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LEGEND OF FRED PATERSON, THE

Year: 1996

Classification: Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G

Runtime: 58 min

Produced In: Australia

Directed By: Jonathan Dawson, Pat Laughren

Produced By: Owen Johnston

Language: English

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THE LEGEND OF FRED PATERSON is the story of Frederick Woolnough Paterson, the only communist ever elected to an Australian Parliament, serving two terms in the Queensland Legislative Assembly as the member for Bowen from 1944 to 1950.

The film follows the personal journey of Fred Paterson through the socialist landscape of Australia and North Queensland from the turn of the century to 1950. Combining impressionist re-creations, archival footage and interviews with old comrades and family, the film examines why he became a communist and what it was like to be one.

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