Garry McDonald facts for kids

Garry George McDonald AO (born 30 October 1948) is a famous Australian actor, comedian, and satirist. He has worked in theatre, television, and film for over 50 years. Garry is known as a National Living Treasure in Australia.

He is most famous for playing the character Norman Gunston. This character was a seemingly innocent TV interviewer. Garry McDonald was one of the first to use the "ambush interview" style. Many others have copied this style since then. He won a Gold Logie award for The Norman Gunston Show. He is also well-known for his role as Arthur Beare in the TV show Mother and Son. In 2003, he received the Officer of the Order of Australia award. This was for his work in mental health and entertainment. He has also been on the board of Beyond Blue, a mental health organization.

Early Life

Garry McDonald was born in Bondi. This is a beach suburb in Sydney, Australia. He went to Cranbrook School.

While at school, Garry became very interested in acting. Even though his family had doubts, he decided to study acting. He went to the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). He earned a Diploma in Acting in 1967.

Career

Norman Gunston

Garry McDonald first played his most famous character, Norman Gunston, in 1973. This was during his work on The Aunty Jack Show. Norman Gunston was a clumsy and awkward TV personality.

Garry McDonald made the character even more popular in The Norman Gunston Show. He won a Gold Logie for this show. Norman Gunston had a special look. He had a comb over hairstyle. His face was made very pale with makeup. He also had small pieces of tissue on his shaving cuts.

The show made fun of many parts of Australian culture and entertainment. It had live interviews and pre-recorded ones. There were also awkward music parts. Norman himself would sing badly in a very strong Australian accent. The show also had funny sketches. One was "Norman's Dreamtime", where Norman read stories to children.

Norman Gunston's innocent personality helped him surprise his interview guests. Garry McDonald used this to create the "ambush interview" style. He interviewed famous people like Paul McCartney, Muhammad Ali, Keith Moon, Leif Garrett, Sally Struthers, and Elton John.

As Norman Gunston, Garry McDonald also released music. He made funny pop parody songs. His popular songs included a version of the Tom Jones song "Delilah". He also made a punk rock parody called "I Might Be A Punk But I Love You, Baby". Another song was "KISS Army", which made fun of the KISS song "I Was Made For Loving You". He even performed with Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention in Sydney in 1976. He played harmonica on their song "The Torture Never Stops". This performance was later released on a live album called FZ:OZ.

Mother and Son

Garry McDonald played Arthur Beare in the TV series Mother and Son. He starred with Ruth Cracknell. The show ran for six seasons, from 1984 to 1994. He won several Logie Awards for his role in this popular show.

Offspring

In 2012, Garry McDonald joined the TV drama series Offspring. He became a regular cast member in Season 3. He played the character Doctor Philip Noonan.

Personal Life

Early in his acting career, Garry McDonald met his wife, the actress Diane Craig. They met during a play called Let's Get A Divorce. They got married in 1971. They have two grown children. They live in Berry, on the south coast of New South Wales.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Awards and Honours

In 2003, Garry McDonald was given a special award. He was made an officer of the Order of Australia. This award was for helping people understand mental health issues. He also helped people dealing with anxiety and depression. And it was for his great work as an entertainer.

Australians really like Garry McDonald. He was chosen as a National Living Treasure. This means he has made a huge difference to Australian society.

In 2015, he was featured on the ABC show Australian Story. In 2020, he even appeared on a stamp! It was part of the Australia Post Legends of Comedy series.

Mo Awards

The Mo Awards were yearly Australian entertainment awards. They celebrated live entertainment from 1975 to 2016. Garry McDonald won one of these awards.

Art Portraits

Two paintings of Garry McDonald have won awards at the Archibald Prize. In 1999, a portrait by Deny Christian won the Packing Room Prize. In 2006, Paul Jackson's painting All the world's a stage won the People's Choice Award. In 2016, another painting of McDonald was a finalist. It was by Kirsty Neilson and called There's No Humour in Darkness.

See also

In Spanish: Garry McDonald para niños