Gregory John Dempsey, OAM., was born in Collingwood, an inner suburb of Melbourne, on 20 July 1931. His parents were Patrick and Gwen Dempsey who married in 1929. It was only a short time later in 1931 that baby Gregory John arrived. The joy had begun for Mum and Dad.
Greg’s mum and dad, Gwen and Patrick, Dempsey on their wedding day in 1929
Master Greg Dempsey at age ten in a tailored suit for a family photo
Who could have guessed the young lad would learn how to tap dance. Mind you, he did at times forget his personally choreographed steps, but studied voice, piano basics and acting. He was a mere six years old when he took up these skills and this training regime lasted for two to three years. There was music in the house all the time, because Greg’s father Patrick sang at home. His love of music and mother’s encouragement imbued their son with the sophistication this art form required. With his bright personality, aptitude and natural ability, these all came into use in Greg’s very, extensive career later on, and very much upon the opera stage. Greg’s dance teacher was the one and only Olive Thompson, who was one of Melbourne’s best tip-top-tappers of the late 1930s. Her career was quite illustrious in itself.
A very cute and smartly dressed eight year old boy dancer, singer and piano player
Launceston The Examiner newspaper item from 10 March 1944 extolling the talent and experiences of Greg’s first dancing teacher, Miss Olive Thompson
Greg’s first teacher for piano was Betty Jones who introduced the boy to the skills he needed and later, Mavis Kruger became his vocal coach. This arrangement lasted till Gregory was 22 years of age. It was whilst singing in the baritone range with radio show “Peter’s Pals” around the age of 13 to 14 years that Gregory’s teachers experimented with him singing in the tenor range. He had commenced his career as baritone after his voice broke, and with radio programs such as “Talent Tote” at 3XY and “The P & A Parade” at radio 3KZ where Margot Sheridan was the piano accompanist. She would give the teenage boy more encouragement and tuition. Whilst at the “Hotel Ritz” in Melbourne city, Gregory met pianist Les Tobias, who would mentor the young man through lots of additional tuition and various experimentation over choice of songs and work through his range and best keys.
This teacher and mentor working relationship enabled Gregory to explore many possibilities and his gratitude is still vivid in his memory for such a teacher.
The portfolio of arts subjects studied as a teenager when he attended school would become the centre of attention for him to be teased and ridiculed. This was mainly by the young girls about his involvement in these activities which they considered as “sissy” pursuits. This was what was the reasoned stupidity in the era around World War Two and the following post war years. Gregory’s determination to follow his heart in these chosen arts also reaffirmed his strong commitment to do all that was necessary for practice and his dedication to it. This was his driving force.
Young Gregory with his mother, Gwen attending a special event, and above right, is a news paper clipping from Listener In showing the “Teenage Talent” radio program cast for broadcaster 3KZ, probably around the year 1950. There’s quite a few stars present that went on to some stardom in their own chosen genre.
During his time at 3KZ “Kia Ora Teenage Talent” both the orchestra leader Tommy Davidson and producer and host Doug Elliott suggested that Gregory could become a tenor as his vocal range was two octaves at this time. Vocal coach Mavis Kreuger also agreed. So, Gregory auditioned for a position with the Youth Operatic Society in front of the Musical Director, Charles Famel. Gregory’s audition was a great success and he was accepted immediately. His first role, at 18 years of age was in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard. This was in 1949 and over the next 3 to 4 years, Gregory sang in most of the Gilbert And Sullivan Savoy operas in major roles. In HMS Pinafore he sang the role of Ralph Rackstraw. All this was a wonderful experience for Greg and an acknowledgement of his budding vocal talents. Plus, the added charm of his youthful and equally marketable, boyish, good looks.
The Youth Operatic Society in the 1949 production of The Yeomen of the Guard. And, young Greg Dempsey in a posed photograph for publicity purposes.
In her The Age newspaper article, “Melbourne People” about Gregory Dempsey on 26 May, 1981, journalist Susie Boisjoux relates an anecdote concerning those in his school who considered boys fell into one of two groups. That was as “crows” or “canaries”. The Crows played cricket and the Canaries sang. So, Gregory’s school teacher wanted to toughen up the boy who loved his music and the arts, which was considered “girly stuff”. So, he put Greg in with the Crows to see if he could sink or swim. He certainly swam and would end up at an elite level in association cricket!
