John Button

John Norman Button (born June 30, 1933 in Ballarat , Victoria , † April 8, 2008 in Melbourne , Victoria) was an Australian lawyer and politician of the Australian Labor Party (ALP).

From 1974 to 1993 Button was a member of the Australian Senate . From March 11, 1983 to March 24, 1993 - during the Labor administrations of Bob Hawke (March 1983 to December 1991) and Paul Keating (December 1991 to March 1993) - he was Minister for Industry and Commerce ) or Minister for Industry, Technology and Commerce .

Life

John Button was born in Ballarat, an approx. City of 86,000 inhabitants 110 km northwest of Melbourne. Button's father, Norman Button, had immigrated to Sydney from London , England, studied at Sydney University , and became a clergyman in the Australian Presbyterian Church. He later rose to serve as chairman of the Victoria Quorum. In 1924 he married Dorothy Grubb, whose ancestors had immigrated to Australia from England. Norman and Dorothy Button settled in Ballarat, where John Button and his two sisters were born.

John Button first went to Ballarat College before winning a scholarship and from 1946 to 1950 at Geelong College in Newtown, a suburb of Geelong. Here Button's passion for the Geelong Football Club ( " Geelong Cats " ) awoke , a fascination that remained with him until his death. He successfully graduated from college, was again able to obtain a scholarship and studied law and art at the University of Melbourne . In 1955 he graduated in both subjects (Law and Arts).

After completing his studies, he first went to Europe for a few years; he lived in England and Italy. After returning to Australia in 1959, he joined the renowned Melbourne law firm Maurice Blackburn & Co, which specializes in labor law. He stayed with this law firm, became a senior partner and only left it when he was elected to the Senate in 1974 for the Australian Labor Party (ALP), which he had already joined in 1952.

Private

In 1960 John Button married Marj, whom he had already met during his studies and met again later. The couple had three sons - James, David and Nick. David died of a drug overdose in 1982 at the age of 19. After his marriage to Marj was divorced, Button married actress Dorothy O'Neil in 1985. The second marriage ended in divorce in 2003. For the following years, John Button lived with his new partner, Joan Grant.

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personal data
SURNAME	Button, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Button, John Norman (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Australian lawyer and politician (ALP)
DATE OF BIRTH	June 30, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH	Ballarat
DATE OF DEATH	April 8, 2008
Place of death	Melbourne