A Yank in Australia

Two journalists in New York, American Headlines Haggerty (Al Thomas) and Englishman Clarence Worthington (Hartney Arthur) are sent to cover the war in the South Pacific. They get marooned on the Australian coast along with two rival female reporters after a Japanese submarine sinks their boat. They are rescued by a girl who lives on the island with her father, Horace. Together they uncover and stop a plot by the Japanese to invade Australia.

• Al Thomas as Headlines Haggerty
• Hartney Arthur as Clarence Worthington
• Kitty Bluett as Clara Matthews
• Jane Conolly as Dolly
• Graham Wicker as Horace
• Alfred J. Goulding as a Japanese spy
• Joy Nichols
• Frank Bradley
• Marie La Varre

The film was made by Austral-American Productions.^[4] The chief backer of this was Sydney stockbroker Gordon Wharton, who formed a syndicate and raised £3,000 to make the film. This amount proved insufficient and Wharton claimed he provided the remaining £1,500 needed himself. (A similar shortfall happened on his next film, Red Sky at Morning).^[2]

Australian born Alf Goulding had built a significant career as a director in Hollywood, but had returned to Australia due to US visa regulations.^[5] He had directed several documentaries with the title Australia Marches On and was linked with several proposed film projects.^[6][7]

Filming started by May 1942.^[8] The film was shot at the Commonwealth Film Laboratory studios in Sydney, with exteriors at Taronga Park Zoo. Several of the cast were established radio performers.^[9]