Cream suits were in when Wayne Buttner started as a cadet at the Bendigo Advertiser in 1973.
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The 16-year-old, ready to dive into the glamour of journalism, wore one to impress on an early shift.
"I remember the editor saying to me, 'I think you better go home and change before you start work'," Mr Buttner said.
It was dirty, filthy work: Mr Buttner spent a lot of time making tea, coffees, running out the back to rip copy off the Telex machine.
"It was very, very different time," he said.
"But I have really fond memories of it as a fantastic place to work."
Mr Buttner was walking home one night when he saw a streaker run down Hargreaves Mall and splash into the Alexandra Fountain. The young cadet thought it was fantastic.
His editor let him write a few paragraphs and put it in the paper. It was Mr Buttner's first ever story.
Mr Buttner had come a long way since streakers, tea and Telex. In the four decades since, he had gone on to manage the Geelong Advertiser and judge at the Walkley Awards.
Now, his service to print media has earned him an Order of Australia (OAM) medal, Mr Buttner receiving the honour on January 26, 2024.
"Regional newspapers play such an important part in their community and it was a privilege to start my career in Bendigo and finish it more than four decades later in Geelong," he said.
'Unique' relationship between paper and city
Bendigo was a different city when he started at the Addy, Mr Buttner said.
The town was still sport obsessed but the community was smaller. The only real place you could shop was around Hargreaves Mall, but the early stages of development had started to pop up at the city's fringes.
While the Bendigo Advertiser had evolved with the city, he said the "unique" relationship between a regional town and its newspaper remained critical.
"While the media landscape has changed dramatically as it has moved to a digital platform, it continues to play a critical role in bringing communities together," Mr Buttner said.
"Media and the community share a unique relationship in helping ensure the best outcomes for our regional cities and their residents."
