James Cruthers
Encyclopedia
Sir James Winter Cruthers, AO (born 20 December 1924) is an Australian business executive
and philanthropist
.
He was educated at Claremont
Central State School and Perth
Technical College, leaving school at 16. He started work at the Daily News
newspaper in Perth in 1939 and joined the forces in 1940. During the Second World War he was a RAAF pilot.
After the war he became a cadet journalist
at the Daily News, and was there when the paper hired Paul Rigby
as a cartoonist
.
In 1958 he was appointed as founding general manager of WA television station TVW Channel 7
. He later became chairman of the station.
His past chairmanships include the Australian Film Commission
and News American Publishing Inc where he was personal adviser to Rupert Murdoch
.
In 1999 he was chairman of The Sunday Times
newspaper.
Cruthers is a philanthropist who established TVW Telethon and Perth's annual Christmas pageant. He supports many charitable groups, including the Lions Eye Institute
(where he was a founding patron
), UWA
's Hackett Foundation, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital
, the Association of the Blind (WA) Guide Dogs and the St George's Cathedral Restoration project. He was the business representative on UWA's Berndt Museum of Anthropology
's advisory board.
Cruthers and his wife Lady (Sheila) Cruthers are strong supporters of the arts. His wife is especially interested in twentieth-century art by Australian women, and the Cruthers Collection of Women's Art is a collection of artworks by Australian women artists from the 1890s to the present. Both have supported the National Gallery of Australia
and the US National Portrait Gallery
.
in May 2008 Cruthers and his wife donated the Cruthers Collection - more than 400 works by 155 Australian female artists including Grace Cossington Smith
, Margaret Preston
and Susan Norrie - to UWA.
In 1998 and 1999 Cruthers was conference patron of ‘small screen BIG PICTURE’.
in 1980. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia
in 2008.
Cruthers received the honorary degree
Doctor of Letters
from University of Western Australia
in 2005.
Senior management
Senior management, executive management, or management team is generally a team of individuals at the highest level of organizational management who have the day-to-day responsibilities of managing a company or corporation, they hold specific executive powers conferred onto them with and by...
and philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
.
He was educated at Claremont
Claremont, Western Australia
Claremont is a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia on the north bank of the Swan River.-History:Prior to European settlement, the Noongar people used the area as a source of water, for fishing and for catching waterfowl. In 1830, John Butler, a settler, set up an inn at Freshwater Bay to...
Central State School and Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
Technical College, leaving school at 16. He started work at the Daily News
Daily News (Perth)
The Daily News was an afternoon daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia from 1882 until 1990, though its origin is traceable from 1840.-Origins:...
newspaper in Perth in 1939 and joined the forces in 1940. During the Second World War he was a RAAF pilot.
After the war he became a cadet journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
at the Daily News, and was there when the paper hired Paul Rigby
Paul Rigby
Paul Crispin Rigby AM , usually working under the name Rigby, was an award-winning Australian cartoonist who worked for newspapers in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States....
as a cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
.
In 1958 he was appointed as founding general manager of WA television station TVW Channel 7
TVW
TVW can mean:*TVW, a Seven Network owned station in Perth, Western Australia*TVW, a public affairs network in the state of Washington*"tvw", the false branding callsign of WISC-TV's digital subchannel and Madison, Wisconsin's MyNetworkTV affiliate...
. He later became chairman of the station.
His past chairmanships include the Australian Film Commission
Australian Film Commission
The Australian Film Commission was an Australian government agency with a mandate to promote the creation and distribution of films in Australia as well as to preserve the country's film history. It also had a production arm responsible for production and commissioning of films for government...
and News American Publishing Inc where he was personal adviser to Rupert Murdoch
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch, AC, KSG is an Australian-American business magnate. He is the founder and Chairman and CEO of , the world's second-largest media conglomerate....
.
In 1999 he was chairman of The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
newspaper.
Cruthers is a philanthropist who established TVW Telethon and Perth's annual Christmas pageant. He supports many charitable groups, including the Lions Eye Institute
Lions Eye Institute
The Lions Eye Institute in Perth, Western Australia, is the largest eye research institute in the southern hemisphere. It is a limited liability company, with not-for-profit and tax-exempt gift recipient status, overseen by a Board of Directors...
(where he was a founding patron
Patrón
Patrón is a luxury brand of tequila produced in Mexico and sold in hand-blown, individually numbered bottles.Made entirely from Blue Agave "piñas" , Patrón comes in five varieties: Silver, Añejo, Reposado, Gran Patrón Platinum and Gran Patrón Burdeos. Patrón also sells a tequila-coffee blend known...
), UWA
University of Western Australia
The University of Western Australia was established by an Act of the Western Australian Parliament in February 1911, and began teaching students for the first time in 1913. It is the oldest university in the state of Western Australia and the only university in the state to be a member of the...
's Hackett Foundation, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital
Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital
Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital is one of Australia's leading teaching hospitals, and is located in Nedlands, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia...
, the Association of the Blind (WA) Guide Dogs and the St George's Cathedral Restoration project. He was the business representative on UWA's Berndt Museum of Anthropology
Berndt Museum of Anthropology
The Berndt Museum of Anthropology was founded in 1976 by Ronald Berndt and Catherine Berndt. The museum was established to house the extensive collections accumulated by Ronald and Catherine Berndt during their lifelong careers as anthropologists. Although initially called the Anthropology Research...
's advisory board.
Cruthers and his wife Lady (Sheila) Cruthers are strong supporters of the arts. His wife is especially interested in twentieth-century art by Australian women, and the Cruthers Collection of Women's Art is a collection of artworks by Australian women artists from the 1890s to the present. Both have supported the National Gallery of Australia
National Gallery of Australia
The National Gallery of Australia is the national art gallery of Australia, holding more than 120,000 works of art. It was established in 1967 by the Australian government as a national public art gallery.- Establishment :...
and the US National Portrait Gallery
National Portrait Gallery (United States)
The National Portrait Gallery is an art gallery in Washington, D.C., administered by the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections focus on images of famous individual Americans.-Building:...
.
in May 2008 Cruthers and his wife donated the Cruthers Collection - more than 400 works by 155 Australian female artists including Grace Cossington Smith
Grace Cossington Smith
Grace Cossington Smith AO OBE was an Australian artist and pioneer of modernist painting in Australia and was instrumental in introducing Post-Impressionism to her home country...
, Margaret Preston
Margaret Preston
Margaret Preston was a well-known Australian artist. She was highly influential during the 1920s to 1940s for her modernist works as a painter and printmaker and for introducing Aboriginal motifs into contemporary art.-Early life:...
and Susan Norrie - to UWA.
In 1998 and 1999 Cruthers was conference patron of ‘small screen BIG PICTURE’.
Honours
Cruthers was made a Knight BachelorKnight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in 1980. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
in 2008.
Cruthers received the honorary degree
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...
from University of Western Australia
University of Western Australia
The University of Western Australia was established by an Act of the Western Australian Parliament in February 1911, and began teaching students for the first time in 1913. It is the oldest university in the state of Western Australia and the only university in the state to be a member of the...
in 2005.