THE KINGS CROSS WHISPER Continuing biog of Crusading Editor,”Big Jim” Bowditch.

 

US Secretary of State , Henry  Kissinger,  was photographed with belly dancers during his shuttle  peace  diplomacy in the Middle East.  In  this Whisper  there was a front page story about him , next to a topless artist,  attempting to  stop  the  biff  in NSW rugby  league  matches .  It also  included  the  concluding  part of  the Adventures of  Barry McKenzie , by  Barry Humphries , drawn by Nicholas Garland . 

After  jazzing  and shaking up  Darwin , reporter James  Ramsay  returned  to  Sydney under his real name  . In  l964  he teamed up with journalist  Terry Blake ,  brother of  Peter  Blake .  Both  were  short  of cash,  but  Ramsay insisted  that  they  could  make a pile of money  producing a satirical  paper like  Darwin’s  Waratah Whisper.  He  proposed  a similar  sheet   for the  annual  New Year  celebrations  in  Sydney’s Kings Cross , which  saw  the  streets  packed  with   revellers. 

Ramsay frequently  upset  Blake’s wife  when  staying with the  Blakes  in  their small  flat.  After a monumental drinking session,    Ramsay  came back to the flat early one morning  with a live chook in hand. Being of  slight build, Ramsay slithered inside  with  his  feathered  friend via  the narrow bread box  . Unbeknown  to   Blake’s  wife  ,  the two  journos  pawned her  sewing machine and other possessions  to finance  the printing of the  first  Kings Cross Whisper.  Also  hocked  without his knowledge was the scuba diving gear and speargun  of  Terry’s youngest  brother, Patrick .

By  Peter  Simon

 

The  first  edition  proved  a   runaway success.   They sat in the  flat throwing  piles  of  money  up  into the  air .   Sensing they were onto  something good , plans  were made for  a  follow up edition .  However , because of  frequent  jubilant   parties  and other excesses , they did not have  the  required  hard  cash  to  pay  the  printer.  

 

Quick  thinking  Ramsay  suggested  Blake go to a popular   bohemian  waterhole , the   Newcastle Hotel , in George Street,  near Circular Quay,  and   put  the  bite  on  the publican , Jim Buckley .   Blake knew  Buckley  who used  to display  paintings  on the pub wall.  It just so happened that  Xavier  Herbert , author of   the prize winning Territory novel Capricornia , was    down  from Cairns  and  staying  at  the  pub . 

Herbert    enthusiastically supported the Whisper  when shown  a copy by  Blake, who  had written  an article about Xavier a few years previously.   As   Herbert  had been keen to “stick it  up the establishment ”,  he     urged  Buckley to  advance  250 pounds ($500) for the  second edition , which he did , the money to be repaid  within 10 days of  publication .  The print run of 25,000 sold out so quickly there was a re-run of 20,000 and  leftovers from the  first edition were also snapped up. They were sitting  on a  virtual goldmine. 
 

A growing army of   colourful  sellers  flogged  the Whisper  in streets all over  Sydney at two shillings (20 cents )   a copy .  At the time  the  Sydney Morning Herald sold for  threepence( three cents  ). One of the keen Whisper salesmen   biffed a  copper and was  arrested  while trying to give  visiting  US   President  Lyndon  Johnson  a copy of  the  paper. To draw attention  to  themselves , the sellers  dressed in bizarre ways and did unusual things.

 

WAR  AGAINST  LANDLORDS  

 

One dressed as Uncle  Sam ;  another weirdo  constructed a  kind of cardboard house  at  a busy  Kings Cross  intersection  from  which he sold  Whispers and  leered up the legs of ladies in short frocks.  Compared with  some of their  motley  team of  200 street sellers, one of whom proved to be a  Nazi,  another an undertaker , Blake and  Ramsay were like a pair of staid  Mormon. Priests and politicians railed against the Whisper while an ever  increasing number of the public snapped up copies and enjoyed a hearty laugh seeing  the  establishment sent  up .

Ramsay and Blake disliked landlords  with a passion.  Blake , under the name of   Argus Tuft , a name previously used in the Waratah Whisper ,  wrote a series  in the Whisper on how to  dud  landlords.  At times he and Ramsay had poked   pieces of  fish  and  prawns  under the carpets of  seedy flats in which  they had lived.  Blake   even  claimed to have   hidden a dead cat in a dive  owned by a slum landlord.
 

