Last meetings guest speaker was architect author Dr Derham Groves an architecture lecturer at Melbourne University.

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The title of his address "When Hoppy Met Skippy : Hopalong Cassidy in Australia" is in fact that of a recent book which he has written.   Derham explained (tried to) that he is more than a grown-up kid at heart  hankering for the days of the 1950's when kids played cowboys attired  in a black and silvered outfit complete with pearl handled pistols.  {This was the outfit worn in the "Hopalong Cassidy" films by legendary actor William Boyd.}     

What followed was a nostalgic trip through the 1954 tour of that actor to Australia but cleverly woven in by Derham with a fascinating but gentle look at the popular culture of that period in Australia.  Indeed the audience soon appreciated that the speakers prime interest (as portrayed in several earlier books ) is very much that of an observer and commentator on the evolution of popular culture.   It was explained that as a teaching architect he challenged and encouraged  students to consider aspects of everyday life and design in their work.  Previous foci on the visits Anna May Wong(1939), the Mouseketeers (1959) and Arthur Conan Doyle(1920)  had provided the basis of past publications by Derham on popular culture of the time.

We learnt that :-

  •  There were huge and often hysterical  crowds of all ages to meet "Hoppy"at the airports and other sightings
  • "Hoppy's" pistols were delayed entry by Customs
  • In Darwin the aboriginal community were his greatest fans
  • In the NT curfew rules meant the indigenous people could only attend theatres on Wed nights
  • Boyd was an astute businessman who acquired licences for myriads of "Hoppy" badged goods, most of which sold great quantities.  This ranged beyond character outfits to foods and everyday items.
  • "Hoppy" was a clean living film hero, and Boyd apparently often lived that line too (He wouldn't grant rights to those he thought unworthy).  {Ed  Interesting to note he was married 5 times}
  • Australian quarantine rules precluded his horse "Topper" from joining him.
  • Pre the TV era (1956+) radio-serials and comics were equally popular to the Saturday afternoon "B" cowboy movies.

It was a fascinating and subtly thought provoking address on the Australian community's behaviour and rules in 1954 and a wonderful memory jog to those members who proudly wore their Hopalong Cassidy gear and followed his adventures in film, radio and comics in the early 1950's.  Several admissions were heard as members left.