Portrait of a brave New Zealander

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33003, 24 August 1972, Page 4

Portrait of a brave New Zealander

To many New Zealanders, Mrs Eve Rimmer is just a name they have seen in the newspapers, and promptly forgotten. Some of the papers themselves appear to have only a hazy knowledge of her identity and her exploits; we have seen her referred to as “Miss J. Rimmer” recently.

But Eve Rimmer is a remarkable New Zealander, and Tuesday’s edition of “Gallery” revealed the inner forces which have enabled this courageous woman to reach the top of the ladder at two Paraplegic Olympics. This was one programme in which the interviewer —• in this case, Daime Shanahan — did not have to work hard to strike a receptive note. The irrepressible Mrs Rimmer took charge and although, through necessity the camera was focused on her face for an extraordinarily long time, the story of her trials, tribulations,, and eventual triumphs never palled. An ideal subject for a television study, Mrs Rimmer traced the events of her life in a cheerful, down-to-earth manner which did much to reveal her character. Her recollections of hospital life and of her struggles in the years when she was learning to live with her disability were presented with honest simplicity. Her tenacity, which shone through even her lighter anecdotes, must have kindled new hope in the minds of many sufferers in the country. The programme made

reference to her being “New Zealand’s greatest athlete” — she has won seven gold medals in two paraplegic games — but little attempt was made by Miss Shanahan to discover the extent to which sport had helped in her rehabilitation. But this is a minor criticism: “Gallery’s” profile was moving and memorable. We will remember Eve Rimmer as a lively, articulate woman — and every inch a fighter. We cannot speak in similar terms of “Gallery’s” other segment. The discussion on political patronage, between Mr Muldoon and Dr Finlay, was as dry as the dust on old copies of Hansard. The subject was aired •— and that is about all that can be said. The two parliamentarians gave the impression that they were talking shop at Bellamy’s. One almost expected them to say to the “Gallery” man in the middle, “Oh there you are, David.” * * «

“Ironside” is back, complete with the world’s greatest rickshaw boy, Don Mitchell, the decorative but ineffective Barbara Anderson, and the faithful leg man, Don Galloway. Predictably, Ironside and his team got their man. The plot was reasonably intriguing; the ending, as always, a little too glib. Surely, in a big city, the bad man can elude the net—just once? * # There has been criticism of Lindsay McCaughan because of his rather studied delivery in “Tuesday Trimming.” Now, it appears, he is letting his personality come through, and this week, as a further light touch, he introduced what seemed to

be a new version of the Charleston.

Unfortunately, at this stage of the programme’s development, Mr McCaughan has to stand aside for three weeks while Olympic Games reports are screened. His programme will resume on September 19. # sH #

“Love, American Style” continues to entertain, in spite of the use of hackneyed situations and threadbare plots. The appearance of performers of the calibre of Tony Randall, Julie Newmar, and Shelley Berman diverts attention from some of the programme’s shortcomings. This week, in an otherwise inconsequential effort about topless waitresses, Berman’s cavortings made entertaining viewing on their own. Randall, without his clothes, and Monte Markham, complete with chastity belt, kept the ball rolling. Provided that it is not looked upon with too critical an eye, this programme can be quite amusing. In any case, who has a critical eye at 10 p.m.? —PANDORA’S GUEST.

CHTV3 2.00 p.m.: News. 2.03: On Camera ’72. 2.44: The Adventures of Prince Achmed. Cartoon. 3.45: The Doris Day Show. Comedy. 4.10: Untamed World. Wildlife. 4.35: Play school. 5.00: Little Rascals. Comedy. 5.17: The Flintstones. Cartoon (repeat, final). 5.45: News, weather. 5.48: It’s Lulu. Variety. 6.40: In Your Garden. 7.00: Network news. 7.22: Weather. The South Tonight. 7.45: Coronation Street. 8.16: Fraud Squad. Drama. 9.15: Newsbrief. 9.17: Gallery. Current affairs. 9.55: N.Y.P.D. Detective. 10.23: Me Mammy. 10.57: Late news, weather.

NATIONAL LINK [lncluding 3YA Christchurch (690 kilohertz); 2YA Wellington (570 kilohertz); 4YA Dunedin (750 kilohertz); and 3YZ Greymouth (920 kilohertz).] 7 p.m.: N.Z.B.C. Sports News. 7.30: The Mayor of Casterbridge. 8.0: Palace of Varieties. 8.30: Weather and News. Checkpoint. 9.0: Band of the New Zealand Army (N.Z.8.C.). 9.30: The Archers (8.8. C. 10.30: N.Z.B.C. News, Comment, Weather. 10.45: The Man-Eaters of Kumaon (8.8. C. (final). 11.0: 8.8. C. News and Commentary. 11.15: All Night Programme. 3YC, CHRISTCHURCH (960 kilohertz)

7 pan.: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) Centenary series. Auckland University Festival Choir, conducted by Peter Godfrey (N.Z.8.C.). 7.45: Sylvia Rosenberg (violin), Janetta McStay (piano). 7.55: Bizet: Symphony No. 1 in C—Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under

Charles Munch. 8.22: Elgar: Sea Pictures—Janet Baker (contralto), London Symphony Orchestra under Sir John Barbirolli. 8.46: Bach: Italian Concerto (BWV 971) —Mindru Katz (piano). 9.0: Medical Experimentation on Human Subjects. 9.14: Ravel: String Quartet in F— Quartetto Italiano. 9.44: Puccini: La Boheme: Finale, Act 1. 10.0: Security on the World’s Airways (8.8. C. 10.14: Stamitz: Sinfonia concertante in A. 10.37: Stravinsky: Song of the Nightingale —Chicago Symphony Orchestra tinder Fritz Reiner. 3ZB, CHRISTCHURCH (1100 kilohertz) 7.2 p.m.: Hit Wave. 8.2: Search for Stars. 8.30: Word Game. 8.45: 1972 C.M.A. Industrial Award. 9.2: Guess the Guest. 9.30: Perfect Piece So I Said. 9.45: Beat the Bell. 10.2: Thursday Night With Peter Neil. 3ZM, CHRISTCHURCH (1400 kilohertz) 8 p.m.: Christchurch Top 40.