Owen Weingott

Owen Ash Weingott (21 June 1921 – 12 October 2002) was an Australian actor and director although primarily in theatre, he appeared on radio and television on serials and made for television films and voice over, Mr Weingott was vice-president of the Australian actors union, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance.

Weingott was born in Sydney in 1921 and when he was 15 he began studying and performing with the Independent Theatre, then in King St., Sydney, under producer Doris Fitton, later at the Savoy Theatre in Bligh St.: 1066 and All That,Six Characters in Search of an Author, and Judgement Day. He learnt to fence from Frank Stuart at the Sydney Swords Club. He was given a role in the Insect Play at the Independent in 1941.

In 1939 he left Sydney Boys High School and studied Economics at Sydney University until joining the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). In 1945, after his war service, having graduated as Sergeant, he studied Physical Education and returned to the Independent Theatre, now at North Sydney, performing as Young Siward in Macbeth. Stuart, who had choreographed the duel in Macbeth, advised Fitton to cast Weingott in future when duels where required. The next year, 1946, Fitton produced Hamlet and cast Weingott as Laertes (who duels with Hamlet), a role he played five more times, one being a live broadcast from the ABC-TV studios at Gore Hill.

On Stuart's suggestion Weingott studied period duelling and became a professional teacher choreographing 400+ duels. In 1971 he played Sinbad the Sailor in a pantomime directed by Bill Orr.

Weingott's first radio work was in 1945 in The Scarlet Widow, a serial for 2CH. He starred as Papa in Samuel Taylor's The Happy Time.

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