Melbourne-born vaudevillian Ernest Charles Vockler carved out an extraordinarily-long career between ca. 1911 (as a juvenile comedian and dancer) and at least the mid-1950s He found initial success in the 1910s as a Chaplin impersonator before firmly establishing himself as one of the country’s leading entertainers in two popular partnerships – the Delavale Brothers, and Delavale and Stagpoole. Known as “Ike” Delavale from 1923 onwards, he managed his own revue company during the 1920s and 1930s, and had toured for many years with soprano Maggie Buckley (1930-1940s). This later partnership also coincided with his new billing – the “Assassin of Sorrow.”
Highly regarded as a revusical writer/director, troupe manager/proprietor, and radio celebrity, Delavale worked for most of the big Australian-based firms and had long associations with Harry Clay, Fullers’ Theatres, Les Shipp, Stanley McKay, and Bruce Carroll (Perth). He also toured New Zealand twice with the Delavale Brothers (1917 and 1919) and twice with Stanley McKay’s Gaieties (1935 and 1936).
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Click below to go to the AVTA page containing Ike’s biography.
The Australian Variety Theatre Archive (AVTA) is a research website devoted to popular culture entertainment in the Australasian region between circa 1850 and the mid-1930s. This year, 2017, marks its sixth year of publication.
The website went online on 10 May 2011, the 146th anniversary of the birth of Australian vaudeville entrepreneur Harry Clay. Since then the archive has published almost 3,000 new records. Many of these entries have also been updated.
Two priority projects were undertaken during the past twelve months to improve the AVTA. These have been completed.
The hyperlinking of all people, troupes, and organisations mentioned in any online pages to their respective entries within the AVTA. Adding hyperlinks is now standard practice whenever a new entry is published.
Replacing abbreviations for all references and citations to all PDFs published in the Works section (1840 to 1935), and adding hyperlinks to any newspaper reference digitised by the National Library of Australia (Trove). This is also now standard practice whenever a new production is added to any Works PDF.
Two additional projects initiated during the past 12 months will continue to be addressed over the 2017/2018 period.
Replacing all abbreviations in PDF biographies with full citation details; and
Creating more Research Notes PDFs. The rapidly increasing availability of digitised resources – especially the Australian National Library’s digitised newspaper service, Trove – means that the traditional researched biography can now be out of date almost as soon as it is published. The Research Notes alternative therefore provides interim historical insights.
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In addition to the above projects 170 new entries were also added. This involved 116 new agent entries and 54 new works entries. 9 new sections and 7 new Research Notes PDFs were also published. Several biographies were updated and expanded, too, – notably those connected to Ike Delavale.
On 10 May 2017 the Australian Variety Theatre Archive comprised 1,366 agent entries (people, organisations, and miscellaneous industry activity); and 1,592 individual works entries (not counting revivals). To put this in perspective, that’s more than double the number of entries (up to and including 1935) currently recorded in AustLit: The Resource for Australian Literature, and at least five times as many Australian-written works identified by AusStage for the same period.* Both AustLit and AusStage are university-operated, multi-million dollar taxpayer-funded databases. The AVTA is a privately-operated resource that hasn’t cost Australian tax-payers a single cent.
* NB: AusStage also records non-Australian-written productions (or events) produced in this country, which makes it very difficult to isolate locally-written works. AustLit, on the other hand, focuses on Australian works only – albeit with some basic records identifying any international sources for Australian adaptations (these are not included in the comparison count as they can be easily identified in the database).
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Dr Clay Djubal would like to thank all those people who have contributed to the archive during the past 12 months. Without their help the AVTA would be much less enlightened.
He would also like to thank the 21,292 people who visited the site between 10 May 2016 and 10 May 2017 (a new record). Of these 7,425 people investigated the Archive further, at an average of 2.86 pages per person. The busiest month was April 2017 with 2,537 visitors.
The AVTA was accessed by people from almost every country on the planet (notably absent were some countries from the African and the Middle-Eastern regions). While Australia was naturally the dominant place of origin for these visitors, significant numbers of people also looked at the site from the USA, UK, New Zealand, France, Canada, Indonesia and Germany.
