.

'BOB SUTHERLAND: Drug Squad Detective Sergeant. A bit scruffy. Probably about the pinacle of his Police career.

'WAITRESS: 30ish. Frumpy.

'1st CONSTABLE: Fairly young. Has a few lines.

'2nd CONSTABLE: Younger. Non-speaking.

'JENNY: Early 20's. A junkie - Probably a Uni drop-out.

'SURGEON: Middle aged. Has a few lines.

'OPERATING TEAM: (3) Extras.

'UNIFORMED CONSTABLE: 30ish. Sutherland's offsider. Non speaking. Drives Police car.

'TWO CONSTABLES: Non speaking.

'DRIVER: European crim. Middle aged. Stuntman driver.'

'Tony Walker is bored, frustrated, and, like many other youths, destined for trouble. He belongs to a gang of yobbos who roam the streets bashing innocent victims. While he is out on the streets, his parents are sitting at home watching a TV talk programme featuring Insp. Lawson and an eminent criminologist, Eric Logan. The story is told on three levels: flashbacks to Tony's childhood, his activities at present, and the discussion underway on television.'

Source: Classic Australian Television. (Sighted: 11/6/2013)

'The body of Katherine Gibson is found in a shallow lake. Her boss, who runs a book shop tells police that she is a lonely girl from New Zealand with very few friends and no family in Australia.

'After a chase, Police [sic] capture a youth who is driving Katherine's car. It soon becomes apparent, however, that the car had been stolen well after the time of Katherine's death.

'Inspector Lawson gets a tip from Detective Murray, a woman detective who tells Lawson that Katherine had been registered at the same computer matchmaking company that she belongs to. After interviewing the manager of the service, Thompson, Homicide Police suspect David Grant. David had been matched with both Katherine and Sally Watson, a girl who was reported missing two months earlier. When forensic scientists discover that some of the items found with Katherine's body had been submerged in water for two months, they search the lake more thoroughly and find Sally's body.

'Grant is dismissed as the chief suspect after he admits to being a homosexual and is able to verify his movements on the nights in question. The focus of the investigation now turns to Thompson. They have circumstantial evidence to convince them of his guilt, but no concrete proof. Detective Murray volunteers to go out on a date with Thompson and set him up.

'Murray is picked up by Thompson, but a series of unfortunate accidents mean that the police following her, lose the couple completely. Murray, however is able to get to a phone and get a message to her colleagues that she is going to a particular restaurant near where the bodies of the other girls were found.

'The Homicide detectives arrive on the scene as Thompson goes schizophrenic and tries to strangle Murray. When Thompson is apprehended he breaks down and it is clear that he is mentally unbalanced.'

Source: Synopsis held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection (RMIT).

[Note: although the synopsis indicates that Thompson 'tries to strangle' Murray, the narration at the end of the script says that he is convicted for her murder.]

[Note: Katherine's name is variously spelt 'Katherine' (in the synopsis) and 'Catherine' (in the character notes/script).]

The script held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection contains the following character notes (excluding regular characters):

'HELEN MURRAY Late 20's. Policewoman. Attractive looks, but not glamorous. Recently transferred to C.I. Competent in her work. However, she has reached something of a cross-road. She is concerned that the demands of her job may over-ride all else - at the expense of her being an ordinary person. She is not sure that she wants to become a twenty-four hour policewoman.

'THOMPSON 30's - 40's. Computer date manager. Good-looking. Drives. As a small boy was dominated by his mother and older sisters. As a consequence he suffers a love-hate relationship with women. A conscientious family man - he expiates his guilt concerning his frequent philanderings, by transferring the guilt to the girl concerned. In other words - a nut.

'DAVID GRANT Photographer. 30's. Intelligent. Sensitive. Helpful towards D's at first - but when it tends to drag on becomes a little supercilious. Over the last few years he has come to realize he is homosexual. For various reasons he is very reluctant to admit it - particularly to himself. Rather a sad figure.

'FLETCHER 23. Small-time crim. Not too bright. Bit of a born loser. Drives.

'USED CAR SALESMAN 30's - 40's. Battling to make a buck. Knows the business inside out and gives nothing away. More than a match for Fletcher.

'CATHERINE GIBSON 20's. Pretty, although she doesn't use a lot of make-up. A shy, reserved girl, interested in philosophy and folk music. Inexperienced in her relationships with men.

'ERIC TANNER 40's. Bookseller. Kindly towards Catherine. A little cynical towards D's when at first he thinks they are Vice Squad.

'CHARLIE SIMPSON 30's - 40's Maintenance mechanic. Brash. Cocky with D's - but mortally afraid of his wife. Considers himself God's gift to women and does his best to spread these gifts.

'CHERYL GREEN 30's. Deserted by her husband. Knows Charlie for what he is, yet still loves him in a fashion. Pretty well hardened to life over the years.

'DAVIS 19. Young, local uniform constable. Fresh, eager and enthusiastic. However his keenness tends to flag when the search for the second body drags on for six hours or so.

'JENNY 19. Sells doughnuts, hot dogs. Straight-forward. Working class. A bit cheeky, but likeable.

'MRS. GRACE 60's. Landlady. Mean and miserly. Sniffs a lot.

'DIVVY (1) 20's - 30's. Uniformed constable (Stuntman).

'DIVVY (2) 20's - 30's. Uniformed senior constable. Bit of a character.

'SEARCH AND RESCUE (1) 20's. Young policeman.

'SEARCH AND RESCUE (2) 40's. Stronger character. Experienced policeman. Kids Davis along a bit.

