Photography: Emily Chalk.
When Rita Attwood stumbled across an old cassette tape tucked in among decades of letters, it felt like it was finally time to tell her stepdad John Court’s adoption story publicly. Rita, a documentary maker, had no idea what she would find on the tape, except that it carried the voice of John’s biological father, whom he had never met nor heard.
“I’d always wanted to tell John’s story as I knew it would resonate with so many families across Aotearoa,” says Rita, 49, who first met her now-stepdad when she was seven years old.
“To us, he was this mysterious man driving a really loud Corvette Stingray, always wearing black shorts and a singlet, taking Mum out.”
It wasn’t long before John (Ngāti Kaputuhi) became another steady, loving presence in Rita’s life, alongside her own dad Wal.
“I am extremely lucky to have two dads and an abundance of fatherly love,” smiles Rita.
A story waiting to be told
In the years that followed, as she built a career telling other people’s stories through her films, John’s own history as a baby adopted in the wake of World War II played at the back of her mind. In 2025, the timing was finally right. Rita set about finding out as much as she could about John’s life, recording everything for the newly released RNZ podcast The Sound of My Father.
John’s story begins when his birth mum Jean fell in love with Don, an American marine stationed in New Zealand during the war. Born in 1945, John was adopted by Hilda and Jack Court. Raised with unconditional love, Rita says John felt so secure, he barely reacted when told he was adopted at around 13.
“In his own words, he said, ‘Okay, I have to go outside and play’, and went out. It didn’t have a lot of impact,” explains Rita.
Finding his birth family
When he was in his thirties, John, now 80, found out Jean was his birth mum and connected with her. Don lived in the US and passed away in 1983 never meeting his son. In 1995, Jean died and John inherited a purse of letters. Unbeknownst to John, Don had been writing to Jean for 30 years and wanted to know his son. Deep in the purse was also a cassette, which John was unaware of until Rita discovered it.
“When I showed him, he was shocked,” recalls Rita.
“He’d never seen it before and never heard Don’s voice.”
With his blessing, Rita listened to it, even though she was worried about opening a Pandora’s box.
Listening to the past unfold
“I was very surprised about what was on it,” tells Rita, who plays the tape for John in the last episode.
At its heart, she says, the podcast is a deeply personal story of identity, belonging and love. But it’s also much bigger than one man.
“So many whānau hold a secret like this – the children so many women, of previous generations, were forced to give up because of the stigma attached to being an unmarried mother.”
A history shaped by immigration law
While talking to historians for the podcast, Rita learned of the strict laws preventing wāhine Māori like Jean from moving to America.
“At the time, immigration depended on being legally classified as ‘white’ under United States law,” she explains.
“For a wahine Māori and a US serviceman, their future was never theirs to decide.”
Meeting the wider family
Last year, Rita travelled to the US to meet Don’s other children, Geneva and Ron. She says while there was heartbreak and pain, there were also moments of complete joy listening to them talk about Don and recognising the ways he was similar to John.
Back home in Aotearoa, she sat with Jean’s extended whānau, hearing stories about John’s grandparents.
“Being able to tell John about that was beautiful,” Rita reflects.
Looking beyond certainty
For a man who had always seemed certain of who he was, Rita began to see a quieter truth.
“John would always say, ‘I know who I am, I know where I come from.’ He is a secure, proud man, but he also allowed me to see a more vulnerable side – the side that wanted to know more.”
Used to being behind the camera, it was a shift for Rita to find herself an integral part of the story in her first podcast, which she produced with her close friend and co-founder of production company Riot Works, Joanna Woolcott, in collaboration with RNZ.
Carrying the weight of the story
“It feels so huge,” admits Rita.
“I wanted to do justice to the story and honour everyone involved, and also help John feel the full sense of belonging, of where he comes from.”
In the end, it was better than she ever hoped for.
Rita enthuses, “To feel I’d walked alongside him on this journey was incredibly special.”
The Sound of My Father is available now at rnz.co.nz/podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
