Some Account of the Life and Work of John White (1913-): Australia's Most Senior Recorder of Folk Life, as well as a remarkable 'Literary and Music Man'

Abstract

In recent years there have been a number of highly significant and much merited celebrations of the ongoing work and persistent recording and insightful cultural writing of John White, Australia's most senior and longest collecting and writing private scholar of our folklore and literary culture. He is also well known - and deservedly so - as a most generous benefactor to university and other Victorian libraries of highly significant documents which he had realized, from even the late 1920s, were no mere ephemera but the vital evidence of the arts and amusements of the people of Australia, and especially of Victoria, in the realms of history and of music, stage, song and both operatic and popular entertainment. Although it was referred to in our columns more recently, it is appropriate to quote some typically and incisively observant personal details form his fine essay, 'Alan Marshall and the Victorian Writers' League' (in 'Australian Folklore' No 17, 2002, pp.8-16), where he tells us, of some 65 years earlier:"When I joined the league in later 1937, I had not been published at all, although I had acquired a few rejection slips and was writing essays and stories for Wannan senior's [i.e. Bill Wannan's father, the extension lecturer] literary classes at the W.E.A. I had no difficulty being accepted, because I was striving to write and also attending lecture on the subject". ('loc. cit.' p.9)