Jazz at Shepheard’s Hotel, 1941
By sound history researcher Sarah Johnston In both World Wars of the twentieth century, New Zealand forces found themselves fighting
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WWII
Life on board a 2NZEF troop ship: cramped, concerts and “Crossing the Line”
Some of the first recordings sent back to New Zealand for radio broadcasts in late 1940 give some insight into life on board the troop ship on which the Broadcasting Unit was travelling, as part of the Third Echelon of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force.
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A Kiwi connection is hatched
In April 2011, Kiwi film maker, Steve La Hood travelled from Wellington, New Zealand to Quantico Virginia to receive the William Genaust award for an exhibition his company, Story Inc., produced about the US Marines stationed in New Zealand during World War II.
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The Norm Hatch Collection
The Collection of 30 films and over 673 black and white photographs includes: U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s visit to New Zealand in 1943 and shows her touring Whakarewarewa with Guide Rangi Dennan.
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About Norm Hatch
The late Norman J. Hatch was a World War II combat cameraman who witnessed and filmed some of the most bitter fighting in the Pacific War.
His efforts ended with, an Academy Award for footage so brutal that it took special permission from President Franklin Roosevelt to allow his documentary on the Battle of Tarawa to be shown to the American public in 1944.
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Introducing the Norm Hatch Collection
Between June 1942 and November 1943, around 21,000 US Marines arrived in the Wellington region to prepare for or recover from combat in the Pacific. They were among about 50,000 American servicemen who would be posted in New Zealand during World War 2, an event that would have a lasting impact on local culture.
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Wounded, then shipwrecked: the powerful story of “A Simple Country Lad”
By sound history researcher Sarah Johnston Among the recordings made by the National Broadcasting Service mobile recording unit in North
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Did Robert Steele’s Missing Movies Go Up in Flames?
As part of our search for the missing early films of Robert Steele, we received a slew of tips and
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70 Years Ago – Wanganella Strikes Rocks in Wellington Harbour
70 years ago, on 19 January 1947, the trans-Tasman passenger liner TSMV Wanganella hit Barrett Reef in Wellington Harbour. Coming
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Celebrating Christmas in the Desert, 1942
– By Sarah Johnston (Client Services Coordinator – Radio, Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision) Silent Night – Tapu te Po (Christmas
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