{
  "title": "THE BAGMAN [STORIES]",
  "category": "[RADIO-SCRIPTS]",
  "article": "Stories scripted by the husband-wife writing team of Ruth Parks and D’Arcy Niland…\n[The Drums Go Bang (1956)] [arriving a week early to work at a station outside Gilla Gilla] “We\ndidn’t know it then, but it was that combination of circumstances which set us on the road to\nradio. It was the beginning of a career in sound.”\n“By the light of the hurricane lanterns the cookhouse was a lonely, eerie place, a stimulus to the\nimagination… In this atmosphere we conceived the idea of a series of ghost stories, but quickly\nsaw their greater suitability for the medium of radio.\n“We had no knowledge at all of the technique of radio writing, so we just put the dialogue down\nbaldly. The sound effects were minutely detailed and mostly impossible: brush of leaves on\nwindow-pane, man turning somersault, billycan being removed from the fire.\n“The first play was called The Beast, and at the conclusion of it Tiger was nearly frightened to\ndeath and peopled the short distance between the kitchen and her little wooden hut with\nterrifying lurkers. So was born the series Night Tales of a Bagman. Our first notion was to try\nthem on commercial stations, and we saw ourselves churning out hundreds of episodes, for each\nof which, we imagined in our ignorance, we would be paid at least ten guineas.\n“But after an impersonal scrutiny of the four plays we had written our spirits dropped\nsickeningly. They were not right. The suspense had mysteriously vanished from them. The tension\nwith which they had originally bristled was no more.\n“But why?\n“‘We’ll just have to work more on them,’ said Tiger.\n“‘Sure,’ replied Evans. ‘But in what way? Why don’t they jell? What’s missing? Can you tell me?’”\n“She couldn’t. But still we were convinced that somewhere in those little ghost plays was the\ngerm of a radio feature.\n“‘They’ll keep,’ said Evans. ‘Some day we’ll know enough to tell at a glance where we went wrong\nwith them, I hope,’ he added cautiously.” [pp. 63-64]\n“…lanky swagman who had got himself a job as piece-picker. He was a true track-man, his life\nmated to the sun and wind and the endless roads… There was no end to the stories this man could\ntell… He had a unique narrative style, rough and ready, but vivid and biblically expressive.”\n“Evans had often reflected on the ghost plays and wondered what it was that they lacked. Now\nhe had an idea.”\n“‘Get busy and take those ghost plays out of mothballs. I think I’ve got the gimmick. We’ll use a\nbagman narrator to tie them up. He introduces the programme of four plays, and then each story\nseparately. He also winds up each one in narrative. Get the idea?’\n“‘It sounds fine. But what about the bagman?’\n“‘Oh, I’ve got him. He sleeps on the floor next door to us.’”\n“‘I’ll knock out the narrative bits for the bagman and post them down to you. See if you can type\nthem out and bung off the series to the A.B.C.’” [pp.85-87]\n“Every word that fell from his mouth was a jewel. He was absolutely the pattern of the narrator\nin our Bagman radio plays.” [p. 94]\n“[letter to Ruth] ‘A bloke named Leslie Rees has written from the A.B.C. to say he likes the\nBagman Plays, all except one, and if we replace it he’ll accept them. The one he doesn’t like is The\nBeast. Remember how it scared you? Well, it doesn’t scare him. Together they will make a hour-\nlength show. We’ve hit it, kid.’” [p.101]\n“The time was drawing near for the A.B.C. to produce our Bagman Plays. It seemed very long\nsince we had written them, and they had receded into an impersonal place in our lives. We had no\nradio, and on the broadcast night we went over to Uncle Looshus’ little room to listen in.