The Badger Brothers constantly bully Willie and make fun of Willie being on the track team. They call him Willie Waddles. Although the coach encourages Willie, Willie doesn’t believe he can run fast, that is until Willie’s mom tells him a secret. That secret is so powerful that Willie amazes everyone. He amazes himself most of all.
The icon and legend at last tells his story his way -- without the boring bits Paul Hogan first appeared on Australia's screens in 1971 as a 'tap-dancing knife thrower' on TV talent show New Faces. The then father of four and Sydney Harbour Bridge rigger from Granville did it as a dare, but when the network's switchboard lit up, he was invited back. So popular was he with viewers, Hogan became a regular on Mike Willesee's A Current Affair. The rest, as they say, is history. In collaboration with his business partner and best friend, John Cornell (who played his sidekick, Strop), 'Hoges' went on to become Australia's favourite TV comedian. His hugely popular comedy shows and appearances in unforgettable and ground-breaking ads for cigarettes, beer and tourism, came to personify Australia and Australians here and overseas, helping to change the perception of who we are as people and as a nation. Then, in 1986, Crocodile Dundee, the movie he conceived, co-wrote and starred in, became an international smash hit and earned its star a Golden Globe Award, as well as Oscar and BAFTA nominations. Despite the fact that Hoges claimed to have retired, many more successful movies followed. Yet even as his star rose ever higher, he always expected someone to grab him by the arm and say, 'What are you doing here? You're just a bloody rigger!' The Tap-Dancing Knife Thrower is a funny and candid account of the astonishing life of this 'lucky bastard', as Hoges describes himself. Full of stories never previously shared, and recounted in the comedian's inimitable, funny and self-deprecating style, The Tap-Dancing Knife Thrower is Paul Hogan's story told his way - 'without the boring bits'.
What's the best way to scratch a wombat? In this cross between memoir and natural history, French shares her often hilarious adventures with her wombat neighbors in Australia and describes their physiology, history, and habits. Illustrations.
Australians have become increasingly visible outside of the country as speakers and actors in radio and television, their media moguls have frequently bought up foreign companies, and people around the world have been able to enjoy such Australian productions as The Flying Doctors, Neighbours, and Kath and Kim. The origins, early development, and later adaptations of radio and television show how Australia has gone from being a minor and rather parochial player to being a significant part of the international scene. The A to Z of Australian Radio and Television provides essential facts and information concerning the Australian radio and television industry. This is accomplished through the use of a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on directors, producers, writers, actors, television and radio series, and television and radio stations.
Australia's environmental movement and those defending the unique wildlife Down Under are superbly examined in this powerful account. Charting the emergence of a new national green movement and its members' commitment to nature's survival, this exploration details the landmark environmental battles already faced as well as those lurking on the horizon.
Did you know THAT: The first ready-to-eat breakfast cereal was Shredded Wheat in 1893 (it beat Kellogg's Corn Flakes by just five years) Scarlett Johansson, Ashton Kutcher and Simon Cowell all have twin brothers. Everton were the first British football club to introduce a stripe down the side of their shorts. The word DUDE was coined by Oscar Wilde and his friends. It is a combination of the words 'duds' and 'attitude'. Well you do now! Filled with fantastic facts and figures to amaze and intrigue . . . once you start reading you'll be hooked for hours!
This classic resource is organized as follows: Chapter I: Origins The Customs and Traditions of Aboriginals The Story of the Creation The Coming of Mankind The Peewee’s Story The Eagle-hawk and the Crow The Birth of the Butterflies The Confusion of Tongues The Discovery and the Loss of the Secret of Fire The Moon The Wonderful Lizard The Lazy Goannas and what happened to them How the Selfish Goannas lost their Wives What some Aboriginal Carvings mean Chapter II: Animal Myths The Selfish Owl Why Frogs jump into the Water This is the legend of the frogs. Kinie Ger, the Native Cat The Porcupine and the Mountain Devil The Green Frog How the Tortoise got his Shell The Mischievous Crow and the Good he did Whowie The Flood and its Results How Spencer’s Gulf came into Existence Chapter III: Religion The Belief in a Great Spirit The Land of Perfection The Voice of the Great Spirit Witchcraft Chapter IV: Social Marriage Customs The Spirit of Help among the Aboriginals Ngia Ngiampe Hunting Fishing Sport Chapter V: Personal Myths Kirkin and Wyju The Love-story of the Two Sisters Cheeroonear The Keen Keeng Mr and Mrs Newal and their Dog Thardid Jimbo Palpinkalare Perindi and Harrimiah Bulpallungga Nurunderi's Wives Chirr-bookie, the Blue Crane Buthera and the Bat Yara-ma-yha-who The Origin of the Pleiades
The fables of Aesop, with their lessons and morals about greed, violence, oppression, and mankind's short-sightedness, have--throughout time--always reminded us of our better selves and the importance of real virtues. This book is unusual as it is a hybrid, a fable-novel, in short, a book of fables (stretched into tales) with particular morals. There are three stories that are intertwined, and all of this takes in a post-apocalyptical world set in Australia. The book also humorously criticizes the endless superstitions that have held people back, either through the concepts of tradition, false hopes, and faith. And through the actions of the two main characters, Ritz and Triscuit, we can learn various aspects of wisdom. This novel is a chance for children to better understand the importance of compassion, and to truly understand the complexity of their own world.