Abstract
This chapter is about Whiplash, the ATV Western TV series set and filmed in Australia in 1959–1960. It talks about its American star, Peter Graves, and his family’s reactions to living in Australia. It discusses the impressive group of Hollywood screenwriters who wrote for the series, including Gene Roddenberry (Star Trek), Harry Julian Fink (Dirty Harry), and Don Ingalls (Have Gun Will Travel). It considers some problems Whiplash’s producers both faced and created while making the series, including wet weather, unsafe sets, and being micro-managed from London. It discusses the talented black and white Australian actors who performed in Whiplash, such as Anthony Wickert, Robert Tudawali, Chips Rafferty, and Annette Andre. It examines how the series presented Australia through a “Hollywood lens,” especially its pioneering history and First Nations People. Finally, this chapter looks at the critics’ reaction to Whiplash, which was mostly negative, although I argue unjustly so.
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Notes
- 1.
‘TV Star Plans New Sequence of Shows,’ The Pensacola News Journal (Florida), 18 September 1959, p. 14.
- 2.
‘2 First-Run Shows Begin,’ Arizona Daily Sun (Arizona), 15 December 1961, p. 13.
- 3.
K.A. Austin (2006), ‘Cobb, Freeman (1830–1878),’ Australian Dictionary of Biography, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/cobb-freeman-3237, accessed 25 September 2021.
- 4.
‘Cobb & Co. Heritage Trail,’ https://www.cobbandco.net.au/ accessed 7 October 2021.
- 5.
‘British TV 1950s Filmed Drama: Whiplash Starring Peter Graves,’ Dinosaur TV-Save Our Forgotten British Heritage! http://www.78rpm.co.uk/tvw.htm#d3 accessed 17 February 2021.
- 6.
Bill Olson, ‘Chris Cobb Rides Again … There’s a Lynch Mob in French’s Forest!’ The Sydney Morning Herald (New South Wales), 8 November 1959, p. 95.
- 7.
‘Crime No.1 TV Theme, “Poor” Commercials,’ The Age (Victoria), 12 November 1959, p. 26.
- 8.
Nan Musgrove, ‘2 New Shows: Our Bush Takes a Bow,’ The Australian Women’s Weekly (Australia), 1 March 1961, p. 61.
- 9.
Bill Olson.
- 10.
‘Taming the TV Heroes,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 January 1960, p. 23.
- 11.
Chuck Faulkner, ‘Chuck Faulkner’s TOC Column,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 29 November 1959, p. 114.
- 12.
Joan Endress, Telephone interview with Derham Groves, 2020.
- 13.
‘Taming the TV Heroes.’
- 14.
Bill Olson.
- 15.
‘Talent Scouts Here for “All Sorts” of Actors,’ The Age, 21 October 1960, p. 5.
- 16.
Nan Musgrave, 1 March 1961.
- 17.
Stephen Atkinson, ‘A Rumble in the Great Australian Silence: Whiplash and the Telling of the Australian Frontier,’ ACH: The Journal of the History of Culture in Australia, 1 January 2007, p. 37.
- 18.
Charles Witbeck, ‘A New Western—From Australia!’ The Chicago Tribune (Illinois), 23 April 1961, p. 423.
- 19.
Charles Gilbert, ‘TV Topics: Whiplash: Australia’s Own Western Series is Now Under Full Production!’ Pix (Australia), 11 June 1960, pp. 38–43.
- 20.
‘Whiplash First Australian “Western,”’ Edmonton Journal (Canada), 14 October 1961, p. 25.
- 21.
‘Made-in-Australia TV “Western” Takes Shape,’ The Age, 26 November 1959, p. 25.
- 22.
Charles Witbeck, ‘Western Has Aussie Flavour: New TV Series Filmed in Australia,’ The Daily Oklahoman (Oklahoma), 21 May 1961, p. 30.
- 23.
‘Saturday Premiere for Whiplash,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 February 1961, p. 11.
- 24.
“Granny” (aka Sydney Deamer), ‘Column 8,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 January 1961, p. 1.
- 25.
John Meredyth Lucas, Eighty Odd Years in Hollywood: Memoir of a Career in Film and Television, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc., Publishers, 2004, p. 216.
- 26.
‘TV Series To Be Filmed at Alice Springs,’ The Beverley Times (Western Australia), 20 May 1960, p. 5.
- 27.
Anthony Wickert, Telephone interview with Derham Groves, 2020.
- 28.
