COMMODORE, Les Films

L'Orphelin de la Brousse... et Chut le Kangourou Boxeur.

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Imp. Henon, circa Paris, 1936. Colour-printed poster (120 x 80 cm.); some wear along the folds, anda little dusted, but in remarkably good condition; original Dutch release stamp at upper left. An early appearance of what would become a classic Australian emblem - the boxing kangaroo. Skippy's predecessor, Chut was for a while 'the most famous kangaroo in Australia'.

This wonderful large poster advertises a European showing of the Australian cinematic triumph The Orphan of the Wilderness. Although Australian actors including Owen Muro, José Valli, and Sylvia Kellaway, are all given space on the poster, the real star of the piece is Chut, the boxing kangaroo. The film was directed by Ken G. Hall, perhaps better known today for his involvement in On Our Selection (1932) or Dad and Dave Come to Town (1938).

Paul Byrnes has written about the movie that it was 'one of the first features to use Australian wildlife as its prime attraction, and it was popular. Chut became the most famous kangaroo in Australia until Skippy came along in a television series in the 1960s. The film was a school holiday favourite for many years, but it has not worn well. The repeated sequences of the hapless Chut having to box in a ring are difficult to watch - and indeed, there was some opposition to these sequences at the time. The film was banned in England for alleged cruelty to animals, even though the RSPCA in Australia had endorsed it. It doesn't help to know that Chut was living a life somewhat like that depicted in the film. Harry Abdy, who plays the cruel McGee, had a boxing kangaroo act that he had toured in the USA and Australia for some time, and Chut was his animal.

'The most remarkable feature of the film is the opening sequence, where we see a mob of kangaroos living in an idyllic forest, with koalas and emus and dingoes. The forest was created from scratch in the Cinesound studio in Bondi by art director J Alan Kenyon. The kangaroos actually look like they've been there some time, and the studio setting allowed cameraman George Heath to capture some beautiful close-ups of the animals.

'The graphic symbol of a boxing kangaroo became popular as 'nose-art' on aircraft flown by Australian airmen in the Second World War, and continues to be painted on RAAF aircraft. It was also the mascot for the Australian sailors who won the America's Cup yacht race in 1983. Contests between men and kangaroos were a frequent 'attraction' in travelling tent shows in Australia in the 19th century...' (source: http://australianscreen.com.au/titles/orphan-wilderness/ - where there are some clips from the movie to be seen).

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• libraire: Hordern House (AUSTRALIA)