Variety (Dec 1942)

80 RADIO REVIEWS Wednesday, December 30, 1942 Coca-Cola s Xmas Day Airing of 43 Bands in 12 Hours Very Smooth Job By BERNIE WOODS Coca-Cola's Xmas Day band mar- athon went off without a beat being missed. Listeners to this program at various times during the day must have enjoyed the constant stream of dance music from various Army. Navy and Marine bases, but none could have appreciated the tremen- dous job of coordination entailed in its presentation. All told there were 43 different orchestras involved, from that many different parts of the country, and the whole thing went as smoothly as glass. There was only one anxious period, when the producers in N. Y. scrambled to ready a studio orches- tra to take the place of Louis Arm- strong, scheduled to come in from' Columbus. Ga. Armstrong w;-s mak- ing a jump from Augusta to the orig- ination point, and he arrived only 15-minutcs before going on. All the others were ready and waiting. Program started at noon, with Raymond Paige's 25-piece band and glee club from N. Y. In this initial half-hour Army, Navy and Govern- ment brass hats spoke their appre- ciation in behalf of the men to be entertained. Men, however, showed their appreciation their own way. Frequently they came near blowing the tubes on receivers before moni- tors arrested the explosive applause. Sammy Kaye picked up for the pop bands and Tommy Dorsey finished oft at midnight from the West Coast. It's difficult to point out the best segments of the series for the simple reason that all periods werent heard: no one could listen to 12 hours of melody and stay clear of a straitjacket. But of the 12-15 periods heard, Dick Jurgens, from Chicago, rated the nod. Gene Krupa, from California, in late afternoon, also contributed a notable shot. ALLAN MILLER IN AS CLEAR CHANNEL HEAD Washington, Dec. 29. Allan B. Miller has been named director of the Clear Channel Broad- casting Service to succeed Victor Sholis, who was inducted into the Army two weeks ago. Miller has been assistant director of the or- ganization since February, 1941 when he left the Department of Commerce, where he was chief of the current information division. The new director was formerly as gociated with the International News Strvice in Washington and New York and was on the staff of the Washington Times. He is a mem ber of the District of Columbia bar •SNOW VILLAGE' a t: Parke.- Fennelly, Arthur Allen. Margaret Fuller, Agnes Jean McCoy, House Jameson, Ed Herllby, BUI Meeder Writer: William Ford Manley nlrector: Harold McGce i: MIns. r.:OCTER 4 GAMBLE Mon.-Frl., 11:30 a.m. W aF-NBC, New York (Compton) William Ford Manley's character comedy series, which he at one time wrote with Henry Fisk Carlton and which has a history going back 10 years or so as an evening half-hour, returned Monday (28) as a 15-minute daytime serial for Procter & Gam- ble. Formerly (.'.lied 'Snow Village Sketches' and 'Soconyland Sketches.' il's now titled just 'Snow Village.' It replaces 'Against the Storm,' but carries the P. Sc G. laundry soap commercials. Harold McGee, who directed it before, is back at the same assignment, and Parker Fen- nelly and Arthur Allen again play the wry Yankee friends and rivals. Manley. Fennelly and Allen get weekly air-credit. On the basis of the initial episode. •Snow Village" is far above daytime average for authentic character, lo- cal flavor and literate quality. Man- lev is a New Hampshire resident and he has admirably captured the keen, dry, kindly humor of that lo- cale and its people. His story promises to be more a string of anecdotes than the normal kind of daytime serial 'plot.' The horse-deal incident of the opening installment was genuine Yankee stuff, and of course it was superlatively played by Fennelly and Allen. Bill Meed- er's organ cues were a distinct asset and McGee direction was unobtru- sively deft. It remains to be seen, however, whether 'Snow Village" can get across as a daytimer. With the ex- ception of 'Vic and Sade,' 'Lorenzo Jones' and possibly 'The Goldbergs," comedy has generally proved too elusive for housewife dialers. No matter how the psychologists may frown, femme listeners have gener- ally preferred to suffer with 'Lonely Women on Honeymoon Hill" or ■Joyce Jordan Can Be Beautiful' than be intellectually improved by anything the survey-takers can rec- ommend. 'Snow Village" is an ex- cellent show. But the C.A.B.