A knight, a coveted son of the Te Arawa people and a giant in the entertainment world of this nation; we have lost yet another great in Sir Howard Morrison. Looking back on some of the clips that were shown on the news and memorials plastered on the internet of his gigs and several performances, I see now the vindication in the words of my dear old gran “the old people are all gone”! To an extent she is correct, but there are some that are still around. We allude to a maxim that indulges in sarcasm: “it’s like finding a needle in a haystack”. “The old people” is an implication of the 1940s – 1960s era who lived and generated their daily activities and lives based on their circumstances, circumstances that entailed hard labour, little earnings and a good strawberry jam on bread with cream. This generation existed around the 1950’s in the shearing sheds of rural New Zealand and brandished tales of old that wound even the driest of humour into hysterics. Sir Howard was lucky enough to be a part of this generation, but on a greater spectrum of the hardcase life, was exposed to stardom. In an interview with Neil Collins, a veteran Dunedin broadcaster which occurred to be the long-time entertainer’s last interview, Sir Howard alluded to the language adopted by him and the quartet in years past: e.g. ‘how are you’ would be ‘would you be doy’. “Tenses were swapped and consonants were switched” NZPA Mobile Web. After being asked how his health was, Sir Howard countered “I can’t sprint down the street in my underpants in Dunedin anymore”. Collins: “There was a lot of hi jinx in old days between shows. It was good, clean fun”. I guess you can fathom that not only did Sir Howard maintain his vocal prowess; he also had his wits about him. This is what a dear old gran alludes to: “the days of old have been carried through the people of old, now they are just old memories”. Collins made a range of inquiries in the interview in which he described as simply two old chums catching up. After reading the article, I have come to realise how great Sir Howard Morrison really was and indeed still is. After the feats he endeavoured with raising awareness for an anti-drug and alcohol programme on his 45 day “ride for life” horse trek throughout NZ, his work for Maori and Polynesian health, and of course his hefty contributions to entertainment, you realise the greatness of such an icon. From a Maori perspective, there is an analogy between the death of a figure of status and a great tree (Totara tree) in the realm of Tane-Mahuta falling. It implies both the importance of the status of the individual and also his/her impact on society.
Maoridom has witnessed over the years a number of “Totara” pass through the decades, all of which predominantly actively existed through the kdkla cohort generation; ranging from politicians, to activists, and even sports stars. Sir Howard in his own right is in a league of the likes of George Nepia, Sir Edmund Hillary and indeed the Maori Queen Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu.
I thought this quote accurately and pleasingly summed up the character of Sir Howard Morrison by his nephew and acclaimed actor Temuera Morrison: “he held a kind of awe for us, there was this mystique about him, but to us he was a father figure guiding us to stand on our own feet and hold our own. He was very charismatic, performing everywhere. He had a remarkable following and the special gift of feeling an audience as he worked his way to his crescendo”. This is a great loss for NZ as Collins rightly stated “he was the Edmund Hillary of entertainment”.
Ka hinga te totara nui a Taane, e Ta Howard, moe mai.
Maoridom has witnessed over the years a number of “Totara” pass through the decades, all of which predominantly actively existed through the kdkla cohort generation; ranging from politicians, to activists, and even sports stars. Sir Howard in his own right is in a league of the likes of George Nepia, Sir Edmund Hillary and indeed the Maori Queen Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu.
I thought this quote accurately and pleasingly summed up the character of Sir Howard Morrison by his nephew and acclaimed actor Temuera Morrison: “he held a kind of awe for us, there was this mystique about him, but to us he was a father figure guiding us to stand on our own feet and hold our own. He was very charismatic, performing everywhere. He had a remarkable following and the special gift of feeling an audience as he worked his way to his crescendo”. This is a great loss for NZ as Collins rightly stated “he was the Edmund Hillary of entertainment”.
Ka hinga te totara nui a Taane, e Ta Howard, moe mai.
Check out some tributes to Sir Howard