'FORENSIC MAN Greg Watkins. Stock character.

'TED BROWN 50's. Model boat fanatic. Rudely jolted out of his own little world by the discovery of Catherine's body.

'MODEL 20's. Glamorous but not too bright. XSSW (to fit the only Edwardian dress Wardrobe currently possesses).

'OLD LADY 70's - 80's. Old and deaf.'

The Matlock Police series (originally simply titled Matlock) was commissioned from Crawford Productions by ATV-0, in response to the popularity of rival-network police dramas such as Homicide and Division 4. Crawford's was initially reluctant to create another police series, but ATV-0 pressured the company for some time. Eventually, Ian Jones and Terry Stapleton devised the concept of a regional (Victorian) police series to provide viewers with something different. The more relaxed atmosphere of the country-town setting also allowed the writers to delve into the private lives of the main characters, rather than focusing heavily on big-city organised crime. In this respect, the series was situated somewhere between Homicide/Division 4 and Bellbird. The series did, however, cover typical rural policing, including such issues as break and enters, domestic issues, itinerant workers, brawls, petty crime and robberies, road accidents, the occasional homicide, and cattle rustling. On other occasions, the Matlock police also assisted Melbourne police in locating criminals on the run (among other problems). The idea behind the show was to reflect the causes of crime in a small community and show the effects on both the community and the officers themselves.

The fictional town of Matlock (loosely based on Shepparton in Victoria) is situated inland on the Central Highway, approximately 160 kilometres north of Melbourne. Although the town's population is only seventeen thousand, this increases to around seventy-five thousand when the district is included. The Matlock Police Station is typical of a Victorian country town, with a Uniform Branch and a Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB). The CIB is headed by Detective Sergeant Vic Maddern, who grew up in the Matlock district and is an accomplished bushman. Second in command is Detective Allan Curtis, aged in his mid-twenties. Previously from Melbourne, Curtis has just been sent to his first country posting (against his will) when the series begins. Head of the Uniform Branch is Sergeant Bert Kennedy, an Englishman who migrated to Australia in 1950. A thorough but also easy-going man with a good sense of humour, Kennedy is married to Nell and enjoys the country life in Matlock, so much so that he has knocked back promotion to avoid moving to Melbourne. Several constables are attached to the Uniform Branch, but the most prominent is a motorcycle cop, Constable Gary Hogan, who performs a wide variety of duties. Hogan is about thirty, a friendly, easy-going person who grew up in the country and is always willing to help in whatever work is going.

Revue.

The program indicates the following sketches and musical numbers:

Act 1:

• 1. Overture (orchestra)
• 2. Prologue (Kaye)
• 3. 'Psychosomatic Psymphony' (company and ballet)
• 4. 'This One's for You' (company)
• 5. 'Visionary Vidiot' (Paul)
• 6. 'Cinderella Beat' (Janet, Elizabeth, and Elaine)
• 7. 'Viva Sabata' (Margaret)
• 8. 'Advance Australia Fayre' (John, Sue, Alan, and Dale)
• 9. 'Follow Me' (Ingrid and Frank)
• 10. 'Pie with Sauce' (company)
• 11. 'What Ever Happened?' (Kaye, Julian, Sue, and Elaine)
• 12. 'Schizoid Stratagem' (Johnnie and Paul)
• 13. 'Trilogy' (Kaye and girls)
• 14. 'Little Old Lady' (Julian and Yvonne)
• 15. 'Keep Your Promise, Mr Thomas' (Paul, Johnnie, Elizabeth, Alan, and John)
• 16. 'Cafe Au Fait' (Yvonne, Ingrid, and Peter)
• 17. 'Country Gardens' (Paul)
• 18. 'Bricklaying Blues' (Chris and Frank)
• 19. 'I Wanna be Beat' (Dale and company)
• 20. 'Sing Hey! for Footy' (Ballet, Paul, Johnnie, and Yvonne)
• 21. 'Lady Loverly's Chatter' (Julian and John)
• 22. 'Autumn Litany' (Alan)
• 23. 'Happily Ever Laughter' (Elizabeth, Yvonne, Josephine, Paul, Peter, Chris, Johnnie, and Frank)
• 24. 'El Dorado' (Elaine and Ingrid)
• 25. 'Who's Who' (Josephine, Margaret, Alan, and John)
• 26. 'Whose Zoo' (Paul, Yvonne, Janet, and Ingrid)
• 27. 'Love Isn't What it Used to Be' (Julian)
• 28. 'Shango Aye' (Ballet)
• 29. 'Moonee Ponds Ritual' (Elaine, Johnnie, Yvonne, Julian, Janet, and company)

Act 2:

• 1. 'Take Thou This Rose'
• 2. 'I Must Shout Wonderful'
• 3. 'I Like People Like You'
• 4. 'Les Contes Drolletiques'
• 5. 'Parking Problem'
• 6 'Surf Patrol'
• 7. 'Our Regal Guest'
• 8. 'Don't Monkey with It'
• 9. 'Kiddy Winks'
• 10. 'Proud and Prejudiced' / 'Connoisseur'
• 11. 'Down the Lane'
• 12. 'Ecclesiastical Exclamation'
• 13. 'Opera Elite'
• 14. 'What Did Happen?'
• 15. 'The Unthinkables'
• 16. 'The Ballad of Bethnal Green'
• 17. 'Social Sophomores'
• 18. 'Comment'
• 19. 'Literary Condensations'
• 20. 'Love in a Mist'
• 21. 'The Good Oil'
• 22. 'Without Foundation'
• 23. 'Cha-Cha-Charming' (ballet and company).