Cultured Views

February 13 will be the day a nation says ’sorry’

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It takes a mature person to hold up their hand and admit that they were wrong, that they made mistakes. So what will it mean for an entire nation to say ’sorry’ for the mistakes it has made during it’s history? This is what Australia will do on February 13th; the Australian Prime Minister will officially acknowledge the treatment to which our indigenous people were subjected over a 100 year period and which saw thousands of young Aboriginal children removed from their families and placed for adoption.

Now, it has to be said that there is some division over this issue; not all Australians are behind this apology by any means but the majority do recognise that wrongs of the past have to be acknowledged. It is the only way in which to truly go forward. Australia is one of the youngest nations on this planet. We are proud of our history on the whole, but there are parts of it that we need to think about. Are we sorry for what happened to our indigenous people? Yes, I have to say I think we should be. Even though it was another time. But even though present day Australians had nothing to do with what happened all those years ago we can at least acknowledge what our ancestors did and let the world know that we are a nation who made mistakes but are prepared to acknowledge that and ensure that such a thing never happens again. And that world out there is a world that needs to watch and listen.

When you take a look at what happened throughout the world in the 20th century alone, our problems seem quite small. Germany has never apologised for it’s persecution and murder of the Jewish people in Europe before and during WWII. Japan has never even acknowledged it’s atrocious crimes against humanity during the same period let alone get around to an apology. They will all claim ‘that was in the past, we had nothing to do with it’. Fine, so it was. But there is no better way to go forward than to clear the past. This is what Australia will do on February 13th.

The rest of the world will hear about it, the rest of the world may comment, but that is not the point. ‘Sorry’ means nothing unless it means something. And to Australia, whichever side you are on in this issue, it will mean a hell of a lot. They say Australia came of age at Gallipolli on April 25 1915…February 13 is when we prove it.

Popularity: 20% [?]

The joy of reading

One of my greatest pleasures is to relax with a great book. Not that I get much time at all these days though. My mother particularly encouraged my reading habit and when I was six I joined my first library and proudly claimed my own library card. That was when the cards were actually paper cards, and they wore out after a while. These days they are plastic things with a bar code.

I tend to re-read books over again; at the moment I am enjoying the All Creatures Great and Small Omnibus by James Herriot. I must have read this book about twenty times over the past twenty years…at least. But I love it as it provides an escape into a charming little world with characters and people that you rarely find these days. After this I love autobiographies ( especially by film stars ), historical books - I can highly recommend Marie Antoinette by Antonia Fraser, and poetry. I have a great little book with some of the best known poems written over the centuries. There is always something to ponder over in a poem. Try reading Character of a Happy Life by Sir Henry Wotton and see if it does not tell you everything you need to know about life. It starts…

How happy is he born and taught
That serveth not another’s will;
Whose armour is his honest thought,
And simple truth his utmost skill!

and ends…

Who God doth late and early pray
More of His grace than gifts to lend;
And entertains the harmless day
With a harmless book or friend.

This man is freed from servile bands
Of hope to rise, or fear to fall;
Lord of himself, though not of lands;
And having nothing, yet hath all.

There are more wonderful verses in between but I love the words. I often read this to my kids as well at bedtime.

Popularity: 21% [?]

Movie trivia - actors who died during filming

I hope this is not too morbid a topic but in the world of entertainment it is interesting to note how many films were completed after the star had died; in the past it was just a process of replacing the deceased actor with a double and shot them from the back, or they just suddenly disappeared from the film.  Here’s a few films where this actually happened…

* Saratoga, 1936 - Actress Jean Harlow (left) died aged 26 just a few weeks before completing her final scenes. A double was used in her place and you notice towards the end of the film that her character’s face is never shown and does not speak any lines. She appeared in the final scene when they used a scene that was intended for use earlier on in the movie.

* Solomon and Sheba, 1958 - Tyrone Power had filmed about 75 percent of his scenes when he was stricken with a massive heart attack, as he was filming a dueling scene with his co-star George Sanders. He died enroute to hospital. He was replaced by Yul Brynner to take over the role. Power’s closeups in the film were reshot with Brynner but the long shots featuring Power were kept; you can still spot Power in the long shots and even in a couple during the fatal dueling scene.

* Plan 9 from Outer Space, 1956 - a classic this one. Bela Lugosi (pictured) died of a heart attack during production of Ed Wood’s cult film. It features footage of Lugosi interspersed with a double. Wood had taken a few minutes of silent footage of Lugosi, in his Dracula cape, and hired his wife’s chiropractor to double for Lugosi in additional shots. The double is thinner than Lugosi, and in every shot covers the lower half of his face with his cape. You can really spot the difference during his walk through the graveyard scene.

* Giant, 1955 - Actor James Dean only had completed his scenes with just some dubbing required when he was killed in a high speed road crash. His final scenes were shown in the film however his voice was dubbed by his friend Nick Adams; it is Nick’s voice you hear in Dean’s ‘drunken’ final scenes.

* The Misfits, 1960 - Clark Gable died of a heart attack after filming strenuous scenes in this western flick.  He had completed the film but a couple were reshot with a double.

* Canadian Bacon, 1995 - John Candy died from a heart attack during filming. A double was used in some scenes but the film was a flop.

* Twilight Zone, the Movie, 1983 - Actor Vic Morrow was killed, along with 2 children, during a scene. A helicopter hovering above crashed down into the actor and the two children. His episode in the film was included in the release but was edited to change the ending.

Actors injured during filming…

* Raintree County, 1957 - Handsome Montgomery Clift ( pictured ‘before’ and ‘after’ ) was filming when he was horrifically injured in a car smash after leaving a party at Elizabeth Taylor’s house one evening. His facial injuries were severe and production was halted for several months while he recuperated. His face never looked the same afterwards though. He completed the film eventually but if you watch the film you can easily spot the before the crash and after the crash Monty in his scenes.

 * I, Claudious, 1937 - Actress Merle Oberon (below left) suffered facial injuries in a car crash during filming; the project was abandoned and never released even though the film was well into production.

Merle oberon pictured with Charles Laughton, her co-star in the ill-fated ‘I, Claudius’.

Popularity: 76% [?]