Stephen Vagg, ‘Annette Andre: My Brilliant Early Australian Career,’ Filmlink, https://www.filmink.com.au/annette-andre/, 29 August 2020, accessed 18 October 2021.
- 29.
Robin Boyd, The Australian Ugliness, Melbourne: F.W. Cheshire Pty Ltd., 1960, p. 65.
- 30.
Di Morrissey, The Silent Country, Sydney: Pan Macmillan Australia, 2009, p. 14.
- 31.
Ibid.
- 32.
NAA: SP1121/1, Aurness, Peter D.
- 33.
Hedda Hopper, ‘Dick Shawn to Make Debut in Wake Me,’ The Los Angeles Times (California) 17 September 1959, p. 54.
- 34.
Joe Finnigan, ‘Actor Returns From Abroad, Will Remain,’ The Anderson Herald (Indiana), 30 October 1960, p. 30.
- 35.
‘T.V. Series to be Filmed at Alice Springs.’
- 36.
Nan Musgrove, ‘Open House Big Success Overseas,’ The Australian Women’s Weekly, 21 October 1959, p. 60.
- 37.
Ibid.
- 38.
‘Whiplash Moves to New Time, Follows “Dillon” on Tuesdays,’ The Tampa Bay Times (Florida), 29 December 1961, p. 20.
- 39.
Nan Musgrove, ‘American TV Star Here for Australian Western,’ The Australian Women’s Weekly, 14 October 1959, p. 68.
- 40.
Sheilah Graham, ‘Arness Near Million—Horton Makes More On Side Than TV,’ The Birmingham News (Alabama), 17 October 1959, p. 5.
- 41.
Nan Musgrove, 14 October 1959.
- 42.
Mimi Mead, ‘Biggest Mission: All is Possible to Peter Graves,’ The Star-Gazette (New York), 22 June 1968, p. 29.
- 43.
United States Census Bureau, ‘Income of Families and Persons in the United States: 1959,’ https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1961/demo/p60-035.html, accessed 13 November 2021.
- 44.
Joan Endress.
- 45.
Ibid.
- 46.
Nan Musgrove, 14 October 1959.
- 47.
Joan Endress.
- 48.
Ibid.
- 49.
‘Film Star Is Back,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 March 1960, p. 31.
- 50.
John Meredyth Lucas, pp. 212–213.
- 51.
Ibid.
- 52.
Joan Endress.
- 53.
Kelly Graves, Telephone interview with Derham Groves, 2020.
- 54.
Geoff Searl, Email to Derham Groves, 12 February 2022.
- 55.
Joan Endress.
- 56.
‘US Actor “Pioneer” in Aust.,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 October 1960, p. 3.
- 57.
Charles Witbeck, ‘Jim Arness’s Brother, Peter Graves, Starring in Australian Western,’ The Record (New Jersey), 22 April 1961, p. 48.
- 58.
Stanley Eichelbaum, ‘Peter Graves’ Dilemma,’ The San Francisco Examiner (California), 28 October 1961, p. 10.
- 59.
Ibid.
- 60.
Joseph Finnigan, ‘Peter Graves to Star in New Video Series,’ The Herald (Indiana), 19 November 1962, p. 27.
- 61.
Curiously, Michael Noonan does not mention either Whiplash or his co-creator Michael Plant in his autobiography, In With the Tide: Memoirs of a Storyteller, St. Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 1995.
- 62.
‘Guide to the Papers of Michael Noonan,’ National Library of Australia, https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-324945336/findingaid accessed 13 October 2021.
- 63.
The Sydney Morning Herald, 11 September 1960, p. 116.
- 64.
‘A Film Star’s House,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 10 July 1960, p. 126.
- 65.
‘New Western Series Has Australian Scene,’ The Hartford Courant (Connecticut), 12 March 1961, p. 121.
- 66.
Charles Witbeck, 22 April 1961.
- 67.
Bill Olson.
- 68.
Charles Witbeck, 22 April 1961.
- 69.
‘TV Star Plans New Sequence of Shows.’
- 70.
‘Made-In-Australia TV “Western” Takes Shape.’
- 71.
Stephen Vagg, ‘Forgotten Australian TV Series: Whiplash,’ Filmlink, https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-australian-tv-series-whiplash/, 11 December 2021, accessed 9 February 2022.
- 72.
Robert Vaux, ‘Star Trek: How Gene Roddenberry Drew From a Nearly Forgotten Western,’ CBR.com https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-gene-roddenberry-drew-wagon-train/, 13 May 2021, accessed 8 March 2022.
