October
MarchI remember Jack
The recent passing of the great jockey Jack Purtell has reminded me of my very brief dealings with him while serving my time as a turf reporter with The Argus (in Victoria) in the 1950s.
My racing editor was Jack Elliott, who just happened to have a close relationship with Purtell. As kids they went to the same schools.
One evening Jack Elliott asked me to deliver Purtell’s airline tickets for his very first riding engagement in Europe. I got the job because I lived near Jack’s Marriage Road residence in East Brighton. Later on, the great jockey Roy Higgins lived at the same house!
I was pleased for the opportunity to be the delivery boy and Purtell was happy to have his tickets home-delivered. Of course, he went on to make a big impact in England.
Interestingly, my mother, Eileen Veronica Wood/Hunt, and my stepfather, Ted, were professional ballroom dancers and they told me Jack Purtell was a superb dancer.
Murrumbeena (Vic)