Variety (December 1950)

WMlnegJayr December 13, 1950 UBIETY TELEVISIOX REVIEWS 39 c;Dot announcement techniques to sell Americanism via video hmv UP vividly in a new series being launched Sunday (17) via vvNBf N Y. Series comprises filmed spot announcements which rlnroduce documents from the Library of Congress that formed art of the Freedom Train collection. Taking as its motto the AmeiHcan Ilerita^e Fqundati^^^ slogan of “Freedom Is Fvery- h()clv’s Business,” the series will show, via one-minute spots in the fliithoi’s original handwriting sections of Lincoln’s Getty.sburg ad- dress and his emancipation proclamation; George Washington’s letter to tlie Hebrew congregation' at Newport, R. I.; Francis Scott kev’s script of the “Star Spangled Banner,” and a reproduction of Toil! Paine's “The Ame^^^^ I’l'oject was conceived and produced by Ted Cott, general man- nnov of WNBT. Cott produced a similar series for radio, titled. * I itilc Songs About Big Subjects,” when he was program chief of AVNIvW N. Y. Since the documents. Were barely .legible when hlbNMi UP to fit the video screen, WNBT was forced to reproduce them. Result is excellent, With stirring music to back them up ^nnd with aii unemotional narration by newscaster Kenneth Bang- bail they achieve a sut'prising dramatic impact. Such phrases as T 'liu otn s“governnieht ^ . shall not perish, from the earth” .should (U) tin especially valuable pub relations job in these times. ^ WNBT spent approximately $3,p0() in producing the series. Star tioii plans to run them as other spots^they’re to be inserted in pa r lie i pa lion shows and at station breaks daily, starting with Mrs. lUoanor Robsevelt’s program Sunday afternoon. Other NBC owned- and operated outlets will pick them up immediately afterwards; WnbT. in {iddition, will make them available for only the cost of prints - to all stations throughout the country desirihg to screen 1 lienV. Leonard Saftr scripted the harration, with the .music scored / Ivdin sound tracks compiled from NBC’s news department. Staid GABBY HAYES SHOW With Hayes as narrator Writer: Hayes Producer-director: Martin Stone 15 Mins.; Mon.-Wed.-Fri., 5:15 p.m. QUAKER OATS NBC-TV, from New York {Sherman,. Marquette) BIGELOW THEATRE (‘The Sum of Seven’) With Victor Jory, RoHand Morris, Robin Hughes^ Annabelle Shaw,! Bill Murphy, others ! Writers; Robert Meade, Sheldon Osborne Director: Frank Woodruff , ^ , , „ , . 30 Mins.; Sun., 6 p.m. Gabby Hayes new three-time j bjqhjloW-SANF.ORD CARPETS weekly. 15-minute show Quaker ngjc.Ty from n Y Oats on NBC-TV* is simplicity (Young & Ritbicam) Itself. The ex-Hollywood hoss' opera star merely dons some “Bigelow Theatre,” new half- THE FIRST HUNDRED YEARS/ With Olive Stacey, Jimmy Lydon, Nana' Bryant, Robert Armistrong, Nancy Malone, Valerie Cossart# Dan Tobin; Cy Harrice, aHg- noiincer; Clark Morgan, organist Producer: Hoyt Allen Director: Everett Gammon . Writer: Jean Holloway 15 Mins.; Mon.-Fri., 2:30 p.m. PROCTER & GAMBLE CBS-TV, from New York (Benton & Bowles^ som-dou«irat«re‘%tandrTn front hour 'dramatic series via CBS,TV,! Whether the AM daytime stand- of sS studio cact" and spin! Sot away to a promising start Sun-: by. the. soaper, will ever be able tales of the great outdoors in his j its niche in video has. long liiniilflr twanc? . i pLObl 0 lTl in. COII0S6 clclSSlOOni dO“ icuuuai Plains twang. , icorum, “The Sum For Monday s (XI) pre^em, Hayes j Qf geyejp| » ^yj^g l3yiH aj;.ound seven recounted 1 students who were suspected ofiip the time, and attention to ^ ranger and some mighty tough I pm^ipining the questions to an all- ! visual strip? Will production costs hombres” who wanted ^ to -steal important examination out of the be prohibitive? How will the cast-^ . some land. His