- 73.
Ibid.
- 74.
Joan Endress.
- 75.
Nan Musgrove, 1 March 1961.
- 76.
Di Morrissey, p. 17.
- 77.
Marc Saul (2010), Whiplash, Television Heaven, https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/whiplash, 12 February 2019, accessed 10 September 2020.
- 78.
Tony Stephens, ‘A Midwife at the Birth of TV,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, https://www.smh.com.au/national/a-midwife-at-the-birth-of-tv-20080130-gdryus.html, 30 January 2008, accessed 17 February 2021.
- 79.
Anthony Wickert.
- 80.
Hedda Hopper, ‘Looking at Hollywood: Arness Brothers Going Big in TV, Too,’ The Chicago Tribune, 23 March 1965, p. 32.
- 81.
‘Coach Drama on TV,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 9 August 1959, p. 27.
- 82.
NAA: SP1121/1, Geraghty, Maurice Jean.
- 83.
Nina Gow, Email to Geoff Searl, 12 February 2022.
- 84.
‘Start on Aust. TV “Western,”’ The Age, 8 October 1959, p. 25.
- 85.
Bill Olson.
- 86.
‘TV Series to be Filmed at Alice Springs.’
- 87.
‘On Location,’ The Age, 26 November 1959, p. 29.
- 88.
Bill Olson.
- 89.
Terrence O’Flaherty, ‘“Keep Your Nose Clean” Advice Seems To Have Worked Well,’ The Journal Herald (Ohio), 18 December 1961, p. 27.
- 90.
Joan Endress.
- 91.
Stephen Vagg, 11 December 2021.
- 92.
David Moore, ‘Dinosaur TV: Whiplash Starring Peter Graves,’ http://www.78rpm.co.uk/tvw.htm#d3, accessed 25 August 2021.
- 93.
Ibid.
- 94.
Hartford Courant (Connecticut), 10 January 1960, p. 114.
- 95.
Sheilah Graham, ‘Marlene Will Perform at Dallas State Fair,’ The Evening Star (Maryland), 19 May 1960, p. 61.
- 96.
Hank Grant, ‘For Peter Graves: New Series Planned,’ The Herald and Review (Illinois), 5 December 1962, p. 19.
- 97.
‘TV Series to be Filmed at Alice Springs.’
- 98.
Hank Grant.
- 99.
Sheilah Graham, ‘Hollywood Today: Have a Bash,’ The News Tribune (Washington), 2 June 1960, p. 16.
- 100.
John Meredyth Lucas, p. 205.
- 101.
Anthony Wickert.
- 102.
Stephen Vagg, 29 August 2020.
- 103.
Stephen Vagg, 11 December 2021.
- 104.
Ibid.
- 105.
David Moore.
- 106.
‘Made-In-Australia TV “Western” Takes Shape.’
- 107.
David Moore.
- 108.
Anthony Wickert.
- 109.
‘Cobb Rides in Feb.,’ The Age, 26 January 1961, p. 29.
- 110.
‘Whiplash on ATN,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 18 February 1961, p. 5.
- 111.
‘Whiplash TV Series 1960–1961,’ IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054577/, accessed 10 September 2020.
- 112.
“US Actor ‘Pioneer’ in Aust.,” The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 October 1960, p. 3.
- 113.
Peter Graves, “TV Series Hits Snag,” The Kingsport News (Tennessee), 29 July 1960, p. 4.
- 114.
“Talent Scouts Here for ‘All Sorts’ of Actors.”
- 115.
Anthony Wickert.
- 116.
‘Christmas In Brief,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 December 1960, p. 5.
- 117.
‘Meeting a “Long Fella”: Nosepeg Got Shock,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 27 November 1960, p. 25.
- 118.
‘Contrast in Styles,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, The Sydney Morning Herald, 12 November 1960, p. 6.
- 119.
Charles Witbeck, 22 April 1961, p. 48.
- 120.
Ibid.
- 121.
Joe Finnigan, ‘Actor Returns From Abroad, Will Remain,’ The Anderson Herald (Indiana), 30 October 1960, p. 30.
- 122.
Anthony Wickert.
- 123.
‘TV Film Team for Alice Springs,’ The Age, 14 May 1960, p. 3.
- 124.
‘T.V. Series to be Filmed at Alice Springs.’
- 125.
Anthony Wickert.
- 126.
John Meredyth Lucas, pp. 213–214.
