In Melbourne Tonight, also known as
"IMT", was a highly popular nightly
varietyA variety show or variety entertainment is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and comedy skits, and normally introduced by a compère or host. The variety format made its way from Victorian era stage to radio to television...
television show produced at
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital city and most populous city of the State of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne city centre is the anchor of the larger geographical area and statistical division known as the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area – of which Melbourne is...
from 1957 to 1970.
Graham KennedyGraham Cyril Kennedy, AO was an Australian radio, television and film performer, often called "Gra Gra" and "The King" of Australian television.-Childhood:...
was the show's main host and star attraction but other presenters were often called on to present the show on certain nights. IMT had as many as 50 different presenters over its 13 years on air. The format of the show was inspired by the American
Tonight Show on
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
, but Graham's charisma was the key to the success of IMT.
IMT originally had its own self-titled theme song, but for most of the run of the show it adopted the tune of
Gee, But You're SwellGee, But You're Swell was written by Abel Baer and Charles Tobias in 1936, and published by Remick Music Corp. in the same year.One of the first recordings was in 1937, by Chick Webb and his Orchestra with vocal by Louis Jordan...
, written by Abel Baer and Thomas Tobias in 1936.
Geoff Corke was Kennedy's offsider until 1959 when
Bert NewtonAlbert Watson "Bert" Newton, AM, MBE, , is a multiple Gold Logie winning Australian television, radio, film, stage performer and author.-Childhood:...
joined
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
from
HSV-7HSV is a television station in Melbourne. It is part of the Seven Network, one of the three main commercial television networks in Australia.-History:...
to become Kennedy's straight-man.
In Melbourne Tonight, also known as
"IMT", was a highly popular nightly
varietyA variety show or variety entertainment is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and comedy skits, and normally introduced by a compère or host. The variety format made its way from Victorian era stage to radio to television...
television show produced at
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital city and most populous city of the State of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne city centre is the anchor of the larger geographical area and statistical division known as the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area – of which Melbourne is...
from 1957 to 1970.
Graham KennedyGraham Cyril Kennedy, AO was an Australian radio, television and film performer, often called "Gra Gra" and "The King" of Australian television.-Childhood:...
was the show's main host and star attraction but other presenters were often called on to present the show on certain nights. IMT had as many as 50 different presenters over its 13 years on air. The format of the show was inspired by the American
Tonight Show on
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
, but Graham's charisma was the key to the success of IMT.
IMT originally had its own self-titled theme song, but for most of the run of the show it adopted the tune of
Gee, But You're SwellGee, But You're Swell was written by Abel Baer and Charles Tobias in 1936, and published by Remick Music Corp. in the same year.One of the first recordings was in 1937, by Chick Webb and his Orchestra with vocal by Louis Jordan...
, written by Abel Baer and Thomas Tobias in 1936.
Geoff Corke was Kennedy's offsider until 1959 when
Bert NewtonAlbert Watson "Bert" Newton, AM, MBE, , is a multiple Gold Logie winning Australian television, radio, film, stage performer and author.-Childhood:...
joined
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
from
HSV-7HSV is a television station in Melbourne. It is part of the Seven Network, one of the three main commercial television networks in Australia.-History:...
to become Kennedy's straight-man. This began a professional partnership that continued for many years and a friendship that continued until Kennedy's death in 2005.
Other IMT identities included
Joff EllenJoff Ellen was an Australian entertainer, actor and comedian.During World War II he performed vaudeville acts to the troops and after the war did comedy shows on Melbourne radio station 3XY...
, Panda Lisner,
Mary HardyMary Hardy was an Australian television and radio presenter, actor and comedian. She was best known for her caustic wit, indifference to authority and tireless ability to ad lib....
, Rosie Sturgess, Patti McGrath (later Patti Newton),
Toni LamondToni Lamond AM is an Australian cabaret singer, stage actor, dancer and comedienne...
