Gold Coast pauses to remember famed TV producer Reg Grundy, founder of Grundy’s at Surfers Paradise
REG Grundy never rode the slides at the Surfers Paradise theme park which bore his name but Gold Coasters yesterday fondly remembered the late businessman for his impact on the city.
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REG Grundy never rode the water slides at the Surfers Paradise theme park which bore his name but Gold Coasters yesterday fondly remembered the late businessman for his impact on the city.
The television mogul, whose studio was behind classic shows Neighbours, Prisoner, The Young Doctors and Sons and Daughters, died over the weekend at his home in Bermuda following a long illness.
He was 92 and passed away in the arms of his wife, author and actor Joy Chambers, after battling dementia for nearly a decade.
As stars of the Australian small screen yesterday paid tribute to the producer’s life and impact on the television industry, the Gold Coasters who knew him best hailed his creation of the Grundy’s Amusement Centre as a landmark for the city.
The Surfers Paradise centre, famous for its slides, video games and roller coasters opened in early 1981 and was one of the original tenants in the Paradise Centre.
Grundy, known to friends as RG, selected the site after meeting with developer Eddie Kornhauser and it was built to his careful specifications by local company Statham, headed by Alf Vockler.
Mr Vockler yesterday remembered his friend as a man who was driven to achieve his dreams and who achieved one of his greatest successes with the Surfers Paradise attraction.
“Reg was a great man who was successful in a number of fields and we attended the opening of Grundy’s together in January 1981,” he said.
“Reg was really proud of the whole thing and we had a hell of a job getting the merry-go-round up into the centre but he wanted it there no matter what so we had to find a way of making it happen.
“He never went down those famous water slides but he did ride the merry-go-round and loved it.”
The grand opening, at the peak of the 1981 summer, was a big event for the city and featured a “cast of thousands” which is remember fondly by Gold Coasters.
Grundy was born in Sydney on August 4, 1923 and served in the Australian Army during World War II.
He created and hosted the Australian version of game show Wheel of Fortune before moving into production where his successes included The Restless Years, Sons and Daughters and Neighbours.
Grundy sold his production company in 1995 and lived overseas for the rest of his life.
Grundy’s in Surfers Paradise operated throughout the 1980s and into the early 1990s with its range of famous rides and games including the Go-Gator, Pong and the shooting gallery.
Its iconic slides, which overlooked Surfers Paradise beach and later closed in 1987, became internationally famous after appearing in the music video for the Australian Crawl song Errol in 1981.
Grundy eventually sold his amusement centre in the early 1990s, reportedly for as low as $1, and it finally closed in 1993 and was replaced with Timezone.
Former mayor Lex Bell was a young lawyer when Grundy’s opened and was one of its frequent patrons and where he would play video games on his lunch break.
He said Grundy’s arrival on the Coast revitalised the area. “The Grundy name was well-known and it proved to be a magnet for people to come in and he certainly created a happy place to go,” he said.
“At the time the Paradise Centre was brand spanking new and Grundy’s was novel because it had computer games ... which were quite novel.”
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