Teddy Cairns behind the mixing desk at community radio station 8CCC.

Goodbye Teddy, you entertained

Miriam Raphael

02Feb10

OBITUARY 
Teddy Cairns 
August 16, 1921 to January 21, 2010 
The editor of the Centralian Advocate received a charming letter in January 2008.

Sir,
As the ``Hollywood'' sign is a world icon, perhaps the words ``The Alice'' in huge letters could adorn the ranges along The Gap end of town, to be visible to our air, road and train travellers.
This could evoke all the magic which I believe has been created by our location, the 1950s movie A Town Like Alice and, of course, the pleasant mix of people.
The Los Angeles sign is white and too detracting for us, so a blend of artistic colours would send our message without detracting from the beauty of our ranges.
Or am I just dreaming?
IT was from Teddy Cairns, a pioneer of community radio in Alice Springs, dedicated lawn saler, Frank Sinatra devotee and an insatiable dreamer.
Born Eunice May Merrill in Birmingham, England in 1921, Teddy served in World War Two before emigrating to Melbourne with her parents and younger brother in 1947.
With a secretarial degree behind her she found work at The Truth newspaper, a Melbourne tabloid which was known for its divorce court scandals and pictures of scantily clad women. It was here, as a radio gossip columnist, she earned the nickname Teddy, after Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States.
She later moved into writing news bulletins and program rosters for Radio 3AW. As television developed, Teddy worked behind the scenes on Channel 7 and Channel 0, writing and holding up prompt sheets for the stars of the show.
Her photo albums show a trim and glamorous Teddy with a who's who of actors and pop stars like Raymond Burr and Normie Rowe.
In 1964 she interviewed The Beatles at a press conference at the Southern Cross Hotel, an event she was more than happy to recall for anyone who was interested.
After seeing a job advertisement for the secretary to the manager of Conair Airlines, Teddy packed up her life in Melbourne and moved to Alice Springs in 1970.
`She said, `Would you like to go to Alice Springs?' and I said, `Where's that?'' remembers Teddy's son, Kim Petersen, who was 15 at the time.
Kim remembers the two of them moving into a room in a block of flats called ``The Mess'', where Araluen Cultural Precinct now sits. It was filled with interesting people and Teddy made many friends.
`There were people like Leslie Oldfield, who was mayor of Alice Springs for a while, and she had a pet kangaroo. Margaret Baker, who was a huge socialite around town, was also there. I think coming to Alice Springs really opened up a life that she thought was no longer possible,' said Kim.
`She had a small experience of that in Melbourne with people she knew and parties when she was in the media, but this was a whole new world.'
Teddy loved dressing up and getting involved in community events. One year during a fete at Gillen School, where she later worked as the office secretary, Teddy dressed up as the White Witch of Alice Springs. The kids loved it so much, she decided to take the witch to town, entertaining crowds every year at the Bangtail Muster and the Henley-on-Todd.
`She was very creative. I think the typing and secretarial work was frankly quite boring for her,' said Kim.
Once she retired in 1981, she was able to indulge that creativity by throwing herself into helping build community radio station 8CCC. For 21 years Teddy hosted a popular Sunday program called The Entertainer where she would start every show with ``snatches of Sinatra'', whom she adored.
A music obsessive who would comb lawn sales for records, Teddy had an impressive collection with some rare finds. Aside from Frank Sinatra, who she saw perform live twice, Teddy was a great lover of jazz musician Hoagy Carmichael. She even named her dog after him.
It was not until she was going blind, and was almost immobile, that Teddy finally handed the microphone over to Russell Van Hooff, who had been producing a similar show for 8CCC from Tennant Creek.
`Despite there being an age difference of 45 years, it is amazing how close our musical tastes ended up being. She was like my second mum, ' said Russell, who now records the Entertainer from his home in Maryborough, Queensland.
`It's going to be awfully difficult for quite some time doing the show, knowing she's not out there listening. But as Teddy says, `The show's got to go on.''
When she was not broadcasting the sounds of Ol' Blue Eyes, Teddy could be seen cruising around town on her yellow motorbike. As her balance began to fail in later years, Kim customised a bright red three-wheel scooter with a red canopy featuring a spider's web on the back and a Hollywood sign.
Saturday mornings would be spent with Kim at the lawn sales, hunting for records and items for Teddy's impressive `Tiny Town', a room in her home which displayed more than 45 dolls houses, some larger than three foot high.
The pair were such committed lawn salers they were the stars of the hit comedy documentary The Search for the Shell Encrusted Toilet Seat, about Alice lawn sale culture, which screened on ABC TV in 1996.
Unfortunately the Town Council did not take Teddy up on her campaign to build an Alice Springs sign across the ranges, but her wonderful imagination and whimsical ways should be celebrated.
`To come up with an idea like that is just phenomenal,' said Russell.
`I couldn't think of anyone who would have come up with that other than Teddy Cairns. She was an amazing lady.'