The Journal of the DH Lawrence Society of Australia ISSN No: 1039-9658 www.dhlawrencesocietyaustralia.com.au
The Journal of the DH Lawrence Society of Australia
ISSN No: 1039-9658 www.dhlawrencesocietyaustralia.com.au
THE DH Lawrence Society of Australia launched its new venture – Rananim Media Enterprises – at a function in Surry Hills on Saturday, November 1. More than 20 members turned up to hear the announcement of the launch and see its first offering – Garry Shead’s new film, "In the Steps of Lawrence". It was not the premiere of Garry’s film – that was at the Chauvel cinema in Paddington several months ago – but it was the first showing of his new editing of the film, the version that is now available on DVD through Rananim Media Enterprises (see distribution details below *). In actual fact, the occasion was a long-planned memorial to two of our DHLSA stalwarts, our late President John Lacey and our late secretary, Margaret Jones. As our President Rob Darroch explained, we would have had our traditional Spring event - our Jacaranda Harbour Cruise on the Lady Hopetoun - about this time of year. Sadly, John (who was responsible for arranging these delightful occasions) is no longer with us. But our Bar Cleveland venue in Surry Hills provided a pleasant alternative. Rob Darroch and Garry Shead at the launch of Rananim Media Enterprises
We converted the upstairs bar into a mini-cinema and sold a number of copies of Garry’s DVD after the “show”. (Proceeds will go to our DHLA society, thanks to Garry’s generosity in supplying us with his DVDs at wholesale rates.) After Rob announced our new Rananim Media Enterprises venture – and Sandra paid a warm tribute to John and Margaret – Professor Andrew Moore gave a short talk on how Lawrence might have become involved with the secret army on which Kangaroo is based. The first book to be made available through Rananim Media Enterprises will be Rob’s new revised edition of his 1981 DH Lawrence in Australia. Several other titles – and DVDs – will follow, culminating (we hope soon) with a new edition of Lawrence’s novel itself, which will become the first edition of the text of Kangaroo “that he really wanted” (in the words of Lawrence’s bibliographer, the late Dr Warren Roberts.) There has never been an edition of Lawrence’s eighth major novel that contains the correct, definitive text that he completed in Taos in 1922-23. The Cambridge University Press Collected Works edition, published in 1994, was supposed to establish that definitive, accurate text.
Serious error
However, through a serious editing error – the omission of the last 365 words Lawrence added on the first typescript – that edition, otherwise excellent, did not live up to Dr Roberts’ stricture of being the text “he really wanted”. As well, the Introduction Dr Bruce Steele wrote for the 1994 CUP edition is crippled by its ignorance of the historical background to the composition of the novel (which John Douglas Pringle described as “the most important book ever written about Australia”). In addition, many of Dr Steele’s annotations and other parts of the edition’s textual apparatus need updating. So our new edition of Kangaroo will provide a major addition to Lawrence knowledge and the understanding and appreciation of his Australian novel. In particular it will reveal – for the first time – what the novel is about (fascism in Australia, and Lawrence’s reaction to it).
Sally Rothwell, whose grand- mother was married to Jack Scott, on whom Lawrence based Jack Callcott in Kangaroo
Greg Baran, a long-time Member of the DHLSA
Attendees in the upstairs room at the Bar Cleveland gather to hear Andrew Moorre's talk on secret armies
Ingrid & Yusuf Ismail, visiting from London
* TO PURCHASE A COPY OF THE DVD OF GARRY SHEAD'S FILM "IN THE STEPS OF LAWRENCE"
Cost: $25.00 plus postage & packaging $5 (total $30)
Please make out a cheque for $30 payable to the DH Lawrence Society of Australia, include your address, and mail to: PO Box 1852 Strawberry Hills, NSW 2010
In
