Garry McDonald
| Garry McDonald | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Garry George McDonald 30 October 1948 Glen Innes, Australia |
| Other names | Norman Gunston (character) |
| Alma mater |
Cranbrook School, Sydney National Institute of Dramatic Art |
| Occupation | Actor, comedian |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Spouse(s) | Diane Craig (m. 1971) |
Garry George McDonald AO (born 30 October 1948) is an Australian actor, satirist and comedian. He is best known for his portrayal of the bawdy Wollongong interviewer and Gold Logie award-winning character Norman Gunston and for his role of hapless Arthur Beare in the ABC television sitcom Mother and Son.
McDonald was born in Glen Innes, in the New England area of Northern New South Wales and was educated at Cranbrook School. During his time at Cranbrook, McDonald developed an interest in acting and, despite family objections, went on to study at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), where he obtained a Diploma in Acting in 1967.
It was while working on The Aunty Jack Show in 1973, that McDonald first performed the character for which he would become best-known, the gauche and inept TV personality, Norman Gunston. Gunston's first appearance was in a series of brief sketches written by Wendy Skelcher which saw him reporting uncomfortably on a "sex-scandal drought" in his home town, the New South Wales city of Wollongong; a drought he eventually breaks by appearing nude on camera.
In 1975 McDonald revived the Gunston character for TV with the help of a writing team that included Morris Gleitzman (now a successful children's author) and veteran TV comedy writer Bill Harding, who had written for the Australian TV satire The Mavis Bramston Show.
Gunston's trademark outfit consisted of an iridescent-blue tuxedo jacket, black stovepipe trousers, and sneakers with white socks. Gunston had a comb over type hairstyle and used makeup to make his face deathbed white and had bits of tissue drying on shaving nicks.
The series, which satirised many aspects of Australian culture and show business, was a mixture of live and pre-recorded interviews, awkward musical segments – excruciatingly sung by Gunston himself in the broadest 'strine' accent – and continuing comedy sketches such as "Norman's Dreamtime" (in which Norman read stories to a group of children, such as "Why Underpants Ride Up").
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