Jack Charles Jack Charles i(A71492 works by) (a.k.a. Jacky Charles)
Born: Established: 1943 Murray River, ; Died: Ceased: Sep 2022 Melbourne, Victoria,
Gender: Male
Heritage: Aboriginal ; Aboriginal Boonwurrung / Boonerwrung / Bunurong ; Aboriginal Dja Dja Wurrung ; Aboriginal Wurundjeri / Woiwurung ; Aboriginal Yorta Yorta / Yota Yota
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Works By

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1 Jack Charles Jack Charles , 2022 single work biography
— Appears in: Turning Points : 25 Remarkable Australians and the Moments That Changed Their Lives 2022;
1 3 y separately published work icon Jack Charles : Born-Again Blakfella Jack Charles , Namila Benson , Melbourne : Viking , 2019 17022157 2019 single work autobiography

'Jack Charles has worn many hats throughout his life: actor, cat burglar, musician, heroin addict, activist, even Senior Victorian Australian of the Year. But the title he’s most proud to claim is that of Aboriginal Elder.

'Stolen from his mother and placed into institutional care when he was only a few months old, Uncle Jack was raised under the government’s White Australia Policy. The loneliness and isolation he experienced during those years had a devastating impact on him that endured long after he reconnected with his Aboriginal roots and discovered his stolen identity. Even today he feels like an outsider; a loner; a fringe dweller. 

'In this honest and no-holds-barred memoir, Uncle Jack reveals the ‘ups and downs of this crazy, drugged up, locked up, fucked up, and at times unbelievable, life’. From his sideline as a cat burglar, battles with drug addiction and stints in prison, to gracing the nation’s stages and screens as he dazzled audiences with his big personality and acting prowess, he takes us through the most formative moments of his life.

'By turns heartbreaking and hilarious, Jack Charles: Born-again Blakfella is a candid and uplifting memoir from one of Australia’s finest and most beloved actors. (Publication summary)
1 y separately published work icon Play School Story Time : Volume 2 Kylie Howarth , Ella Mulvey , Johanna Bell , Susannah Chambers , ( nar. Lawrence Leung et. al. )agent Tullamarine : Bolinda Audio Books , 2018 29086382 2018 selected work picture book
1 Picture Perfect : The Award-Winning Role Model Jack Charles , 2012 single work autobiography
— Appears in: Reconciliation News , May no. 23 2012; (p. 16-17)
1 22 Jack Charles v The Crown Jack Charles , John Romeril , 2010 single work drama Indigenous story

'Uncle Jack Charles is an Australian legend: veteran actor, musician, Koori elder and activist, but for a good portion of his nearly 70 years he has also been an addict, a thief and a regular in Victoria’s prisons.'

'From Stolen Generation to Koori theatre in the 70s, from film sets to Her Majesty’s prisons, JACK CHARLES V THE CROWN runs the gamut of a life lived to its utmost. Charles’ unswerving optimism transforms this tale of addiction, crime and doing time into a kind of vagabond’s progress – a map of the traps of dispossession and a guide to reaching the age of grey-haired wisdom.'

'This fleet-footed, light-fingered one-man show is a theatrical delight and a celebration of Black Australia’s dogged refusal to give up on getting on.' (Source: Ilbijerri Theatre Company website)
1 1 Jack Charles Is Up and Fighting Bob Maza , Jack Charles , Oodgeroo Noonuccal , Frank Hardy , Jim Crawford , 1972 single work drama
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