Guilty Pleasures

I still know the words to the songs... — I still know the words to the songs…

It’s that time of the year again… and the other day I found myself humming the theme song from Summer Holiday – you know – the old film starring Cliff Richard…

I stopped myself – a bit embarrassed.

But then I thought, why should I be embarrassed?

It’s an old film that now seems clichéd and dated and silly, but when I was younger, I loved it. Living in a small outback town, I loved the idea of setting out on an adventure. I loved Cliff Richard too – clean cut and handsome young man that he was, with the voice of an angel. He was sort of the non-sexy version of Elvis.

The next day, a conversation developed with a couple of my writer friends about our first TV/movie crushes.

There was a certain amount of “Oh Dear, really?” We were less discerning when we were very young – but there’s nothing wrong with that.

So – they say confession is good for you soul – so here is my list of guilty pleasures – old movies that I loved (and still do). And my first screen crushes – the characters that began to define my idea of what a hero should be…

Roger Moore in Ivanhoe – I hasten to add I didn’t see the first runs of this 1950s TV treasure. In my tiny Aussie town, we only had one TV channel when I was a kid, and it existed pretty much purely for re-runs of old British shows. So I was watching this long after its first release.

I loved him because he was fighting injustice – of yes, he was terribly handsome too.

Roger Moore got a second run in the Persuaders – with Tony Curtis. I wasn’t sure which of the two I preferred. In fact my first attempt to write a book at about age 11 was a story about these two heroes and a girl they rescued and both fell in love with. (That was me, of course.)

OK - bad hair - but Roger Moore and Tony Curtis always brought a little humour to their heroes — OK – bad hair – but Roger Moore and Tony Curtis always brought a little humour to their heroes

US westerns were a big favourite – Lee Majors as the youngest son in The Big Valley. And Little Joe in Bonanza. Mark Slade as Billy Blue Cannon in The High Chaparral. I still love a man in a big hat and boots who knows how to ride a horse.

little brothers — I always fell for the youngest brother. They made the silly mistakes and had a hidden vulnerability that I now know is so important in a hero.

Living a very long way from the nearest movie theatre – and being far too young to drive – my early movies were old old films shown on that some TV station. They were black and white, but set my imagination on fire. And such heroes…

Charlton Heston as the broody plantation owner in the Naked Jungle. Stewart Granger as Thomas Seymour in Young Bess. Richard Burton with his wonderful voice – in almost anything at all.

I can still ignore the costumes, and the sweat. These heroes deliver their (sometimes corny) lines in such wonderful and interesting voices.

The character who set the bar pretty high for me in the hero department was Gregory Peck – twice. The first as the honourable Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird. Then as Captain Horatio Hornblower – equally honourable hero. In fact, the more I think about Gregory Peck – the more he always seemed to play honourable men (I give you Joe Bradley in Roman Holiday).

To this day, Gregory Peck in these roles remains my quintessential hero. Oh - how I envied Audrey Hepburn! — To this day, Gregory Peck in these roles remains my quintessential hero. Oh – how I envied Audrey Hepburn!

Thanks to these actors and the roles they play, I decided at a very young age that heroes had to be strong and smart. Even when they were tough, they had to have an underlying kindness and they could also have some hidden vulnerability. Handsome faces and chiselled jaws are never a bad thing in a hero, nor is a sense of humour.

So – how many of these do I own now on DVD? And embarrassing number really. But I don’t care. These were the roles that inspired me to write. I loved them then –I love them still.