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Mike Willesee
Michael Robert Willesee, (29 June 1942 – 1 March 2019) was an Australian award-winning news and current affairs television journalist, interviewer and presenter. Willesee worked at the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) , before moving to commercial networks Nine Network and Seven Network.
Willesee was the son of politician, Western Australian ALP senator and foreign minister Don Willesee, who served in the Whitlam government, and his wife Gwendoline Clark Willesee, and nephew of Bill Willesee, also a politician with the Labour Party, a member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia and Tonkin government minister.
Willesee's brothers are Donald Robert "Don" Willesee Jr., and Terry Willesee, also a journalist and TV presenter and He was the father of Amy and journalist Michael Willesee Jr. he also has another daughter Kate Willesee who is a chiropractor. His son Michael Jr. is married to television host and reporter Allison Langdon and he was also the father-in-law of journalist and writer Mark Whittaker. His niece is cyclist and author Janet Shaw, Terry's biological daughter.
Mike first came to prominence in 1967 as a reporter for then-new nightly current affairs program This Day Tonight (TDT), where his aggressive style quickly earned him a reputation as a fearless political interviewer.
Willesee figured prominently in the controversy that erupted over the decision in early 1967 by the Liberal government, led by Prime Minister Harold Holt, not to reappoint the ABC chair Dr. James Darling. This decision was rumoured to have been the result of the government's anger over critical coverage of its policies on the ABC.
Willesee's own critical comments about the decision on TDT on 2 April further angered Holt, who questioned the ABC's impartiality and implied that Willesee (whose father Don Willesee was a Labor Senator) was politically biased. Holt's remarks backfired, as they provoked strong protests from Willesee and the Australian Journalists' Association.
After TDT, Willesee hosted the current affairs program Four Corners from 1969 to 1971.
He then moved to the Nine Network, where he hosted A Current Affair when it debuted in 1971. While at A Current Affair, Willesee noticed the talent of a young Australian comedian, Paul Hogan, who had appeared on the amateur talent program New Faces in 1971, and he invited Hogan to make regular 5-minute appearances on the show. Hogan would perform skits and make humorous comments on some issue of the day. During this period, Hogan befriended A Current Affair producer John Cornell, who became Hogan's collaborator, long-term manager, business partner, and close friend.
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Mike Willesee
Michael Robert Willesee, (29 June 1942 – 1 March 2019) was an Australian award-winning news and current affairs television journalist, interviewer and presenter. Willesee worked at the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) , before moving to commercial networks Nine Network and Seven Network.
Willesee was the son of politician, Western Australian ALP senator and foreign minister Don Willesee, who served in the Whitlam government, and his wife Gwendoline Clark Willesee, and nephew of Bill Willesee, also a politician with the Labour Party, a member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia and Tonkin government minister.
Willesee's brothers are Donald Robert "Don" Willesee Jr., and Terry Willesee, also a journalist and TV presenter and He was the father of Amy and journalist Michael Willesee Jr. he also has another daughter Kate Willesee who is a chiropractor. His son Michael Jr. is married to television host and reporter Allison Langdon and he was also the father-in-law of journalist and writer Mark Whittaker. His niece is cyclist and author Janet Shaw, Terry's biological daughter.
Mike first came to prominence in 1967 as a reporter for then-new nightly current affairs program This Day Tonight (TDT), where his aggressive style quickly earned him a reputation as a fearless political interviewer.
Willesee figured prominently in the controversy that erupted over the decision in early 1967 by the Liberal government, led by Prime Minister Harold Holt, not to reappoint the ABC chair Dr. James Darling. This decision was rumoured to have been the result of the government's anger over critical coverage of its policies on the ABC.
Willesee's own critical comments about the decision on TDT on 2 April further angered Holt, who questioned the ABC's impartiality and implied that Willesee (whose father Don Willesee was a Labor Senator) was politically biased. Holt's remarks backfired, as they provoked strong protests from Willesee and the Australian Journalists' Association.
After TDT, Willesee hosted the current affairs program Four Corners from 1969 to 1971.
He then moved to the Nine Network, where he hosted A Current Affair when it debuted in 1971. While at A Current Affair, Willesee noticed the talent of a young Australian comedian, Paul Hogan, who had appeared on the amateur talent program New Faces in 1971, and he invited Hogan to make regular 5-minute appearances on the show. Hogan would perform skits and make humorous comments on some issue of the day. During this period, Hogan befriended A Current Affair producer John Cornell, who became Hogan's collaborator, long-term manager, business partner, and close friend.