Ned Kelly and the Ogles

Contents

Missing Actors
The Ogles
Chronology
Melbourne 1906
In or out?
List of R.I. Cole credits
Cole company actors
References

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Abstract: According to an Ogle family tradition, William James Ogle (1870-1942) was an actor in the pioneering Australian feature film The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906-10). This article investigates that claim, through a study of his association with the R. I. Cole Bohemian Lecturer / Bohemian Dramatic Company between 1895 and 1912, and following on statements in support of such a possibility by William A. Gibson, one of the makers of the original film.

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1. The Missing Actors

The world's first full-length, narrative, feature film - a five-reeler running at upwards of 100 minutes upon its Melbourne and Adelaide premiere on Boxing Day, 26 December 1906 - was Australia's The Story of the Kelly Gang. It had been filmed in and around Melbourne over the previous six months by a team lead by Millard Johnson and W. A. Gibson, with the backing of the theatrical management company of J. & N. Tait. Unfortunately, only 17 minutes of the film have survived. A restored, study edition of the film, running 31 minutes, was released in a special DVD box set by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, Canberra, in 2006. A YouTube copy can be seen below.

Production and cast details remain sketchy and somewhat controversial, with a number of parties subsequently staking claims to involvement in the making of the film over the following years, up until the 1970s. According to the film's Wikipedia entry, production, direction, script development and some of the acting involved members of the Tait family of Victoria, led by concert, film and theatrical entrepreneur Charles Tait (1868-1933). Doubt has been cast over the accuracy of some of these attributions, amidst a diminution of the role of Johnson and Gibson (Fotheringham 1987).

The issue of the missing cast details is the result of a number of factors, including lack of front and end titles and production information as we know it today; a number of additional re-shoots by Johnson and Gibson between 1906 and 1910 which often made use of different actors; and an apparent contemporary indifference to the presentation of this information by the makers of the film or the news media. Despite this, Stephen Gaunson, in his 2010 PhD thesis Ned Kelly & the Movies 1906-2003: Representation, Social Banditry & History, complied a list of the suggested actors, obviously coming from a variety of (uncited) sources. These include the following:

1906

Ned Kelly - Frank Mills / Canadian Stunt Actor
Dan Kelly - Sam Crew
John Forde - Mr Marshall
Steve Hart - Jack Ennis / John Jack Cranston
Mr McKenzie - Norman Campbell
Joe Byrne - Will Coyne
Aaron Sherritt - Norman Campbell
Kate Kelly - Lizzie Tait
Head of Police - Charles Tait
Sergeant - John Forde
Detective - L A O Haslett

‘The Perth Fragment’

Policeman - Norman Campbell
Banker - Mr Veitch
Sandy Gloster - Norman Campbell

1910

Ned Kelly - Frank Mills
Dan Kelly - Mr Marshall
Steve Hart - Mr McKenzie / Jack Ennis
Joe Byrne - Will Coyne
Aaron Sherritt - Norman Campbell
Policeman - Norman Campbell
Sandy Gloster - Norman Campbell

Norman Campbell features in the three entries, followed by Mills, Marshall, Ennis and Coyne. Lizzie and Charles Tait are also mentioned, along with Sam Crews who was Property Manager on the 1906 production.

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2. The Cole company connection

According to a 1944 article in The ABC Weekly, citing a 1927 interview by Gayne Dexter with one of the film's producers, William A. Gibson, the actors came from Cole's Dramatic Company (McGuire 1944). McGuire's comments are apparently based on an earlier 1927 trade magazine piece, which was reprinted in part in a 1929 newspaper article (reproduced in full below). The 1944 article reads as follows:

Australia's first film

By Dan McGuire

In an old bound volume of an Australian film industry paper I have come across the first detailed account of Australia’s first motion picture — The Kelly Gang. The Kelly Gang was made in 1907 by W.A. Gibson, of Melbourne, and was five reels in length. Gibson, already an exhibitor, got the idea because a flesh-and-blood show about the Kellys played as rival in towns where he was showing a scenic picture called Living London — and the populations left Mr. Gibson’s film playing to empty seats. To make the Kellys, Gibson drew £400 from his bank. Having no studio, he built his sets in a paddock outside Melbourne, where the wind and rain took sometimes a nightly toll. His cast came from Cole’s Dramatic Company, and were paid the dazzling figure of £1 a day. Contrary to to-day’s tradition the Taits did not play in The Kelly Gang. Their interest in local films came later when they were associated with Gibson in The Luck of Roaring Camp and other roaring dramas. A youngster in The Kelly Gang, Prank Marden, was Gibson’s production manager 27 years later, when they filmed For the Term of His Natural Life at a cost of £40,000. But to return to that great saga, the making of The Kelly Gang. In an interview with film writer Gayne Dexter in 1927, Mr. Gibson recalled that one of his bushrangers, galloping madly past the cameras, yelled out: “What do I do when I want to make it stop?” Some of the vicissitudes of making the film were not so amusing. When the Glenrowan Hotel had to be burned down, the property man, inside the building with smoke-bombs, was overlooked. He managed to stagger outside before he collapsed unconscious. Pioneering the realist film technique, even in those early days, Gibson engaged a real band of roughs for a drinking scene in the Glenrowan bar. They were drinking real liquor, too. At the height of the action, with the camera cranking away, a brawl began, and revolvers were drawn and fired - luckily, revolvers loaded with blanks. The Kelly Gang made box-office history. Its first showing in Sydney was in the open air, on a site down near the Haymarket, to an audience of 3,000 people. In Melbourne queues formed up outside the theatre where it was shown; queues so great that stage producers made special trips to see the success of a photoplay for themselves. Gayne Dexter’s article, from which with gratitude I have lifted these fascinating facts, is studded with stirring stills from The Kelly Gang. Oddly enough, not one player is mentioned. As Mr. Dexter points out, months of inquiry among those associated with the film failed to establish the name of one actor. One of the big scenes of highway robbery was filmed in Mr. Gibson’s own back garden, one costume of the gentlemen is distinguished principally by knee-boots. One dashing photograph shows four of the gang posed facing the camera, with guns levelled at the photographer. Two are standing at the back and two are kneeling, meticulously posed, in front, in turn two gentlemen in front, however, have forgotten to look grim. I wish I had enough space to devote to other pictures in this article, particularly The Luck of the Roaring Camp. But it is evident that The Kelly Gang pioneered not only the Australian film in those gum-tree settings. One scene of derring-do, with a frightened person being heeled into the picture by an equally nervous actor, is set against scrubland, with row upon row of the gum trees beyond. Seriously speaking, a print of The Kelly Gang would be just the right gift for all those interested in local production. I wonder where such a print could be found?

As McGuire noted, there was a problem identifying the individual actors involved in the film. In a follow-up piece published nine months later, Mcguire provided further information on the Taits' role in the film (McGuire 1945):

Further footnotes on the Kelly Gang film

Dan McGuire on films

AUSTRALIA’S first feature film, The Kelly Gang, which has already been discussed in these columns, has had further invaluable light thrown upon its production by Mr. John Tait himself. Following the publication of my first Kelly article, so many people wanted to know where a print of the film could be obtained that Mr. Tait himself was approached. “Unfortunately, the original negative of The Kelly Gang was lost or destroyed, and there are no prints in existence,” Mr. Tait has replied. He goes on, however, to establish many vital facts about the film. The idea of The Kelly Gang emanated from an old-time showman, one Sam Crews, in the year 1905, Mr. Tait declares. The idea appealed to Charles Tait and his brothers. At that time, the then young firm of J. and N. Tait was presenting picture shows in Melbourne and elsewhere (Living London was one of its big successes) and was purchasing its film programmes from Messrs. Johnson and Gibson. The first step in making the Kellys was the production of a scenario, written by Charles Tait. Messrs. Johnson and Gibson were then approached, and in consideration for providing the necessary camera equipment, were given a share in the venture. The Kelly Gang was filmed mostly at Eaglemont or Chartersville Estates, at Heidelberg, Melbourne, generally on Sundays, at that. These week-end “takes” lasted for several weeks, and were looked upon as picnic parties. The stars, and the general ensemble, found their way out to the location by train, or, sometimes, by one of Garton’s “drags,” as large vehicles were then known. The producers themselves took part in the film. In fact, the cast included John Tait, Frank Tait, and Mrs. Charles Tait — an accomplished horse rider, who played Kate Kelly. To Charles Tait himself was given the job of producing and directing the film. The cost of the whole film was, according to Tait recollections, less than £1,000 over all! To give you an example of detailed costs: the salary of the actor playing Ned Kelly was £1 a day. Most important prop of all, the original Kelly armour, was actually borrowed from its then owner, Sir Rupert Clarke, after a visit of deputation to the Clarke home in Cliveden, East Melbourne, by Mr. John Tait. John Tait also secured the co-operation of the Railways Commissioner in filming the final stand of the Kellys at Glenrowan, when the railway track was lifted by the bushrangers. A train, and gangers at Eltham rail terminus were placed at the film company’s disposal for this scene. Cameraman on The Kelly Gang was Mr. W. A. Gibson, who used up 10,000 feet of film. The claim of The Kelly Gang to be the world’s first feature-length film can stand pretty well unchallenged. The multiple-reel pictures from France, which startled America, came years later. Today, Mr. John Tait places the first showing of the film at the Melbourne Athenaeum, at Christmas, 1905. The film was an immediate success, both then and later, wherever it was shown. A year later the Taits produced an edition of Robbery Under Arms, again doing their filming in Victoria. A number of the actors from The Kelly Gang are thought to have taken part in this second film, which had successful runs, but never approached the popularity of The Kelly Gang. Unfortunately, the print of Robbery Under Arms was also destroyed many years ago. Incidentally, Messrs. Johnson and Gibson, whose equipment was used for The Kelly Gang, were themselves among the very first picture showmen of Australia — a fact that shall be enlarged upon further discussion of our own film history. . . And a very full and colourful history it is. The extent of our film production from the days of the Kellys onwards is staggering.