tale-spinnmg is I 1 ers learn their lines? Will, TV been a poser plaguing the indus- tiy. It entails many sub-questions: Will the hausfrau be able to give a limited to a couple of sentences to lead up to a filmed sequence. Clip on the inaugural was replete Fact that the t^st paper was; washboard Weepers replace per- stolen had little significance in it- ] formers w ho drop out . as easily as self, but the reactions among the I in radio? with hard ridin , fisticuffs and seven when their chances of grad- While all these ci u e s ti o n s general rough n tumble. uatiou began to fade made for in- haven’t been answered yet, “The Program makes the most of a I tercsting viewing.' Kiugpin of the | Hundred Years” proves that slim budget, for Hayes has £( fol- i story was Victor Jory, a teacher of j the davtimC serial can make the H NIOR TALENT TIME With Danny Webb; announcer. Bud Palmer; guests PrOdikers; Les Perry and Nat I.orinan Dircotor: Pete Molhar Writer: Ed Raitncr SO Alins.; Sat., 2 p.mi BlvPllBLIC TV-RGA VICTOR WPIX, N. Y. / {Product Sermccs Group) Another show spotlighting ybuth- I nl t a l ent, this new WPIX entry' ivii. a neat pace on its initialer SaliH'tlay (91 with. an entertaining a.'^sortinent of acts.. Kids, show- cased on the preem show, varied from being just cute, to showing pro potentialties. Chosen from i\. V. public and private schopls via teacher reebmmendatiohs, juvi's range from elementary to iii.i^h sellGol age. Format plays up the fael that youths spotted on the show also rate high scholastically. Each of the kids spotted on the DINNER AT THE SHERATON BELVEDERE With Lynn Swann, Donald Kirk- ley, Colleen Swarts, JVIary Spots- wood Wairren producer- Writers: Bill, Howell, Lynn Swann 30 Mins.; Wed., 7 p.tti. Participating WMAR-TV, Baltimore (Hanrahan Co.) A potent remote from the lowing among the juyehilb set and the ^how is beamed at an ex- I cellent time to bag the aetion devotees. Commercials for Quaker i Puffed Wheat and Puffed Rice are • enti rely handled by Hayes. But ' it seemed rather incbnguoius for I the bewhiskered actor to be regal- j ing the kids on a breakfast food. His frontier persoftality is more '. suited for a chewing tobacco; Gilb. CHEF’S CLUB With Dean Jennings, guest« Producer: Carol Levene Director: Forrester Mashbir 15 Mins., Thurs., 9 p.rii. CRESTA BLANCA WINE English literature. He interpreted his role with sympathy and under- standing. Balance of the cast was composed of youthful players who typified the average college stu- dent.;.\,, ■ Bigelow initialer was filmed by the Jerry Fairbanks Multi-Cam process which picks up tjie studio action on several cameras. Direc- transition to tele. The produetjon given it oh its initial v\’;eek (4-8) was ambitious and itechnically ex- cellent. Thespers . revealed no hesitation with their lines, due to their having gone through the .five shows on closed .circuit the previ- ous week and to the aid of the Tele- prompter. If they occasionally glanced at this meihory-jogging tor can edit the picture as he goes performers never, be- along merely by cutting from one ; tj.aycd the fact. t 0 iTi shows up clcsror (hdn & kin0 ^houiri latGli oii to si siz-* scope, but falls somewhat short of' siioiuu latcn on to a siz measuring up to the fidelity and sharpness of a live studio program. Gilb. KPIX, San Francisco All of the basic essentials of a swanky John Eager Howard Din-[ solid TV show are present in this ing Room bf the Sheraton Bet- a genja*. plus a guest formula designed to ,provide the viewer with a residue of data as well as a passing ac- vedere during dinner hour this half-hour show is smartly handled from its technical pickup to an actual showing of products by four participating sponsors. A novel twist and atmospheric