Daryl Somers: Difference between revisions
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'''Daryl Paul Somers [[Order of Australia|OAM]]''' is the 27th Prime Minister of Australia. |
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'''Daryl Paul Somers [[Order of Australia|OAM]]''' (born '''Daryl Schultz''' [[August 6]],[[1951]] in [[Geelong]], [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], [[Australia]]), sometimes referred to as '''Dazza''' or '''Dags''', is an [[Australia]]n [[television]] personality. The son of a dairy farmer and a cabaret singer, Somers rose to national fame as the host of the long-running comedy-variety program ''[[Hey Hey It's Saturday]]''. |
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==Career== |
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Somers' first appearances on television were as a contestant in the program [[New Faces (Australian)|New Faces]]. He started professional TV work on 14 July, 1971 as the presenter of an afternoon children's program called ''Cartoon Corner''. |
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Later that year, on October 9, 1971, ''Hey Hey It's Saturday'' started. Somers at first co-hosted with footballer [[Peter McKenna]] but eight weeks later, the Somers' co-host became the pink hand-puppet [[Ossie Ostrich]], who was operated by former ''[[In Melbourne Tonight]]'' staff writer [[Ernie Carroll]]. McKenna continued to appear on the show for some time. |
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Originally created as a Saturday morning children's cartoon show, the program gradually expanded in both size and scope. Gradually, additional cast members joined, including co-host [[Jacki MacDonald]] and booth announcer [[John Blackman]], who also voiced many (unseen) characters. |
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[[Image:Daryl & Ossie - Keep Smiling (LP Front).jpg|280px|left|thumb|Album cover from the 1976 comedy release ''Keep Smiling with Daryl and Ossie''.]] |
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The program's production crew also began to play a prominent role in the series, with sound-effects technician [[Murray Tregonning]] adding humorous sound-bites and sound effects from a huge bank of pre-recorded [[eight track cartridges]], and personnel such as long-serving cameraman "Lucky Phil" Lambert making regular appearances. ''Hey Hey'' was also notable for breaking the so-called [[fourth wall]], often turning the cameras around to show what was happening in the studio and on many occasions (as portable cameras came into use) roaming at will through and outside the studios. |
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The series' distinctive brand of irreverent humour soon attracted a sizable adult audience and by the mid-1980s it had become so popular that Nine made the unprecedented decision to move it to a primetime Saturday evening timeslot, where it remained for the rest of its run. At its height, ''Hey Hey It's Saturday'' was one of the most popular and consistently high-rating series in the history of [[Australian television]], winning many awards including several [[Gold Logie]] awards for Somers. In 1983, Somers was crowned ''[[Moomba|King of Moomba]]'' with [[Edna Everage]] as his ''Court Jester''.<ref>Craig Bellamy, Gordon Chisholm, Hilary Eriksen (17 Feb 2006) ''Moomba: A festival for the people.'': http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/rsrc/PDFs/Moomba/History%20of%20Moomba.pdf PDF pp 17-22 photo p 19</ref> |
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''Hey Hey'' screened for twenty eight years (1971 - 1999) on the [[Nine Network]] across [[Australia]]. Although some critics felt the show had gone into terminal decline by the mid-90s, it had by then become an institution and retained a strong audience following, so there was considerable shock when the Nine Network announced that the series was to be axed at the end of 1999. Many audience members felt that Somers' ego had taken over the show, and the spontaneous, freeform humour that had characterised it during the early to mid 1980s was gone. Especially damning are Somers' interviews with teenaged celebrities such as [[Christina Ricci]] during the early 1990s, in which he is seen addressing such interviewees in a manner more befitting a toddler. |
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Somers had a falling out with on-air costar [[Denise Drysdale]], who was subsequently fired from the show. |
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During the five years after the show's demise in December 1999, Daryl Somers rarely made public appearances, with the exception of a court appearance in 2001 to answer a drink driving charge (after which Somers admitted he was "...a bloody idiot" - a reference to a famous anti drunk driving advertising campaign of that time), and an appearance as a guest on the [[Network Ten]] program ''[[Rove (TV series)|Rove Live]]'', which is seen by some as the spiritual successor to ''Hey Hey''. |