Mention is made of the Taits and Edward Irham Cole (1859-1942), with the latter formerly known as the Bohemian Lecturer and also proprietor of the Bohemian Dramatic Company. A similarly named troupe had been operated by Stanley and Goodwin from the early 1880s. However, Cole's [Bohemian] Dramatic Company appears to have acquired the name after 1895.

The Bohemian Dramatic Company. Advertisement, 1905. Source: Theatre Heritage Australia.

The two articles by McGuire do not solve the problem regarding who the actors were in The Story of the Kelly Gang. We know a fair bit about the Tait family and, judging from various sources - most especially a recent family history, written some 56 years after the film first appeared - we can summarise their involvement as follows (Tait 1971):

Charles Tait - Writer and Director
Elizabeth Tait - Actor (stunt double)
Frank Tait - Actor
Harriet Tait - Actor
John Tait - Writer, Producer and Actor
Nevin Tait - Producer and Distributor

It should also be pointed out that the team of Millard Johnson (1860-1946) and his brother-in-law William A. Gibson (1869-1929) played important roles as actual makers of the film. After being involved in film presentation and production since 1903, during 1911 they went of to form Amalgamated Pictures Pty Ltd with the Taits. It was Gibson who, in a 1927 interview cited by McGuire, mentioned the involvement of Cole's Dramatic Company in The Story of the Kelly Gang and specifically stated that the Tait family members did not act. As a producer of the film, his comment warrants consideration. Also, as the film was the first such feature, it is possible that issues such as rights and residuals arose between Gibson and Johnson and the Tait family, and some of the actors, such that references to who those actors were - and many were apparently only paid £1 per day - were not discussed, in case they should make claims against the producers upon hearing of its financial success, both locally and overseas.

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2. The Ogles

William James Ogle

The author recently had a conversation with a young member of the Ogle family who stated that, according to family tradition, her grandfather had a role in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906). Could this be verified? At the outset, and as noted in the aforementioned Dan McGuire articles, the precise names of actors in this first narrative feature film were not known with any detail or precision. Therefore, it would be difficult to determine if the family story was true. Little by the way of specific detail was provided to the present writer in the initial discussion. The informant said that her father was born in 1935; her grandfather's name was William and he was likely born around 1900 or 1910. As such, he could be ruled out as a possible candidate as the film was produced and released in 1906. It would therefore be worth investigating William's father - the informant's great-grandfather - who could possibly have been born in the 1870s or early 1880s and therefore may have been in his twenties or thirties at the time of production of the film. But was he a member of Cole's group of actors and performers?

The Bohemian Dramatic Company had regularly performed E. I. Cole's play Hands Up!, or Ned Kelly and His Gang from 1900, prior to the filming of The Story of the Kelly Gang in 1906. As such, they may have been likely candidates for roles in the movie when the team of Gibson and Johnson, and the Taits, went into production. The Bohemian Dramatic Company, and its precursors the Bohemian Lecturer and Bohemian Variety Company, had performed around Australia, including Victoria, the home of the Taits, since the late 1880s. In pinning down the role that an Ogle may have played in the film, we have a variety of newspaper items which refer to members of the Ogle family - both male and female - performing in Cole's Company. They include the actors, and later married couple:

Ethel Emily Ogle nee Smith (1881 - 1932)
William James Ogle (1870-1942)

These were the great-grandparents of the author's informant - she was the granddaughter of William, who was the son of William James (her great-grandfather) and he in turn the son of Thomas (her great-great-grandfather). William James was at various stages the Bohemian Lecturer and Bohemian Dramatic Company Stage Manager, Director and General Manager, when Cole was absent performing or directing. Ogle was also a writer and performer of burlesque shows such as Silence and Fun (1896) and actor in the Company's stage plays through until 1912. A photograph of W. J. Ogle is illustrated above. W. J. Ogle and R.I. Cole married sister actresses Ethel and Lavinia Smith. Their ties were therefore both professional and familial, and they worked closely together between 1895 and 1912 during a significant period in the history of the Australian entertainment industry as cinema attained increasing prominence over traditional theatre-based performance.

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3. Chronology

The following chronology outlines what we know about W. J. Ogle, his wife Ethel Emily, and their possible association with The Story of the Kelly Gang and other early Australian theatrical and cinematic presentations.

1870

* 1870 - William James Ogle (1870-1942) is born, son of Thomas Ogle (b.1842) and Sarah Jane O'Brien.

1873

* 1873 - Marriage of Thomas Ogle and Sarah Jane O'Brien at Sydney.

1881

* 1881 - Ethel Emily Smith (1881-1932) of Sydney is born, daughter of George C. and Christina M. Smith.

1893

* 13 October 1893, Evening News, Sydney. Report on a quaintly named, Sydney-based, drama club's end of season festivities. It is possible that the Ogle mentioned therein is the young William James.

Social News

The Maitland Cinderella Quadrille Club brought its season to a brilliant close by a grand plain and fancy dress ball. It was a delightful evening, and everybody was there. The most noticeable among those present were Miss Clara Robinson, Miss Spratt, Miss Markham, Miss Callaghan, Miss Been, Miss Byrnes, Miss Doherty, Miss Roods, Miss Fowls, and Messrs. Ogle, Edwards, Cameron, Taylor, and Weston.

1895

* 1 June 1895, Bowral Free Press, New South Wales. Earliest identified report that the 25 year old William James Ogle is working for R. I. Cole, the so-called Bohemian Lecturer.

The Bohemian Lecturer.

This very popular and entertaining gentleman, who has gained himself such a favorable name in Bowral and elsewhere, will produce his instructive and interesting "Cyclorama of the World " in the Bowral School of Arts on Monday evening next, and expects to be rewarded by another bumper house. From beginning to end the entertainment is very good. The Bohemian Lecturer is a capital companion and guide, and the sights shown are beautiful. He will be assisted by. Mr. Alf Bartlett, the wonderful whistling ventriloquist and character impersonator; Mr. Oliver Leighton, the clever young artist who is well known to Bowral people; Mr. Geo. Vivian, musical director, late of the Melbourne Opera House; and Mr. E. R. Cole, another old favorite in his descriptive songs. The electrical apparatus and lime-light effects will be under the able management of Mr. W. Ogle, and his assistant.

* Wednesday, 12 June 1895, Bowral Free Press. In this report, W. J. Ogle is noted as both a performer and lantern slide projectionist.

The Bohemian Lecturer's last public appearance before a Bowral audience took place on Monday night in the School of Arts, which was only half-filled, but the wonder was that anybody turned out such a piercingly cold bleak night. The Lecturer appeared in a dress suit, and displayed thereon the six medals that had in various parts of this colony been publicly presented to him for his efforts in the cause of charity; to wit, Broken Hill, Hay, Adelong, Cootamundra, and Parramatta. At Parramatta the medal was accompanied by a testimonial signed by 286 leading residents. The entertainment was as usual very good. Illustrated character songs were sung as follows:- By the Lecturer, "The Union Jack of old England," and "Never believe all you hear." By Mr. Alf. Bartlett, "Boys together," "How they apologise," "I can't change it," and "Take my tip." By Mr. Oliver Leighton, "The Carnival." Mr. Leighton also gave a natural and very realistic exhibition of a man in delirium tremens. An amusing farce was also rendered, "The Telephone," in which Messrs. E. R. Cole, Oliver Leighton, W. Ogle, Alf. Bartlett, and Geo. Vivian took part. The lantern views were very numerous and very good. The life of Napoleon Bonaparte from the cradle to the grave was beautifully illustrated and well explained by the Bohemian Lecturer, making his listeners thoroughly acquainted with the most important acts of that great man's life. The Bohemian Remedies were clearly pictured. A number of comic slides were run off, the most amusing being the performing monkey. Some local sketches taken by Mr. E. P. Edwards were also shown, and were true to life. Among these were the Queen's Palace at Goulburn (an old woman calling herself the Queen); "Jerry," whom the Lecturer said would be our next Governor; the late Mr. W. Moore, an esteemed friend of the Lecturer's; the Fitzroy Falls; Joadja Creek, where the Bohemian and Iris company were treated like toffs; tho Moss Yale railway refreshment rooms, showing Mr. Lawrence's pair of ponies; and the police force at Parramatta, in which Constable Woods (now of Bowral) comes out clearly. The selections played during the evening were appropriate and well executed by Mr. Geo. Vivian. A word of praise is also due to Mr. W. Ogle, who manipulated the really complicated electric lantern in an able manner.

