The Box (TV series)

For the TV3 show presented by Keith Duffy, see The Box (Irish TV series).
The Box
Genre soap opera
Starring (see cast list in article)
Country of origin Australia
Original language(s) English
No. of series 4
Production
Running time 30-60 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel The 0-10 Network
Picture format Black and White (1974)
PAL (1975-1977)
Audio format Mono
Original run 11 February 1974 –
11 October 1977

The Box was an Australian soap opera that ran on ATV-0 from 11 February 1974 until 11 October 1977 and on The 0-10 Network affiliates around Australia.

The Box was produced by Crawford Productions who at the time was having great success producing police procedural television series in Australia. The Box was Crawford's first soap opera, and was launched as a reaction to the enormous success of adult soap opera Number 96.[1]

The Box was a drama set in fictional television station UCV-12. It featured elements that satirised the Australian television industry. Characters in the series were said to be modelled on Australian television figures of the day, and many self-referential elements featured. Like Number 96 the series was famous for its adult storylines, frequent nude glimpses, and sexual content.

Storylines

Along with constructing characters modelled on real-life Australian television figures of the day, The Box presented various fictional programs produced by UCV-12 that commented-on real-life Australian programs. Police procedural Manhunt, which was lumbered with a dim and accident-prone lead actor Tony Wild (Ken James), was much like the police series produced by Crawfords at that time. Variety program Big Night Out was an In Melbourne Tonight style production. Later the medical drama Mercy Flight seemed connected to early Australian series The Flying Doctor (1959).

The initial episodes of The Box emphasised sex, scandal, the political machinations of station personnel, and featured several nude scenes. The first episode showed a sexy young woman named Felicity (played by 20 year old Helen Hemingway) seduce Big Night Out host Gary Burke (Peter Regan). Felicity then announced she was a 15-year-old schoolgirl, causing the station to try to cover-up the scandal. Scheming bisexual television magazine journalist Vicki Stafford (Judy Nunn) exploited the situation and had Felicity pose for a nude centerfold with Tony Wild. Vicki also kissed Felicity, in Australian TV's first ever lesbian kiss. Felicity was soon revealed to be over 18, and schemed her way into the station to appear on Big Night Out. Vicki later switched to working for the station as well, first in the publicity department, and then producing and presenting chat and news style programs.

The Box also featured an openly-gay television producer, the flamboyant Lee Whiteman (Paul Karo), and gossipy tea lady Mrs Hopkins (Lois Ramsey). Mrs Hopkins' son Wayne (Bruce Kilpatrick) was released from prison during the show's first year. When he fell in love with Lee, Mrs Hopkins was forced to accept that her son was a homosexual. Lee also clashed with Gary Burke upon taking over as producer of Big Night Out. Gary continually schemed to retain his position on the show.

A feature film version of The Box produced at the end of the first year of production featured most of the regular series characters but had a stand-alone story. The film emphasised comedy to a greater degree than the series version at that time.

The program's second year (1975) increasingly emphasised comedy, much of it focused on Tony Wild. Enid Parker (Jill Forster) arrived as a jolly but frumpish spinster secretary. Enid was perturbed when her glamorous sister, the scheming Emma (also played by Forster), showed up and impersonated her. Lee had a brief relationship with closeted newsreader John Barnett (Donald McDonald). Cheryl Rixon appeared on a recurring basis in 1975-1976 as television starlet Angela O'Malley, and appeared nude in the series several times.

For the 1976 season, Jock Blair returned as the program's producer and announced his plans to refocus the series to emphasise adult drama as it had done in its first year.[2]

Production

Production commenced at the studios of Melbourne's ATV-0 (now ATV-10) in October 1973. The first episode screened on ATV-0 on 11 February 1974 at 9.00pm. The program was initially shot in black and white, before switching to colour production in late 1974.

Initially The Box proved a huge hit, ranking as Australia's second most popular show in 1974. (Number 96 was Australia's highest rating television production that year.)[3]

A feature film version of the series was produced in January 1975 and released later that year. It placed a greater emphasis on comedy than the series at that time, and featured several scenes featuring full frontal nudity. The film's sets were later moved to the television studios to be used in the series. In the show's storyline an office fire in October 1975 explained the change in appearance.

Production of the series was in half-hour episodes for the first two years. In some regions two episodes were aired consecutively in one-hour blocks. Other regions broadcast the serial as five half hour installments each week, stripped across each weekday evening. Starting with the 1976 season, episodes were compiled in one hour installments.

