Shell Presents

Shell Presents was an early attempt at Australian television drama, being an umbrella title for several different productions. It debuted on April 4, 1959,[1] and aired on ATN-7 and GTV-9, who split production of plays for the series between them. It was an anthology series, each program being a self-contained play for television.[2] The series won a Logie award in 1960 for TV Highlight Of 1959. As the title suggests, it was sponsored by Shell. It was described as "a very big deal for the station: major institutional sponsorship from international companies for locally produced drama."[3] It would be followed by The General Motors Hour.

Shell Presents
Advertisement in SMH 1 Apr 1959
GenreAnthology
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerBrett Porter
Release
Original networkATN-7
Picture formatBlack-and-white
Original releaseApril 1959 (1959-04) –
1960 (1960)

Though it usually presented straight drama, it also presented a live[4] musical production titled Pardon Miss Westcott, set in colonial-era Australia. A total of 13 productions aired under the Shell Presents banner from 1959 to 1960.[5] There is little information about this series online, however, some of the productions are held at the National Film and Sound Archive[6][7][8][9][10] ATN-7 originally announced that the second episode of Shell Presents would be an adaptation of Children of the Sun by Morris West but that was not made.[11]

The first drama from GTV-9 in Melbourne was meant to be a production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons.[12]

Some of the productions were based on overseas plays (such as Thunder of Silence), while some were locally written, such as The Big Day (by Sydney author John Ford).[13]

An article in the 30 October 1960 edition of the Sydney Morning Herald called Australian TV is growing up, while not mentioning it by name, nevertheless provides some information on the series. The article said that the production of "modestly unpretensious" soap opera Autumn Affair provided some of the experience needed to produce Shell Presents productions like Johnny Belinda, and listed the cost to produce Pardon Miss Westcott at £5,000 (a considerable budget at the time). It mentions that work on a live drama production of the era started a month to six weeks before telecast, and that a video-tape of the final rehearsal was made so cast and camera crew could correct last minute faults.[14]

Five of the episodes may have been shown in Perth during 1960 on station TVW-7.[15]

History

In February 1959 leading Australian writers were invited to present plays for the series.[16]

Episodes

Ratings Success

On 20 July 1959 a Sydney Morning Herald article said the program had an estimated audience of around 300,000 in both Sydney and in Melbourne.[17]

See also

References
  1. "Well-wishers Jam ATM Switchboard". Sydney Morning Herald. 5 April 1959. p. 5.
  2. "NFSA - Title Details".
  3. McPherson, Ailsa (2007). "Dramas and Dreams at Epping: Early Days of ATN-7's Drama Production". In Liz, Liz; Dolin, Tim (eds.). Australian Television History. ACH: The Journal of the History of Culture in Australia. Australian Public Intellectual Network. p. 160.
  4. "'Live' Telecast of New Musical". Sydney Morning Herald. 7 December 1959. p. 13.
  5. "NFSA - Title Details". colsearch.nfsa.gov.au.
  6. "NFSA - Title Details".
  7. "NFSA - Title Details".
  8. "NFSA - Title Details".
  9. "NFSA - Title Details".
  10. "NFSA - Title Details".
  11. "Hour Long Australian TV Play Series Begins Soon". Sydney Morning Herald. 12 March 1959. p. 1.
  12. "Delay in Presentaiotn of TV Contest Plays". The Age. 19 March 1959. p. 24.
  13. Vagg, Stephen (4 November 2020). "Forgotten TV Plays: Pardon Miss Wescott". Filmink.
  14. "The Sydney Morning Herald - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
  15. Marshall, Valda (10 April 1960). "Easter message on television". Sydney Morning Herald. p. 74.
  16. "Leading Australian Writers Invited to Take Part in TV Drama Project". The Age. 19 February 1959. p. 13.
  17. "Local plays capture big audiences". Sydney Morning Herald. 20 July 1959. p. 19.
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