Frank Hooper Legg (1906 - 1966)

Born 26 Jun 1906 in Walmer, Kent, England

Husband of Evelyn Amy (Bragg) Legg — married 1929 in Saint Kilda, Victoria, Australia

Died 30 Mar 1966 at age 59 in Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia

Biography

Frank Legg is Notable.

Frank Legg was an Australian war correspondent and journalist. He served as a Sergeant Major in the Australian Imperial Force at Tobruk. He wrote articles for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) during his service and was involved in radio and television journalism upon his return to Australia. He 'saw himself as a penniless Englishman who became a 'dinky-di' Aussie'.

Frank Hooper Legg was born on 26th June 1906 at Walmer, Kent, England. He was a son of Francis Legg, of the Isles of Scilly family of Leggs, and Ethel Hooper.^[1] He was educated at Sir Roger Manwood’s School in Sandwich. He worked for a short period at the Bank of England,^[2] Frank later said were "mostly interested in acquiring a good, slow bowler for the cricket team and a centre half for the rugger season".^[3]

off to Australia

Frank Legg migrated from England to Australia.

On 28th June 1927, Frank migrated to Australia as welfare officer for a group of young male migrants, initially settling in Brisbane, Queensland.^[2] After trying to sell insurance, Frank obtained work as a freelance reporter for newspapers and broadcasting radio talks for the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC).^[3]

He married Evelyn Bragg in 1929 at St Kilda, Victoria,^[4] however, they were divorced a number of years afterwards and he lost contact with their son, Richard.^[2] They were living in South Australia at the outset of the Second World War, in 1939.

Second World War

Frank Legg is a Military Veteran.
Served in the Second Australian Imperial Force 1940-1943
2/48th Australian Infantry Battalion

On 26th July 1940, Frank enlisted in the Second Australian Imperial Force (AIF) for service overseas during the Second World War.^[5] He was allocated to the 2/48th Australian Infantry Battalion, then being raised in South Australia as part of the 26th Brigade. The 2/48th entered Tobruk with the 9th Division on 9th April 1941, helping to hold the port city for the next eight months – the 'Rats of Tobruk'.^[6] As well as fighting, Frank wrote about the experiences of the soldiers for the ABC. His articles, ‘Tales of Tobruk’ were published in the magazine ABC Weekly. In his broadcast ‘The Worst Day’, he gave an account of his experiences from the battle of El Alamein, which occurred on the 31st October 1942. He admitted an expectation that he would die during the battle and in this and future broadcasts, he would express his admiration for the fighting soldier. Frank gained promotion to Sergeant and Sergeant Major (Warrant Officer) in North Africa and the Middle East. He was Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) at El Alamein.^[3]

The battalion left the Middle East in the January 1943 and, sailing with the rest of the division, reached Sydney, re-organised for jungle operations and, on 4th September participated in the division's amphibious landing at Red Beach, north-west of Lae, and fought in the battles around Lae, Finschhafen, and Sattelberg. Frank was commissioned as a Lieutenant in 1943.^[3]

On 15th December 1943, his appointment to the AIF was terminated and Frank exchanged rifle for pen and camera as war correspondent for the ABC in the Pacific; documenting the experiences of Australian soldiers in New Guinea, Borneo, Philippines and Tokyo.^[3] Frank was awarded the Asiatic-Pacific Service Ribbon with a letter of thanks from General Macarthur, a United States award to war correspondents.^[3]

post-war

Frank was a war correspondent, journalist, radio and television compere, and author

Upon his return to Sydney after the conclusion of the war, Frank obtained a position at the ABC as a radio and television chairman and compere. In radio, he became known for his shows, Week-End Magazine (1946-59), Film Review (1949-66) and Any Questions (1955-64). Frank participated in the first Australian television broadcast on 5th November, 1956.^[2]

He also worked on documentaries and books that focused on the topic of wartime experiences, including The Eyes of Damien Parer 1963, The Gordon Bennett Story 1965, Cat’s on Velvet 1966, and Once More on My Adventure: The Life of Frank Hurley 1966. In 1964, Frank wrote and published an autobiography entitled War Correspondent.^[2] It was about this time that Frank and his son, Richard, regained contact.^[3]

On 30th March 1966, at Hornsby Hospital, Hornsby, New South Wales, Frank passed away as a result of injuries he sustained in an automobile accident nearby at Turramurra.^[7] He was survived by his second wife and his son.^[3]

He was posthumously awarded the Journalist’s Club award for 1966 for his work on Frank Hurley’s biography.^[2]

Tony Hill commented that Frank Legg "saw himself as a penniless Englishman who became a 'dinky-di' Aussie."^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ UK FreeBMD Birth Index Sep qtr 1906, vol 2a, page 1124; registered at Eastry
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5} Consandine, Marion, Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 15, (MUP), 2000
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8} Hill, Tony. Voices from the Air. HarperCollins Publishers, Sydney, 2016. ISBN 978 0 7333 3502 0]
4. ↑ Victoria Marriage Index #7267/1929
5. ↑ Australian War Memorial nominal roll: SX9652 Frank Hooper Legg; accessed 30 Jul 2019
6. ↑ Australian War Memorial unit record: 2/48th Australian Infantry Battalion; accessed 30 Jul 2019
7. ↑ New South Wales Death Index #16796/1966; registered at St Leonards

• Wikipedia profile: Frank Legg; accessed 30 Jul 2019.