TV Guide (December 04, 1953)

Advertisement telephone switchboard, with a lever on top to control the speed and switches to stop, start and reverse. The script can be turned back during rehearsals and changes either written in directly on the paper or pasted in typed strips over the lines to be changed. Arthur Godfrey, who makes no bones about using the Teleprompter, and has even let his viewers in on how it works, uses it with consum¬ mate art. It’s impossible to tell when he’s ad libbing or to catch him in the act of reading from the prompter. Aid To Newscasters The Teleprompter has proved espe¬ cially valuable to newscasters. They need no longer just sit at a desk and read from notes. They can move around freely and refer to maps and globes or other props. One newscaster who does not want it known that he uses a prompter, says his rating went up as soon as he did. Most of the first 10 shows, rating- wise, employ Teleprompters. Not many of the dramatic shows are using them yet, since some actors object. Dragnet, the dramatic show with the highest rating, uses Teleprompters despite being filmed, and its producer reports a 50 percent drop in rehearsal time and expense. Big Business Too Teleprompter is an actor’s brain child. Fred Barton, then in the cast of “Mr. Roberts” on Broadway, real¬ ized what actors would be up against trying to learn their parts for quickie TV productions. He tried to peddle the idea for an automatic electrically controlled prompter for a year, but got no takers. He finally interested two 20th Century-Fox executives, Irving Kahn and Hubert J. Schlafly. It took them three years to perfect the device, which had its public un¬ veiling at the 1952 political conven¬ tions. The publicity this created was such an impetus that the company they formed can scarcely meet the demand for prompters. Originally devised for television, the Teleprompter is now being used widely by industrial and business concerns. WIN! A FREE TRIP TO PARIS Jpl enter NBC-TV’s A A "Girl of Today” Contest A ten-day vacation in Paris for two! A Molly Pamis wardrobe! A five-day holiday in New York! An NBC Television audition and personal appearance with Dave Garro- way on the NBC-TV program TODAY! All these exciting things may happen to you! NBC-TV’s TODAY program is conducting a nationwide search for the GIRL OF TODAY. You may be that lucky girl. Here’s how easy it is to enter the GIRL OF TODAY contest. If you are between the ages of 18 and 35, simply fill out the entry blank below', attach a recent photograph of yourself (a snapshot will do) and send your entry to “Girl of Today,” Box # 4 , New York 36, N.Y. Judges, John Robert Powers, Dave Garro- way, Faye Emerson, Molly Parnis, and Lee Wagner of TV Guide, will select eight “final¬ ists.” They will be flown to New York by Capital Airlines to he guests of NBC for five days with all expenses paid, including sightseeing, Broadway plays, television shows and accommodations at The Savoy- Plaza hotel. The winner will be chosen for attractiveness, poise and personality. Send your photograph and entry blank To¬ day. And make it a point to watch TODAY with Dave Garroway every weekday morning from 7 to 9 on your local NBC-TV station. ENTRY BLANK —NBC-TV GIRL OF TODAY Contest NAME: £_AGE- STREET ADDRESS_e_ CITY_STATE_ On What station do you see NBC-TV's TODAY program ?_ (Send this coup and your photograph to: GIRL OF TODAY contest, Box H, New York 36, N. Y.) 19