Adelaide • Brisbane • Darwin • Hobart/Launceston • Melbourne • Northern Territory • Perth • Sydney (Theatres/venues pages) and Historical Insights
Entrepreneurs:
Sidney Cook
Film and Vaudeville
An Interrupted Divorce • Charlie at the Sydney Show
Industry
Don Pictures (Darwin) • Lashwood & White Theatrical Agency • Lew Parks
Music Directors/Composers
Variety: H. Florack • Other: Oswald Anderson • John M. Dunn • George English • George English Jnr • C. W. MacCarthy • Isaac Nathan • W. Arundel Orchard • Hubert Russell
Organisations and Partnerships
Cole’s Variety’s • Cook’s Pictures • Kelly & Leon • Sadler & Kearns • Williamson & Musgrove
Practitioners:
Variety: Australian Sapphires • A. V. Barry • Elsie Bates • Vera Benson • Billy Wells & the Eclair Twins • Belle Bluett • Humphrey Bishop • Gus Bluett • Kitty Bluett • Rosie Bowie • Dot Browne • Sid Burchell • Ben Calvert • Joe Charles • Charles & Dani • Les Coney • Conrad Charlton • Gerry Connolly • Mike Connors • Harry Cremar • Emilie Dani • Dot Davis • Bert Delavale • Ern Delavale • Delavale & Vockler • Tom Delohery • Fanning & Devoe • Farrell & Gaffney • Stan “Stud” Foley • Lucy Fraser • Jim Gaffney • Hilda Gifford • Gifford Sisters • The Glory Girl • Hagan & Fraser • Lizzie Hastings • Florence Henderson • Charles Hugo • Jennings & Gerald • Keith & Witt • Jake Mack • C. Post Mason • Don G. Merle • Cliff O’Keefe • Fred Parsons • Frank Perryn • Peggy Pryde • Edna Ralston • Alf Rockley • Lily Rockley • Wal Rockley • Rockley Brothers • Edwin Shipp • Les Shipp • Maude Shipp • Minnie Shipp • Shipp & Gaffney • Sam Stern • Nell Stirling • Lily Vockler • Fred Witt
Practitioners: Other:
Bill Ayr • Frank Ayrton • Bert Bailey • Dan Barry • A. E. Balnaves • John Cazabon • Peter Dawson • J. I. Hunt • Stanley A. Kilminster • June Mendoza • A. B. “Banjo” Paterson • Rita Pauncefort • Mascotte Ralston • J. Harding Tucker • Jack Ward (aka J. E. Ward) • Wilton Welch •
Theatres/Venues
Darwin Town Hall • Olympic Circus (Sydney) • Prince of Wales Theatre [1] (Melbourne) • Plaza Theatre (Northcote, Melbourne) • Queen’s Hall (Perth) • Scandinavian Music Hall (Sydney) • Stadium (Darwin) • St George’s Hall (Melbourne) • Yorketown Town Hall •
Troupes:
Dan Barry’s World-Wide Wonder Show • Clay’s Waxworks & Vaudeville Co • Florack’s Federal Minstrels • Lizzie Hastings’ Minstrels • Lizzie Hastings’ Picnic Party • Royal Strollers [2] • Shipp’s Entertainers/Minstrels • The Versatiles
Works
Variety: Aboard the Lugger (1927) • Ace High (1927) • After the Storm (1925) • At The Show (1924) • Bubble and Squeak (1925) • Coppers and Capers (1926) • Crackers (1926) • Criss Cross (1927) • The Diamond Palace (1924) • Dots and Spots (1927) • Fireworks (1926) • Good Catch (1934/radio) • Happy School Days (1924) • Heads and Tails (1924) • Heave Ho! (1926) • Hello, Princess (1932) • His Wives (1926) • The Holiday Makers (1923) • In Arizona (1926) • Jack the Giant Killer (1924) • Kentucky Days (1926) • Little Bo-Peep (1929/radio) • Mother Hubbard (1925) • The Mystic Egg (1927) • Nobody Home (1924) • Now and Then (1934) • The Painters (1926) • Pete Wins Tatts (1925) • Prince Charming (1921) • Princess Yo-Yo (1933/radio) • P’s and Q’s (1925) • Puff Paste (1926) • Put and Take (1925) • The Revue Star ()1931) • Rin Tin (1927) • The Singing Girl (1930) • Sky High (1925) • Snappy Sydney (1933) • Stumps Drawn (1926) • The Telephone Girls (1913) • That’s That (1923) • The Two Scamps (1899) • Water Babies (1925) • What Is It? (1915) • Who’s Baby (1926) • Wiggy Wiggy (1927)
Legitimate: Faust and Gretchen (1883) • Lady Nora (1907) • The Mandarin (1896) • The Man in the Moon (1907) • The Merchant of Bassora (1917) • Singvoegelchen (1882) • Uller the Bowman (1909) • The Windmill (1891)
