MS 6220
Papers of Agnes Dobson (1896?-1987)


Biographical Note

Actress and broadcaster. Agnes Dobson, her father Collet Dobson, her first husband, Ronald Riley, and her mother, Harrie Dobson, were members of a notable theatre family and appeared for a number of years with Benjamin Fuller's theatre companies, as well as acting in a few Australian and American films. She turned to radio broadcasting and performed in drama programs and reviewed books on 3 UZ and 3 AW as Agnes Grey. She became involved in television, joined the Hector Crawford school as a drama teacher and also gave speech training.

Series Description

BOX 1
Folder 1         - Letters from Max Harris and others, 1934-53                  
Folder 2          - Letters received, 1942-55                                   
Folder 3         - Family history - photographs, clippings, notes,              
                 correspondence and typescripts, 1949-75                        
Folder 4         - Family history - photographs, clippings, family tree         
                 and typescript notes on the lives of members of the            
                 Dobson Family, n.d.                                            
Folder 5          - Ms draft of play "Australia's peril: the invasion of        
                 1915", in three exercise books, n.d.                           
Folder 6         - Four exercise books with untitled ms notes and drafts        
                 and two music manuscript books, n.d.                           

BOX 2
Folder 7         - Six notebooks, 1935-45                                       
Folder 8         - Ms and typescript of play "In the ranks", n.d.               
                 - Ms draft of "The Independence of Mr Hastings", n.d.          
Folder 9         - Pencil ms of "The Brighter side of pioneering", n.d.         
                 - Untitled ms of play in two exercise books, n.d.              
Folder 10        - Ms draft of "The Ever-living actor", 1935                    
                 - Ms draft of "The Acting impulse", n.d.                       
Folder 11         - Ms of "Joshua" and and untitled play, n.d.                  
Folder 12        - Nine reporters notebooks on Australian theatre, 1900- 1921   
Folder 13        - Four notebooks, 1923-32                                      
                 - Pencil draft of "Dangerous rhapsody" in exercise book        
Folder 14        - Five reporters notebooks, 1936-46                            

BOX 3
Folders 15-24    - Annotated typescripts of scripts by various authors          

BOX 4
Folder 25        - Typescript of "My Own land" by Agnes Dobson, n.d.            
Folder 26        - Poems, stories and scripts by A Dobson in ms and             
                 typescript, including corrected typescript of                  
                 "Legend" or "Shall we remember", n.d.                          
Folder 27        - Various dramatic sketches and radio scripts by Agnes         
                 Dobson, 1930s - 1950s                                          
Folder 28        - Corrected typescripts of plays by Ronald Riley: "My          
                 blue heaven" and "The Marriage joke"                           
Folder 29        - Script, notes and clippings re adaptation of the             
                 Greek epic "Medea"                                             
Folder 30        - Play scripts and parts by various authors                    
                 - Broadcasts of "The Village glee club", 1957-70               
Folder 31        - Notes and broadcasts re Rex Ingamells                        
                 - Dramatic sketches and ABC broadcasts, 1941-45                

BOX 5
Folders 32-41     - Scripts from Crawford School of Broadcasting,               
                 1950s and 1960s                                                
Folder 37        - ABC television rehearsal script of "Quiet night"             
                 by Dorothy Blewitt                                             
Folder 38        - ABC television script of "Waters of the moon" by             
                 N.C. Hunter, adapted by Wal Cherry                             

BOX 6
Folder 42        - Papers re Crawford School of Broadcasting, 1955-57           
Folder 43        - Scripts and other papers re Crawford School of               
                 Broadcasting                                                   
Folder 44        - Papers on speech training classes: ABC Scriptwriters         
                 Seminars, Melbourne, 1966 and portrait of Douglas              
                 Hutton                                                         
Folder 45         - Notes etc re speech training classes, n.d.                  
Folders 46-47     - Photographs, clippings and publicity material,              
                 1915-58                                                        
Folder 48        - Postcard photo/portraits of various actresses,               
                 circa 1900-1920                                                
Folder 49        - Photographs and programmes, 1912-49, including               
                 Fuller's Dramatic Players                                      

BOX 7
Folder 50        - Printed programmes and magazines, 1945-48                    
Folder 51        - Printed material, 1914-46                                    
Folder 52        - Fuller's Dramatic Players programmes, circa 1920s            
Folder 53        - Printed material, 1929-36                                    
Folder 54        - Printed material, 1930-circa 1960                            
Folder 55        - Fuller news, 1923 issues                                     
Folder 56         - Fuller's Dramatic Players programmes, 1920s                 

BOX 8
Folder 57        - Miscellaneous notes, typescripts and photographs             
Folder 58        - Press cuttings, 1930s-1960s                                  
                 Playbill for "East Lynne" - Fuller's Dramatic Company, 1920s   
                 Poster for film "Barry butts in", n.d.                         
                 Bound volume of theatre programmes, 1920s