-queried housekeeper may prefer emotional hokum. As it has done in the fairly recent past, Procter & Gamble bordered on questionable ethics in the presenta- tion of its dramatized commercial. A farmer"s wife character in the opening blurb was obviously intend- ed to seem the real thing. Not until the sign-off was it stated that the part was played by a professional actor. Even then the layman listen- er might easily have missed the an- nouncement, or assumed the state- ment referred to a character in the regular script. Hobe. John Eugene Hasty I'rognoslirates 'What to Expect on tl in 1943" ■in Adilctl Friilurc In *Show Business At War* theme of the 37l/i Anniversary ISumbvr of From the Production Centres l/V ISEW YORK CITY . . . The Radio Trade Is Discussing: Albert Lasker's retirement and (lie Lord & Tlioinas emergence as Foote, Cone & Beldhig.. .HoU\iwood's nix of radio appearances by its stars...The OWl's plan of selecting programs for network presentation on donated time. 'COMMAND PEBFOBMANCE' Bob Hope, Elmer Davis, Andrews Sisters, Red Skelton, Harriet Hll- llard. Spike Jones, Al Newman, GInny Simms, BIng Crosby, Chari- oteers, Ethel Waters, Edgar Ber- gen, Charles Laughton, Kay Kyser, Dinah Shore, Jack Benny Allen. Variety 60 MIns. Thursday. 11 p.m. All Networks. The War Department on Christmas Eve (24) gave domestic listeners their first tune-in on a series that had been going out to our armed service by shortwave for 43 consecu- tive weeks. The purpose of this special occasion, as Elmer Davis. Office of War Information chief, ex- pressed it in a foreword to the broadca.st. was to forge for that eve- ning a link between the servicemen abroad and the folks on the home front. A recorded version of the show was shortwaved the next day to all points of the compass. What couid nave been one of the finest programs of its kind was marred by the off-beat performance of Jack Benny and Fred Allen, who functioned as a team and who ma^e the sole contribution to the program out of New York. The bill was other- wise strictly a Hollywood affair. The letdown on the New York end was due to material that just didn't jell and the inclusion of a song that was neither funny nor intelligible. Benny and Allen sounded as though they were working entirely off-the-elbow. Earlier in the broadcast, Bing Crosby cracked to Bob Hope that if anybody laid an egg on this event he would have an international omelet. The New York end of the bill might have been so tickled by the latter obser- vation that it was spurred to ex- periment. The entertainment setup from Hollywood was astutely laid ouli and the outcome was a sparkling { variety show. Hope m.c.'d besides tossing off a monolog and crossflring with Crosby. Red Skelton did a Christmas morning routine, with himself as the boy and Harriet Hil- llard as the mother, and it all flowed with pleasant whimsy and infectious comedy. Charles Laughton was braced with Edgar Bergen and their stuff fitted into the occasion per- fectly. The vocal department was uniformly tops, what with Ginny Simms. the Andrews Sisters, Crosby. Ethel Waters and Dinah Shore as the participants. A special treat In this same de- partment was the version of 'Basin Blues' that came out of the tonsil partnership of Crosby and the Chari- oteers. Kay Kyser and his troupe en- dowed 'Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" with plenty of melodic vigor, while the Spike Jones novelty band added just the right pinch of condiment with its treatment of 'Jingle Bells.' Al Goodman's orches tral guidance gave the whole Holly Alan Hewitt succeeded Santos Ortega in the title part in 'Bulldog Drum- I mond'... .Paul Stewart back from Hollywood film stint and again direct- ! ing 'News From Home' for the OWI shortwave. Connie Ernst, who was subbing, is now in the French .section Pall Mall starts its IS-minute expansion of the Gracie Fields show Jan. 11 John Lageman, foreign special events man for the OWI, now in North Africa... .Radio Directors Guild has circularized the ad agencies with list of members and the shows they handle. It includes nearly all the biggest commercials... .Bill Alland, formerly assistant to John Houseman at the OWI shortwave production department, into the Army Air Forces... .Bill Monroe, who writes 'Scram- ble' on the Blue network, a voluntary (gratis) production assistant for the War Manpower Commission... .New York local of AFRA met last night (Tuesday) at the Astor hotel to okay the revised sustaining code ....Albert W. Hammond, assistant production manager of the Compton Pfjj I agency, resigned last week to join the Army... .Compton agency acquires the Kelly-Springfield tire account, effective Feb. 1 Lucille Fletcher added to the writing staff for 'Celling Unlimited," the Orson Welles series for Lockheed. John Tucker Battle joined scrip(ing staff for "Hello, Amer- icans," the Welles sustainer Sunday nights on CBS for the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs Chick Doty, of Blue network - national spot sales staff, commissioned lieutenant (jg) in the Navy... .Sandra Michael, co-author of 'Against the Storm' and 'Lone Journey," ill with a cold.... Larry Hammond, War Manpower Commission