Gongman

The trademark version of the man with the gong, used by the Rank Organisation until the 1990s.)

The Gongman (also known as the "man-with-the-gong") is a company trademark for the Rank Organisation. It was used as the introduction to all Rank films, many of which were created at their Pinewood Studios).

The gongman sequence combines a depiction of a man with the deep resonant sound of a huge gong. The gongs used in the films were props made of plaster or papier-mâché, with the sound of the gong done by James Blades on a Chinese instrument called a tam tam. During the sequence the text 'J. Arthur Rank presents', 'The Rank Organisation' or 'Rank Film Distributors' appeared over the gong. People who have played the Gongman include Carl Dane, Bombardier Billy Wells, Phil Nieman, and Ken Richmond.

Parodies

The Gongman was often parodied over the years. In Carry On up the Khyber, Kenneth Williams' character refers to an over-enthusiastic gongman's attitude as "rank stupidity". In addition, the opening to the ATV Thursday Picture Show used an animated version. According to Sub-TV, who has a video of the opening, "the gong-smasher here is a non-muscley man in an old-fashioned swimming costume and a cloth cap!" The man whacks an ATV logo, not a gong, and the logo smashes into pieces when it gets whacked.

The now defunct Swedish film distributor Triangelfilm had a similar vignette with an animated man hitting a triangle.

In the American television series Foul-Ups, Bleeps & Blunders, the production company that produced the show had two men that were about ready to strike a gong (a la the "Gongman"), with the man on the right (holding the gong mallet) striking the man on the left in the groin region and leaving him in agony (this was followed by a gong sound).

In the closing seconds of the video to Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, percussionist Roger Taylor mimics the Rank gongman by striking a large tam tam whilst stripped to the waist.

During the Gilligan's Island episode in which the castaways produce a film explaining their situation to any potential viewer, Gilligan performs their own version of the Rank logo sequence. Unfortunately, when he strikes the gong, he shakes uncontrollably at the vibrations created in doing that.

The title sequence of the Mickey Mouse Club TV show's original run ended with Donald Duck striking a gong, with varying results.

On The Muppets Go to the Movies, the Muppets parody the Gongman with "J. Arthur Link", showing Muppet pig Link Hogthrob in the nude, swinging at the gong, missing, spinning around losing his balance, and hitting the gong with his head.

In Terry Pratchett's Discworld series novel Moving Pictures the gong exists in a temple which is a portal to the Dungeon Dimensions. Standing in for the gongman is a suitably proportioned troll made of living rock.

External links

• sub-TV page which contains the open to the ATV Thursday Picture Show in MPEG format
• Article in The Independent about the death of final Gongman Ken Richmond and a little about the role