[Ted Parsons Home Movies: Reel 2]

Ted Parsons was a keen amateur filmmaker of the 1940s to 1960s. Ted’s films feature life in and around the Victorian regional city of Wangaratta post-war. This was a period of prosperity and optimism largely due to a successful textile industry that took Wangaratta from a small country town to major rural city, declared in 1959.

Ted captures the many sporting and social events, venues and clubs, holidays and travel along with scenes of everyday life. The collection also shows the broader issues faced by country people such as the regular flooding events around the Ovens and King Rivers.

Wangaratta’s success story as a manufacturing town traces the path of post-war migration and the accompanying growth of Australia’s economy, which makes these films particularly interesting.

The Ted Parsons Home Movie Collection has been donated to ACMI by the filmmaker’s grandson Barry Parsons. The films have been made on 16mm film.

This films contains scenes at the lawn bowling clubs in and around Wangaratta. As a testament to playing sport or bowls as in this example, the players are older but look very spry and nimble. Also of note, it is not unusual to see players with cigarettes and both players and spectators are very ‘natty’ dressers.

Note that at 00:27:04:00 the film changes to black and white for some minutes and some scenes are repeated.

Selected highlights list:
00:00:02:00 sign and gateway for Wangaratta Bowling Club followed by a women’s tournament
00:00:51:00 a great example of bowling and two bowlers smiling at the camera
00:01:01:00 a bowler checks in on a room of tables set for a meal
00:01:47:00 a Californian Bungalow architectural style house in the background
00:02:45:00 bowling toward the camera
00:03:16:00 a cheery smile at the camera
00:03:39:00 men join the bowling green with one bowler encouraging the ball by clicking over his head whilst smoking through a cigarette holder
00:05:05:00 bowlers crossing the green
00:05:54:00 a men’s tournament
00:06:18:00 children and their dog watch the tournament
00:06:31:00 poster for ‘Benalla Bowling Carnival New Year Week-End’ followed by Benalla bowling green and some spectators
00:07:51:00 bowlers refreshing themselves with some beer
00:09:00:00 a crowd dressed for an occasion
00:09:20:00 some dignatories stand in front of bowlers and one of the women bowls what is likely to be an opening shot of the tournament
00:10:10:00 some lovely 1950s style hats worn by members of the watching crowd
00:10:25:00 men’s tournament is underway
00;11:06:00 an old style ‘Smiths’ clock in the clubhouse
00:11:36:00 a man with what might be a ‘press’ or media card in his hat
00:11:56:00 tables set for dining with particularly impressive flower arrangements
00:12:29:00 hats and speeches
00:12:52:00 women’s tournament begins
00:13:02:00 a great shot of all bowlers rolling balls into the centre of the green where the white ball (kitty or jack) sits and congratulating the winner
00:13:47:00 mixed gender tournament followed by views of bowlers at their game
00:16:54:00 the outside of the Wangaratta Club
00:20:24:00 a great example of a men’s knitted vest from the era, worn over a shirt and tie
00:20:37:00 poster for ‘Bowling Carnival Australia Day Week-End’ (1957) followed by a bowling venue with covered seats for spectators
00:21:30:00 a score board
00:22:00:00 a close-up of a laughing bowler smiles at the camera
00:22:10:00 bowlers drinking beers and shooing flies
00:24:30:00 a very agile man with only one leg and a crutch enters the green and uses his crutch to bowl effortlessly
00:25:58:00 the Australian flag flies
00:26:01:00 a bowler, cigarette in his mouth, uses his polishing cloth to clean the ball followed by a double arm amputee, also with cigarette in mouth, who bowls a ball toward the camera
00:27:01:00 bowlers gathered on the lawn cheering and raising their hats
00:30:24:00 lovely old weatherboard buildings in the background of the bowling
00:30:34:00 drinking soft drinks at the club house where one woman bowler puts on a bit of a show for the camera
00:34:48:00 poster for ‘Wangaratta Bowling Carnival Australia Day Week-End’ (1961)
00:36:21:00 a very cheery chap takes his hat off to the camera
00:38:41:00 the Corowa Bowling Club in a garden setting followed by scenes of bowling