From the Gilbert & Sullivan opera Iolanthe, Gregory Dempsey in an imperious pose as Earl Tolloller, and the principal cast for the opera Patience with Gregory second from the left in the role of Lieutenant, the Duke of Dunstable. Other members of the cast are unidentified for this c.1953 production. Sound recordings exist of this production in Greg’s own collection. Many of the cast of the Hawthorn Operatic Society did go on to achieve their own personal goals in music and the theatre.
Although it was a difficult time in the development of a child, who was powerless to be himself and follow his own interests, Greg took it all on board and as matters evolved, worked for him on all fronts. So, he played those criticisms by the young and ignorant name callers and those in positions of power by the book. He did all the “masculine” stuff as well as giving his best efforts to dance, piano practice and most importantly, voice. That fine line as a sports-loving and artistic fellow was his safety net. Both these pursuits, as it turned out made his voice stronger for the later professional singer and also enabled his lungs to really develop to be a powerhouse of strength vocally. It was essential for a tenor range in classical music. The constant thirst for knowledge and the involvement in many extra curricular subjects outside school hours really paid dividends. His confidence exuded and at eighteen years of age, as a member of the Youth Operatic Society (which became the Hawthorn Operatic Society in 1952) in the comic operas of Gilbert & Sullivan, Gregory really shone. Here, he got great experience in theatrical music and that was the catalyst, which would take the youthful lad into a new and exciting world of the arts. It was in this very group that the up-and-coming Jim Murphy of the famed Murphy family, whose siblings were Peter and Mary, had started his own career in music and the arts. Jim would later become a writer, performer and critic in the world of film and the musical stage.
Gregory as Ralph Rackstraw on stage for HMS Pinafore and at right, with Hawthorn Operatic Society G&S vocal star, Elizabeth West.
But, I digress, because to be part of the “Crows” in his technical school days was to be a good cricket player. Development in this skill for Gregory was embracing this challenge and duly becoming an all-rounder participant. Joining the Collingwood Cricket Club after school days finished was a huge success and Greg went on to top levels. He was still playing outstanding cricket in the late 1950s for Collingwood Cricket Club and was in the premiership best team in the 1957-58 season for the Victorian Turf Cricket Association (VCTA). The physical fitness levels and the strong lung capacity required throughout his many sports gave Gregory the best power for the demanding roles that a tenor vocal range required and endurance to play such challenging roles night after night on an opera stage.
The Victorian Turf Cricket Association First Eleven Premiers of 1957-1958 was some achivement for Gregory Dempsey who was chosen as the best player from the Collingwood Cricket Club. The balance of the team is the best from the other association club members. In other words, it was the creme de la creme of the best from the top teams that particular year of the cricket summer season.
Greg Dempsey is in the back row, third from the left. The balance of cricket’s best VTCA Senior Division players are E. Calvert, F. Jungwirth, D. Johnston, A. Schrape, D. Kivell, R. McDermott, W. Driver, G. Pugh, K. Parker, J. Young and J. McDermott.
So, as you see, an adjunct to his sporting prowess, the artistic aspect of acting and singing grew with his performances with the Youth Operatic Society, and later Hawthorn Operatic Society, from 1949 onwards.
A photograph taken by Laurie Richards of Gregory Dempsey, and his dog Bernie resting on his shoulders. This news item in the press promoted Greg’s rise to fame in opera. At right, is a The Sun newspaper item describing Greg’s success in gaining a place at Sadler’s Wells Opera after being a boiler maker and truck driver. The other newspaper item is from an unidentified clipping in the Dempsey file collection.
From those early Hawthorn operetta days Gregory Dempsey, as the young man, became a cool and confident baritone, and with a change of piano accompanists, led him to further development of the vocal range into the tenor vocal range. All the sports work and swimming of his youth became the substance of strength in lungs and physical body development. Gregory even took up weight training which really gave extra power to the voice. And there was his cricket. The extra muscle as part of this training regime added a body physique for all sorts of roles in opera. These were the roles Gregory loved and his parents encouraged their son’s development, plus looking further at his employment in a day job as a young adult. This would ensure a regular income later, if a music career failed. It would be in a particular trade, as a boiler maker. However, the apprenticeship was curtailed after a short period of time as the fumes’ poisonous gases were detrimental to the young man’s lungs. So, the next role as far as day employment, was to be a truck driver. This was not dissimilar to the American tenor, Mario Lanza. The equally talented American shot to great fame in the 1950s in many Hollywood films, radio broadcasts and on his commercially made RCA-Victor records. Mario Lanza’s meteoric rise to fame, was extinguished with his sudden death in 1959. For our own star equivalent, Greg took a different path that led to the multi-talented Australian tenor strutting the stage across the globe in a stellar career that lasted for six decades.
