According to one magazine "This is perhaps the first occasion in which Australian natives have figured so prominently in a novel other than children’s books or native fairy-tales. Prologue and epilogue belong entirely to the aborigines."[3]
The novel won a British Empire prize, was translated into a number of other languages, was assigned as a school text, and the film rights were sold to Warner Bros, an American company.[1][4]
The novel was adapted for radio by the ABC in 1938, and production that was broadcast again in 1939[8] It was part of an increasing number of Australian written scripts on the ABC.[9]
According to a press release "Dealing with the efforts of early Gippsland pioneers to wrest a livelihood from a virgin country, this story should find ready appeal with listeners. Based on historical facts, it has a well-drawn character in Angus Mac Allan for its central figure. Forest aborigines, who are qiven very sympathetic treatment by Rayment, play a moving part in the development of the serial. Apart from its deft characterisation and quiet humor, the story is full of quick moving action."[10]
Cast
Vivien Edwards as Angus Mac Allen
Lou Vernon as Donald Blair, his friend.
Jean Robertson as Mavis, in love with Mac Allen
Reception
Wireless Weekly said " I have never spoken to an aboriginal. But I venture to suggest that certain players in the National serial, Valley of the Sky, were a little too cultured in their portrayals of Australian natives. Valley of the Sky is a good, solid story, and one that should do well as a radio play."[11]
Select episodes
Ep 1 "Land Hungry" (3 October 1938) - "Angus Mac Allan, hungry for land of his own, settles affairs somewhat drastically with his partner, and then crosses the mountain to fresh fields and pastures new."[12] or "Partners" (10 July 1939) - "This story of early Australia is dedicated to those souls who travel the trackless immensity of the “Valley of the Sky,” the early pioneers who opened up new lands ... in this case, Gippsiand. This new serial takes as its theme the relations between the early settler and the aborigines, the unfortunate blacks who were ousted from their heritage—more often than not with a kick and a curse. The character of Angus McAlian, drawn from real life, is unforgettable. He was a staunch friend of the blacks, and was known by them as Boor-reen . . . The Shield. This is the story of his life."[13]
Ep 2 Tribal Law (17 July 1939) - "Reggie St. Clair sinned against the laws of the tribe, and so paid the penalty. Angus, with his friend, Donald Blair, and with his black brothers, goes overland to Port Phillip, and from there by sea soifth to the lands he had selected for himself, the lands which were believed by the blacks to be haunted, but which he had named “Bushy Park.”"[14]
Ep 3 Pointing the Bone (24 July 1939) - "Angus MacAll'en, his goods and his chattels, his beasts and his gear, sail down the coast, south to the land of the Bra Yah Alung. There, through the good offices of Dhomba, the old man of the tribe, he makes friends with the tribes of the coast, but a black heart in a white skin brings grief and disaster to Angus and his good friends of the Bra Yah Alung."[15]
Ep 4 Winsome (31 July 1939) - "Angus McAllan, with the help and wi.l of his aboriginal friends, is soon settled at Bushy Park. Here, he awaits the arrival from Scotland of Winsome, the girl for whose sake he has budded a home. She, too, is accepted by the people of the Bra Yak Alung, and becomes known by them as Mundai, the Pretty One."[16]
Ep 5 My Son (7 August 1939)- "With the birth of a son to Winsome and Angus, life at Bushy Park enters on a new phase. Angus is more determined than ever to make a lasting heritage for his family, and even if his thoughts sometimes turn to the far-away Valley of the Sky, yet he bides where he is. making a garden out of a wilderness. "[17]
Ep 6 The Newcomers (14 August 1939) - "The long peace of Bushy Park and the friendly relations between white man and black are threatened by the advent of new settlers."[18]
Ep 7 Good and Bad (21 August 1939) - "The advent of new settlers to the areas settled by Angus McAllan brings results good and bad. The black peoples are caught between two milestones."[19]
Ep 8 Diane (28 August 1939) - "With the arrival of Diane at the Little Settlement, the son of Angus McAllen begins to find a new interest in life, and he and the young girl soon become good friends."[20]
Ep 9 Treachery (4 September 1939) - "The relations between the new settlers and the black friends of Angus McAllan reach danger point, and a particularly villainous piece of treachery is contemplated. "[21]
Ep 10 Blood Lust (11 September 1939) - "espite the efforts of Angus McAllan, the bewildered aborigines and the greedy settlers are still at cross purposes and fighting each other."[22]
