AustLit

'The tensions of the rich wave of migration to Australia after World War II were satirised and sanitised by the enormously popular adaption of Nino Culotta's (John O'Grady's) comic novel They're a Weird Mob. Using 'strine' as the basis for the satire, the Australian vernacular became a major bone of contention for Italian migrant Nino (played by noted European actor Walter Chiari), who experiences all the highs and lows of Australian culture. The story deals with Chiari, as a sportswriter, visiting Australia to work with his brother, only to find he has absconded leaving a trail of debts. Eventually he is won over by the people of the country, and decides to stay.'(Introduction)