* 5 December 1895, The Maitland Daily Mercury.

A Peep at the World.

Last evening a large and appreciative audience assembled in the Town Hall to have a peep at the world under the guidance of Mr. E, J, Cole, who is better known as the Bohemian Lecturer, although the gentleman is only a Bohemian in the sense that he is decidedly nomadic in his tastes, and is reputed to have travelled the world. As to his claim to be a lecturer there can be no doubt. Last night Mr. Cole showed his patrons through other lands by the aid of a cyclorama, the instrument used to cast the pictures being a powerful and magnificent one, the second of the kind in the colony, its companion being in the Sydney University. The portraits - for portraits nearly all were - were cast on a twenty two foot square canvas, and the reproductions were about third life size. The lantern was worked excellently by the Bohemian and then by Mr. W. Ogle and performed its task in a singularly successful manner, albeit the lecturer took occasion to explain that the gas used to light it was not altogether satisfactorily applied. The first picture cast was a splendid one of Mr. Cole, and then after a few preliminary words the tour was begun. A start was made from Redfern rail way station, and then many of the architectural triumphs of Sydney and beauty spots which abound around the fringes of our beautiful harbour were cast before the eyes of those present, the lecturer in a few pointed or humourous words, as the occasion required, giving rare information and instruction. England came next on the list, and a rapid and historical sketch was provided of the land of our forefathers, whilst the members of the Royal family were also happily alluded to. France, Venice, Rome, etc., followed, the scenes being diversified by some grand reflections of statuary, which evoked the admiration of the audience, while the younger spectators were convulsed by some comic items. Altogether the display was highly instructive, interesting, and amusing, and some of the pictures were gems of art. During the evening some songs were rendered by Mr, Cole and a precocious little boy, whilst Mr. St. Vincent presided at a decidedly inharmonious piano.

1896

* Tuesday, 18 February 1896, Dungog Chronicle: Durham and Gloucester Advertiser. Advertisement for a performance which include a "laughable burlesque" piece apparently written and performed by Ogle and two others.

1897

* 4-6 August 1897, letter to Sydney City Council, E. I. Cole, 26 Wellington St, Newtown, enquires about permits needed for advertising his Bohemian Lectures by signs on carts driven through the city streets. The Inspector of Nuisances reports having cautioned the driver against a breach of by-laws as the advertising was unsightly and "liable to frighten horses". Source: City of Sydney Archives, 1897-08-04/1897-08-06.

1898

* 10 December 1898, Cowra Guardian and Lachlan Agricultural Recorder.

Entertainment.

On Monday night last an entertainment war given in the Centennial Hall by the Cowra Dramatic Club, assisted by the Bohemian Company, in aid of the widow and finally of the late Mr. F. T. Strachan, and although the heat was extremely oppressive there was a full house, the front seats being particularly well filled. The management committee consisted of Messrs. T. Howard (President), Fred and A. Dwyer, A. Middlemis, F. Bennett, Kahle, S. Stevenson, R. Murray, and W. Coffey, and the stage managers the Rev. Seymour-Smith and Mr. E. I. Cole, under whose capable direction the entertainment was mast successfully carried out. A large number of tickets were sold before the night of the entertainment by Mrs. A. R. West and members of the committee. Mr. Harry Taylor attended to the sale of tickets at the door, while several members of the Bohemian Company, and other gentlemen collected the tickets in the hall. Mr. Cole, the Bohemian Lecturer, provided the extra seating accommodation by kindly lending the chairs, he carries with him, also the beautiful scenery used, &c. The entertainment was commenced with an overture by the orchestra, consisting of Messrs. Dunn (violin soloist, and musical director), H. Klein (cornet soloist), and Lonsdale (pianist). A series of splendid lantern views were then placed before the audience of the Tower of London, Windsor Castle, the Royal Family, and leading statesmen of England. Mr. Cole, in an instructive manner, dealt with each subject as it appeared. The Dramatic Club and Bohemian Company next staged a comedy drama entitled "Rejected," the scenery, &c., being very effective. Including the minor parts, the cast consisted of some twenty performers, the more prominent of whom were Miss Katie Watt, who creditably impersonated the character of "Madge, the Gipsy." "Lord Rudolph," Mr. F. Rivenhall; " Mr. Howarde" (the father of Miss May), Mr. A. Dwyer, "The Waiter," Mr. T. Howard who acquitted himself admirably, causing roars of laughter by his reiteration of "facts and figured" to prove everything; "Joe" (the assistant waiter) Mr. A. Middlemis; "Lord Rudolph's father," Mr. F. Dwyer; " Graham'" (the valet), Mr. Alf. Bartlett; and " Miss May," Mr. F. Bennett. The latter acted the role of the female with commendable adaptation, the only drawback being his "manly" voice. A number of other lantern views having been shown, Mr. Bartlett, in his inimitable style, rendered the comic song "The Waiter," and in response to an encore "All Beautiful;" Mr. J. Y. Baronie was encored for his rendering of "It must have been years ago;" Mr. Fred Rivenhall caused considerable amusement by his coster melodies, and was encored. The performance was concluded with a laughable farce entitled the "Colonial Laws." The characters were sustained by the following gentlemen:- "Judge," Mr. T. Howard;" Sergeant Higgins," Mr. Alf. Bartlett; "Bigamy" Mr. H. Klein; "Larrikin," Mr. F. Rivenhall; "Boy Thief," Mr. Cassils; "Barristers," Messrs. Ogle and Lonsdale. At the conclusion of the farce the Rev. Seymour-Smith thanked the audience for their attendance and made reference to the valuable assistance rendered by the Bohemian Company, and concluded by proposing a hearty vote of thanks to Mr. Cole and his talented company, which was carried by acclamation. Mr. Cole returned thanks in appropriate terms.

1899

* 10 February 1899, The Albury Banner and Wadonga Express. The Bohemian Company - Another Record House. Mentions W. J. Ogle as both actor and stage manager.

* 25 March 1899, Ovens and Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Victoria.

The Bohemian Company.

This company open at Wangaratta on Wednesday night. They play on the square near the London Bank. We have heard and read a great deal of the Bohemian Lecturer for many years in our sister colony, where his company has been touring for the last twelve year. Mr. Cole has been induced to come over the border at last, and we shall have an opportunity of seeing the greatest novelty of an entertainment, as well as one of the most novel that has ever visited these parts. The affair is a very large one, being literally a village of canvas. Fourteen good variety artists and nine musicians, also a large working staff, including a large and handsome theatre, beautifully decorated and nicely seated to accommodate 800, and when one enters it has the appearance of a very nice little theatre, with extensive stage and footlights. The company includes the Leslie family of six first-class artists, whose reputation is so well known in connection with Mr. Harry Richards, also Mr. A. J. Bartlett, the grotesque artist and ventriloquist, the Esdaile sisters, song and dance artists, Christy Bros., Mr. G. Payne, Arthur Bundy, &c., Bandmaster, Herr Von Klien, and W. Gray, the whole being under the able management of Mr. W. J. Ogle, the somewhat different comedian. The company had a 5 weeks' run in Albury, 5 nights in Chiltern and 6 nights in Rutherglen. Judging from this the Wangaratta people can expect a good show, and see the beautiful cyclorama, the phonograph, &c. We would wish the company the success they deserve, and trust to see a crowded house to-night. The company intends visiting Beechworth shortly.

* 31 March 1899, The North Eastern Ensign, Banalla, Victoria. Advertisement for the Bohemian Lecturer and the Bohemian Variety Company. Therein, W. J. Ogle is variably listed as: (1) the Popular Comedian; and (2) Dan Morgan in the Death of Dan Morgan. He is also involved in other productions, though not specifically named but as a member of the cast.

* 7 April 1899, The North Eastern Ensign, Banalla, Victoria. Review of the Ned Kelly show.

