THE king of the quip, Bert Newton, knows timing is everything in comedy. And so it was that the day Channel Nine announced the ”resignation” of news director Michael Venus, the publicity department held its Christmas party for the media and its TV stars, including Jo Hall, Livinia Nixon and Jules Lund. In Studio 1, Moonface took to the stage with a gag about the solar system, saying he could see Mars and Jupiter but not Venus. Hmmm. Only those in the know knew what planet Moonface was on.
Channel Seven’s news won 26 out of 40 ratings weeks, including the last 15 in a row, suggesting Venus may have been encouraged to ”resign” after 27 years with the network. Newton got laughs when saying it was imperative Hey Hey It’s Saturday returned next year, otherwise Daryl Somers would resort to playing the drums on Kerri-Anne Kennerley’s show.
After the speeches, guests queued at a lolly table stocked by the Candy Buffet company and while there were bullets, there were no bananas, bringing to mind that Bananarama song Venus (was his name). Something in the gift bag could come in handy for new news director Hugh Nailon: a rubber cricket ball from Shane Warne’s Spinners brand doubles as a stress ball.
Source: The Age
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