Walter Cresswell O'Reilly
Encyclopedia
[Walter] Cresswell O'Reilly (6 June 1877 - 20 December 1954) was an Australia
n public servant who became Chief Commonwealth Film Censor. He "dominated and shaped Australian film censorship" and was able to "define appropriate mass entertainment" for nearly twenty years. He was the founding president of the National Trust of Australia
(NSW) and an early urban conservationist.
to an American
physician
and his Ballarat
-born wife. He was educated at Newington College
(1894-1896) and the University of Sydney
from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts
in 1903. He married Ethel Jane Vickery, a granddaughter of philanthropist Ebenezer Vickery
, in 1909.
he served with the Australian Imperial Force
in France
as a gunner and then as a warrant officer
, class 1, with the Army Education Service.
. In 1925 O'Reilly was nominated by the Methodist Church, the YMCA
, and the Businessmen's Efficiency League as the senior Commonwealth film censor in Sydney. In this position he became de facto chief censor as most films arrived in Australia through Sydney. Three years later he became chief Commonwealth censor and was reappointed annually until 1942 when he retired. As chief censor he introduced, in 1930, the classification system that graded films 'For General Exhibition' and 'Not Suitable for Children'.
and served as a trustee of Pymble Methodist Church for over 50 years, and was a choirmaster, Sunday-school-superintendent and lay preacher. He was elected to Ku-ring-gai Municipal Council as an alderman
and as mayor from 1929 until 1933. As an early conservationist he earned a reputation as the 'tree mayor' and was president of the State branch of the Australian Forest League and a member of the Forestry Advisory Council. In 1945 he became the founding president of the New South Wales division of the National Trust of Australia. At Wesley College, University of Sydney
he was a councillor and treasurer.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n public servant who became Chief Commonwealth Film Censor. He "dominated and shaped Australian film censorship" and was able to "define appropriate mass entertainment" for nearly twenty years. He was the founding president of the National Trust of Australia
National Trust of Australia
The Australian Council of National Trusts is the peak body for community-based, non-government organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's indigenous, natural and historic heritage....
(NSW) and an early urban conservationist.
Early life
Cresswell O'Reilly (he was always known by his second name) was born in New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
to an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and his Ballarat
Ballarat, Victoria
Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth...
-born wife. He was educated at Newington College
Newington College
Newington College is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Stanmore, an inner-western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
(1894-1896) and the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1903. He married Ethel Jane Vickery, a granddaughter of philanthropist Ebenezer Vickery
Ebenezer Vickery
Ebenezer Vickery was an Australian merchant, manufacturer, pastoralist and philanthropist.-Early life:Ebenezer was born in London and arrived in Sydney with his parents and siblings aboard the Richard Reynolds in 1833. He was educated at W. T. Cape's Sydney College, and left school at age 16 to...
, in 1909.
Army service
During World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he served with the Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
as a gunner and then as a warrant officer
Warrant Officer
A warrant officer is an officer in a military organization who is designated an officer by a warrant, as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission, or from non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer by virtue of seniority.The rank was first...
, class 1, with the Army Education Service.
Public service
Before attending university O'Reilly had been a junior clerk in the Department of Justice. After the war he returned to the public service as an officer-in-charge in the justice branch of the Attorney-General's DepartmentAttorney-General's Department
An Attorney-General's Department is a government department in certain countries.*Attorney-General's Department *Attorney-General's Department...
. In 1925 O'Reilly was nominated by the Methodist Church, the YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
, and the Businessmen's Efficiency League as the senior Commonwealth film censor in Sydney. In this position he became de facto chief censor as most films arrived in Australia through Sydney. Three years later he became chief Commonwealth censor and was reappointed annually until 1942 when he retired. As chief censor he introduced, in 1930, the classification system that graded films 'For General Exhibition' and 'Not Suitable for Children'.
Community service
O'Reilly was a WesleyanWesleyanism
Wesleyanism or Wesleyan theology refers, respectively, to either the eponymous movement of Protestant Christians who have historically sought to follow the methods or theology of the eighteenth-century evangelical reformers, John Wesley and his brother Charles Wesley, or to the likewise eponymous...
and served as a trustee of Pymble Methodist Church for over 50 years, and was a choirmaster, Sunday-school-superintendent and lay preacher. He was elected to Ku-ring-gai Municipal Council as an alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
and as mayor from 1929 until 1933. As an early conservationist he earned a reputation as the 'tree mayor' and was president of the State branch of the Australian Forest League and a member of the Forestry Advisory Council. In 1945 he became the founding president of the New South Wales division of the National Trust of Australia. At Wesley College, University of Sydney
Wesley College, University of Sydney
Wesley College is a Protestant co-residential college of over 230 students within the University of Sydney. The College occupies a site on the main campus of the University of Sydney and was built on a sub-grant of Crown Land.- Academic profile :...
he was a councillor and treasurer.
Honours
- Cresswell O’Reilly Lookout - 1030-1066 Pacific HighwayPacific Highway (Australia)The Pacific Highway is a major transport route along part of the east coast of Australia and is part of Australia's national route 1.It is 960 km long and links Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, along the coast, via Gosford, Newcastle, Taree, Port...
, Pymble
Publications
- Wesley College (within the University of Sydney): a historical outline (Syd, 1956)
- Ku-ring-gai Shire: early history and development (Syd, 1948 & 1963)
External links
- Joel Greenberg, Walter Cresswell O'Reilly (1877 - 1954), Australian Dictionary of BiographyAustralian Dictionary of BiographyThe Australian Dictionary of Biography is a national, co-operative enterprise, founded and maintained by the Australian National University to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's history....
, Volume 11, MUP, 1988, p. 96.