Radschool Association Newsletter

Radschool Association Newsletter - Vol 10

Next reunion - 27 April 2003

10 April 2002

Page 15

The Welcome Hotel, 91 Evans Street, Rozelle

The Welcome Inn.

Back in March 2000 (Vol 7) we had a story on Blue Silk, who most will remember was a sparky at Richmond a million years ago, and we’d found that Blue and wife Erin were then the owners of a 5 star restaurant in Leura in the Blue Mountains (where else??) and also an hotel in Rozelle, an inner city suburb of Sydney. Since then, they have sold the restaurant, but kept the hotel, and that’s where we caught up with both of them earlier this year.

Their eldest son, Damien, who is now over 30 years old (where have all the years gone?) runs the hotel, and what an excellent job he does. If you live near that area of Sydney, or if you’re in Sydney on business (it’s not far from Darling Harbour) do yourself a favour and try it, though you might be well advised to ring and book first as the night we went it was full. The standard of the food and the service provided by his friendly staff is excellent.

Erin and Blue Silk at an Airman's Mess ball - May 1968

We had a conducted tour of the hotel, and Blue showed us some of the many mods and alterations that he and Erin had done to the hotel shortly after they bought it. Currently, they are looking for another which they also plan to buy and renovate. Although they have a small room with a bunch of pokies, Blue says he relies mainly on his food to generate income, unlike others which rely 90% on income from the bandits. That in itself says something about the quality of his table. He has kept his kitchen open to the public, and you can see it in operation.

It was good to catch up with them again, and relive a few very funny moments from many many years ago, and apart from being off the Camels, he hasn’t changed much. We wish them well and lots of good luck...

The way it was-1946.

History is a marvelous teacher, the more you read history, the more you realize that the only thing that really changes is the date. This following article was taken from Rod Smith’s excellent book titled "The best years of Australian Radio" - and originally appeared in Melbourne’s Sun News-pictorial in 1946. We say no more....

"The position of radio listeners throughout Australia, many of whom are hesitant about replacing old amplitude modulation (AM) receivers and worn out sets until more is known of the future of frequency modulation (FM), was clarified by Mr A.C. Paddison, president of the Australian Federation of Commercial Broadcasting Stations, at the annual convention last night.

Frequency modulation which is being experimented with on a commercial basis in America, is expected to eliminate static and make for more natural reception of words and music. Its innovation will mean the "scrapping" of all present receivers.

Mr Paddison said that if the new system was to be introduced, in accordance with the findings of the Parliamentary Committee, an early decision should be made, so that listeners and manufacturers would know where they stood.

In his opinion, however, it would be over ten years before there would be sufficient transfer of audience to contemplate closing down on existing AM wavelengths. The latest figures from America showed that less than 1% of total production of radios incorporated frequency modulation."

Rod is an old Radschooler, starting at Ballarat in 1948, he stayed with the RAAF until 1969, then as a mister spent another 25 years in the TV repair game. He finally retired in the 90’s which gave him more time to pursue his hobby which was old valve radios, and this led to him starting work on his book which was finally published in 1998. The book is still available, and if you want a copy or want to know more you can ring on 07 3345 3547. We heartily recommend it.

Overheard in a bar..."I’m so unlucky, if I was one of Elle McPherson’s triplets I’d be the one who was bottle fed."

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