radio head, still hobbling about on a cane as result of a train mishap... .Frank Shinn, formerly staff director of the Blue network, graduated from officers' training school and commissioned first lieutenant. He's stationed in Arlington... .After quit- ing the Squibb program to join the Merchant Marine, Frank Parker was turned down....Mrs. Edward Klauber, wife of the ex-v.p. of CBS, ailing. Dick Gilbert, WHN's singing disc jockey, emcced the Christmas Party show of the First Army, held at the Fort Jay theatre on Governor's Island. N. Y., last Wednesday (23) night, which was attended by numerous high-ranking officers, including Lt. Gen. Hugh A. Drum, commander of the First Corps Area. Lois January, WABC's Reveille Girl. Adele Lam- bert, Tommy Williams" Commando Trio, the Post Glee Club, and several acts by enlisted men completed the entertainment. IN CHICAGO ^ make every second count to win the war, to hold the peace ...» forevermore. Murlin Jacobson, announcer of WCFL's 'Music Lover's Hour," has been inducted into the Army and has been succeeded on the program by Nor- man Pierson Nikki Kaye, who appears with her husband. Hal Tate, on a weekly variety show over WCFL, is authoress of a radio story called ;New Year's Greetings" in current issue of 'She' magazine Barbara Luddy. co-slar on the 'First Nighter' program, spent the holiday week in Baltimore with her Coastguardsman husband, Ned LcFcvre.... Aidan Fitz- Patrick, formerly with WSM, Nashville, and Don Cordon. Chicago free- lance announcer, have joined the NBC Central Division announcing staff ....Soon after first of year the Hoosier Hot Shots, heard on the National Barn Dance, will leave for Hollywood to appear in another picture for Republic. IN HOLLYWOOD . . . 'One Man's Family' got another option lift, which has been pretty much of a habit since 1932, when it first ventured out on NBC and was collared by Standard Brands. Original members of the cast still around are J. Anthony Smythe, Minetta Allen, Michael Raffetto. Bernice Berwin, Kath- leen Wilson and Barton Yarborough. Only pull-out was Page Gilman, now in the Army. Carlton Morse, who conceived the 'Family' idea, still writes and produces the program which has won more award.t and cita- tions than any other serial... .Audiences over the holidays at NBC studios have been restricted to uniformed men on holiday furlough. Both the network and agencies consigned their ducats to USO....Sid Strotz, NBC headman here, and Don Thornburgh, CBS ditto, caused quite a ripple of whispers through the radio booths by dining together at the Brown Derby. Both wanted to know 'what's wrong with that?'... .Phil Harris, radio's 'Mis. Malaprop," will kick around the king's English on Eddie Cantor's program Dec. 30... .Hollywood radio Is well represented on the roster of the Army flying school at Roswell, New Mexico. A few of the lads who recently put on a show included Privates Bob LeMond, Allen Bautzer, George Dvorak. Paul Masterson, Paul Langford, Frank Tessinger and George Jay. They're learning tower control. .. .For giving NBC's con- tinuity acceptance department the fewest headaches, the 'Fibber and Molly' program won a framed award by Wendell Williams, who wields the blue pencil for the network. Parchment bears- the inscription, 'hunc scriptus beefibus in blue pencilorum,' and kudoses Jim and Marian Jordan. Scripter Don Quinn and Producer Cecil Underwood... .Bill Lawrence, producer of Screen Guild Players and Dinah Shore program, gifted the network back- stage crew with bottles of vodka. Each container carried a message wood contribution a nice coating "of '""5'*"?; "'^e Russians are doing alright with this stuff, so drink hearty tuneful gloss. Odec ""t* follow their good example." :: FoUow-Dp Comment Metropolitan Auditions of the Air' temporarily abandoned its regular format Sunday (27) for a special Christmas broadcast from the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. Chi- cago, via WJZ-Blue. It was a listen- able show, combining the prestige of the Met name and singers with the sentimental tug of a service-man concert at Christmas time. Appear- ing effectively on the stanza were baritone Arthur Carron, tenor Clif- ford Harvuet. soprano Annemary Dickey, contralto Lucielle Browning and soprano Rose Bampton. Al- though he was not identified by name, it was unmistakably ex-Met tenor John Carter, now a Chief Petty Officer in the Navy, singing the solo part in the Navy Choir's performance of 'The Lord's Prayer." Why he wasn"t billed is a mystery. Al Jolson was whammo on the Stage Door Canteen Xmas eve, monopolizing the full half-hour, where formerly this show enlists a cavalcade of name talent to split It up. Again proving Jolson's prowess as a one-man-show, with Bert Lytell merely foiling and Raymond Paige (Continued on page 32)