Bohemian Co. The Bohemian lecturer and his company continue to draw good houses. On Thursday night last they produced "The Australian Bushrangers." The whole colony is more or less acquainted with the lives ofthe Kelly gang and their doings. During two years they held the whole country at defiance, and outdid every effort of a large police force to capture them. So many tragic events also occurred throughout their career that they will never be forgotten in this part of Victoria. Not while the Wombat Ranges exist as a reminder will that terrible day in October be forgotten, when the brave Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Scanlon and Lonergan lost their lives. Besides the many other events during the career of the Kelly gang, Mr. Cole opens with a very interesting account of the early days of these colonies, and then gives a brief but true account of the doings of Frank Gardiner, also of Ben Hall, Gilbert and Dunn. At the end of this , the curtain rose, and the death scene of Ben Hall was enacted in a wonderfully realistic and life-like manner. We were then introduced to Ned Kelly, and a short history of the former antecedents of the family was given. The outbreak and the causes leading up to it were faithfully given, each step in their career being illustrated by beautiful scenes twenty feet square. This brought us to the deaths of Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonergan and Scanlon, which was put on the stage in a very creditable manner. We were then carried along through all the events connected with the Euroa bank robbery, and the sticking-up of the Jerilderie bank, together with the locking up of the New South Wales police in their own cells. A dramatic representation of the murder of Aaron Sherritt was then given. All the events connected with the Glenrowan affair were described in a fair and impartial manner. The capture of Ned Kelly, represented on the stage, was a very exciting scene, and though it is impossible to give anything like a true version of what really was done, it was the best we have ever seen. The lecturer is well up in his subject. As proof of this we may mention that, though many of the large audience must have been well acquainted with the career of the Kelly gang, the lecturer was never once interrupted or contradicted during the course of an entertainment lasting from 8 o'clock, without intermission, till 11.30. We wish the Bohemian (whose picture appears above) and his company good luck.

* 13 May 1899, Daily Telegraph, Sydney. Advertisement for new members of the troupe.

COMEDIANS and Singers, brass players pref. Apply 5 to 7, Bohemian Lecturer, 22 Station-st., Newtown.

* 2 September 1899, Murrurundi Times and Liverpool Plains Gazette. Report on the Texas Jack and Bohemian Lecturer tour.

* 18 October 1899, The Armidale Chronicle. Report on the Texas Jack and Bohemian Lecturer tour.

* Thursday, 14 December 1899, Queensland Times, Ipswich Herald and General Advertiser. The company comprises 30 members.

* 16 December 1899, Queensland Times, Ipswich Herald and General Advertiser.

TEXAS JACK'S WILD WEST SHOW.

All interested are reminded that Texas Jack's wild west show, combined with the Bohemian Lecturer and his talented company, will open in Ipswich this evening.

1900

* Monday, 8 January 1900, The Brisbane Courier, Brisbane. In the following advertisement, W. J. Ogle is presented as the Business Manager for the premiere of the production of E. I. Cole's play Hands Up!, or Ned Kelly and His Gang., presented by the Bohemian and Texas Jack Companies.

* 8 January 1900, E. I. Cole and Texas Jack, Texas Jack and His Wild West Dramatic Co., Printed for the Proprietors, Maybury and Davis, by H. Pole & Co., Brisbane, 4p. Promotional pamphlet.

SYNOPSIS OF SCENERY.

ACT I. —

Scene 1: Kelly’s Home at Greta — The Warrant.
Scene 2: Interior of Kelly’s Home — Shooting of Fitzpatrick.
Scene 3: Superintendent of Police Quarters at Benalla.
Scene 4: In the Ranges — Kate’s Message.
Scene 5: Police Quarters, Benalla.
Scene 6: Kennedy’s Camp — “Hands Up” — Death of Sergeant Kennedy.

ACT II. —

Scene 1: Interior of Euroa Bank—The Robbery.
Scene 2: Police Quarters.
Scene 3: Jerilderie Police Station.
Scene 4: Bush Track — The Gang at Work.
Scene 5: Interior of Sherritt’s Home — Death of Sherritt.
Scene 6: In the Bush — Ready for the Train.
Scene 7: Special Police Train — Kernewtothe Rescue.

ACT III.—

Scene 1: Interior of Mrs. Jones’ Hotel, Glenrowan
Scene 2: In the Bush—Ned Kelly in Armour.
Scene 3: Battle of Glenrowan — Ned Kelly’s Last Stand.

BLACK TRACKERS, RAILWAY OFFICIALS, POLICE, Etc.

* 10 January 1900, The Telegraph, Brisbane. Review of Hands Up! W. J. Ogle also plays Dan Kelly.

Evening Entertainment

Wild West Show

'Hands Up' Last Night

The Texas Jack Dramatic Company appeared last night in their version of the story of the notorious Kelly Gang, entitled "Hands Up," written specially by Mr. E.I. Cole, who has taken particular care to have the various scenes and incidents as nearly akin to facts as possible. The piece had been unavoidably postponed from the previous evening on account of the weather. A very large crowd greeted the performance, which was followed with interest throughout. The chief incidents in the career of the gang are well known, and they were all faithfully depicted, from the first act of defiance to the law until the final stand at Glenrowan Hotel. Mr. J. B. North played the part of Ned Kelly in a capable manner, and looked a typical bushranger. The other members of the gang, Dan Kelly, Steve Hart, and Joe Byrne, were efficiently represented by Messrs. W. J. Ogle, C. Atfield, and R. James. W. F. Rivenhall enacted the part of Sherritt, the informer, with great success; while Mr. G. Linden as Sergeant Kennedy, Mr. J. Hayward as Sergeant Steele and Mr. A. Pearce as Fitzpatrick, were also deserving of praise. Miss Vene Linden, as Kate Kelly, acted in a manner which gained her pronounced applause, and she appeared to advantage in the saddle. The part of Mrs. Kelly was satisfactory filled by Miss Silvester. Miss Ethel Linden was pleasing in the character of the servant maid Becky, and Miss Nellie Bradshaw acted the part of Mrs. Sherritt in an acceptable manner. The Misses Deveraux, Greenaway, and Farley, and Messrs. Bullock, Klein, Waters, Coalston, and Hall, all acted with success, and the smaller parts were well filled. During the last act several songs were introduced, which met with appreciation from the audience. The scenery suitably depicted the various haunts of the gang. The performance, which proved very popular last night, will be repeated until further notice.

* 14 November 1900, Dubbo Despatch and Wellington Independent:

Entertainment

On Monday night an entertainment was held at the Masonic Hall in connection with the movement when there was a full house in every part. The Bohemian Dramatic Company rendered valuable aid, and contributed the most important items of the programme. Cycloramic portraits and views were given by Mr. E. I. Cole, and were much appreciated, while the comic element supplied by his assistants Messrs. Ogle, Linden, Pearce and Young, kept the audience in a simmer of laughter.

* 23 November 1900, Molong Argus, Bohemian Dramatic Company performs King of the Road - the story of Ben Hall and his gang:

.... Mr. W. J. Ogle was rightly cast as 'Harold Naylor,' and the devilish tricks and unprincipled acts that emanated from this character caused a section of this audience to pay a high compliment to his acting when they booted him. Mr. Ogle is good; decidedly so.

1901

* 6 April 1901, Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers Advocate, Parramatta. Advertisement.

* 12 June 1901, The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgowers Advocate. The Company program includes: After Dark, or Saved from Death in 4 Acts; For the Term of His Natural Life; and Ransomed, a bushranging play.

* Saturday, 15 June 1901, The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgowers Advocate. The advertisement states the following:

Note. — Mr. Cole has placed the entire management of the Theatre and Dance Room in the hands of Messrs. Ogle arid Mortyne.

* 6 November 1901, The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgowers Advocate.

A Hospital Concert.

Never before has the Auburn Town Hall been so crowded at a benefit entertainment, as it was on Thursday night to witness the concert given by the Bohemian Lecturer and his Company, in aid of St. Joseph's Hospital, Auburn. The auditorium was literally crammed and the gallery was as full as it could hold. The success of the concert is due to the energy of a large committee of between 30 and 40 gentlemen, of which committee Mr. J. W. Perry was president, Mr. E. Green vice-president, Mr. P. J. Coleman secretary, and Mr. W. M. Colley treasurer. It is estimated that the house represented a sum of upwards of £30, and owing to the fact that hundreds of other tickets sold were not represented through the holders being away at Ritchie Bros. picnic and not able to get back, it was announced that the tickets would be made available for a further entertainment to be given by the Company. The entertainment itself was of a first class character and included an Electric Cyclorama giving scenes of the Tower of London and Italy; Tableaus, the 'Queens Pardon,' 'The Bridge,' 'Switzerland,' 'Holland,' 'Spain and Portugal,' Specialties in singing and recitations, and descriptive scenes. Mr. Geo. Linden, Miss Linden and Misses Beard and Aubusson, and Messrs. W. Ogle, Fred. Hull and others took a leading part. During an interval Mr. Perry as a token of appreciation of Mr. E. I. Cole's kindness, presented him on behalf of the committee with a small gold pendant in the shape of a brick. Mr. Cole thanked Mr. Perry and said it always gave him pleasure to assist in all charitable objects, and he had, he was glad to say, been instrumental in raising a good many points to help deserving charities.