,
Philip BradyPhilip Brady is an Australian media personality.Born in Melbourne, Brady was involved in the early days of television. He left school at the age of 18 and started working as a booth announcer at Channel Nine in 1958....
, Johnny Ladd,
Noel FerrierNoel Ferrier AM was an Australian television personality, stage and film actor, raconteur and theatrical producer....
, Elaine McKenna, Bill McCormick, Ted Hamilton,
The Tune Twisters and the
Channel 9 Ballet.
From 1960, packaged highlights of IMT would be screened on television stations across
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
with the title
The Graham Kennedy Channel Nine Show.
On July 7 1965, IMT featured a then-innovative interstate live split-screen link with
Sydney Tonight on
TCN-9TCN is the Sydney flagship television station of the Nine Network in Australia and is located at Willoughby. The license, issued to a company named Television Corporation Ltd headed by Frank Packer, was one of the first four licenses to be issued for commercial television stations in...
SydneySydney is the largest city in Australia, and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney has a metropolitan area population of approximately 4.34 million and an area of approximately 12,000 square kilometres. Its inhabitants are called Sydneysiders, and Sydney is often called "the Harbour City"...
via the recently completed co-axial cable linking Melbourne and Sydney.
In 1970, after Kennedy had resigned from
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
, IMT continued with four hosts, each on a different night of the week:
Jimmy HannanJimmy Hannan was an Australian variety show host, singer and entertainer. Hannan won the 1965 Gold Logie award. One of his daughters is Melissa Hannan who won the Miss Australia title in 1981 and was also in the Miss World competition held in London.-Filmography:*The Sentimental Bloke *Jimmy as...
,
Ugly Dave GrayUgly Dave Gray is an Australian television personality.-Career:Gray was a regular panellist on Graham Kennedy's Blankety Blanks in 1977-1978. He had earlier taken a straight dramatic role as publican Bunny Howard in the early episodes of soap opera The Young Doctors in 1976...
,
Bert NewtonAlbert Watson "Bert" Newton, AM, MBE, , is a multiple Gold Logie winning Australian television, radio, film, stage performer and author.-Childhood:...
and
Stuart WagstaffStuart Wagstaff AM is an Australian television and stage entertainer.-Early life:...
. The program ended shortly after, but IMT created a long-standing legacy of live variety programs for several decades from
GTV-9GTV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia owned by the Nine Network. It was the primary commercial TV stations in Melbourne, and amongst the first to begin transmission in Australia. Test transmissions began on 27 September 1956, introduced by former 3DB radio announcer Geoff Corke...
.
Most of the videotapes were erased and reused after broadcast and consequently less than 100 episodes survive today out of the thousands made.
When Kennedy returned to GTV-9 in the early 1970s, the program used the title
"The Graham Kennedy Show". It did not recapture the success of the original version. The successor programs were
The Ernie Sigley ShowErnest William "Ernie" Sigley is an enduring Australian entertainment personality known for his square-rimmed spectacles, the gap between his front teeth and his slapstick approach to comedy....
and
The Don Lane ShowDon Lane is an American-born Australian entertainer, talk show host and singer.-Early life:...
.
Late 90s version
In 1996, the format was revived under the title
IMT, hosted by Frankie J. Holden and screened as a Monday night variety show. Featured on the show were the comedic stylings of
Steven JacobsSteven Jacobs is an Australian television presenter and actor.-Career:Before he made it to national television, he hosted a children's news program known as Kids News. The program was produced at WIN Television studios in Wollongong.Following this, Jacobs started his career in radio, presenting a...
, as well as Ann-Maree Biggar and
Julia MorrisJulia Morris is an Australian writer, comedian, actress, television presenter and television producer who has worked extensively in Australian and British television and radio. She has toured widely with her solo stand-up comedy shows. In Australia, she is best known as one of the stars of the...
, who was best known for presenting "The Morris Report", a comedic take on the news events of the previous week. The show ran until 1999.
External links