plus is the dressing bf the floor director and two camera men in white tie and tails. Lynn Swann handled the gen- eral commentary, introducing Col- leen Swarts for fashidn chatter quaintance with celebrities, quon- dam and otherwise. Much pf the effectiveness of the verbal arhbrosia dispensed, hinges on the impact of the personalities and information highlighted. The show caught indicated mixed values in this respect, ranging from the sprightly to the dull, with a marked over-emphasis on pi-ogrnni is introed Via a short dis-1 backing up models parading gowns commercial content in particular a between emcee Haimy | for two of the tab payers 1 * 4 -Iya Cl rllO T ai _ _ _y 1 i*- cussion Webb and the teacher responsible for his or her appearance. Talent lineup on opener includ- ed an aero turn, an accordionist, a couple of moppets doing a tap rnutine, and a few song bits. Gin- ger Pogos’ aero stand was of a high calibre, while Patti Parks and her brother Stanley did .an amus-. ing tap-vocal duet on “Dearie.” Boy was decked out in a Gay 90's oiilfit. while gal wore a ballerina en.semble. Two girls, Eileen Lex and Dianne Blum, both of kinder- garten age, teamed for a tap rou^ tine that was highlighted by their minute stature. Tony Grasso did an okay selling job on “Chatta- noogie Shoe Shine Boy,” while Carol Marsh vocalled “Stay With the Happy People” and Delcenia Boyd did a ballet number. An ac- eoi'dion bit Was also. oflered by Ralph Sazano. Simultaneous hlugs for Republic TV stores and RCA Victor video sets were competently handled by Bud Palmer. Show is packaged by Product Services Group. Gros. and Mary Spottswood Warren for room and hotel backgrounding. Donald Kirkley, drama * and film critic for the Baltimore Sun, wrings in more patter with a visit- ing celeb and a brief moment of table hopping concludes the setup. Two other sponsors are a silver- ware firm and an interior director. Nature of participating mer- chandising ties in to tone of room with emphasis on class predomi- nating and held up throughout. Blurbing is held in bounds and it all adds up to pleasing entertain- ment. Bunn. CAPT. GLENN’S CHRISTMAS bandwagon With Glenn Rowell, Jack Felice, guests 3 hrs,, SaL (9); 2:30 p.m/ Producer: Felice Director: Albert G. Hariigan Su.stiiiniuff . WPIX N. Y. U.sually spotted over WPlX, ■N. NORMAN ROSS VARIETIES Producer: George Heinemann Director: Bill Falls 30 Mins.; Mon.-thru-Fri., 11:30 a m. Sustaining WNBQ, Chicago Problem of how to fill the so- called fringe hours with low-budg- et tele offerings, has lead to a variety of attempted solutions. Latest is WNBQ’s opening morning show, which is made up of SoOndies, brief musical films made originally for coin machine dis- tribution and now being resur- rected for video. Sitting in as a; ^it of. a fjhn | pwpnn|Tp|j,-pj jockey is Norman Ross, ■ who has ^ PICTURE PLAJJ^*^^ been a housewife favorite for many iIV*ih Steve Dunne _ _ as a record sninner and i Froducer-director: Bob Quinlan glaring handicap. The 15-minute stanza teed off in a kitchen setting with Hearst columnist Herb Caen (S. F. Ex- aminer), rigged up in chef’s trap- pings, whipping up a Zabaglione while chattering with emcee Dean Jennings. This item, which has major recipe appeal to viewers, suffered regrettable eclipse due to prevailing banter and was too- quickly succeeded by a moveover to a table-for-four set for Jennings, Caen and Norma and Jeriy Bund- sen, the latter Caen’s news majqr- domo and handyman. Conver.sa- tion in this seSh gravitated be- tween eager-beaverness of Jen- nings to give sponsors more than their dollar’s worth of wine- plugging and once-over-lightly interview of Caen’s technique in column writing, which latter was of interest, though abbreviated. Jennings conducts