\n“We listened with agony. We had never heard anything so stiff, so amateurish, so completely\nunreal… on the way home all we could say to each other was that the plays showed some promise\nand maybe if we slugged away at it we’d learn to write effective dialogue.\n“Yet one paper gave those plays the honours of the week. Another said they were minor classics\nof the Australian outback, and had opened new ground in radio. They have been repeated\ninnumerable times on National and State broadcasts, overseas and on shortwave.”  [pp.117-118]\n“Then one day a letter from the A.B.C. fell through the slot in the door. It was from the Federal\nDirector of Drama, F. D. Clewlow… Not only was he going to repeat the NightTales of a Bagman,\nbut he wanted us to write another lot.” [p. 143]\n“…at the Municipal Library…we came across a collection of plays by the crack American scripter\nArch Oboler… We were fascinated…by his ability and the clarity of his methods…\n“Arch Oboler, though he never knew it, taught us more about radio writing than he could have\ndreamed.\n“We worked hard and nervously on the second Bagman plays, feeling that this was a\nconsolidation of our big chance. The plays were again successful, excellently produced and acted,\nthe sound effects and voice levels being so well done that we knew the A.B.C. had got more out of\nthe scripts than we had put into them. The surest sign of the Bagman’s success was that, after this\nthird airing, he began to have his imitators on the commercial stations.” [p. 145]\n[IAN GRIEVE] According to Ruth Park in her Autobiography (Book 2 – Fishing in the Styx)\nThere were 6 Bagman series commencing with the first – Night Tales of the Bagman.  The ABC\nsaid there was a splendid response to their first Adult dramatic effort Night Tales of the Bagman\nand that the ABC was going to repeat them, and would like some more ghost stories in the same\nformat.  Getting the ideas for the ghost stories was no problem.  Ruth recalled old bush stories her\nFather had told her and D’Arcy suddenly remembered goose-pimpled evenings when he and the\nother tikes listened to the Irish stories of Grandma Niland.  Years later the stories were also\nbroadcast on the BBC and some of the 15 minute scripts were converted into television programs\nin other languages.\nThe format was simple.  A Bagman or wanderer sitting beside a campfire with his friends, telling\nghost stories of the countryside.\n[RESEARCH] D’Arcy’s story “The Web” was anthologized in 1977 in the Hamlin collection The\nBest Horror Stories. Lynn Picknett\n“Gramps moves in with his daughter's family. They accept the blind old man from the first, but he\nhas to work on the boy, Joe, who's remote, wary .... until he learns of the old man's aversion to\nspiders and cash signs flow before his eyes. Will he live long enough to win a Young Businessman\nof the Year award?”",
  "origination": "",
  "duration": "",
  "personnel": "",
  "extant_recordings": "",
  "chronology": "(2FC, SYDNEY—ABC)\n[Saturday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nApril 10, 1943\n“Night Tales of a Bagman”\n[MELBOURNE ARGUS: “…Tales of a Night Bagman [sic], play by R. Park\nand B. Niland…”]\n[“…Characters: The Bagman; Stan Bennett; Bunny MacFarlane; An Echo;\nOld Bill; Mr. Creighton; Mrs. Creighton; Tom Murray; Thompson; Harry\nGrosvenor; Joe, his son, etc…”]\nSCRIPT: D’Arcy Niland, Ruth Park.\nPERSONNEL: Charles Wheeler (producer).\nCAST: John Bedouin, Alfred Bristowe, Vivian Edwards, Athol Fleming, George\nHewlett (The Bagman), Rosalind Kennadale, Hal Lashwood, Fred McDonald, Les\nWarton.