At left, Greg as the young apprentice boiler maker. At right, with parents Gwen and Patrick Dempsey excited about their son who had just won the Lever Award First Prize in 1955. What joy! Another Laurie Richards photograph.
Gregory made few studio dates for gramophone recordings, but did lots of singing to live audiences, and sang countless radio broadcasts and television appearances. Many private acetate discs from Greg’s early years are in his personal library, as well as radio discs. The critics and opera audiences were appreciative of the strong believable acting and the powerhouse tenor vocal range. He was much adored for those skills, and his dedication to the art form along with a great personality, that other cast members loved. Yes, the young man had it all.
The photo on the left shows a young Gregory Dempsey meeting some female vocal contestants on Gladys Moncrieff’s Radio Show broadcast from the Brunswick Town Hall in October 1954. Everyone looks excited about meeting the young tenor. On the right, Greg is playing chords on the piano for the Mobil Quest contestant singers. The stars on the ascent are Miss Joan Arnold and Rosalie Brannigan, at the left of the photo.
In 1952, he made his first appearance on the radio program “Mobil Quest”. And successive appearances won out because Gregory became a finalist in the Mobil Quest season of 1956 in which Noel Melville was winner, Heather Begg, second finalist and Lawrence Lott was third. Gregory Dempsey who trained initially as baritone, made his debut as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni with the National Opera of Victoria in 1954, also appearing as Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana and Pedro in d’Albert’s Tiefland. In 1955 he won the £1,000 Lever Award (Radio award sponsored by Lever Brothers’ toiletries and kitchen and laundry products). In 1956 Greg was a grand finalist in the Mobil Quest. When the Elizabethan Trust Opera was formed in 1956 he took part in its season of four operas. The following season, he appeared in their productions of Tosca, La bohème and The Tales of Hoffmann. In the 1958 season he sang principal roles in Carmen, The Barber of Seville and Fidelio. He also became a permanent member of the chorus for the Channel GTV9 television singers. 1960 found him singing Monostatos in The Magic Flute, the First Jew in Salome, Goro in Madama Butterfly and Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi. During this season, Gregory Dempsey sang a small role in Dalgarie, and Beppe in matinee of Pagliacci, followed by Luigi in Il tabarro, and followed this replacing another tenor who took ill as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi. This was in Adelaide in 1961. Four quite different roles, and all in one day!
In Perth, he sang in both operas in a double-bill as Mundit – an aborigine – in the 1962 premiere of the Australian opera Dalgerie, and followed with Beppe in Pagliacci after interval. These achievements and the introduction to many short-listed roles in opera in Australia opened up and Greg Dempsey was very much in demand. However, his appointment in England for the Sadler’s Wells Company drew the tenor to so many other parts of Europe and the USA, Canada and as far away as Iceland. These operas gave Greg much scope and opportunities to come.
The Grand Finalists for “Mobil Quest 1956”: Noel Melville 1st; Heather Begg, 2nd; Lawrence Lott, 3rd; along with Peter Campbell, Brian Hampstead, Patrick Skuse, Denise Thompson and Marie Bates. Greg Dempsey is second from the right in the picture. The names on the back of the photograph are not clear. The photo on the right shows Greg Dempsey posing with the Sun Aria winner of the 1954 season Cavell Armstrong. Photos by Laurie Richards.
His starring role with soprano Muriel Luyk for the Melbourne Moomba Season in March, 1956 was in Bizet’s Carmen. It was a sensational, abbreviated version with Roland Strong as the narrator, and Hector Crawford’s Australian Symphony Orchestra & Chorus. Plus, an equally strong, supporting cast. Local Melbourne radio station 3DB broadcast the production in an outside staged “Music For The People” spectacular. Decades later, the original acetate radio discs were discovered in Gregory’s home which were cared for by his mum, Mrs. Gwen Dempsey for many decades. The acetate sound discs were transferred to a digital medium by audio engineer, Jamie Kelly, and it is remarkable that these recordings were in such good order.
Gregory’s mother saved all and everything, and thank goodness. Gwen cared for the many gems made by her son and have now been preserved for posterity. Not only did Gwen have the one only recordings of Carmen, the original Victoria State Government printed program was given to the author by one of the sopranos in the chorus, Beverley Graham. As Gregory’s fortunes began to develop, radio and new television appearances became prevalent and Gregory was in demand for popular material as well as operetta favourites, which he sang on regular occasions with the soprano Aldene Splatt at GTV9’s Richmond television studios.
To be continued