Toddie (left) and Beezie at the Colgate International of Australia women's tennis tournament at White City in Sydney in 1977.
It's difficult to know whether it was serendipity or coincidence - or both that led to me befriending two 'elderly' American women, locked up as the infamous 'Drug Grannies' in an Australian jail. The media frenzy around them in the late '70s led to almost daily front pages in the afternoon tabloids and lead stories on TV news bulletins. It would have been hard to find anyone in Australia at the time who didn't have an opinion about the women's guilt - or innocence.
The story reached me in early 1978. It was lam, and as the late police rounds reporter at the Toronto Sun, it was my job to cast a final eye over the wires - a clattering telex machine spewing out endless typewritten text on a roll of paper with stories from around the world - to ensure we hadn't missed any breaking news: the Pope's died, the President has been shot etc. And there a story from Sydney, Australia, caught my eye.
The Grannies escorted to a court hearing in February 1978.
Two American women - Vera 'Toddie' Todd Hays, 59, and her companion Florice 'Beezie' Marie Bessire, 61 from La Pine, Oregon had just been sentenced to jail for what was then Australia's largest ever drug importation. The wire report detailed how these two women had tried to bring into Australia 1.9 tonnes of hashish. Even to the uninitiated, nearly two tonnes of anything is a lot. But who were these two women?
I ripped the telex paper from the wire machine [and] stuffed it into my pocket, and it remained with me until I departed Canada and returned to Australia in late 1978. I was intrigued: why would- or more to the point how could two elderly women be involved in such an audacious crime? There had to be more to the story.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 2022-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der June 2022-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
