John-Michael Howson

John-Michael Howson (born 8 August 1936) is an Australian writer, reporter, entertainer and Melbourne radio commentator. His involvement in the Australian entertainment scene as a writer, producer and performer spans more than 50 years.

Early life Howson was born on 8 August 1936, in Elwood, Victoria. His parents separated when he was young and he moved to Western Australia with his mother and step-father (a former policeman and publican). He was educated at St Ildephonsus College, New Norcia, where he was a boarder.

Career Howson began his media career as a cadet reporter on Mildura's Sunraysia Daily. After moving to Melbourne he started writing sketches and songs for amateur and professional groups and subsequently moved to London. There he worked for a men's fashion magazine and covered fashion topics in London and Europe. He pursued his writing career with comedy scripts for live revues, stand-up comedians and television including the top British show That Was The Week That Was. During the 1980s, he starred in Houseboat Horror, an Australian feature film shot to videotape, and often included on lists of the worst movies ever made.

Theatrical productions In the late 1960s, Howson also turned his talents as a scriptwriter and lyricist to the creation of original Australian stage musicals, working in collaboration with local composers. Early examples included Razza-ma-tazz (and all that Jazz), which was set in Melbourne's pre-war Red-light district, Little Lonsdale Street. With a cast that included veteran stage actress Madeleine Orr, the show was produced at the Southland Theatre in 1968. That same year, Howson collaborated with Peter Pinne and Don Battye on the musical It happened in Tanjablanka, which was a spoof of Hollywood in the 1940s. In 1972, Howson wrote What's in a name, a straight play on the subject of prejudice and intolerance in modern society, which was performed at St Paul's Cathedral in Melbourne. The following year, he adapted the play Norman, Is That You? for Australian audiences, which had successful seasons in Melbourne and Sydney. The adaptation included a new title song, co-written by Howson with composer Peter Best, which was recorded and released as a single by the show's star, Bobby Limb.

The late 1990s saw Howson return to the creation of stage musicals, albeit this time in the form of jukebox musicals rather than entirely original shows with original music. Shout! The Legend of The Wild One, a stage musical about the life of singer Johnny O'Keefe, was co-written by Howson with Melvyn Morrow and David Mitchell, and made its premiere in Melbourne in the early 2000s (decade). With the same team, Howson also co-wrote a musical about Dusty Springfield called Dusty – The Original Pop Diva, which opened in Melbourne in 2006. In 2007, it was reported that Howson was collaborating on a new musical, Hotel Havana, with composer Jason Sprague. Other original musicals Howson developed included Pyjamas in Paradise, about teenage parties at Surfers Paradise, Queensland, and Dream Lover, a jukebox musical about Bobby Darin.

Reporter He is sometimes referred to as "John-Michael 'Hollywood' Howson" when filing showbiz news reports, a nickname first coined by Mike Walsh when Howson began appearing on The Mike Walsh Show. His reports continued when the show was replaced by The Midday Show with Ray Martin. Howson became well known for his flamboyant, clever and catty commentary on the celebrity A-list. Determined to further his writing career, Howson moved to West Hollywood but remained a reporter for Network Ten's Good Morning Australia with Bert Newton. He also reported for 3AW with Ernie Sigley, and remained a 3AW regular until his dismissal over controversial comments in November 2017.

Writer Howson's book I Found It at the Flickers, an autobiographical account of his growing up in Melbourne emphasising his love of the cinema, was published by Horwitz Grahame Books in 1985. Howson has published two collections of horror stories – Once Upon a Nightmare: Ten Tales with a Twist (Pan Macmillan, 1998) and Deadly Dreams: Ten More Tales with Twist (Pan Macmillan, 2000).

Radio panelist Howson was a regular panelist on 3AW's Sunday morning program, 'Sunday Morning'. During his appearances on 3AW, Howson has adopted vehemently anti-Muslim views, indicating that he would prefer not to talk to Muslims and referring to Muslims as "skilled propagandists".

In February 2011, Howson had an abusive on-air tantrum over the Seven Network's treatment of Opposition Leader and future Prime Minister Tony Abbott, in an interview with journalist Mark Riley. He verbally abused his radio 3AW co-presenter Nick McCallum, who was also a Channel Seven reporter and hurled sexist insults at a female producer, Cushla Travers.

In 2012, he called Julian Assange's mother "a pig" and taunted her with a Nazi slogan, for which he apologised but was suspended for a month. In 2016, Howson used a derogatory term when discussing African gangs. He told the Herald Sun, "I don’t care if people think it was racist, it was a name that came into my head". 3AW management issued a statement later that day, "3AW does not condone the use of a derogatory term by John-Michael Howson on the Sunday Morning program today".

In November 2017, Howson went on a rant about "anti-coal nutjobs", suggesting climate change activists should kill themselves. He was forced to apologise later that day and meet management to discuss broadcasting codes and content. He was subsequently dismissed from 3AW.

Honours Howson was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2009 Queen's Birthday Honours list "for service to the entertainment industry as a writer and performer".

Personal life Howson lived in the Melbourne suburb of Balaclava for many years. He then moved to Los Angeles for 17 years and now holds dual US-Australian citizenship.

Following the success of Shout he returned to Melbourne in 2006 where he lives with his Guatemalan partner, Alfie, and their three dogs. In recent years, Howson has been publicly open about his homosexuality, a subject about which he was previously very guarded, mainly due to his conservative Roman Catholic beliefs.

Filmography

Film YearTitleRoleNotes 1974 Alvin Rides Again Bell Boy 1978 The ABC of Love and Sex: Australia Style Leatherman at orgy Documentary 1978 Felicity Adrian/lingerie salesman 1980 Nightmares Bennett Collingwood Known as Stage Fright in the United States 1984 Second Time Lucky Devil's Assistant 1989 Houseboat Horror 'J' Direct-to-video 1994 Muriel's Wedding Himself Uncredited 2008 Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! Himself Documentary 2009 Remembering Nigel Himself 2022 Pushing the Boundaries: The Mavis Bramston Show Himself Documentary

Television YearTitleRoleNotes 1965–1967 Magic Circle Club Fee Fee Bear Also writer 1967 Hey You! Writer Also creator (with Godfrey Philipp) 1969 Sounds Like Us Clown 1967–1972 Adventure Island Clown and Golden Harp Also creator (with Godfrey Philipp) and writer 1976 Power Without Glory Fashion Designer TV miniseries 1976–1983 The Don Lane Show Himself Various appearances 1978 Good Morning Sydney Himself Host Entertainment 1980 The Royal Charity Concert Himself TV movie 1980 Catch Us If You Can Himself TV special 1981–1984 The Mike Walsh Show Himself Various appearances (as Entertainment Reporter) 1994 The Gordon Elliott Show Himself 1997 Tracey Takes On... Reg Redpath 2000 Russell Gilbert Live Himself Guest 2001 Rove Live Himself Guest 2004–2005 Good Morning Australia Himself Various appearances (as Entertainment Reporter) 2005–2011 20 to One Himself Media commentator 2006 Bert's Family Feud Himself Contestant/Team captain/Audience member 2006 Spicks and Specks Himself Guest 2021 Studio 10 Himself Guest