Possum Paddock

Possum Paddock is a 1921 Australian film based on a popular play by Kate Howarde. It was the first Australian movie to be directed by a woman.[2] Only portions of it survive today.

Possum Paddock
Directed byKate Howarde
Charles Villiers
Produced byKate Howarde
Written byKate Howarde
Charles Villiers
Based onplay by Kate Howarde
StarringJohn Cosgrove
CinematographyLacey Percival
Release date
29 January 1921[1]
Running time
6,500 feet
CountryAustralia
LanguageSilent

Plot

Andrew "Dad" McQuade (John Cosgrove), a tough farmer, faces ruin because of a bank loan he cannot repay. He decides to sell a fifty-acre field called 'Possum Paddock' to his greedy neighbour, Dan Martin (James Martin). However, Hugh Bracken (Jack Kirby), who is dating McQuade's daughter, Nancy (Leslie Adrien), sells his car to pay off the old man's debts. He then discovers that a railway is to go through the paddock and is worth a fortune.

Original Play

The play premiered in Sydney in 1919 and was a massive hit, touring for the next ten months. It starred John Cosgrove and Howarde herself, along with Fred MacDonald.[3][4]

The play was revived a number of times over the years.

Production

Howarde made the film in collaboration with actor Charles Villers. The adaptation turned the story into a more serious melodrama rather than a broad comedy.

It was shot at the Rushcutter's Bay studio established by Charles Cozens Spencer.[2] Many of the cast had appeared in the original stage production, including Howarde and her daughter Leslie Adrien, who played the female lead.

New South Wales censors insisted a subplot about an unmarried mother be cut, in particular a scene where she imagines throwing her baby into a river.[5]

Reception

Although the film appears to have been commercially successful, Howarde made no further films, preferring to concentrate on her theatre career.[5]

Cast
  • John Cosgrove as Andrew McQuade
  • James Martin as Dan Martin
  • Leslie Adrien as Nancy McQuade
  • Jack Kirby as Hugh Bracken
  • Kate Howarde
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References
  1. ""POSSUM PADDOCK."". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 29 January 1921. p. 15. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  2. Ina Bertrand, 'Celebrating Kate Howarde', Senses of Cinema, August 2002
  3. ""POSSUM' PADDOCKS."". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 8 September 1919. p. 4. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  4. "King's—"Possum Paddock."". The Argus. Melbourne: National Library of Australia. 3 November 1919. p. 8. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  5. Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, 103
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