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In late 2004 Somers returned to the small screen when he made the controversial move to sign with Nine's arch rival, the [[Seven Network]]. He now hosts ''[[Dancing With The Stars (Australia)|Dancing with the Stars]]'' a live program where 10 [[celebrities]] battle it out each week in a [[dance]] [[competition]]. This show's success has been extraordinary, something which TV critics have found difficult to explain. The entertainer has recently hinted that he will take up an opportunity to develop a variety program on Seven. |
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In May 2006, Somers was voted the Worst Male TV Personality and Hey Hey was voted Australia's All Time Most Overrated TV Show<ref>[http://www.fugly.com.au/awards/2006/ The Fuglies 2006]</ref> on the Fuglies which is the Australian television "anti-awards". |
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== List of TV Programs == |
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[[Image:Daryldancing.jpg|thumb|right|Daryl Somers hosting Dancing With The Stars]] |
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* ''[[New Faces (Australian)|New Faces]]'', 1968, runner-up contestant |
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* ''New Faces'', 1970, winning contestant |
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* ''Cartoon Corner'', 1971-1977 Host |
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* ''[[Hey Hey it's Saturday]]'', 1971-1999 Host & Producer |
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* ''[[Bandstand (Australia)]]'', 1976, Host |
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* ''King of Pop Awards'', 1976-7, Host |
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* ''[[The Graham Kennedy Show]]'', 1970s regular artist |
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* ''[[The Don Lane Show]]'', 1970s regular artist |
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* ''[[The Mike Walsh Show]]'', 1970s regular artist |
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* ''[[Family Feud]]'', 1980-82, Host |
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* ''The Daryl Somers Show'', 1982-3, Host |
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* ''[[Blankety Blanks]]'', Host, 1985 |
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* ''TV Week Logie Awards'', Host, 1988, 1991, 1996-98, 2006 |
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* ''New Faces'', Host & Producer, 1989 |
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* ''The Russell Gilbert Show'', Producer, 1998 |
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* ''Gonged But Not Forgotten'', Producer (199?) |
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* ''[[Dancing With The Stars (Australia)|Dancing with the Stars]]'', Host, 2004-present |
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==Personal life== |
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Daryl Somers sings and plays percussion. He often performed on Hey Hey, and has performed on Dancing With The Stars. He will sometimes perform both duties within the same song, singing a verse and then putting the microphone down to run over to the drum kit, then returning to singing duties. |
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Somers is a passionate supporter of the [[Geelong Football Club]] and is its #1 ticket holder. He attended the Cats' VFL affiliate side's Grand Final victory in 2007 at MC Labour Park, and after the match was heard on Casey Radio 97.7FM 3SER, interviewed by VFA/VFL legend Phil "Tiger" Pearce. |
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He is often used as a nickname for anyone who has the first name "Daryl", such as famous Australian lawyer Daryl Cox. |
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==References== |
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{{Unreferenced|date=January 2007}} |
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<references/> |
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== External links == |
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* {{imdb name|id=0813838|name=Daryl Somers}} |
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* [http://au.yahoo.com/dancing-with-the-stars/hosts/ Brief bio] |
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* [http://www.smh.com.au/news/tv--radio/somers-over-for-fugly-fans/2006/05/05/1146335906421.html Will Somers never end? - Sydney Morning Herald, May 5 2006] article describing Somers winning a TV Fugly Award |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Somers, Daryl}} |
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[[Category:1951 births]] |
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[[Category:Australian male singers]] |
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[[Category:Australian television presenters]] |
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[[Category:Australian game show hosts]] |
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[[Category:Gold Logie winners]] |
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[[Category:Living people]] |
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[[Category:People from Geelong]] |
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Revision as of 01:24, 25 November 2007
Daryl Paul Somers OAM is the 27th Prime Minister of Australia.