- 127.
Stephen Atkinson, p. 39.
- 128.
Marc Saul.
- 129.
Reg Livermore, Email to Derham Groves, 1 March 2022.
- 130.
Ayanna Thompson, Blackface, New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2021, pp. 53–73.
- 131.
Ibid., pp. 5–18.
- 132.
John Meredyth Lucas, p. 220.
- 133.
Ibid.
- 134.
Michael Terry, Sand and Sun: Two Gold-Hunting Expeditions with Camels in the Dry Lands of Central Australia, London: Michael Joseph Ltd., 1937, pp. 206–207.
- 135.
John Meredyth Lucas, p. 221.
- 136.
Ibid.
- 137.
Stephen Vagg, 29 August 2020.
- 138.
‘Spear Misses Star,’ The Age, 6 April 1961, p. 21.
- 139.
Joan Endress.
- 140.
Kelly Graves.
- 141.
Stephen Vagg, 29 August 2020.
- 142.
Valerie Taylor, An Adventurous Life, Sydney: Hachette Australia, 2019, pp. 27–30.
- 143.
Ibid.
- 144.
‘Cast from Abroad: ATN-7 Revue: Stunt Men,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 February 1961, p. 28.
- 145.
Grahame Ware, Telephone interview with Derham Groves, 2017.
- 146.
Diane Roberts, ‘Boy Trains Horses for TV Western,’ The Australian Women’s Weekly, 30 November 1960, p. 4.
- 147.
Grahame Ware.
- 148.
Diane Roberts.
- 149.
Bill Olson.
- 150.
Diane Roberts.
- 151.
Grahame Ware.
- 152.
Ibid.
- 153.
‘Whiplash Star is Back … And They Still Remember,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 April 1974, p. 15.
- 154.
Anthony Wickert.
- 155.
‘Shotgun Guard for Whiplash Coach,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 February 1961, p. 3.
- 156.
“New Western Starting.”
- 157.
Joe Finnigan, ‘Actor Returns From Abroad, Will Remain,’ The Anderson Herald (Indiana), 30 October 1960, p. 30.
- 158.
John Meredyth Lucas, pp. 210–211.
- 159.
Ibid.
- 160.
Stephen Vagg, 11 December 2021.
- 161.
‘TV “Town” Will Be Built Near Sydney,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 25 August 1959, p. 11.
- 162.
Nan Musgrove, 1 March 1961.
- 163.
Bill Olson.
- 164.
W.R. Olson, ‘We Can Be Difficult,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 28 May 1960, p. 14.
- 165.
Bill Olson.
- 166.
Ibid.
- 167.
Nan Musgrove, 1 March 1961.
- 168.
Kenneth Brass, ‘A Ghost Town in French’s Forest Marks the Successful Completion of the Whiplash TV series: Australia’s “Westerns” are in the Can,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 12 February 1961, p. 82.
- 169.
Anthony Wickert.
- 170.
Kate Darian-Smith and David Nichols, ‘“How Our Forebears Lived”: The Modern Nation, Its Folklore and “Living” Heritage in Twentieth-Century Australia,’ Australian Geography, vol. 49, no. 1 (2018), pp. 199–217.
- 171.
‘ATN-7 Buys Film Studios,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 15 July 1960, p. 5.
- 172.
Ibid.
- 173.
“Di,” ‘Hello! Hello!’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 19 February 1961, p. 92.
- 174.
Nan Musgrove, 1 March 1961.
- 175.
‘Australian “Western” on CJOH,’ The Ottawa Journal (Canada), 30 September 1961, p. 62.
- 176.
‘“Rich” Adventure Material in Aust.,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 20 March 1961, p. 6.
- 177.
Valda Marshall, ‘TV Merry-Go-Round: “Li’l Abner” Star on ATN7,’ The Sydney Morning Herald, 26 February 1961, p. 91.
- 178.
Bob Shiels, ‘Bob Shiels on Television: Down Under,’ Calgary Herald (Canada), 11 November 1961, p. 14.
- 179.
Mimi Mead, ‘Biggest Mission: All is Possible to Peter Graves,’ The Star-Gazette (New York), 22 June 1968, p. 29.
- 180.
Marc Saul.
- 181.
Donald Freeman, ‘TV Superspy is a Music Man at Heart,’ The Fort Worth Star Telegram (Texas), 12 July 1970, p. 127.
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Groves, D. (2022). Whiplash . In: Australian Westerns in the Fifties. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12883-7_3
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