Film & Vaudeville:
An Interrupted Divorce (1917) • Charlie at the Sydney Show (1916)
New Biographies (PDFs):
An Interrupted Divorce (film) • Charlie at the Sydney Show (film) • Oswald Anderson • Dot Mendoza
New Research Notes (PDFs):
Ben Goodson • Stanley A. Kilminster • Hal Lashwood • Billy Maloney • Eric Masters • J. Harding Tucker • Prince of Wales Theatre [1] (Melbourne)
On 8 July 1916 comedians Nat Phillips and Roy Rene stepped on to the stage of Sydney’s Princess Theatre, presenting their alter-egos Stiffy and Mo before an audience for the first time. By the end of their partnership 12 years later the pair had firmly cemented themselves as one of the country’s greatest ever comic duos. New research by Dr Clay Djubal (Australian Variety Theatre Archive) shows that Phillips and Rene were brought together while in Queensland at the end of June 1916, less than two weeks before their historic debut in a one act musical comedy (revusical) called What Oh Tonight.
Roy Rene (Mo), Daisy Merritt (The Dame) and Nat Phillips (Stiffy) in Babes in the Wood, Grand Opera House, Sydney (1918-19). Source: Theatre Magazine Jan. (1919), 7.
The first truly urban Australian larrikin characters to be developed on the variety stage, Stiffy and Mo captured the Australian popular culture’s imagination at a time when the country was attempting to deal with the crisis of World War I, and particularly the Gallipoli campaign. Despite their Irish and Jewish heritage, Stiffy and Mo came to exemplify a developing Australian national identity. Whether they were policemen, shopwalkers, sailors, bell-boys, jockeys, soldiers, beauticians, orderlies, porters or even bullfighters, Stiffy and Mo were all about mateship, loyalty, egalitarianism, larrikin attitudes, practical joking, self-deprecation, and an outright refusal to bow to authority figures.
The story of Stiffy and Mo begins several years earlier when Nat Phillips, already a veteran of the Australian and international variety stages, began developing a stage character, Stiffy the rabbitoh, in sketches with his wife, Daisy Merritt. As he recalls in a 1919 interview: “Until I brought Stiffy on the scene the Australian low-life character – the larrikin – was always portrayed as a [London] coster…. I decided to try the experiment with the Sydney larrikin. Steele Rudd made Dave an Australian bush type. I determined to come nearer home and present a city type. I couldn’t have wished for greater success.”
Phillips and Rene toured their alter-egos relentlessly around Australia and New Zealand until late-1928, albeit with an 18 month break in the mid-1920s. During their time together the pair starred in more than 30 individual revusicals, featured in five pantomimes, and published a Book of Fun. When they reunited in 1927 Just It magazine said the event almost overshadowed the Duke and Duchess of York’s royal visit.
The influence of Nat Phillips and Roy Rene on the Australian variety industry and the development of an Australia comedic tradition cannot be over-estimated. They not only played a significant role in developing and popularising the revusical genre in this country, but also established a precedent in comedy partnerships by doing away with the comic/straightman format. Their legacy can also be seen in a line of comedians to follow them, beginning with George Wallace and Jim Gerald, through to the television era (with partnerships like Graham Kennedy and Bert Newton, Hoges and Strop etc) and beyond.
If you’d like find out more about this iconic comedy duo click on the link below:
Scroll down to their entry in “Stage Characters” and click on ‘More details’ to access a PDF biography.