1902

* 9 April 1902, Illawarra Mercury, Wollongong. Performances by the Bohemian Dramatic Company of Prairie Scout, written by E.I. Cole, and King of the Road.

1903

* 1903 - William James Ogle (33) and Ethel Emily Smith (22) marry at Sydney. They go on to have three children - sons William and Linden, and daughter Maisie.

1904

* 1904 - William G. Ogle born at Marrickville, son of William James and Ethel Emily.

* 4 January 1904, Sydney Morning Herald:

Bohemian Dramatic Company.

The Bohemian Dramatic Company produced the American drama "Buffalo Bill" in the marquee, opposite the Redfern Railway Station, on Saturday night. Mr. E.I. Cole appeared in the title role, and other characters were sustained by Mr. W. J. Ogle, Mr. George Linden, Miss Vene Linden, Miss Belle Cole, and Miss Ethel Cole. There was a good attendance.

1905

* 12 November 1905, The Sunday Sun, Sydney. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company perform On the Trail. Includes W. J. Ogle.

* 27 December 1905, Sydney Sportsman. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company performs the bushranging drama Thunderbolt at the Haymarket Hippodrome. It is rerun during October 1906.

1906

* 1906 - Linden Ogle born at Sydney, son of William James and Ethel Emily.

* 21 April 1906, The Newsletter: an Australian Paper for Australian People, Sydney. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company perform his Cooee, or Wild Days in the Bush.

* 6 October 1906, Balmain Observer.

Cole's Hippodrome

Mr. Cole's special attraction for the Labour festival was the appropriate 'Coal Strike,' written by Messrs. Cole and J. L. Le Breton, with suggestions by the Hon. E. W. O'Sullivan, M.L.A. Such a drama placed upon the stage with new scenery by Mr. J. McGowan and assistants and stage effects including an effective rustic bridge for which Mr. Ogle was principally responsible, with catchy music by Herr Florack's orchestra, could not fail to suit the humour of holiday makers, and the 'Coal Strike,' as well as to the usual crowded house, on Saturday, held the attention of a large audience at the first Haymarket matinee on Monday at 2.30 and a bumper attendance on Monday night. Miss Linden as the heiress played the heroine capably. Messrs. Le Breton, Marshall and Wilson with Miss Sherwood and others, filled the minor parts satisfactorily. Mr. Cole in announcing the revival for this Saturday of that most popular play, 'A Priest's Silence,' reminded his audience that the Jubilee of the Hippodrome was rapidly nearing, when during the week beginning November 3rd every patron would receive a souvenir postcard with character photographs of various members of the Haymarket Company.

* 1 December 1906, Balmain Observer and Western Suburbs Advertiser. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company perform For the Term of His Natural Life, at the Hippodrome. Quote:

During Mr. Cole's absence in Melbourne in connection with his season there, Mr, W. J. Ogle, so long associated with Mr. Cole, will be general manager at the Hippodrome.

* 26 December 1906 - premiere of The Story of the Kelly Gang at the Athenaeum Theatre, Melbourne.

The Story of the Kelly Gang, 1906, YouTube, duration: 31.52 minutes. Copy of National Film and Sound Archive of Australia restoration 2006.

* 30 December 1906, The Sunday Sun, Sydney. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company performs In the King's Name:

The Bohemian Dramatic Company, under the management of Mr. W. J. Ogle, continues to attract good audiences, and last night produced a new Irish drama entitled "In the King's Name," for the entertainment of its patrons. Miss Ethel Grey, Messrs. J. Irving, J. L. Le Breton, C. Archer, S. McGowan, and G. Elliott were responsible for the heavier portions of the drama, while the lighter parts were well looked after by Miss Ethel Linden and Mr. Milton Moss. Next Friday's change will be another new drama, "Called to Arms," in which Mr. Ogle's horse, Cowboy, will appear.

The Hippodrome, Hay Street, Haymarket, Sydney, c.1906. Source: Theatre Heritage Australia.

1907

* 7 January 1907, The Australian Star, Sydney.

The Hippodrome

There was a very large attendance at the Haymarket Hippodrome on Saturday night, when the Bohemian Dramatic Company, under the direction of Mr. J. W. Ogle, presented a new military melodrama, "Called to Arms," of which the company gave a good presentation. The principal parts were taken by Miss J. S. Le Breton, Miss Ethel Grey, Miss Ethel Linden, Mr. Milton Moss, and Mr. C. Archer. A stirring incident was that in which "Cowboy," a dispatch rider's horse, saves its rider after he had been shot and wounded. The instinct and training displayed by the horse was very marked. The horse tried first of all, to raise its master, but was unable to do so, then it took his water bag, opened it, and gave its master a drink, and then laid down so that he could crawl on to his back. The performance was heartily applauded. "Called to Arms" will be repeated until further notice.

* 23 January 1907, Sydney Sportsman.

Haymarket Hippodrome - Mr. W. Ogle is making great headway by his able management of this popular amusement resort ....

* 16 March 1907, Sydney Morning Herald. The horse trained by W. J. Ogle appeared in a Dick Turpin play.

At the Haymarket Hippodrome to-night the Bohemian Dramatic Company will produce the great home drama, "Dick Turpin's Ride to York," or "The Death of Bonny Black Bess." The drama will be produced under Mr. Ogle's supervision. The black mare which will take the part of Black Bess has undergone a thorough preparation. Special scenery will be used, including a real waterfall. A matinee will be held this afternoon.

* 20 June 1907, The Australian Star, Sydney. W. J. Ogle stages The Eureka Rebellion at the Hippodrome.

* 11 August 1907, The Sunday Sun, Sydney. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages The Prairie Scout.

* August - September 1907: Bohemian Dramatic Company performers involved in the filming of Robbery Under Arms (Martin-Jones 2014).

* 2 November 1907, The Newsletter: an Australian Paper for Australian People, Sydney.

The Hippodrome - After an absence of some weeks, the Bohemian Dramatic Company re-opens at the Hippodrome on Saturday night, November 2nd, in the sensational melodrama Mighty London. Mr. Ogle is in control of a strong company, and promises the usual weekly change at popular prices.

1909

* 18 March 1909, Bendigo Advertiser. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Buffalo Bill at Camp Hill.

* 6 April 1909, Bendigo Advertiser. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages The Octoroon at Camp Hill.

* 3 June 1909, Bendigo Advertiser. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Under Two Flags at the Royal Princess's Theatre.

* 19 June 1909, Bendigo Advertiser. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages With The Colors at the Royal Princess's Theatre.

The gem of the evening was the performance of Master Willie Ogle as Reggie Eastwood. Although almost a baby, his utterances were clear and distinct, and he appeared to possess the utmost confidence in himself.

* 6 July 1909, Bendigo Independent. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Dare Devil Dick. Refers to Ethel Ogle as a soubrette: n. an actress or other female performer playing a lively, flirtatious role in a play or opera:

....Last night signalised the re-appearance of the winsome little soubrette, and prime favorite Miss Ethel Ogle in the character of Sally Steel, one of those "Amurikan Gals," with which this clever little lady is so closely identified, and to use an Americanism, "She can play them some."

* 8 October 1909, Bendigo Independent. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages The Postmistress of the Czar prior to a season at Ballarat. Under the direction of W. J. Ogle.

* 30 October 1909, Ballarat Star. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Captain Starlight.

1911

* Julie K. Allen, Screening Europe in Australasia: Transnational Silent Film Before and After the Rise of Hollywood, University of Exeter Press, 2022, 482p.

In the summer of 1911, Pathé also began making films in local settings, primarily bush-ranger films enacted by E.J. Cole and his Bohemian Dramatic Company. However, after making five films, Pathé ceased production in Australia, either because Cole’s company had exhausted its repertoire or because of increasing political pressure to outlaw bushranger films, which led to a ban on the films by New South Wales police in 1912 that would remain in force until the 1940s.

* 11 January 1911, Ballarat Star. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Never Too Late to Mend.

* 19 June 1911, Geelong Advertiser. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Who Is The Woman?

* 18 October 1911, Daily Post, Hobart. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Jack the Scout.

* 18 December 1911, The Mercury, Hobart. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages Road Agents.

* 19 August 1911, Examiner, Launceston. The Bohemian Dramatic Company stages The Heart of Australia.

1912

* 28 September 1912, Daily Telegraph, Launceston. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company performs Under Two Flags. W. J. Ogle is General Manager of the company during this period.

* 23 October 1912, The Mercury, Hobart, Tasmania:

Bohemian Dramatic Company.

