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My office suite in the Fox Brisbane business entertainment as a
Street building was a self-contained tax deduction.
unit I had constructed in 1968 - even When in Sydney my
though Alan told me I could take space daily pattern was to be in the
anywhere in Sydney - equipped with office before 7.30 am (best
every facility, including the only Telex traffic-time from the North
machine in the building. Shore), read the papers and
It was the custom for the theatrical be ready for the calls from
Managing Director Eric Davis and his Los Angeles. The mailman
assistant Bob Gunn to come in early came early, so before my
each day for coffee. On the first secretary arrived I had read
workday after the holiday we were the mail and faxes and was
talking when the Telex cranked up with ready to dictate.
the message confirming my Vice Business correspondence
Presidency. was a forte of mine and
Bob Gunn was heartfelt in his with the assistance of a
congratulations, Eric perfunctory. I superb stenographer, Ann
perceived my appointment to reflect Petersen, we knocked over
well on us all, and thought that Eric all the mail so I could open
Actor Pernell Roberts of Bonanza fame, meets his puppy
would probably host a celebratory my bar at 12 noon.
namesake Trapper John (Roberts’ subsequent series) at
lunch, but nothing happened. I then Then out to lunch with
the Broome’s Sydney home.
imagined it would be drinks in the a client, or to TVPDA
boardroom after work. Nothing. So I business, or if nothing was pressing,
I always ensured that the ABC had
figured that some pressing business had with George Mooratoff who had moved
at least one Fox program on air and
made celebrations inconvenient that day to Paramount from MCA.
came up with the idea of licensing them
and that it would all happen tomorrow. Back to the office by four, sign the
one run of feature films between the
Again nothing. That’s when I called in mail - which rarely needed correction -
expiry of a commercial licence and the
the signwriter to put the appropriate return missed calls and ready for the
probability of selling reruns a year
wording on the glass panel of my outer start of calls from Asia. Usually home
later. That is what is called a ‘window’.
door to the Fox foyer, which Eric had by 7.30 unless overseas visitors needed
Since the ABC audience is
to pass at least twice a day. hospitality.
fundamentally different from
From about this time I started to I had cleared my stock of features
commercial TV the idea worked well,
develop policies for my territories, the with three packages, one for each
and ABC’s Walter Norris and I did
most important of which was Australia. network, headed by the title I knew each
considerable business.
What makes distribution great is program director was lusting after. I
After the success of Peyton Place I
that nothing is ever ‘sold’. It is licensed informed all three that my next offering
had to wait a while for the next one -
for particular periods and territories for would be just one film - Star Wars.
M*A*S*H.
a number of runs. After that, the Calling for sealed bids to be opened
Managing Director of Channel 10
copyright reverts to the distributor. by Peat Marwick, I made it known that
Greg Coote had been issued with one
It was customary for all feature I would negotiate with the highest
instruction by owner Rupert Murdoch -
deals to be all Australia, seven runs, bidder. This turned out to be Network
“Do what you like with programming,
seven years. I succeeded in reducing 10, and I secured the highest ever price
but DO NOT move M*A*S*H from the
this to four cities, five runs five years, for Australian TV - $US one million -
seven o'clock time slot”.
thus clearing the product for individual much to Kerry Packer’s disgust. He
It is interesting to reflect now that
licensing to the rest of Australia. called me to a meeting, roundly abused
M*A*S*H was a hard sell in both
Dr. Clem Semmler, Assistant me (his offer was less than half), but
Australia and New Zealand at first, yet
General manager of the ABC, was a subsequently apologised.
M*A*S*H has never been off the air in
most complete Australian and one of Good friends George Lucas and
Australia since. Every time a re-run
only two Doctors of Letters I ever Steven Spielberg had ‘cross-
deal was done, the price went up from a
knew. I had gone to him with a collateralised’ Star Wars and the first
starting point of $US one million.
proposal from Alan Silverbach about a Indiana Jones movie. At George
M*A*S*H was never the success in
wonderful series the ABC were Mooratoff’s plea I broke
countries where dubbing was needed or
producing in black and white. Fox confidentiality, so he knew my Star
the culture was militaristic.
would put in the money for colour Wars price and secured exactly the
production, in return for the world-wide When Rupert bought Fox and the same deal for Spielberg.
rights. assets were valued, nobody thought to One Sunday evening in church I
look at the residual value of M*A*S*H.
Clem was entranced with the listened as the parson urged the
concept and took it to his board, only to This was the era of four-hour congregation to see Chariots Of Fire. I
have it rejected on the grounds “we lunches, when every big deal was think this was the first film co-financed
don’t want any of those dirty US concluded at the lunch table, something by Fox and Warners, who had divided
dollars”. that Treasurer Paul Keating never the distribution rights for domestic
understood when he disallowed
USA and International.
32 2007 CINEMARECORD