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The Mad Hatter warns Dr. Linguistics (Dr. Frank Baxter' of the conspiracy.
ON MONDAY, January 26, at 7:30 PM ( EST), television viewers will see an ingenious plot to murder the alphabet — and indeed all language. "The Alphabet Conspiracy," produced in color and featuring live actors, animation, and filmed scientific sequences, is the latest in the Bell System Science Series of programs. In it, the conspirators (Judy, a grammar-hating school girl, the Mad Hatter, who's against language on general principles, and the Jabberwock, who speaks a language all his own) are dissuaded by Dr. Linguistics, who leads them on a tour through the science of language.
The role of Dr. Linguistics in "The Al])habet Conspiracy" is played by Dr. Frank Baxter, and Hans Conried plays the Mad Hatter. Judy is young Cheryl Callaway, and the Jabberwock is Dolores Starr. Robert Sinclair directed the program from a scrijit by Leo Salkin and Richard Hobsoii. Owen Crump was the producer.
Dr. Linguistics starts his case for language by pointing out to the three conspirators that the alphabet is only a minor target for them, because languages can and do live ■without alphabets.
From then until he clinches his case by showing them the simultaneous translations at the United Nations, he astounds them with fact after fact about language that thev never considered:
— Language is tlie spoken rather than the written word, and man has been talking for at least 70 times as many years as he has been writing.
— Babies throughout the world all have a common language, and it is only by imitating their elders that they begin to speak separate languages.
— A talking machine that actually produced (not reproduced) human speech sounds was invented in 1780.
— In the Canary Islands people talk to each other across long distances by using a whistling language.
— A chimpanzee has been taught to speak English words.
— Dialect geographers of the United States can locate a person's home by listening to only 30 words of his speech.
— Modern machines have been invented which actually are worked selectively by the voice, as the automatic digit recognizer that identifies spoken numbers and the voice typewriter that can type out some words spoken to it.
By the time Dr. Linguistics has finished with the conspirators, they not only give up their plot but even are amazed that they ever considered it in the *irst place. For language, as is pointed out at the end of the program, expresses "the needs, affections, joys, hopes, tragedy, the affirmation of faith, the
very spirit of man's deepest nature." Dr. W. Freeman Twaddell, professor of linguistics at Brown University, served as principal advisor on the production of "The Alphabet Conspiracy. " Ralph Potter, retired director of transmission research of Bell Laboratories was associate advisor, and Dr. Harry Hoijer, professor of anthropology at UCLA, was consultant.
The Bell System created this series of programs to combat the widely found public apathy toward
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EdScreen & AV Guide — January, 1959