STAGES Episode 510: VALE John Newman (30/8/1930-28/7/2024)

STAGES with Peter Eyers

In July we lost one of the pioneers of entertainment in Australia - Mr John Newman. We featured John in an episode recorded in March 2022.

John Newman is the savvy entrepreneur who pioneered the glory of theatre restaurant in Australia, with the establishment of the iconic Tikki & John’s in Melbourne. The venue fast became an institution in the city and a haven for a stellar cast of performers. With wife Tikki Taylor, he founded an entertainment dynasty spawning further theatre dining experiences such as Dracula’s, Cafe Crypt and Crazyhouse.

A Geelong boy, his parents were publicans. He was born to perform and garnered early experiences entertaining hotel guests. He joined the Geelong Musical Comedy Company, a flourishing amateur group whose members also included John’s brother Bill, Ernie Bourne and Barry Crocker. His success in comic and singing roles with that company, prompted him to embark on show business as a profession.

He joined an outfit calling itself, rather ambitiously The South Pacific Film and Television Company, which planned to hit the high spots with a grand tour of Victorian country areas. The variety show, in which John did comedy, magic and his impressions of Groucho Marx and other stars of the day, played Geelong, Colac and Camperdown. He was next a member of the Blind Institute Concert Party, which performed everywhere in Victoria in one - and - two night stands, raising money for the institute. John stayed with the unit for two years, and then he left to go into the chorus of the J. C. Williamson Song of Norway.

The run of Song of Norway was followed by a revival of Annie Get Your Gun, with Evie Hayes and Hayes Gordon, and John then went into the chorus of South Pacific, where he met Joyce Taylor (Tikki),

Tikki Taylor had studied dancing at the Jenny Brennan Academy and appeared on stage for the first time in a juvenile role in Blue Mountain Melody, an Australian musical which starred Cyril Ritchard and Madge Elliott. After pursuing a classical ballet career she joined J.C. Williamson’s as a show dancer, her first show being The Desert Song with Max Oldaker. Then followed Rose Marie, White Horse Inn, No, No, Nanette, The Girl Friend, Follow The Girls and Oklahoma, in which she understudied three roles, eventually playing the lead comedienne, Ado Annie.

John and Tikki combined both their professional and private lives working in the same shows. They formed an act and toured it through the U.K. for eighteen months with top Australian magician The Great Levant covering England, Scotland and Wales. After that, they toured the U.S. Army bases in Europe.

Back in London they saw the latest American musical hit The Pajama Game, and John knew that Tikki would be perfect for the comedy-dancing role of Gladys Hotchkiss. They rushed back to Australia and with the support of choreographer Betty Pounder and stage director Ian Roberts, Tikki managed to persuade the JCW management that it was not necessary to import an American actress for the role. This seminal production embraced an all-Australian company including Toni Lamond, Jill Perryman and John’s brother Bill Newman.

John worked in the chorus of The Pajama Game and joined Tikki in subsequent productions of Can-Can, For Amusement Only and Grab Me A Gondola. Tikki and John raised a family, pursued television appearances and then Tikki made a comeback to the stage as Minnie Fay in Hello Dolly.

Television claimed John for a while guided by the famous American entrepreneur Larry K. Nixon; then a stint as Victorian manager for NLT Productions, and producer of The Ray Taylor Show on ATV0 in its early days. John was later Company manager for the Moscow Circus before he and Tikki made their decision to go into the restaurant business.

John Newman was 94 years old, and passed away peacefully on Sunday the 28th of July 2024 in Melbourne. Condolences to his family, friends, colleagues and co-stars!