Is there such a thing as Footy Almanac vernacular, that is, a particularly Footy Almanac way of talking and writing, especially in relation to how Almanackers respond to posts on the website? KD discusses this question.
Almanac Poetry: Albert Jacka Earns Australia’s First VC of The Great War
May 18, 2021 by 2 Comments
One hundred and six years ago, almost to the day, legendary Australian soldier, Albert Jacka, performed the remarkable feat which earned him Australia’s first Victoria Cross of The Great War. Kevin Densley’s new poem paints the picture.
Almanac (Football) Humour: The Artist from Port Adelaide
May 13, 2021 by 4 Comments
Footballers’ nicknames aren’t as interesting and colourful as they used to be, KD laments. In a creative mood, he invents a new one for a Port Adelaide player, as an example of the way ahead.
Almanac Poetry: In the Good Old Days
May 11, 2021 by Leave a Comment
This Tuesday’s poem from Kevin Densley concerns the typical profile of a serial killer back in ‘the good old days’.
Almanac Poetry: Great Literary Fistfights of the Twentieth Century
May 4, 2021 by 3 Comments
When two giants of twentieth century American literature faced off (poet Wallace Stevens and ‘he-man’ Ernest Hemingway), it was no question who was really the winner.
Almanac Humour: Words That Make You Squirm
April 30, 2021 by 14 Comments
Do you have words that make you squirm? KD certainly does, and writes about one of them.
Almanac Poetry: Brother and Sister
April 27, 2021 by 4 Comments
This Tuesday’s poem from Kevin Densley, ‘Brother and Sister’, can be seen as a postscript to his Anzac Day piece about eight Australian soldiers, ‘The Great War – AIF suite’– this time the poem involves a Victorian country town, a great-grandmother he can’t remember meeting, and her brother who died as a German POW in France in 1916.
Almanac Poetry: Forget the Metaphor
April 20, 2021 by Leave a Comment
In this Tuesday’s poem, Kevin Densley points out the basic ‘error’ in Aesop’s famous fable involving the tortoise and the hare.
Almanac Poetry: Platinum Blonde
April 13, 2021 by Leave a Comment
This week’s intriguing poem from Kevin Densley is about 1930s Hollywood glamour icon, Jean Harlow, who died tragically young.
Almanac Comedy: ‘Mo Goes to the Dogs’
April 9, 2021 by 6 Comments
Kevin Densley introduces an episode of the classic Australian radio comedy series, McCackie Mansion, from just after WW2, starring the legendary actor/comedian Mo. In this episode, Mo McCackie, his son, Young Harry, Uncle Horrible and Spencer the Garbageman go to the Harold Park dogs – KD describes it as “seven and a half minutes of hilarious, nostalgic joy”.
Almanac Poetry: Morrisons, Victoria
April 6, 2021 by 2 Comments
This week’s poem from Kevin Densley is about Morrisons, a Victorian locality near the small town of Meredith. Some of KD’s relatives farmed there is the past.
Almanac Memoir (and Music): ‘Maybe’ by Split Enz
April 2, 2021 by 2 Comments
This Friday’s piece from KD, although quite brief, covers a great deal of territory, including mid-1970s Sydney, the Opera House, King’s Cross, a family holiday, and an encounter with early Split Enz.
Almanac Poetry: Uncle Bert and the 1909 Warrnambool to Melbourne Cycling Race
March 30, 2021 by 6 Comments
This week, Kevin Densley’s poem is about two relatives, Fardie and Bert, who rode in the 1909 Warrnambool to Melbourne – yes, for some time, the famous cycling event went in the opposite direction to what is the case today.
Almanac History: Yahl – South Australia
March 26, 2021 by 17 Comments
Ever heard of Yahl, South Australia? In this Friday’s column, KD writes about the place and its close connection to the German branch of his family history.
Almanac Poetry: Kate Kelly (1863-1898)
March 23, 2021 by 10 Comments
Kate Kelly, Ned’s sister, is the subject of this week’s poem by Kevin Densley.
Almanac Music (Jazz): ‘St James Infirmary’ by Louis Armstrong and His Savoy Ballroom Five (1928)
March 19, 2021 by 4 Comments
In this Friday’s column, KD looks at a jazz standard recorded by Louis Armstrong and His Savoy Ballroom Five in 1928, ‘St James Infirmary’. Since then, there have been hundreds of recordings of this song.
Almanac Poetry: Near Drowning at St Leonards Beach, Victoria, 1967
March 16, 2021 by 2 Comments
A father saves his young son from drowning. Kevin Densley describes this week’s poem as ‘particularly close to home’.
Almanac Life: The Art of Indian Head Massage
March 12, 2021 by 1 Comment
In this Friday’s column, KD writes about his most unusual qualification, and invites Almanackers to comment and/or share theirs.
Recent Comments