© 2018 Greg & Sylvia RAY

Author: Greg Ray

This author has written 481 articles
Read more about the article The nudes that started our publishing career

The nudes that started our publishing career

When people ask us how we got started on our career of book publishing I'm never sure whether to tell the truth. Because it all started with some boxes of glass plate negatives of naked women. I'd been at an ephemera fair in Sydney, and a dealer from whom I'd bought a few items suggested I visit his home, where he said he had thousands of collectible items for sale. I made the visit, and found a home full of all manner of second-hand and vintage goods in cabinets, on shelves and in heaps on the…

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Read more about the article Prangs, crashes, accidents: Part 1
Volkswagen Beetle hit by a steam locomotive at Adamstown, NSW, January 14, 1963.

Prangs, crashes, accidents: Part 1

As a career fireman, transport collector Ken Magor naturally accumulated many photographs of accidents and disasters. Here are some of them, along with interesting stories that came to light after the photos were published. Car meets steam locomotive Collision between Volkswagen Beetle and steam locomotive at Adamstown, January 14, 1963. After this photo appeared in our book Destination Newcastle, I received a letter from Laurie Bowman, of Charlestown, who told how he had been working that day as an electrician at the BHP. He had just finished a day shift and, as usual, bought a copy…

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Read more about the article Shaking a tower with Rev. Spooner

Shaking a tower with Rev. Spooner

My problem with spoonerisms started a long time ago. Once I heard about poor old Reverend Spooner and his habit of accidentally transposing the first letters of words in an expression I started doing it myself - deliberately. Once I started I didn't seem able to stop, and now they tend to spring automatically into my head. Somebody tells me that it’s pouring with rain, for example, my brain does the transposition and, hey presto, it’s roaring with pain instead. Years ago when my daughter made a sticky date pudding I couldn’t help instinctively renaming it…

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