Ormsby Wilkins
Born(1916-03-06)6 March 1916
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Died18 February 1976(1976-02-18) (aged 59)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Career
Station(s)2UE, 2GB, 3AW
Styletalk

Ormsby Cecil Wilkins (6 March 1916 - 18 February 1976) was an Australian radio presenter.[1]

He is most notable for being the first person in Australia to take talkback calls when the format was made legal in 1967.[2][3]

Career

Wilkins' career began with the United States Information Service where he worked for a number of years before moving into journalism in 1949.[4] Initially working for The Daily Mirror, he went on to work for The Daily Telegraph and The Argus.[1]

Wilkins made the move to radio in 1963.[1] Throughout his career, Wilkins worked at 2UE and 2GB in Sydney and Melbourne's 3AW.[1]

Various attempts at talkback radio in Australia had occurred, dating back to 2BL's experiment in 1925.[2][5] Stations 3AK and 2UW had also both tried it in 1963.[2] However, every attempt was quickly abandoned due to strict broadcasting and telecommunications regulations stipulating that the broadcast of telephone conversations on radio was illegal.[2] Just after midnight on 17 April 1967, Wilkins took the first legal talkback calls on Australian radio after the restrictions were lifted.[2]

One of the most notable moments of his radio career came in 1974. During a phone interview with Russell Kelner, the operations manager of the Jewish Defense League, agents from the FBI suddenly stormed into Kelner's office in New York to conduct a raid and placed him under arrest.[6] The commotion of the raid and the arrest of Kelner was clearly audible over the telephone line with Kelner telling Wilkins: "We are in a raid right now by the FBI. I have to hang up. We are all under arrest."[6] The arrest came after death threats were levelled against Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.[6]

In August 1975, Wilkins used his 2GB program to describe Australian businesswoman Junie Morosi as an "immoral adventuress who has slept with a variety of notable politicians".[7] This prompted Morosi to launch legal action against 2GB and Wilkins.[7] She was awarded $10,000 in damages after it was found Wilkins had deliberately imputed Morosi as an undesirable, immoral and promiscuous woman who had misconducted herself with her employer.[7]

Wilkins enjoyed an amicable relationship with the Jewish community in Australia who held him in high regard.[8][9] He was regularly invited to speak at various functions.[10][11][12][13][14]

Wilkins was outspoken on a number of issues. He openly criticised organisations such as the Melbourne Club for their policy not to admit Jews.[15]

He criticised the Federal Government's decision to allow South Africa to send an all-white football team to Australia for the 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia.[16] He described Australia's international image being vulnerable due to the White Australia policy and the poor treatment of Indigenous Australians.[16]

Death

Ormsby Wilkins died at the age of 59 on 19 February 1976 following a battle with lung cancer for which he underwent an operation in November 1975.[17][1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Death of radio personality". The Canberra Times. 20 February 1976. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "50 years of talkback radio". National Film and Sound Archive of Australia. Australian Government. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  3. ↑ "Forty years on and we're still talking back". The Age. 19 April 2007. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  4. ↑ "Players guest". The Australian Jewish News. 25 June 1971. Ormsby was with the United States Information Service for some years before turning to journalism.
  5. ↑ "Audience talks back - new idea in broadcasting, last night's success". The Sun. 25 November 1925. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 "Arrest over death threat". The Canberra Times. 14 November 1974. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 "Cairns admits sex, and breathtaking hypocrisy". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 September 2002. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  8. ↑ Phillips, Harry (12 March 1976). "Letter: Tribute to Mr Wilkins". The Australian Jewish News. ...we Jewish people have lost one of our greatest champions... he always defended the State of Israel and on many of his broadcasts spoke up to defend and praise the Jewish State and Jewish people no matter who he clashed with.
  9. ↑ "Club's Purim". The Australian Jewish News. 9 April 1976. The late Ormsby Wilkins was one of Australia's finest broadcasters and always defended Israel and Jewry, Rabbi Tarsis said.
  10. ↑ "Many helped to attend Mt. Scopus". The Australian Jewish News. 13 October 1972. Ormsby Wilkins, well-known radio personality had agreed to address the Ladies Luncheon on November 29...
  11. ↑ "Seeing Israel". The Australian Jewish News. 8 December 1972. Mr Wilkins was guest speaker at a recent cocktail party at Beth Weizmann for people associated with the tourist trade
  12. ↑ "Luncheon speakers". The Australian Jewish News. 15 December 1972. Ormsby Wilkins, 3AW radio personality, spoke of his visit to Israel...
  13. ↑ "Jay's". The Australian Jewish News. 18 May 1973. One of Melbourne's most popular and talked about personalities - Ormsby Wilkins - will be the guest of Orah Group at a Buffet Dinner to be held on Saturday June 9.
  14. ↑ "Y Club". The Australian Jewish News. 15 November 1974. Nov 19: Luncheon guest speaker, Mr Ormsby Wilkins, radio celebrity
  15. ↑ "Ezra guest". The Australian Jewish News. 30 April 1971. Retrieved 24 April 2022. "Extraordinary anachronism!" was Mr. Ormsby Wilkins' reaction to the fact that clubs like the Melbourne Club did not admit Jews.
  16. 1 2 "S. Afr. teams will stop - radio man". The Australian Jewish News. 2 July 1971. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  17. ↑ "Operation". The Canberra Times. 3 November 1975. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
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