Australian TV series or program
The Paul Hogan Show
was a popular Australian comedy show which aired on Australian television from 1973 until 1984 for a total of 12 seasons and 60 episodes. It made a star of
Paul Hogan
, who later appeared in
Crocodile Dundee
.
Hogan's friend (and producer of
Crocodile Dundee
)
John Cornell
also appeared in the show, playing Hogan's dim flatmate Strop.
Premise
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Episodes of the series generally opened with Hogan, playing a version of himself he called 'Hoges', presenting a stand-up comedy routine dressed in his bridge rigger's costume of boots, shorts, and shirt with sleeves cut off. The show then presented a series of comedy sketches, usually with Hogan in the lead role and playing various recurring characters, including:
- Leo Wanker
: an inept daredevil stuntman;
- George Fungus
: a
take-off
of real-life television journalist
George Negus
of the Australian
60 Minutes
;
- Super Dag
: an
ocker
superhero
complete with
terry-towelling
hat and
zinc-creamed
nose. His powers include his ability to use his
esky
in innovative ways;
- Perce the Wino
: an old drunken
derro
who starred in a series of silent,
Benny Hill
-style, sketches;
- Donger
: variants of this beer-gutted character include Sgt Donger, the tough cop with a bionic beer-gut, and Arthur Dunger, a caricature of the suburban
tinny
-chugging Australian male.
- Nigel Lovelace
: a skateboarding eleven-year-old ("almost twelve" as they say in the show);
- The Phantom
: a parody of the famous comic book hero
The Phantom
- Arthur Dunger
: a beer swilling pier bum.
- Luigi
: a magician with a thick Italian accent who spectacularly fails at attempted magic tricks. Sometimes he would have an assistant called Maria - Luigi would shout "dance-a Maria!!" to distract attention.
Another recurring sketch featured Hogan again playing "himself" as Hoges, depicting the character's situation of living the carefree bachelor life in a disorderly apartment with his flatmate Strop.
The show would generally end with him in his bridge painter getup trying to flip cigarettes into his mouth.
The series also regularly featured attractive female models and actresses in its sketches - frequently in revealing costumes. Television actress and presenter
Delvene Delaney
(who later married Cornell) was the most frequent and best-known of these. Other women to appear in the series were
Sue McIntosh
,
Karen Pini
,
Anya Saleky
,
Karen West
and
Abigail
.
[1]
Many sketches in the show were parodies of contemporary television shows. These included
"Thick 'Ead"
(
Mastermind
),
"Pot o'Brass"
(
Pot o'Gold
),
"A Casual Affair"
(
A Current Affair
)
"Sale of the Week"
(
Sale of the Century
), and
"Benny Five'O"
(a
Benny Hill
-inspired take-off of
Hawaii Five-O
).
Theme music
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The theme music was taken from the second movement of
Tchaikovsky
's
Symphony No.5
. This music was also used in contemporary advertisements for
Winfield
cigarettes, which featured Hogan.
Reception
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The show was very popular in Australia and was compared to
Saturday Night Live
and
The Benny Hill Show
. The series also became popular in the UK as a result of its scheduling within peak time on the new
Channel 4
, and was one of the shows shown on its launch night on 2 November 1982.
Networks
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After appearances on
A Current Affair
and specials for the
Nine Network
, Hogan and Cornell fell out with network owner
Clyde Packer
. The first three seasons from 1973 to 1975 of the
Paul Hogan Show
were on the
Seven Network
until
Kerry Packer
took over Channel 9 and invited them back.
[2]
[3]
See also
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References
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External links
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]