In Melbourne episodes screened as two, one-hour episodes each week throughout 1976.

Production on the series ended 1 April 1977 due to declining ratings and the closing episodes screened through 1977 in a late-night timeslot. The final episode was broadcast in Melbourne 11 October 1977.

Cast

The original cast was: George Mallaby, Peter Regan, Fred 'Cul' Cullen, Belinda Giblin, Barrie Barkla, Helen Hemingway, Judy Nunn, Paul Karo, Ken James, Monica Maughan, Kay McFeeter, Graeme Blundell, Briony Behets, Fred Betts, Lois Ramsay, Ken Snodgrass. Later cast additions included Ross D. Wylie, Lynda Keane, Vanessa Leigh, Delvene Delaney, Luigi Villani, Tracy Mann, Jill Forster, John Stanton, Geraldine Turner, Davina Whitehouse, Syd Heylen, Tony Barry, Cheryl Rixon, Tristan Rogers, Noni Hazelhurst, Judy McBurney, Ian Smith, Barbara Llewellyn, Anne Louise Lambert, Maurie Fields, Don Barker, Penny Downie, Christine Broadway, Ross Skiffington, Gary Day, Tom Richards.

Barrie Barkla, Judy Nunn, Ken James, Ken Snodgrass and Lois Ramsay appeared throughout the series' entire run. Barrie Barkla actually worked at a real-life TV station (CTC-7 in Canberra) before moving to Melbourne to play his role as the station manager in The Box.

Scriptwriters

Key writers for the early episodes included Tom Hegarty, Don Battye and Jonathan Dawson.

Awards

George Mallaby won the Best Australian Actor-National Logie Award in 1975 for his portrayal of television executive Paul Donovan in The Box.

Paul Karo won the Best Australian Actor-National Logie Award in 1976 for his portrayal of gay producer Lee Whiteman.

Feature film

The Box
Directed by Paul Eddey
Produced by Ian Jones
Written by Tom Hegarty
Based on story by Tom Hegarty
Ray Kolle
Starring Barrie Barkla, Fred Betts, Belinda Giblin, Ken James, Paul Karo, George Mallaby, Judy Nunn, Lois Ramsay
Cinematography Wayne Williams
Edited by Philip Reid
Production
company
Distributed by Roadshow
Release dates
 8 August 1975
Running time
 100 mins
Country Australia
Language English
Budget A$300,000[4]
Box office A$857,000[5]

A feature film of the same name was produced in colour in January 1975 featuring much the same cast as the series at that time. The film also featured Graham Kennedy playing himself, and Cornelia Frances in the key role of Dr S M Winter, an efficiency expert brought in to improve operations at UCV-12. Robin Ramsay played Winter's assistant Bruce. Marilyn Vernon as starlet Ingrid O'Toole, and Leonie Bradley, credited as "Nature Girl", provide nude glimpses, as does the returning Belinda Giblin. Keith Lee played Price, and Robert Forza appeared as Channel 12's clapper loader.

Plot

UCV-12 is in financial difficulties. The company board calls the bluff of managing director Sir Henry Usher (Fred Betts), forcing him to call in a systems expert to improve station operations. Station staff are initially surprised to learn that the expert, Dr Winter, is a woman, named Sheila (Cornelia Frances). Various attempts to first impress, and then to hinder Dr Winter end disastrously. A feature film, Manhunt, directed by Lee Whiteman and starring Tony Wild, is produced with hopes to increasing station income. Thanks to Wild's ineptitude the resultant footage is a disaster but the film finds unexpected success when reworked as a comedy.

Production

The film was shot on 35 mm on new sets at Crawford Productions' Abbotsford studios over four weeks in early 1975.[6] Part of the budget was contributed by the Australian Film Development Corporation. Marilyn Vernon appeared in several full frontal scenes that were probably too hot for TV while Belinda Giblin was seen topless again just as she had been in the TV series.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Albert Moran, Moran's Guide to Australian TV Series, AFTRS 1993 p 91-92
  2. ↑ Webster, Allan. Box Turns on the Heat. Observer TV. 28 December 1975, pp 4-5.
  3. ↑ Beilby, Peter. Australian TV: The First 25 Years. Cinema Papers: Melbourne, 1981. p 45.
  4. ↑ Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998 p289
  5. ↑ 'Australian Films At the Australian Box office' Film Victoria accessed 28 Sept 2012
  6. ↑ David Stratton, The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival, Angus & Robertson, 1980 p301

External links