The King's Theatre was crowded last night by a large audience to witness the production of the American-Indian military drama, "The Indian Hero, by the Bohemian Dramatic Company. As Alva Dixon, Miss Vene Linden gave another of those artistic representations that have served to build up her reputation as an actress of high-class ability. Mr. W. H. Ayr, as John Deerfoot, the Indian hero, gave a capital interpretation of the character. Other characters were played by the Misses Millie Hare, Belle Cole, Ethel Ogle, Messrs. E. A. Kenna, J. R. Wilson, G. Linden, J. D. Foley, F. Cole. W. J. Ogle, A. Douglas, and L. Harcourt with a realism that considerably enhanced the success of the production. "The Indian Hero" will be repeated to-night. To-morrow night the Scotland Yard police drama, "The Blind Witness," will be played for one night only.

* 16 November 1912, The Newsletter: an Australian Paper for the People, Sydney. Report that W. J. Ogle has left the Bohemian Dramatic Company, following their tour of Tasmania:

Theatrical Gossip ... Will J. Ogle, late of the Bohemian Dramatic Company, is in Sydney looking it over.

1915

* 4 November 1915, Barrier Miner, Broken Hill. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company perform The Blind Witness, and Slaves of Sin.

1918

* 6 April 1918, The Brisbane Courier. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company presents Buffalo Bill.

1920

* 9 January 1920, Westralian Worker, Perth. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company performs Cheated at the Altar, at the Shaftsbury Theatre.

1924

* 4 March 1924, The Herald, Melbourne.

Early Australian Films. In 1906 the world was witnessing the rapid advancement of cinematography, but the achievement of the man who made 3000 feet film dramas was considered a triumph. But while other countries were enthusing over 3000ft. pictures. Mr Gibson was making them in this country seven reels in length. "THE KELLY GANG" Of these the most popular and best known was "The Kelly Gang," which had a tremendous run of success. "The Mystery of a Hansom Cab" and "The Squatter's Daughter" also attained fame. "The Kelly Gang" was shown in the Athenaeum, Collins street, for four weeks. The most interesting part, of the picture was the method in which it was produced. Mr Gibson photographed, directed, developed and projected the picture on the screen, such a record remaining unequaled even to this day.

1929

* 8 October 1929, Evening News. Obituary of William A. Gibson, one of the producers of The Story of the Kelly Gang. The following article contains an interview with producer William A. Gibson, and includes a great deal of detail not available elsewhere, including the reference to Cole's Dramatic Company. It was published in the Evening News, Sydney, on 8 October 1929, though it would appear that elements of the article were taken from a previous 1927 interview published in the trade magazine Everyone's.

When Australia Made 'The Kelly Gang' — World's First 5 -Reel Feature — £1 a day for Ned Kelly — Film Pioneer Passes.

By Gayne Dexter

Twenty two years ago a man drew £400 from his savings in a Melbourne bank and produced not only the first Australian screen drama, but the first, full-length feature the world has known. "The Kelly Gang" ran to the astounding length of 6,000 feet. It made a fortune for William A. Gibson, OBE, whose death on Sunday removed one of the most picturesque characters in motion pictures, and the man who founded the film business In Australia. On my desk lies a small spool of film clipped from the original "Kelly Gang." I ran it through a projection machine yesterday as a requiem to Mr. Gibson, who started so many motion picture theatre owners on the road to prosperity. The scenery swayed in the breeze; a bush ranger clutched wildly at his beard, after being shot dead, to prevent it falling off; the drama turned to burlesque after 22 years; and yet these crudities represented the birth of the spectacular motion pictures we know to-day.

ACTORS REAL "BUSHRANGERS"

The £400 Mr. Gibson drew from his bank was a lot of money to gamble in films then. The industry, or what there was of it, laughed at his project. Nothing seemed more absurd than to film the exploits of "The Kelly Gang," not as a super-feature in one reel, taking 20 minutes to show, but as a five-reeler - a whole evening's entertainment. Having no studio, Mr. Gibson built his sets in a paddock outside Melbourne, and left them standing at the end of each day. Sometimes rain soddened them or wind flattened them overnight, and in the morning he had to put them up again. His players were recruited from Cole's Dramatic Company at £1 per day. Asking that salary 22 years ago was bushranging indeed! "While they were good actors," Mr. Gibson used to relate, "when it came to horsemanship they were rather partial to merry-go-rounds. They commandeered chairs to mount their steeds, and in the middle of an exciting chase I remember my Ned Kelly galloping past the camera, yelling: "What do I do when I want to make my horse stop?"

EARLY DAY REALISM

Nominally, the job of property master, wardrobe-man and scenic artist fell to Sammie Cruse; and there was nothing he would not try to do. When the Glenrowan Hotel had to be burned down (the mighty conflagration took place in a back yard) Sammie volunteered to light smoke-bombs in the building. The camera cranked; the priest made heroic attempts at rescue, according to the scenario; but the man who needed rescuing was forgotten. Right at the thrilling point of the blaze, however, Sammy staggered out and fell unconscious - suffocated by his own smoke bombs. Next to that, the most realistic piece of acting in "The Kelly Gang" was put up by a band of roughs who were engaged for a drinking scene in the Glenrowan bar. Their technique in pouring down pints was perfect. At this point one of the actors pushed in, but by mistake knocked a bucket of water over Sammie. Sammie objected, and the rest was chaos. The toughs joined in. A wonderful fight! Gun-play - plenty of it! In the thrill of the moment they pulled their revolvers and fired point-blank, then gasped at one another when a man who was fairly riddled, failed to fall. Their sense of decency was outraged when they remembered that their cartridges were blanks.

SUBMARINE SENSATIONS

Those were the days when news made movies. An event which stirred the country, or the little human episodes which crept almost unnoticed into print, could be converted into motion pictures. Australia thrilled then to stories of Diver Hughes, who descended a flooded shaft to a West Australian mine with food for a trapped miner. Its pictorial aftermath was a 500ft. special in which the episode was reproduced. Mr. Gibson erected a tarpaulin tank and hired diving apparatus to show the frantic miner in a cavern being rescued by the diver at the last moment. An actor named George Coates played the diver, and he was kept at the bottom of the tank by heavy weights attached to his legs. Frank Marden, who until recently was studio manager for Australasian Films Ltd, took charge of the air-pump and commenced to turn. His impression was that a man under water needed all the atmosphere which could be forced through a pipe. Mr. Gibson cranked the camera. Then, with a tremendous splash, a huge balloon shot to the surface. It contained the gallant rescuer with his suit so inflated that hundredweights of lead could not keep him under water!

SNAKE-CHARMER STARS

A humorous incident in the Melbourne news prompted another picture. A deliriously drunken snake-charmer had been arrested, and when the station sergeant ordered him to open his bag he protested: "Berrer not—ish fuller shnakes!" The officer winked knowingly, unlocked the bag - and bolted, leaving the charmer and his reptiles in command of the station. That was good for a screen comedy, and Mr. Gibson signed up the snake man. He arrived at the studio with 100 venomous examples, but when shooting finished they all escaped. Down they wriggled beneath the floor. "Get them back - do something," Mr. Gibson ordered. "Sorright," said the snake-man. "I won't charge you for them. I can easy catch some more." He walked off, but for months there was no peace around the studio. Tender love-scenes of later pictures always finished in hysterics for the heroine when a snake or two wriggled on to the set.

WHEN THE TAITS ACTED

If "The Kelly Gang" made history in the production field, it created box-office history, too. Melbourne scrambled to see it; but in Sydney no theatre was available. Eventually a location was leased in the vicinity of the Haymarket, where the Capitol now stands. "The Kelly Gang" opened there one Saturday night to about 3,000 people in the open air. With such a start, no one can blame the sponsors for believing their fortunes were made; then on Sunday morning it commenced to rain and never stopped for nine weeks. It is generally believed that E. J. Tait and his brothers - the powerful Taits of J. C. Williamson. Ltd. - acted in "The Kelly Gang." This is not so, but the picture opened their eyes to the possibilities of local production, and they became associated with Mr. Gibson in a later cycle, which included "The Luck of the Roaring Camp" - yes, an American western picture made in Australia

E. J. CARROLL AND THE FULLERS

E. J. Carroll, who had never thought of pictures before, travelled from Brisbane to Melbourne to convince himself that the stories he heard of "The Kelly Gang's" success were true. He saw crowds waiting to get in at all hours. He bought the Queensland rights, and went on to become a power in the Australian entertainment world. Without knowing it, Sir Ben and John Fuller paid the entire cost of these later pictures. They were operating in New Zealand. A print of each film was sent to them without any price stipulating the producers were willing to take whatever the Fullers' thought the Dominion rights were worth. And the Fullers paid from £350 to £450 for each picture, which was actually more than the productions cost.

£70,000 FOR TWO PICTURES

Three years ago, as a managing director of Union Theatres, Mr. Gibson decided that another attempt should be made to establish Australian production. He authorised the expenditure of between £40,000 and £50,000 on "For the Term of His Natural Life," and although heading the great circuit of picture theatres throughout the Commonwealth, he appeared as a warder in one of the scenes and drew his £1 for one day work as an extra. Later, he spent another £30,000 to make "The Adorable Outcast," determined that Australia should gain a place in the world-market; but while these two pictures have recouped their cost from the Commonwealth and New Zealand, possibly the biggest disappointment of his life was that they were not successful.