The Stiffy and Mo entry includes sound recordings, images, links, an engagements chronology, and a list known revusicals. You can also learn how new research has overturned a number of long-standing myths and historical errors relating to the partnership.
The University of Queensland’s Fryer Library holds the Nat Phillips Collection, 11 boxes of manuscripts (including four complete Stiffy and Mo scripts), photographs, sheet music and ephemera.
See also the Fryer’s blog celebrating the 100th anniversary of Stiffy and Mo’s debut.
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Additional images. Top: Theatre Magazine July (1919), n. pag. • Middle: (1) Nat Phillips as a porter, (2) Roy Rene and Nat Phillips – Nat Phillips Collection, Fryer Library • Bottom: Courtesy of Jon Fabian
The Australian Variety Theatre Archive (AVTA) is a research website devoted to popular culture entertainment in the Australasian region between circa 1850 and 1930. This year, 2016, marks its sixth year of publication.
The website went online on 10 May 2011, the 146th anniversary of the birth of Australian vaudeville entrepreneur Harry Clay. Since then the archive has published more than 1,200 new records, while also updating many entries previously published.
During the past 12 months 137 new entries and 6 new sections were added, as were more than 30 Research Notes PDFs. This new initiative will for the time being replace the AVTA’s traditional expanded biographies. The increasing availability of digitised resources – especially the Australian National Library’s digitised newspaper service, Trove – now makes these expanded biographies out of date almost as soon as they are published.
Another initiative for 2015/16 and for the remainder of 2016 is to overhaul all records and pages within the AVTA. This will see include:
1. Creating hyperlinks to all currently digitised newspaper resources in Trove and elsewhere (where applicable); and
2. Reformatting all PDFs with full citation details (removing abbreviations)
It is anticipated that this project will be completed by January 2017
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Dr Clay Djubal would like to thank all those people who have contributed to the archive during the past 12 months. Without their help the AVTA would be much less enlightened.
He would also like to thank the 21,160 people who visited the site between 10 May 2015 and 10 May 2016. The busiest month was August 2015 with 2,203 visitors.
Celebrity Endorsements & Cross Promotion • Fads and Fashions: Technology • Film & Vaudeville • International Media • Showboats & Cruises • Schools of Arts
Entrepreneurs:
George E. Melrose • A. T. Richards • Charles Sudholz
Fads & Fashion
Coin-in-the-Slot Machines • Salome Dance
Film and Vaudeville
British Biograph Co • Williamson’s Bio-Tableau
Industry
Ayala Champagne • Bambury & White • Bonnington’s Irish Moss • Harold Ashton • Cato & Co • Charles L. Devereaux • Dr Sheldon’s • Freeman & Wallace • G. W. Hean • Andy Hosking • Madison’s Budget • S.S. Gippsland • The Player • Product Placement • Rexona • S.S. Rose • A. C. White • White-Cane Agency
Industry: Trans-Oceanic Circuits
Loew’s Vaudeville Circuit • Orpheum Circuit (USA) • Port Louis Theatre (Mauritius) • United Booking Office of America (USA)
International Tourists
Arthur Albert [UK] • Alcase-Lorraine • Paul Kinko • Lampini Bros • World’s Entertainers [1]
Music Directors/Composers
J. P. Knowles • R. W. Oyston
Organisations and Partnerships
Amusu Vaudeville • Williamson, Lee & Rial
Practitioners:
Mons. Henry Abdy • Billy & Pearl Akarman • Molly Ambrose • Amusu Duo • Arthur Albert • Joe Archer • Austral Trio [1] • Austral Trio [2] • Doris Baker • Norman Bambury • Heather Belle • Al Bruce • Charles Bryant • Eileen Capel • Myra Carden • Herbert Cato • Ken Collie • Congo Minstrel [1] • Congo Minstrel [2] • Congo Minstrel [3] • Piccaninny Congo Minstrel • Keith Connolly • Mary Connolly • Bert Corrie • Corrie & Baker • Corrie & Verne • Freda Cuthbert • Harriet Gordon • Charley Horton • Elsie Hosking • J. P. Hydes • Jackson & Pagden • Vivie Keeling • James E. Kitts • Madame Lampino • Charles Lawrence • Ward Lear • Ward Lear Jnr • McKisson & Kearns • Murray Masculin • Prince Masculin • The Mintons • George Pagden • Pagden & Stanley • Cleo Rinaldo • Joseph Rinaldo • Gerald Shaw • Gladys Shaw • Harry Shine • Phil Smith • Kitty Stanley • Joe Verne
Practitioners: Other
Mona Barlee • Henry Deering • Olly Deering • Marie La Varre
Stage Characters
Hank Dinkumflater • Lanky & Bulky
Theatres
Albert Theatre (Geelong) • Huon Mechanics’ Institute (Franklyn) • Mechanics’ Institute (Geelong) • Royal Dramatic Hall • Theatre Royal (Geelong)
Troupes: Other:
Al Bruce and His Rosebuds • Bain & Lawton’s Vaudeville Co • Bryant’s All-Star Novelty Co • Clark & Shine’s All-Star Co • Congo Minstrels • A Day in Dogtown Co • Devereaux’s World’s Biotint Entertainers • Diamond Variety Co • English Pierrot Entertainers • Frivolities of 1935 • Gay Crusaders • Hill’s World’s Entertainers • League of Notions • London Bioscope Co • Loyola’s Magnet Variety Troupe • Myra Carden’s Magnet Co • New York Serenaders [1] • New York Serenaders [2] • O’Donnell & Ray’s Pantomime Co • Old Time Minstrels [1929] • Richards’ Entertainers • Royal Magnet Combination Troupe • Royal Magnet Variety Troupe [2] • Shaw’s Entertainers • Sudholz’s Bio-Tableau & World’s Entertainers • World’s Animatograph Co • Veterans of Variety [1] • World’s Entertainers [2] • World’s Entertainers [3] • World’s Entertainers & Animatograph Co • World’s Star Entertainers • World’s Vaudeville Co
Works
Variety: Beauty and the Beast (1858) • Cafe de Jazz (1924) • Crispin, King of the Cobblers (1847) • Emigration; Or, Harlequin in California (1849) • Fe Fi Fo Fum; Or, Jack the Giant Killer (1849) • Harlequin and the Enchanted Egg (1842) • Harlequin and the Evil Spirit of Wye (1841) • Harlequin and the Talking Bird (1844) • Harlequin and the Three Wishes (1849) • Harlequin Greek (1849) • Harlequin Tom, the Piper’s Son (1847) • Humpty Dumpty; Or, Harlequin and the Fairy of the Enchanted Egg (1846) • Jack and the beanstalk (1848) • Lanky and Bulky as Farmers (1918) • Lanky and Bulky in Paris (1918) • Mother Bunch, the Fairy of the Lake and Palace of the Blazing Star (1847) • Mother Hubbard and Her Dogs (1849) • Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe (1849) • Puss in Boots (1848) • The Red Gnome of the Ruby Mines (1848) • Red Riding Hood (1920) • Rich Girl, Poor Girl (1921) • Tom Tom the Piper’s Son (1846) • Transportation, and the Demon Discord (1847) • Vogues of 1935
The Australian Variety Theatre Archive (AVTA) is a research website devoted to popular culture entertainment in the Australasian region between circa 1850 and 1930. This year, 2015, marks its fifth year of publication.
The website went online on 10 May 2011, the 146th anniversary of the birth of Australian vaudeville entrepreneur Harry Clay. Since then the archive has published more than 1100 new records, while also updating many entries previously published.
The goal for the past 12 months, to publish one entry a day, was exceeded by 38, with 403 new entries added to the AVTA.
Dr Clay Djubal would like to thank all those people who have contributed to the archive during the past 12 months. Without their help the AVTA would be much less enlightened.
He would also like to thank the 18,852 people who have visited the site between 10 May 2014 and 10 May 2015. The busiest month was August 2014 with 1,966 visitors.
