Don Lane (1933-2009). A lesson in globalisation

A few weeks ago Don Lane, an American-born Australian television personality, died from Alzheimer's Disease. He was 75.

When I was growing up in Australia Lane was a fixture on late-night commercial TV. With Bert Newton, Ernie Sigley and Graham Kennedy he formed a cadre that made numerous attempts to create a local version of Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. They were successful I suppose but there was always that taint of provincialism, that this was 'only Australia'. This was especially true of Lane because he was so identifiably American. We got him because he hadn't made it in New York, LA or Las Vegas.

Lane arrived in Australia in 1965, about the time that world-class local talents like Clive James, Germaine Greer and Robert Hughes were leaving. The contrast is stark. Where you go when you leave home speaks volumes about your level of ambition.

Or it used to.

James has written at length about how his was the last generation compelled to leave Australia to 'make it' and perhaps he's right. Nowadays the truism is that so long as you don't mind airplane food where you live doesn't matter. Ben Folds can base himself in Adelaide or Ross Noble in rural Victoria.

The likes of Don Lane rarely succeed in modern Australia. The country is just too globalised to accept mediocre foreign talent; an unambiguously good thing as excellence at home means that Australians go overseas ready to participate.

It's only a matter of time until the Asian filth* phenomenon goes the same way.

* Failed In London, Try Honkers