39: The Big Show

Frank Sinatra's first Australian visit in 1955 followed shortly after the repeal of decades-old laws preventing "coloured" musicians, or any foreign musicians, from performing in the country. The tour was part of the initial run of the now-legendary "Big Shows" put on by mysterious American promoter Lee Gordon, who took advantage of the newly-liberated times to bring acts like Ella Fitzgerald, Johnnie Ray, Nat King Cole and Louis Armstrong to Australia for the first time. But how did we end up with such racist, bizarre laws in the first place? To understand that, we need to go back to the 1928 Australian tour of an African-American jazz band called Sonny Clay's Coloured Idea, and unravel the elaborate conspiracy that faced them when they arrived. This week, we're examining Sinatra's 1955 Australian tour by putting it in its proper historical context - with a cliffhanger ending you won't see coming.

Selected media discussed this week, with links:

• AI Frank Sinatra cover of the theme from "Five Nights at Freddy's."
• AI Eric Cartman cover of Evanescence's "Bring Me to Life."
• Deirdre O'Connell's book, Harlem Nights: The Secret History of Australia's Jazz Age, published in 2021 by Macquarie University Press - a key source for this episode, and a highly recommended read.
• Two iconic photos of Sonny Clay's Coloured Idea arriving in Sydney at Circular Quay, 1928. Viewable through the State Library of New South Wales website. Photo 1, Photo 2.
• Photo of Central Station concourse in Sydney, taken in 2017, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Photo of a shelf full of Sex and the City DVDs in a Melbourne op shop, 2023.
• Little Man, What Now? Illustration by Jim Russell from 1935 edition of Australian Music Maker and Dance Band News. Sourced from Harlem Nights, available to view via Google Books.
• Kay Dreyfus' book, Silences and Secrets: The Australian Experience of the Weintraubs Syncopators, published 2013 by Monash University Publishing.
• Photo: Dancing the Jitterbug at the Booker T. Washington Club (Albion Street) 1943 [Photo by Bullard for The Sun, ID: FXB266504] - pictured: Private Eli Walker and Kathleen Cavanagh. Sourced from Murders Most Foul: Sydney True Crime History Tours website.
• Ella Fitzgerald - "A Foggy Day (In London Town)" Live at Bushnell Memorial Hall, 1954.
• Johnnie Ray - In Concert. Filmed in Stockholm, Sweden, 1958, including "Such a Night" and "Up Above My Head."
• Louis Armstrong - Live in Melbourne Australia 1954 and 1956. Full live recordings available on Soundcloud, including "Back Home in Indiana" as featured in this episode.
• Australian newsreel, 1955 - Sinatra Gets Tumultuous Welcome, documenting Sinatra's arrival at Mascot airport in Sydney.
• Frank Sinatra - Live in Melbourne, Australia. Recorded on January 19th, 1955 at West Melbourne Stadium. Full concert audio available on YouTube.
• Footage of Felix playing Overwatch while listening to the above.
• "God Save the Queen" - Variant of the 30-second film reels that played after movies in Australian cinemas, 1950s and 1960s.
• News story about the Pleasant Point Museum and Railway in South Canterbury, New Zealand, where the cinema still plays "God Save the Queen" before movies as of 2022, even after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

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