his part of the seance with deftness, though ob- viously hard-pressed to evolve a show of inipact in the limited time alloted and with commitments necessary. Caen and Bundsen are more effective in their natural ele- ment as newshawks than as en- tertainers. Significance of guest Norma Bundsen in stance is essen- tially that of femme window trimming. Ted. ROLL-IN With Rob Stone, Jerry Coyle, ' others- . ' '.J 60 Mins.; Mon.4hru-Fri.; 1:45 p.m. Participating WRGB-TV, Schenectady New catch-all program is appar- ently part of an unfolding plan by this GeneralrElectric-owned station to: roll back the starting hour of daytime television. Long, slo”' and loose-knit, on the basis of the two blocks viewed it would be im- measurably improved if cut to 30 minutes. Bob Stone, veteran WRGB pro- ducer and former WGY staffer, acts as emcee,-Jerry Coyle, another WGY alumnus and commercial man on several WRGB features, is a conferee, vocalist and news- caster. Two WRGB artists, Jim Fisk and Charles McGarrahan, illustrated popular songs and operatic arias cui shows caught, appearing separately. Interviews completed the program, plus a live commercial (for tvomen’s slips) and a cartopried one (for an auto- mobile). Individual segments of both shows held interest, but the com- bination on neither jelled. Stone worked most of the time on a settee, in front of a curtain. Coyle sat with him for the chitchat, but stood for the vocals. Artists sketched on easels to the left. Interviewees joined Stone in the center. He is a mature-appear- ing chap, with a clear but slightly high and definitely metallic voice —not too ear-easy for ah hour period. Manner is friendly; at times, mildly kidding. Best interview — because the timeliest and most vivid—was with J. H. (Jake) Van Aernani, director of advertising-publicity for the eastern division of Iviohawk-Niag- ara Hudson Power Corp. and a frequent WGY broadcaster. He discussed the rCcent gale (which gabber on WNH^sNBC sister AM p.m. station, WMAQ. It’s Ross’ casual, i Participating able audience. Behtort & Bowles agency is experienced in the AM soaper field (one of the most com- pletely researched faicets of pro- gramming) and Jean Holloway, who’s scripting, is a top writer. . They’ve teamed on a stanza that apparently will eschew the tor- tured travails of the masochistic weeper in favor of a light comedic vehicle which also i n c l u d e s a healthy helping of young love and sentiment. First week’s story line reprised what was done two summers back in one half-hour as an ABC radio sustainer. It told the preparations for the wedding of a young couple, their fears, their inner desire to call the whole thing off, the varied reactions of their parents and their finally saying “I do.” Like the earlier AM edition, it followed the old standbys of similar situation comedies, the riding of the groom by his single pals, the garrulous fathers, the solicitous mothers, bratty kid sister, etc. It’s these tried-and-tested for- mulas that may limit the airer's scope. The newlyweds are ideal- ized rather than typical. Their families are slickly youthful and attractive. Their home, a lush marise given by their folks, is not what the average young couple has, but what it dreams of. (Inciden- tally, the set has been built per- manently into CBS' Liederkrantz Hall studios, to reduce the produc- tion nick.) In short, the series shotild provide a dose of escapism into a pleasant storybook world. Players, all of whom did a neat job, are headed by Olive Stacey and Jimmy Lydon as the young couple, with Nana Biyant arid Robert Armstrong playirig the gal’s parents and Nancy Malone her sister. Valerie Cossart and Dan Tobin are cast as the boy’s folks. During the first week, heavy and effective use was made