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1932

* 1932 - Ethel Emily Ogle dies at Newtown, daughter of George C. Smith and Christina M. Smith. She is the sister of actress Lavinia Catherine ('Vene') Smith, the second wife of E. I. Cole.

* 8 April 1932, Sydney Morning Herald. Funeral arrangements for Ethel Emily Ogle.

OGLE.- The Relatives and Friends of Mr. William James Ogle, Mr. and Mrs. William Ogle, Junr., Mr. and Mrs. Linden Ogle are invited to attend the Funeral of his beloved Wife and their Mother, Ethel Emily, to leave her late residence, 28 Kitchener-avenue, Earlwood, This Friday, at 2 p.m., for Church of England Cemetery, Rookwood. By road. Funeral train leaves Mortuary Station at 1.52 p.m. Wood Coffill Limited, Motor Funeral Directors.

OGLE.- The Relatives and Friends of Mr. and Mrs. E. I. Cole, Mr. and Mrs. George Linden, Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Linden, Mr. and Mrs. C. Jackman and Families are invited to attend the Funeral of their beloved SISTER and AUNT, Ethel Emily Ogle; to leave 28 Kitchener-avenue, Earlwood, This Friday, at 2 p.m., for Church of England Cemetery, Rookwood. By road. Wood Coffill Limited.

* 20 May 1932, Sydney Morning Herald. Probate of Ethel Emily Ogle, married, of Earlwood and formerly of Marrickville.

1942

* 16 December 1942, Manning River Times. Report on the death of William James Ogle at Prince Henry Hospital, Redfern, son of Thomas and Sarah Jane Ogle.

Mr. William James Ogle.

In a recent issue we reported that Mr. and Mrs. H. T. Trotter, of Glenthorne, had been called to Sydney owing to the illness of the latter's brother. The patient, Mr. William James Ogle, passed away in hospital on Friday last, at the age of 72 years. His wife predeceased him, but two sons, William and Linden, and a daughter (Maisie) are left to mourn their loss, also two sisters - Mrs. H. T. Trotter (Glenthorne) and Mrs. Holden (Elsternwick, Vic). The sisters went to Sydney and were with their brother to the last. The funeral took place at the Church of England cemetery, Rookwood, on Saturday afternoon. There were a number of beautiful floral tributes. Mr. and Mrs. H. T. Trotter returned home on Monday, accompanied by Mrs. Holden. For many years the late Mr. Ogle was with the firm of Walders Ltd., Pitt Street, from which he retired some four years ago and had been living with his eldest son since at Earlwood. He passed away in Prince Henry Hospital, where everything possible was done for him, but on account of age he did not respond to treatment.

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4. Melbourne 1906

The Story of the Kelly Gang premiered in Melbourne at an Athenaeum Theatre matinee session on 26 December 1906. The Bohemian Dramatic Company had opened a Hippodrome venue in that city during December, and no record has been located of the presence of the company in Victoria during 1906 prior to that month. This therefore puts R. I. Cole and his associates in Victoria at the very moment that the film was likely subject to final editing and release. Of course, it appears that production had commenced as early as June-July of that year and the majority of the filming may have been completed prior to December, though this is not necessarily the case. As such, it makes more plausible the claim that members of the Company served as actors in the film, as noted above. A detailed study of the second half of 1906 can perhaps reveal more definite connections between the production and the Cole troupe.

In regards to some of the technical aspects of the film, we know that 10,000 feet of black and white 35mm film was shot by the camera operators Johnson and Gibson and 6,000 feet used in the final cut. At its premiere 5 reels were shown. In the silent era, cameras were generally cranked at 16 frames per second during production, and a standard reel would run at that speed in the cinema for 20 minutes. It could also be run faster by the local projector operator, either through hand cranking or electrically. This would give a running time for 5 reels of 100 minutes, or 1 hour and 40 minutes. It should also be noted that the film was re-released in a new version during 1910, and it seems that that version may have contained some of the film shot back in 1906, or it may have included new footage shot by Johnson and Gibson and which in this instance included the Bohemian players. Whatever the case, the following items relate to the release of the film and the presence of Cole's troupe in Melbourne at the end of December 1906.

* Wednesday, 19 December 1906, The Age, Melbourne. Announcement regarding the premiere of The Story of the Kelly Gang at the Athenaeum Theatre on Boxing Day, 26 December, with a separate screening that evening at the Melbourne Town Hall. A similar evening screening was also shown at the Adelaide Town Hall in South Australia. A breakdown of the nine segments was contained in The Age advertisement.

Selected text:

The Story of the Kelly Gang

Thy greatest story of Australian outlaws ever told. Modern science has harnessed photography, so that with the new biograph we are enabled to tell this thrilling story in its entirety over again. Told in highly dramatic scenes.

Section 1.—Shows the Kelly Homestead, where Dan is wanted for cattle stealing. Kate Kelly comes on the scene to warn them of Trooper Fitzpatrick's approach. Pistols are drawn, murder is nearly committed, and so the gang are outlawed.

Section 2.—Takes us into the inaccessible Wombat Ranges, where the police, all innocent of impending danger, are surrounded and shot down, with the exception of MacIntyre, who makes his escape.

Section 3.—The Gang proceed to Younghusband's station, which they stick up and make numerous prisoners, and then go to rob the bank at Euroa.

Section 4.—In the fastnesses of the Strathbogie Ranges, Joe Byrne's mother comes across Aaron Sherrit, a former friend of the gang, in the Police Camp.

Section 5.—Two of the gang follow up Sherrit and shoot him in his hut.

Section 6.—The gang capture the line repairers, and at the revolvers' point force them to tear up the railway line. The timely warning of the train by Schoolmaster Curnow.

Section 7.—At the Glenrowan lnn. The surprise. The gang at bay. Surrounded at the Glenrowan Inn.

Section 8.—Death of Joe Byrne. Father Gibney rescues the wounded. The hotel on fire. Death of Dan Kelly and Steve Hart.

Section 9.—Ned Kelly at bay. Clothed in his heavy armor the bullets of the police make no effect; at last they hit him in the leg, when be falls, and is captured.

The whole set form the most dramatic series of pictures ever put before the public. In order to secure a correct representation of this stirring subject, the services of skilled operators, &c., have been constantly required for the past six months, and the management claim that this series is one of the biggest undertakings ever accomplished in the art of cinematography.

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In the same newspaper was an advertisement for the Bohemian Theatre Company program for the rest of that month, presenting King of the Road, a bushranger drama about Ben Hall and his gang.

* Monday, 24 December 1906, The Herald, Melbourne.

Bohemian Dramatic Company. The new theatre erected by the Bohemian Dramatic Coy., at the corner of Lonsdale and Exhibition streets, is attracting large audiences. An Australian drama, King of the Road, is being produced. For to-morrow night a biograph entertainment and sacred concert is billed.

* Saturday, 29 December 1906, The Herald, Melbourne.

The Hippodrome. The American drama, The Prairie Scout, is having a run at the Hippodrome, corner of Lonsdale and Exhibition streets. The performance by the Bohemian Dramatic Company received with applause by the large audiences attending this popular play-house.

It is likely that the financial success of The Story of the Kelly Gang, and the involvement of his Company in its production, encouraged R. I. Cole to write and produce his own series of films during 1910-11.

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5. In or out?

From the above information we can see that it is possible that, due to his prominent position in the Bohemian Dramatic Company, W. J. Ogle may have participated in the production of The Story of the Kelly Gang if Cole's actors were involved, as William A. Gibson stated. We can say this for a number of reasons:

(1) The 1944 Dan McGuire article states that Cole's Dramatic Company supplied actors for The Story of the Kelly Gang. This is based on the 1927 and 1929 statements by producer William A. Gibson.

(2) R. I. Cole, as the Bohemian Lecturer, had since the late 1890s been touring southeastern Australia with lamp light and slides show, and possibly early forms of film footage. He was also an early pioneer of film in Australia, producing a number during 1910-11, usually as adaptations from his Bohemian Dramatic Company shows. With W. J. Ogle such a prominent player in the Company up until the middle of 1912, as an actor, stage director, director and ultimately managing director, it appears that he served as Cole's right-hand man and would have been intimate with Cole's productions.

(3) The Cole actors had been performing in the Ned Kelly gang play Hands Up! since 1900, and would have been able to bring professional characterisations to the film, if not riding abilities.

(4) The fact that Ogle played the role of Dan Kelly in the 1900 play Hands Up! and a separate Capture of Dan Kelly sequence points to the possibility that he may have played a similar role in the Tait film.

(5) Whilst the Bohemian Dramatic Company was in Melbourne during December 1906, no specific contemporary reference has been found to support their involvement in the making of the film.

