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One of Australia's best-known outback characters, Tom Kruse, has died in Adelaide, aged 96.
Known as the Birdsville Mailman, Mr Kruse delivered mail and other supplies to a wide region of the outback from 1936 until 1957.
The story of his two-week road trips was recorded in a 1954 documentary Back of Beyond, putting him on the national stage.
Esmond Gerald (Tom) Kruse was the 10th of Ida and Henry Kruse's 12 children and started life at Waterloo Corner, just north of Adelaide.
Mr Kruse was awarded an MBE in 1955 and was inducted into the National Transport Hall of Fame in Alice Springs in 2000 and recognised as an Outback Legend by Australian Geographic magazine in 2003.
The then-governor-general's wife Lady Slim flew to Birdsville in 1955 as part of an outback tour to present the MBE, but Mr Kruse could not make it to the ceremony because of outback flooding. He later got the medal in Adelaide.
Repairs on the run
An ABC documentary outlined how mechanical innovation became a vital part of Mr Kruse's outback journeys: "The fuel pump let him down and he put a container of fuel up on the roof and knocked a hole through the bonnet and put a pipe to the carburettor."
Former governor-general Major-General Michael Jeffery unveiled one of several busts of Mr Kruse, at the National Motor Museum at Birdwood in the Adelaide Hills in 2008.
"I think we use the term hero far too frequently when it doesn't really apply, but I think in this case it does. He saved lives in many of his activities," he said.
The governor-general reminisced about his experiences as a soldier in Borneo and Vietnam and how important getting a letter was, imagining it would be the same for a remote station stockman, boundary rider or mother living at a remote homestead.
He said Mr Kruse carried lollies in his truck for children on the homesteads so they would rush to the gate to be first to let him in.
A funeral service will be held in Adelaide. Mr Kruse's wife Valma died last year.
more info @ link http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2...30/3257508.htm
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Last Mail from Birdsville: The Story of Tom Kruse 2000
Video 3 clips http://aso.gov.au/titles/documentari...il-birdsville/
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The Back of Beyond 1954
The real-life outback characters in this phenomenally successful film were painted as survivors and battlers with hearts of gold.
Video 3 clips http://aso.gov.au/titles/documentaries/back-of-beyond/
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Coopers Creek ~ Outback Australia
The old eyes twinkle, he has a few tales to tell and he's ready to take us back along the Birdsville Track for a very special and historic journey - "Last Mail from Birdsville - The Story of Tom Kruse".
In 1954 the Shell Film Unit made a one hour documentary, filmed in black and white, about the mail man Tom Kruse, who served the remote stations along the Birdsville Track between Maree, South Australia and Birdsville in Queensland. The film, "The Back of Beyond", became a classic of outback travel and hardship and has won more international awards than any other Australian film.
"Last Mail from Birdsville" picks up the story about the man and his truck. Tom takes us back to the desert to find his old mail truck where he abandoned it in 1957. This was the truck that featured in the movie and Tom reckoned he could get it going again.
To read much more on this remarkable man just go to the link
http://www.lastmailfrombirdsville.com/index.html
Known as the Birdsville Mailman, Mr Kruse delivered mail and other supplies to a wide region of the outback from 1936 until 1957.
The story of his two-week road trips was recorded in a 1954 documentary Back of Beyond, putting him on the national stage.
Esmond Gerald (Tom) Kruse was the 10th of Ida and Henry Kruse's 12 children and started life at Waterloo Corner, just north of Adelaide.
Mr Kruse was awarded an MBE in 1955 and was inducted into the National Transport Hall of Fame in Alice Springs in 2000 and recognised as an Outback Legend by Australian Geographic magazine in 2003.
The then-governor-general's wife Lady Slim flew to Birdsville in 1955 as part of an outback tour to present the MBE, but Mr Kruse could not make it to the ceremony because of outback flooding. He later got the medal in Adelaide.
Repairs on the run
An ABC documentary outlined how mechanical innovation became a vital part of Mr Kruse's outback journeys: "The fuel pump let him down and he put a container of fuel up on the roof and knocked a hole through the bonnet and put a pipe to the carburettor."
Former governor-general Major-General Michael Jeffery unveiled one of several busts of Mr Kruse, at the National Motor Museum at Birdwood in the Adelaide Hills in 2008.
"I think we use the term hero far too frequently when it doesn't really apply, but I think in this case it does. He saved lives in many of his activities," he said.
The governor-general reminisced about his experiences as a soldier in Borneo and Vietnam and how important getting a letter was, imagining it would be the same for a remote station stockman, boundary rider or mother living at a remote homestead.
He said Mr Kruse carried lollies in his truck for children on the homesteads so they would rush to the gate to be first to let him in.
A funeral service will be held in Adelaide. Mr Kruse's wife Valma died last year.
more info @ link http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2...30/3257508.htm
**************************************
Last Mail from Birdsville: The Story of Tom Kruse 2000
Video 3 clips http://aso.gov.au/titles/documentari...il-birdsville/
****************************************
The Back of Beyond 1954
The real-life outback characters in this phenomenally successful film were painted as survivors and battlers with hearts of gold.
Video 3 clips http://aso.gov.au/titles/documentaries/back-of-beyond/
*************************************************
Coopers Creek ~ Outback Australia
The old eyes twinkle, he has a few tales to tell and he's ready to take us back along the Birdsville Track for a very special and historic journey - "Last Mail from Birdsville - The Story of Tom Kruse".
In 1954 the Shell Film Unit made a one hour documentary, filmed in black and white, about the mail man Tom Kruse, who served the remote stations along the Birdsville Track between Maree, South Australia and Birdsville in Queensland. The film, "The Back of Beyond", became a classic of outback travel and hardship and has won more international awards than any other Australian film.
"Last Mail from Birdsville" picks up the story about the man and his truck. Tom takes us back to the desert to find his old mail truck where he abandoned it in 1957. This was the truck that featured in the movie and Tom reckoned he could get it going again.
To read much more on this remarkable man just go to the link
http://www.lastmailfrombirdsville.com/index.html
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