2014/15 also saw the introduction of two new sections:
Film and Vaudeville
Revusical Ballets & Chorus
Entrepreneurs:
Vincent M. Beebe • George H. Birch • Dan Clifford • Frank Hussey • George H. Jones • Robert McLeish • Graham Mitchell • George Stephenson • Frank Weston
Fads & Fashion
American Box Ball • Ball Punching • The Mutoscope • Netball • Push Ball
Industry
M. Dinsdale • Will Andrade [1] • Will Andrade [2] • Australasian Publicity Bureau • Australian Melodist • Australian Musical Productions Pty Ltd • Henry Benjamin • Board & Residence Establishments • Clifton Gardens (Mosman, Sydney) • Valentine Day • Dreamland (St Kilda, Melb) • Eastern Vaudeville Agency • Goodson Bros • Goodson Pictures • Green Room Club (Melb) • Green Room Club (Perth) • Huon Mechanics Institute (Tas) • North’s Concerts (Melb) • Prince’s Court (Melb) • R.S.L. Concert parties • Sidelines • Joe Slater • Joe Slater Publishing • Snowy Sturgeon • E. Totten • Val Morgan Advertising Contractor • White City (Perth) • Wonderland City (Sydney)
Industry: Trans-Oceanic Circuits
Pantages (USA) • Sullivan & Considine (USA)
International Tourists
Charles Backus • Backus Minstrels • Emil Biermann • Paul Cinquevalli • Frank Dix • W. C. Fields • George Gibbons • Harry Houdini • Harry Lauder • Sable Minstrels • Eugen Sandow • Chung Ling Soo
Music Directors/Composers
May Brook • Kenneth L. Duffield • Hal Dyson • Lou Weichard • F. Wynne Jones
Music Directors/Composers [Other]
Herbert De Pinna • H. T. Harrison • Willy Redstone • Reginald Stoneham
Orchestras & Bands
Flying Squadron Orchestra (Rockhampton)
Organisations & Partnerships
All-Star Vaudeville • Austral Picture Co • Australian Musical Productions Pty Ltd • British Bioscope Co (Rockhampton) • Delohery, St John and Holland • Dix’s Gaiety Co • Efftee Film productions • Empire Theatre Ltd • Lyceum Pictures Ltd • Mount Morgan Amusement Co • North’s Concerts • North’s vaudeville Co • Olympia Amusement Co • Weston & La Feullade
Practitioners:
Percy Abbott • Dan Agar • Armstrong & Howarth • Armstrong & Phillips • Armstrong & Rose Armstrong & Verne • Chic Arnold • Sam Babicci • Billy Barlow • Bob Bell • Bert Ralton & His Havana Band • Bridges Trio • Jack Bryant • May Bryant • • BryantTom Buckley • Buckley & Holly • Mae Busch • William Busch • Frank Cane (aka Kavello) • Vera Carew • Billie Carlyle • Denis Carney • Carr-Glynn, Neva [1] • Carr-Glynn, Neva [2] • Daisy Chard • Nat Clifford • Maud Courtney • Colin Croft • Finlay Currie [aka Mr C] • George Dean • Sam Dearin • Dora De Vere • Leonard Doogood • Driscoll Bros • Ethiopian Serenaders [1] • Nellie M. Ferguson • Ferry the Frog • Buster Fiddes • Johnny Gardner • Johnny Gilmore • Ben Goodson • Syd Hollister • Charles Holly • Mabs Howarth • Dot Ireland • Jarvis & Campbell • Essie Jennings • Keith’s Syncopating Jesters • Keating & Ross • Sylvia Kellaway • Annette Kellermann • Willie Kerr • Jantz Kohlman • Kohlman & Gardner • Page Lang • Hal Lashwood • Emil Lazern • Minnie Love • Edna McCall • George McCall • Val Mack • Durham Marcel • Maud Courtney & Mr C • Clement May • Carl Mehden • Harry Mehden • Page Lang Entertainers • Paragon Trio • “Banjo” Patterson • Queenie Paul • Tommy Peel • W. S. Percy • Peter Piccini • Alexander Poe • Victor Prince • Reg Quarterly • Grace Quine • The Racoons • Molly Raynor • Ada Reeve • Goodie Reeve • Maurice Rooklyn • The Three Ruddles • Lynn Smith • Lynn Smith’s Royal Jazz Band • Ernest Nicholls • Doc Rowe & Mystic Mora • Terrt Scanlon • Joe Small • Stampini • Marjorie Streeter Pain • “Tassie” Tole • Tom Katz & His Saxophone Band • Madam Verto • Percy Verto • The Tyrells • George Wallace Jnr • Ward & Sherman • Matador A. Zigomar/Zigomars