(6) The known individuals to appear in it do not include any of the Bohemian actors. The suggested participants are as follows:

Ned Kelly - Frank Mills
Dan Kelly - John Forde
Kate Kelly - Elizabeth Tate as a stunt double for the actual, unknown actress
Steve Hart - Jack Ennis
Joe Byrne - Will Coyne
Unidentified extras - John, Frank and Harriet Tait

(7) There is mention that the production had taken place over six months prior to the premiere, cost around £1,000 and involved 60 people. There are references that suggest the Tait family and friends were the main people involved in the production during this period.

(8) A report in the Balmain Observer of 1 December 1906 states that R. I. Cole would be working in Melbourne, supposedly with a special contingent of Bohemian actors, and W. J. Ogle would manage the Sydney Hippodrome performances during his absence. Therefore, Ogle may never have journeyed to Victoria during December 1906.

It seems more likely that William Ogle, and even his wife Ethel, would have been involved in Sydney-based film productions during the period 1906 to 1912. We know, for example, that members of the Company appeared in Robbery Under Arms (1907) and in Cole's 1910-11 series of films. As some of these had a bushranging theme, we can therefore surmise that William did appear in such a film - as family tradition would have it - but it may not necessarily been the 1906 The Story of the Kelly Gang.

Postscript: The popular excitement over Ned Kelly and Ben Hall in Melbourne during late December 1906 through the Tait Athenaeum Theatre film and the Cole Hippodrome play, at the height of the holiday season, reveals the keen interest at the time in Australia's unique bushranging heritage. Officials grew concerned over this, as they also were in regards to the convict origins of a large section of the eastern Australian non-Indigenous population. As a result, in 1911-1912 the South Australian, New South Wales and Victorian governments banned the production of bushranger films. Between 1900 and 1914 some 116 bushranging films were made, pointing to the local popularity of the genre. A comparison can be made to the popularity of the Western in America. These latter films were never banned, and subsequently swamped Australian cinemas through to the 1970s, much to the detriment of the local film industry. Even the later productions made locally featured foreigners such as Mick Jagger as Ned Kelly (1969) and Dennis Hopper as Mad Dog Morgan (1976). It could be said that the Australian film industry finally embraced the bushranger heritage with the production of Mad Max in 1979 - a post apocalyptic version of the proud Australian tradition of a gun slinging, lone outlaw seeking justice.

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6. List of R.I. Cole credits

To get an idea of some of the productions W. J. Ogle may have been involved in due to his close working relationship with the prolific R. I. Cole, the following is a list of the latter's writing and production credits (for both plays and films), plus some acting credits. Please note that many of the plays and performances by the Bohemian Dramatic Company were repeat over the years through to the 1930s, and the listing below is usually only noting the date of the earliest known performance. For example, the Ned Kelly drama Hands Up! was presented in 1900 and also 1904. As it would appear that William left the Company in 1912, that can probably be set as a cutoff date for his involvement.

Prairie Life (1899) – performer/producer
Hands Up! (1900) - writer - drama about Ned Kelly and his gang
King of the Road (1900) - writer – bushranger drama about Ben Hall
The Prairie Scout (1900) – performer/producer
The Missing Partner (1904) - writer
Buffalo Bill (1904) – performer/producer
Sentenced for Life (1904) - writer
With the Colours (1905) - writer, performer/producer
Jo the Girl Miner (1905) – performer/producer
The White Slave (1905) – performer/producer – Haymarket Hippodrome, Sydney
With the Colours (1905) – performer/producer – Haymarket Hippodrome, Sydney – drama set during the Second Boer War
A Priest's Silence (1905) – performer/producer
East Lynne (1905) – performer/producer
Captain Moonlite (1906) – performer/producer
The Coal Strike (1906) - writer
A Convict's Sweetheart (1906) – performer/producer
For King and Empire (1906) - writer
Cast Aside (1906) – performer/producer
Golden Heart (1906) – performer/producer
Uncle Tom's Cabin (1906) – performer/producer
Kia Ora (1906) – performer/producer – Haymarket – a four-act Maori drama
Hunted to Death (1907) – performer/producer
Whirlwind, the Bushranger (1907)
Ransom (1907) - writer
Outlawed by Fate (1908) – performer/producer
Thunderbolt, the Bushranger (1908) – performer/producer – Haymarket – about Captain Thunderbolt
The Anarchist (1909) – performer/producer
The Squatter's Son (1910) - writer
The King of the Roads / Under Two Flags / The Hand of Justice (1911) – performer/producer – series of plays performed at Launceston
Bushranger's Ransom, or A Ride for Life (1911) - film production
The Squatter's Son (1911) - film production
The Five of Hearts (1911) - film production
Sentenced for Life (1911) - film production
The Sundowner (1911) - film production
The Squatter and the Clown (1911) - film production
The British Spy (1911–12) – presented in Hobart – play set during the Second Boer War
Golden Heart (1912) – performer/producer – a Spanish-Mexican drama
It Is Never Too Late to Mend (1912) – performer/producer – presented in Hobart - play based on the convict era novel
Arrah-Na-Pogue (1912) – performer/producer – Irish drama
Postmistress of the Czar (1912) – performer/producer – presented at the Kings Theatre, Hobart – Anglo-Russian military story
The Heart of the Bush (1912) – performer/producer – Kings Theatre, Hobart – Australian bush story
A Woman's Honour (1913) – performer/producer
Dick Turpin (1914) – performer/producer – Hippodrome, Sydney
Captain Starlight, or Robbery Under Arms (1914) – performer/producer – Hippodrome
The Covenant's Trust (1915) – performer/producer
The Indian Hero (1916) – performer/producer
Who is the Woman? (1916) – performer/producer
The Gaol Bird (1918) – performer/producer
Buffalo Bill (1919) – performer/producer
Meg of Golden Heart / The Octoroon (1919) – performer/producer
The Ruby Ring (1919) – performer/producer
The Kelly Gang (1920) – performer/producer

As noted above, following his departure from Cole's Company, William appears to have gotten a job in retail, perhaps in order to provide a more secure income for his and Ethel's young family, as they settled down in Marrickville. It would also appear that the departure was an amicable one, and Cole and Ogle remained friends for the remainder of their lives.

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7. List of Cole company actors

Archer, C. Mr
Atfield, C. Mr
Aubusson, Miss
Ayr, W. H. Mrs
Bartlett, Alf. Mr
Beard, Miss
Bradshaw, Nellie Miss
Bullock, W. Mr
Coalston, G. Mr
Cole, Belle Miss
Cole, F. Mr
Cole, R. I. Mr
Cooper, J. Mr
Deveraux, N. Miss
Dickson, A. Mr
Douglas, A. Mr
Elliott, G. Mr
Farley, May Miss
Foley, J. D. Mr
Greenaway, Miss
Grey, Ethel Miss
Hall, Mr
Harcourt, L. Mr
Hare, Millie Miss
Hayward, J. Mr
Irving, J. Mr
Jackson, T. Mr
James, R. Mr
Kenna, E. A. Mr
Klein, P. Mr
Le Breton, J. L. Mr
Le Breton, Miss J. S.
Linden, Ethel Miss
Linden, G. Mr
Linden, G. Mrs
Linden, Vene Miss
McGowan, S. Mr
Moss, Milton, Mr
North, J. B. Mr
Pearse, A. Mr
Ogle, Ethel Miss
Ogle, William James Mr
Phillips, E. Mr
Riven, Mr
Rivenhall. F. Mr
Silvester, VI Miss
Stuart, H. Mr
Vivian, George Mr
Waters, F. Mr
Wilson, J. R. Mr

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8. References

Allen, Julie K., Screening Europe in Australasia: Transnational Silent Film Before and After the Rise of Hollywood, University of Exeter Press, 2022, 482p.

Dexter, Gayne, When Australian Made "The Kelly Gang," Evening News, 8 October 1929.

Martin-Jones, Tony, The two 1907 films of Robbery Under Arms, Film History, 2014.

McGuire, Dan Australia' First Film, The ABC Weekly, 10 June 1944.

-----, Further Footnotes on the Kelly Gang film, The ABC Weekly, 7(10), 10 March 1945.

Reade, Eric, Australian Silent Film, Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1970, 192p.

Tait, Charles (dir.), The Story of the Kelly Gang, 1906, Restored version, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 2006; YouTube, 31 January 2016, duration: 31.52 minutes.

Tait, Viola, A Family of Brothers. The Taits and J.C.Williamson; a Theatre History, Heinemann Australia 1971.

Wikipedia, Bushranger Ban [webpage], accessed 20 May 2024.

-----, Charles Tait, ibid.

-----, Cole's Dramatic Company, ibid.

-----, Edward Irham Cole, ibid.

-----, Hands Up!, or Ned Kelly and His Gang (play), ibid.

-----, Millard Johnson, ibid.

-----, The Story of the Kelly Gang, ibid.

-----, William A. Gibson, ibid.

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