\n[OG-NOTE: In June of ’43 a photograph of George Hewlett was published in the\nKilmore Free Press with the caption: “Versatile Radio Man… actor, story-reader and\nfilm reviewer in A.B.C. programmes.”]\nn.d.\n[???????]\n“‘Night Tales of a Bagman,’ produced by Charles Wheeler from the A.B.C.\nSydney studios last Saturday night provided an entertaining hour’s listening. The\ntales are told by ‘The Bagman’ (George Hewlett) to his cronies, and concern queer\nstories he has heard in his travels in the Australian back country. Here is a jolly\ngood mystery feature with a genuine Australian atmosphere. The tales are linked\ntogether effectively with the use of ‘Waltzing Matilda’ as theme song.”\nWEDNESDAY PLAY (2FC, SYDNEY—ABC)\n[Wednesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nMarch 8, 1944\n“The Bagman on the Wallaby”\n[HOBART MERCURY: “…by Ruth Park and D’Arcy Niland…”]\n[OG-NOTE: The script for this program is archived in the Fryer Library of the University\nof Queensland. It is catalogued under the title The Bagman on the Wallaby: Australian\nStories of the Weird and Uncanny. Authorship is credited to both Ruth Park and D’Arcy\nNiland. The individual stories are cited by title: “The Man with Two Shadows,” “The\nSwamp,” “The Green Lizard” and “The Phantom Shearer.”]\nMAY 1, 1944:\n[Portsland\nGuardian—“Stars\nof\nthe\nAir—‘Ruth\nPark—Newest\nChildren’s Writer’”]\n“Newest and most prolific of writers for the A.B.C. Children’s Session is Ruth\nPark, a New Zealand journalist who, before her marriage to Darcy Niland, well-\nknown short-story writer and radio playwright, was children’s editor and special\nreporter for the ‘Auckland Star.’\n“…In her odd moments she writes stories for adults, some of which have been\npublished in the A.B.C. Weekly. Others have found their way into American\nanthologies. Her second series of ghost plays, ‘Night Tales of a Bagman,’ will\nshortly be broadcast through National stations.\n“Asked how she manages to find time to write so much, as well as to look after\nher six-months’ old baby daughter, Miss Park replied: ‘Oh, my husband and I pop\nthe baby into bed at six o’clock and then we are pretty well free until she wakes up\nat six in the morning. That gives us about twelve hours. We do most of our\nwriting at night. When we collaborate on a play…one of us dictates and the other\none types. Then we switch over. Of course, we have terrific arguments about the\ndevelopment of our characters; in fact, that is the only thing we ever do argue\nabout…”\nTUESDAY PLAY (3LO, MELBOURNE—ABC)\n[Tuesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nAugust 8, 1944\n“Night Tales of a Bagman”\nPERSONNEL: Douglas Kelly (narrator).\n(7ZR, HOBART)\n[Tuesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nAugust 22, 1944\n“Night Tales of a Bagman”\n(3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Thursday—8:00-9:15 PM]\nDec. 14, 1944\n“The Bagman Tells Another”\n[MELBOURNE ARGUS: “…Four Creepy Tales of  Australian Outback…”]\n[OG-NOTE: The script for this program is archived in the Fryer Library of the University\nof Queensland. Authorship is credited to both Ruth Park and D’Arcy Niland. The\nindividual stories are cited by title: “The Miners,” “The Call,” “The Face,” and “The Joss\nHouse.”]\n(3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Saturday—3:00-4:00 PM]\nFebruary 10, 1945\n“The Bagman on the Wallaby”\n[MELBOURNE ARGUS: “…tales of the Australian bush…”]\n[“…Australian stories of the weird and uncanny…”]\nPERSONNEL: Ian Maxwell (producer).