Ep 11 The Choice (18 September 1939) - "D.ine and Peter Landry have to make their choice. Peter, in his attempts to win the girl, still tries to piay fair with young McAllan."[23]
Ep 13 (Final episode) - The Sky (2 October 1939) - "Diane and Wu-ru are still at cross-purposes, and conditions at Bushy Park, from the McAllan point of view, are growing steadily worse. The Bra Yak Alung, once a prosperous and happy tribe, are now almost non-existent, and so the remnants join the household of McAllan, and with him go seeking Moroko the Valley of the Sky."[25]
↑ Kenneth L. Walker, 'Rayment, Percy Tarlton (1882–1964)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/rayment-percy-tarlton-8164/text14271, published first in hardcopy 1988, accessed online 26 September 2023.
↑ "Let's Talk About Books", The Australian Woman's Mirror, 13 (19), Sydney: The Bulletin Newspaper, 6 April 1937, nla.obj-529037896, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ ""VALLEY OF THE SKY"". Daily Examiner. Vol.30, no.9648. New South Wales, Australia. 10 July 1939. p.7. Retrieved 26 September 2023– via National Library of Australia.
↑ "Author Rayment's Work". Smith's Weekly. Vol.XXVIII, no.28. New South Wales, Australia. 7 September 1946. p.27. Retrieved 26 September 2023– via National Library of Australia.
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (September 30, 1938), "Monday, Oct. 3 – Rapid Radio Guide", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 32 (14), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-714588323, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "On National Radio To-Night". The Sun. No.9208. New South Wales, Australia. 10 July 1939. p.16 (Late Final Extra). Retrieved 26 September 2023– via National Library of Australia.
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (August 2, 1939), "Australian Plays By A.B.C.", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (19), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-726372772, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (September 30, 1938), "Aunty Tanya's Mail Box", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 32 (14), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-714586280, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (July 26, 1939), "Slipped Out Of Character", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (18), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-725877537, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "Radio Plays – National Network", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 32 (14), Sydney: Wireless Press, September 30, 1938, nla.obj-714586501, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (July 5, 1939), "Monday.... July 10", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (15), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-725863113, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "Monday.... July 17", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (16), Sydney: Wireless Press, July 12, 1939, nla.obj-725851711, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY . . .JULY 24", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, July 19, 1939, nla.obj-725870567, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "Monday July 31", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, July 26, 1939, nla.obj-725878903, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ Australasian Radio Relay League (August 2, 1939), "Monday. . . . Aug 7", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (19), Sydney: Wireless Press, nla.obj-726375454, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY .... AUG. 14", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, August 9, 1939, nla.obj-726392257, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "Monday ... Aug. 21", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (21), Sydney: Wireless Press, August 16, 1939, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY ... AUG. 28", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, August 23, 1939, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY ... SEPT. 4", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, August 30, 1939, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY ... SEPT. 11", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, September 6, 1939, nla.obj-726423420, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY .... SEPT. 18", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, September 13, 1939, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY .... SEPT.25", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, Sydney: Wireless Press, September 20, 1939, retrieved 30 January 2024– via Trove
↑ "MONDAY .... OCT. 2", The Wireless Weekly: The Hundred per Cent Australian Radio Journal, 34 (27), Sydney: Wireless Press, September 27, 1939, nla.obj-726320377, retrieved 26 September 2023– via Trove
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