As the money started to roll in  and  the  Whisper print runs rocketed until  hitting 250,000 ,  Blake and Ramsay  moved  into more salubrious dwellings.  With his  new found  wealth,  Ramsay  took up residence in  a   penthouse  overlooking  Rushcutter’s Bay.  Terry  Blake  bought  a Mercedes  190 SL   convertible  which  he promptly  drove into  one of the huge  sandstone abutments  of Central Railway Station  , not far from the Journalists’ Club.    A picture  taken  at   the accident  scene of  Blake and a passenger sprawled out on the ground  with multiple injuries  near the  crumpled  car  was  subsequently used in a  zany   Whisper  item   about  road safety. The  Whisper  crew  made  the anarchic  The Young Ones of  later  TV   fame  tame  by  comparison .  

 WHISPER  OUSTED   BY   WOMEN'S  WEEKLY

 

Servicemen in Vietnam  sent requests for copies of  the Whisper  and  patriotic  Blake and Ramsay  wrote to Defence Minister  Malcolm Fraser  offering free copies  if   the government could supply  transport.  The department  wrote back saying  there was no room on transport planes  to  Vietnam .  However, Ramsay  discovered months later that the reason why there was no spare cargo space in the planes was because it was  filled  with  back  copies of  the Packer's  Australian Women’s Weekly . There can be little  doubt  the  troops being shot at  in  Vietnam would have appreciated  the  Whisper  more than the  Women’s Weekly.

 

Ramsay was full of bright ideas .  He came up with a scheme  to produce a new publication  dealing with the  four  top teams  in the Victorian  Football League   competition. The  end result was a legal brawl  with the VFL and  vested  newspaper interests who thought they had  the field to themselves.

 

On the bravery front,  Ramsay  regarded  discretion  the better part of valour.  After  the Whisper sent up a  raucous  Kings Cross  nightspot, he noticed a well built  bouncer from the  establishment coming in the front door.  Ramsay jumped to his feet  and  disappeared out the back entrance  , fearing the  hulk  wanted to  hammer  somebody.  Instead, the man  desired  to become  another  Whisper vendor  as he  had been told  it was an easy way to make money.

 

Other  rivers  of   gold  included  personal adverts in  the  Whisper .The story goes that  one  day  the  editorial  team was  keen  to  wrap up another edition and  whip nextdoor  to  the  pub. There  was , however, a hole which had to be  filled  in  the  layout . From  America  they had obtained  a  cutting edge publication which  ran  racey  personal  adverts.  So  to   fill  the  page , a  slab of  these  were  inserted, not indicating  they were  Yanks  wanting  lusty  services  and  meetings . The response  was  enormous , the phone  rang nonstop   with  panting individuals  wanting  to  meet   these  people and place adverts themselves .    

 

A  smart  accountant  was engaged   to  control the massive inflow of revenue on which there had been little control  on the outflows, especially for  parties and other excesses .Many hands had dipped into the  kitty.  Whoopee!!! They diversified into publishing ventures , even a gardening magazine,  fishing gear ,  and    somehow obtained  a  Queensland  grant   to  set up a record  pressing   machine  which   produced  bawdy  records.   A chain of  Orgy  Shops  were  set up  Sydney, Adelaide  and Perth . The  mail  order side of the business brought in  truckloads  of   money.

 MAORI  BARRY AND TASTY  ORAM
 

 When the  Whisper was based in a three storey  building at 231  Oxford Street, Darlinghurst, it was a hive of activity. On the ground floor was  the Orgy Shop .   A  jovial  Maori, known as  Maori  Barry , served   on the counter at the  Orgy Shop.   Barry was  full  of  fun .   To get upstairs  to the Whisper, you  first had to walk past  Maori Barry  in the sex shop .    Journalists and  others    who  came  to  the building  with copy  for the  Whisper  usually received a  friendly greeting from  him .  He would invariably    ask  them,  mock   surprise in  his voice,  if they had   already  worn out those  sex  appliances they had bought  the  week  before.
 

People  standing about in the shop would leer.  Because they  were both Kiwis  , Maori Barry and  fabulous journalist Jim Oram, used to sling  off  at each other. Barry would  remind Oram that  Maoris had  found  pakehas  tasty . In his autobiography , actor Max Cullen  wrote that two journalists, Oram and  Matt  White, had provided the template for a profane , loudmouthed , drunken showbiz  reporter, Leon  Coot , in Denis Whitburn's play ,The  Siege of  Frank Sinatra .

 

There was a nearby  cake shop which found  that its business boomed when  the  Orgy Shop opened. This was  attributed to the fact that  people  , too shy to  walk  straight into the Orgy Shop  , first bought a  pie , a sausage roll  or a  cake  to  justify  being in the  area.  Strategically located  nearby was a  pub, the Beauchamp   , the name  Australianised  to  Beecham’s ( as in  the  pills) , where   many  journalists   gathered. NEXT : Ramsay sets  the  world  on  fire .