\n(3LO, MELBOURNE)\n[Tuesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nFebruary 20, 1945\n“The Bagman Tells Another”\n[MELBOURNE ARGUS: “…Four Creepy Tales of the Australian Outback, by\nRuth Park and D’Arcy Niland…”]\n(7ZR, HOBART]\n[Tuesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nMarch 6, 1945\n“The Bagman Tells Another”\n(3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Saturday—3:00-4:00 PM]\nApril 28, 1945\n“The Bagman Tells Another”\n(7ZL, HOBART—ABC)\n[Thursday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nJuly 26, 1945\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n(7ZR, HOBART—ABC)\n[Tuesday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nMay 14, 1946\n“Night Tales of a Bagman”\n(3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Thursday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nJuly 11, 1946\n“The Bagman Swings His Billy”\n(5CL, ADELAIDE—ABC)\n[Friday—9:00-10:00 PM]\nJune 6, 1947\n“The Bagman Tells Another”\n[ADELAIDE\nADVERTISER: “…Four creepy tales of the Australian\noutback…will be presented…”]\n(4QG, BRISBANE—ABC)\n[Friday—10:30-11:00 PM]\nOctober 17, 1947\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n[BRISBANE COURIER-MAIL: “…Play by D’Arcy Niland…”]\n(4QN, TOWNSVILLE—ABC)\n[Friday—9:30-10:30 PM]\nNovember 28, 1947\n“The Bagman on the Wallaby”\nSATURDAY PLAY (3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Saturday—9:00-10:00 PM]\nMay 1, 1948\n“The Bagman Takes It Easy”\n[OG-NOTE: The script for this program is archived in the Fryer Library of the University\nof Queensland. Authorship is credited to both Ruth Park and D’Arcy Niland. The\nindividual stories are cited by title: “The Vanishing Man,” “The Women at the Nine-\nMile,” “The Clock,” and “The Gum-Climbers.”]\nRADIO REPERTORY (5DR, DARWIN)\n[Sunday—7:00-8:00 PM]\nJune 27, 1948\n“The Bagman Takes It Easy”\n[DARWIN NORTHERN STANDARD: “…by Ruth Parke [sic]…”]\n(3AR, MELBOURNE)\n[Saturday—8:00-9:15 PM]\nSeptember 25, 1948\n“The Bagman’s Best”\n(5AN, ADELAIDE)\n[Saturday—9:00-10:00 PM]\nOctober 9, 1948\n“The Bagman’s Best”\n[ADELAIDE ADVERTISER: “… ‘The Bagman’s Nest [sic]’…”]\n(5AD, ADELAIDE)\n[Friday—8:45-9:45 PM]\nOctober 28, 1948\n“The Bagman Swings His Billy”\nPERSONNEL: Stafford Dyson (producer).\n(7ZL, HOBART—ABC)\n[Friday—9:15-10:15 PM]\nApril 14, 1950\n“The Bagman on the Wallaby”\nJune 23, 1950\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n(5CL, ADELAIDE—ABC)\n[Sunday—3:40-4:45 PM]\nJuly 9, 1950\n“The Bagman on the Wallaby”\n[ADELAIDE ADVERTISER: “…Stafford Dyson will produce the Australian\nplay, ‘The Bagman on the Wallaby’…”]\n(7ZL, HOBART—ABC INTERSTATE)\n[Friday—9:15-10:15 PM]\nJuly 21, 1950\n“The Bagman Swings His Billy”\nMATINEE (5CL, ADELAIDE)\n[Sunday—3:40-4:45 PM]\nJuly 23, 1950\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n(7ZL, HOBART—ABC INTERSTATE)\n[Friday—9:15-10:15 PM]\nOctober 20, 1950\n“The Bagman Takes It Easy”\n(2FC, SYDNEY—ABC)\n[Saturday—8:00-9:00 PM]\nApril 24, 1954\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n(5AN, ADELAIDE)\n[Saturday—9:00-10:00 PM]\nMay 15, 1954\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\n(7NT, HOBART)\n[Tuesday—7:15-8:15 PM]\nJune 1, 1954\n“The Bagman Camps Again”\nSEPTEMBER 10, 1954:\n[Townsville Daily Bulletin—“Open Road” by Bob Bloodwood]\n“…whilst on the subject of swagmen, I’ve met hundreds in my time, and there\nwere some pretty queer coves amongst them, but until a radio station put over\nthat play ‘The Bagman Camps Again’ the other night I’ll be hanged if I ever\nheard one with an Oxford accent. It literally made my blood boil to see genuine\nswagmen lampooned like that…”\nTALES OF A BAGMAN (ABC)\n[Monday—\nDecember 16, 1957\n[AUSTRALIAN OTR DATABASE: “15m… First broadcast… Kelly Douglas\n(narrator)…”]\nRuth Park\nD’Arcy Niland",
  "sources": "",
  "gallery": "",
  "images": []
}