Practitioners: Other
Peter Finch • John Gavin • Alf J. Goulding • J. A. Lipman • Vaiben Louis • Louise Lovely • Albert Lucas • Dot Mendoza • Gladys Moncrieff • Marietta Nash • Tal Ordell • Arthur Stignant • Dion Titheradge • Ronald Whelan • Byrl Walkley • Howett Worster
Repositories
American Minstrels Shows Collection (Houghton Library) • Concerts and Theatre Programs Collection (AWM)
Stage Characters
Bluey & Dopey • Little Hermie • Mutt and Chop
Theatres
Academy of Music (Launceston) • Albert Hall (Adelaide) • Albert Hall (Brisbane) • Albert Hall [2] (Brisbane) • Alexandra Hall (Toowoomba) • Apollo Hall [2] (Melbourne) + Eastern Arcade • Arcadia (Rockhampton) • Austral Gardens (Adelaide) • Austral Hall (Toowoomba) • Centennial Hall (Moss Vale) • Central Hall / Queen’s Hall [2] (Adelaide) • Coliseum (Rockhampton) • Dale Street Vaudeville Hall (Port Adelaide) • Earl’s Court [2] (Rockhampton) • Empire Theatre (Adelaide) • Empire /Star Theatre (Port Adelaide) • Empire Picture Theatre (Bowral) • Exhibition Gardens (Adelaide) • Golden Gate Gardens (Sydney) • Goodsons’ Promenade Concert Grounds (Rockhampton) • Mack’s Theatre Royal (Moss Vale) • Majestic Theatre (Launceston) • Manchester Unity Hall (Charters Towers) • Northcote Theatre (Melb) • Oddfellows’ Hall (Charters Towers) • Olympia (Rockhampton) • Olympia Skating Rink (Charters Towers) • Palais Royal (Adelaide) • Port Adelaide Town Hall (Port Adelaide) • Port Theatre (Port Adelaide) • Prahran Town Hall (Melb) • Prince of Wales Theatre (Charters Towers) • Queen’s Theatre (Adelaide) • Queen’s Hall [1] (Adelaide) • Rex Theatre (Fortitude Valley, Brisbane) • Rivoli Theatre, Camberwell (Melb) • Royal Assembly Rooms (Toowoomba) • Royal Victoria Theatre (Adelaide) • School of Arts [1] (Brisbane) • School of Arts [2] (Brisbane) • School of Arts (Charters Towers) • School of Arts (Millchester, Charters Towers) • School of Arts [1] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [2] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [3] (Mt Morgan) • School of Arts [1] (Toowoomba) • Stadium / Olympia Theatre Strand Theatre / Tivoli Theatre (Rockhampton) • Temperance Hall (Hobart) • Theatre Royal [1] (Melb) • Theatre Royal (Rockhampton) • Tivoli Gardens (Adelaide) • Tivoli Theatre (Adelaide) • Toowoomba Town Hall [1] • Toowoomba Town Hall [2] • Walhalla Hall (Toowoomba) • Walker’s Store (Toowoomba) • Wintergarden (Rockhampton)
Digger Troupes: Amateur Frolics Co • Australian Dandies • Australian Flying Corps Concert Party • The Beaufort Merrymakers • Black Diamonds Costume Comedy Co • Blue Dandies • Blue Diamonds • Cheer-Oh Girls • Dum Dum Dinkums • The Empties • Field Artillery Pirates • Flying Kangaroos • Green Diamonds • The Kangaroos [2] • Kangaroos Koncert Kompany • Kookaburras [3] • The Merrymakers • The Night Birds • The Perhams Stars • Serenaders • The Tropical Troubadours • The Wattle Birds • Whizz-bangs • The Wombats
