John Meillon

John Meillon (/ˈmɛljən/ MEL-yon; 1 May 1934 – 11 August 1989)^[1] was an Australian character actor known for dramatic as well as comedy roles. He portrayed Walter Reilly in the films Crocodile Dundee and Crocodile Dundee II. He also voiced advertisements for Victoria Bitter beer.^[2] He appeared in several Australian New Wave films including Wake in Fright and The Cars That Ate Paris.

Meillon was born in Mosman, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, the eldest child of three children to Theodor Boesan Meillon, a clerk, and Florence Beatrice 'Jill', née Callaghan.^[3] He had an elder sister, Laurel, a younger sister, Lynne, and his younger brother^[4] was director Bob Meillon (1943–2012).^[5]

Meillon attended Mosman Church of England Preparatory and Sydney Grammar schools.^[3] As a child he performed at the Mosman Children's Theatre Club, of which his parents were founding members.

At the age of 16, in 1949, Meillon won the N.S.W. Junior Diving Championship.^[3][6]

In 1944 Meillon made his radio debut in the ABC's Bush Christmas. At the age of eleven, he played the title role in the ABC's 1947 radio serial of Ruth Park’s Stumpy.

He played an Aboriginal boy in The Search for the Golden Boomerang on 2UW. Other ABC children’s serial credits included The Gangos, Land of the Rainbow and Budge's Gang. Other roles included Young David in David Copperfield on 2CH and Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island. Further radio plays and series included The Cadbury Show, Rebecca, On the Waterfront and Blue Hills.^[3]

Meillon made his stage debut in 1946 as Master Wakefield in Whiteoaks at Sydney's Independent Theatre.^[3] His first professional performance was in 1948, with the lead role of Ronnie Winslow in The Winslow Boy at the Minerva Theatre.^[3] From 1951 at the age of 16, until 1952, he joined the John Alden Shakespeare Company, performing in productions such as King Lear, A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Merchant of Venice. At the same age, he joined one of Australia's largest advertising agencies as assistant director of radio.^[7]

He appeared in Death of a Salesman and Winter Journey, before touring Australia and New Zealand in a 1956 J. C. Williamson's production of The Reluctant Debutante.^[3] In 1958 he appeared opposite his then wife, June Salter in Phillip Street Theatre’s Cross Section.^[3]

Meillon returned to Australia from the UK in 1964 to appear on stage in Rattle of a Simple Man opposite Salter.^[3] Meillon claimed that he learned discipline while working in theatre, and that television was not a good medium for training.^[8]

Meillon was appointed an OBE in the 1979 Queen's Birthday Honours, for service to theatre.^[9]

In 1961, Meillon had an early recurring role in the British television series A Chance of Thunder as Martin for 6 episodes.

Meillon had a lead role in the television sitcom My Name's McGooley, What's Yours? as Wally Stiller from 1966 to 1968. In 1968 he co-starred in the spin off, Rita and Wally. In 1968 and 1969, he was featured in two episodes of Skippy as Nimble Norris.

In 1971, he had a recurring role in Bellbird for 16 episodes. In 1972, he played Ray Dunlop in Lane End for 7 episodes, and from 1972 to 1973 he had a regular part as Cyril Kirby in Over There. He played the role of James Casey in the 1984 miniseries version of The Fourth Wish. In 1980, he appeared as Premier Dakin in Timelapse.

In 1984 he appeared in the miniseries The Dismissal, for which he won a Logie Award.

He made guest appearances on numerous series including Riptide, The Rovers, The Link Men, Delta, Division 4, Matlock Police, Dynasty, Spyforce, Homicide, Luke’s Kingdom, Scales of Justice, A Country Practice (on which his brother Bob Meillon was director) and The Dunera Boys. He also appeared in a number of early Australian TV plays.^[10]

Meillon's first film role was a small appearance in On the Beach (1959). Like many actors of his generation, Meillon also worked in the UK,^[11] his 1960 role in his second film The Sundowners having taken him to London. While there, he consciously steered away from Australian roles.^[12] His career flourished abroad,^[13] but he returned to Australia in 1964.

Meillon starred in several Australian New Wave and Ozploitation films, including They're a Weird Mob (1966), Wake in Fright, Walkabout (both 1971), The Cars That Ate Paris (1974), Sidecar Racers, Inn of the Damned and Ride a Wild Pony (all 1975). He played the role of Casey in the 1976 film The Fourth Wish, winning the AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role that same year.

Further film roles included The Picture Show Man (1977) for which he was nominated for an Australian Film Institute (AFI) Award, Heatwave (1982), The Wild Duck (1983), earning him a further AFI Award nomination, Frenchman's Farm (1987) and The Everlasting Secret Family (1988), receiving yet another AFI Award nomination for the latter. Meillon is perhaps best known however, for his role as Walter Reilly in the 1986 internationally successful film Crocodile Dundee (alongside Paul Hogan) and its sequel Crocodile Dundee II in 1988.

With his rich baritone, Meillon was used extensively in voice-over work – most famously in his work as the Victoria Bitter narrator who says "you can get it any old how".^[14] The VB campaign ran for two decades until Meillon’s death in 1989. With the approval of the Meillon family, Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) has continued to use his voice through digital remastering and by recutting the original recordings.^[15] He also voiced television commercials for Berger Paints NSW.^[3]

In 1977, Meillon released the single "Tap Tap"/"Picture Show Man", which peaked at number 80 on the Australian singles chart.^[16]

Meillon married Australian actress June Salter in 1958 and they had one son, John Meillon, Jr., also an actor. Meillon and Salter were divorced in 1971, but remained friends. Meillon married English-born actress Rita 'Bunny' Gibson on 5 April 1972 at Crows Nest Methodist Church. They also had a son.^[17][3]

In June 1980, Meillon's favourite pub, The Oaks at Neutral Bay, opened The John Meillon OBE Bar in his honour.^[18] He continued to frequent the bar over the following decade, including visiting in the week before his death.

Meillon died from cirrhosis at his home in Neutral Bay, Sydney, on 11 August 1989.^[19][20][21] Meillon was posthumously awarded the Raymond Longford Lifetime Achievement Award.^[22]

^[23]

• John Meillon at IMDb.
• John Meillon profile Archived 7 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine, National Film and Sound Archive; accessed 27 December 2015.