person or book cover
Script cover page (Crawford Collection at the AFI Research Collection)
form y separately published work icon 8 mm single work   film/TV   crime  
Issue Details: First known date: 1974... 1974 8 mm
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

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

'MARGARET BATESON: 30. Attractive looking without being strikingly so. Public Servant. A naturally shy person, her manner is polite, even reserved, though later on in the 8 M.M. film clips, a relaxed friendliness begins to emerge. Drives.

'MICHAEL JAMES Late 30's, early 40's. A solicitor, married. English, though not 'public school' background, prefer trace of regional accent. Neither suave lawyer, nor 'ladies man', rather a working solicitor, sincere, competent, with the usual hassles of any family man, but with the added load of an invalid wife.

'MRS. JAMES 36, though looks 56. Twelve months previously suffered a stroke from which she has never really recovered. Premature aging, loss of right arm and side, impairment of certain memory and speech functions. Speaks with a slow, deliberate manner. Occasionally a glimpse of the warm, vibrant personality that existed before. Still an intelligent woman. James' wife. Also English.

'JOHN SMITH: 20, good looking, easy manner. Student teacher, theatre and film making, over from New Zealand on a working holiday. Certain idealism, and also confidence, born of his youth, that becomes tested through the course of his encounter with the police.

'MANAGER (HOTEL): 40's. Bluff, chatty type, with a certain air of insincerity. A student of blending and tax evasion.

'SUPERVISOR (PUBLIC SERVICE): Margaret Bateson's immediate superior. Also 40's. Brusque, efficient type, who displays a certain perception towards Margaret's personal situation, but little sensitivity.

'AGENT (FLAT): Woman, 50. Possibly her husband ran the Estate Agency, and subsequently died. Treats D's almost as if they were prospective tenants.

'GARAGE PROPRIETOR: Small, gnarled, well into his 70's. Old fashioned type, who still gets concerned at young women driving around the country alone and who doesn't mind saying so.

'COUNTRY POLICE SERGEANT: Heavy, balding 40ish. Knows the Hotel Manager fairly well, and probably would share a drink if not for the Homicide D's presence. However, shrewd and knows his job, and handles the Manager with experienced understanding when the time comes.

'JANE CURTIS: Early 20's. Secondary teacher, based in the country. Drives a sports car. Attractive, sense of humour, takes life as she sees it.

'MOTORCYCLE OFFICER: No lines. Not necessary to ride a motorcycle. Discovers the body, during routine exercise.

'POSTMAN : Delivers letters. Rides a bicycle.

'RADIO ANNOUNCER: V.O.

'V.K.C: V.O.'

Notes

  • This entry has been compiled from archival research in the Crawford Collection (AFI Research Collection), undertaken by Dr Catriona Mills under the auspices of the 2012 AFI Research Collection (AFIRC) Research Fellowship.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

      1974 .
      person or book cover
      Script cover page (Crawford Collection at the AFI Research Collection)
      Extent: 60p.
      (Manuscript) assertion
      Note/s:
      • The scropt is labelled with the episode code '02507' on the cover page. '#496' has been added in lead pencil, though this annotation could have been made much later. There is no indication of to whom this copy of the script was designated.
      • The script appears to be an original: it is typed on thin white paper interspersed with some heavier pages, and annotated throughout with liquid paper. The annotations are quite heavy here: in some cases, the liquid paper is combined with white stickers to allow for longer and more comprehensive annotations (or perhaps a second round of annotations).
      • The annotations are alterations to the dialogue and stage directions, though a character has also been removed from the character notes by covering the typing with white stickers.

      Holdings

      Held at: AFI Research Collection
      Local Id: SC HOM : 496
Note: Storey suggests that Swanson was credited as director.
Last amended 30 May 2013 09:34:05
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