Other: Ada Reeve Vaudeville Co (Perth, 1924) • Australian Bushranging Bio & Specialty Co • Australian Minstrel Co • Baltimore Minstrels [1] • Baltimore Minstrels [2] • Barlow, Bromley, Buckley & Holly • Billy Cass Revue Co • Billy Maloney’s New Ideas • Billy Maloney’s Scandals [1] • Billy Maloney’s Scandals [2] • Biograph and Trans-Atlantic Entertainers • Blondenette Lady Minstrels • Boley’s Minstrels • Bosley Vaudeville Co • Buckley & Gardner Minstrels • Buckley & Holly’s Pleasure Party • The Cameos • Campbell’s Minstrels [1] • Campbell’s Minstrels [2] • Christy’s Minstrels [1] • Christy’s Original Sable Opera Troupe • Cosmopolitan Band and Coloured Opera Troupe • Ethiopian Serenaders [2] • Gibbons’ Minstrels • Hussey, Kelly & Holly’s Celebrated Comedians • Jones’s Huge Surprise Party • Jones’s Mammoth Moving Theatre • Kenna’s Empire Minstrels • K-Nuts • La Feuillade, Peel & Weston’s Christy Minstrels • Lawton, Dearin & Sayers’ Troubadours • Lawton and Dearin’s Federal Minstrels & Comiques • Lottie Magnet Variety Troupe • Mutoscope Biotint Co • Nightingale Serenaders [1] • Nightingale Serenaders [2] • 1925 Minstrels (Perth) • Old Time Nigger Minstrels [1] • Old Time Nigger Minstrels [1] • Paragon Bellringers • Polite Vaudeville & Minstrels Co • Priddy’s Electric Marvels & Mammoth Specialty Combination • The Revellers • Royal Magnet Variety Troupe • Sam Dearin’s Minstrels & Comiques • Smith, Brown and Collins Minstrels • So & So’s (Perth) • So and So’s Costume Comedy Co (Adel) • Stanley McKay’s Gaieties • State Entertainers • Swastika Players • Ted Tutty Vaudeville Co • T.O.M.C.A.T.S. (Charters Towers) • Topics of 1925 • Verto Vaudeville Co • Vert’s Biotint & Novelty Co • The Wanderers • Weichard’s International Vaudeville Stars • Weston & Hussey’s Minstrels • Weston & La Feuillade’s Minstrels • William Anderson’s London Vaudeville Stars • Will’s Surprise Party • Ye Olde Nigger Minstrels • Young Australia League (Y.A.L.)
Works
Variety: Aladdin (1914) • Babes in the Wood (1929) • Carrie on Carrie (1918) • Combien (1919) • Demons of the Deep (1922) • Dick Whittington (1917) • Dick Whittington Up to Date (1919) • Dolly’s Dilemma (1918) • Fiddle De Dee (1933) • Flying Colours (1933) • Fortune Hunting (1918) • Fun Rays (1934) • Gay Paree (1934) • Gee Whiz (1934) • Goody Two Shoes (1880) • HMS Pin-A-4 (in Black) [2] (1882) • Laughter Unlimited (1934) • Oddments (1934) • Oh Baby (1934) • The Radio Girl (1926) • Saucy Suzie (1899) • She’s Crazy About You (1934) • Sky High (1934) • Something Different (1934) • Snap (1925) • Tons of Money (1924) • While the Billy Boils (1919)
Legitimate: Australia First (1914)
Film & Vaudeville: Cinesound Varieties (1934) • Efftee Entertainers (1931-33) • Harmony Row (1933) • His Royal Highness (1932) • Show Business (1938) • Strike Me Lucky (1934)
![Fuller Pantomime Scene [TT Jan1919, 7]](https://i0.wp.com/ozvta.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/fuller-pantomime-scene-tt-jan1919-7.jpg?resize=470%2C474&ssl=1)
The influence of Nat Phillips and Roy Rene on the Australian variety industry and the development of an Australia comedic tradition cannot be over-estimated. They not only played a significant role in developing and popularising the revusical genre in this country, but also established a precedent in comedy partnerships by doing away with the comic/straightman format. Their legacy can also be seen in a line of comedians to follow them, beginning with George Wallace and Jim Gerald, through to the television era (with partnerships like Graham Kennedy and Bert Newton, Hoges and Strop etc) and beyond.![Stiffy & Mo Poster [Fabian]](https://i0.wp.com/ozvta.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/stiffy-mo-poster-fabian.jpg?resize=287%2C789&ssl=1)
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