of flash- backs, which were smoothly lensed and provided a sense of movement. Taped soliloquys (as the yourig- sters reminisced of their courting) and split screen (as the mothers for Varying periods) and his com pany’s procedure in reestablishing power for 70R00 homes. Coyle, who screens well, tenors nicely, newscasts competently arid sells coriyiricirigly. Jaco. knocked off Albany radio stations I phoned each otKer) were nice pro- FUN FAIR Stewart Stewart ^• , . • r Viiilrari Qc n flisk 'iockCv .oro-' Phil Booth. ilu’cc-hour show tb raise funds and 1 gives it a niildly humorous wist. weekly layout has plattef 1 P**”' slot, Capt, Glenn’s Bandwagon . the pix, that l|fts the venture oiit I . ingredients was expanded Saturday (9), into a , of the strictly .mediocre; class and i ;|r*cturc . visual disk iockev nro- ' Director: Phi diiction aids. Occasionally some of, the humor seemed immature and some of the philosophizing on marriage trite. However, “Hundred Years” should be around for some time. Commer- cials, delivered by Cy HaiTice. were good, strongly touting Tide's virtues over brands A through G. . Bril. ^ put ori in cooper Hon vith sblly Joy Brown’s N. Y. Daily News Christmas Fund. Miss Brown, aecompanied by a few as- sistanls, was also on hand to issue si)ecial Certificates to Hie cbnirib- uting moppets. Show’s regular c a s t, including Capt. Glenn Rowell; Qkey Dokey, an oversized ppp playqd by Jack {"elioe, and puppets, E. Gar BCavef, Biittereup ahd Horieywell Bear ac- Hvciy participated in the proceed- ings. Among guests who showed up for the occasion were Ronald Freddie Bartholomew, Cliff A'kulele Ike” Edwards, Danny large daytime audience Which is using the tele. set for background music and chatter, iri similar fash- ion to much of daytime radio listenirig. , “Uncle Normie” could probably I draw a sizable hausfrau tele audi- ence if he merely talked through , I ducer-director Bob Quirilan. Setting himself up as a slightly confused, faltering jockey, Dunne hits the mark. His humor is dry, and the ease with which he handles his chores is Compelling. Show is built around platters co- ordinated with tailored three-min- a test Wtcirso it’s not too im- iyte pix. which tell thfe_story of each V.. \ J. a .1 ■ A......Aiof I n'lt’fi/iiiia'T ‘T’ppfirH. Brlcf, sOundlcss their age rather badly.. Ihe^Twp" artd-a-half minute films ^ selves were of okay quality but .the sound tracks were scratchy. Tunes . were of pre-war vintage, as were ancflong^^iterr*^ of the talent. Hid Cools and Johnny Marks. Show i gabber managed to turn ^t iesc i;an smoolhly, ak did Sylvia Mere-1 flaws to an a.dvaritage by comical s hanclling of the puppets, off-screen asides while fuo pix Gros. were being unreeled. pm'e. Dortant that the Soundies, at least particular record. Brief, soundh m? Urn sheproduced by Bracken are on me s .. _ ' complete arid well moulded stones, giving the platte^ show presence eritire.s gimtly, yet manages to get a good many chuckles from them. Program, howevef, would hold much • more impact. if Stewart mixed his participants, bringing on the adults as well. . Opener employed a couple of Ob- viously planted lines, which in- stantly detracted frorri interest in . a' ’ ' • V . • _Y $ 1. ^ ‘A ^ A Z . '■ MUSIC, RFD With Les Anderson, Cass'*Gounty Boys, Mary Morgan, Jaiie .. Davids ■.. Prodiicev-difector: Joe Landis 3') Mins,; Mon., 8 p.m. Sustaining KLAC^TV, Hoilywpod: This 30-minute segment is a pay- off stanza for KLAG-TV. Pro- duced and directed by Joe Landis, “Music, RFD,” stacks up as strong entertainment. Landis brought to- gether a good cast, tied it up with and hefty entertainrnent value Top cixidit goes to Quinlan, \vho tied the package together. Camera work is effective, being acutely' timed to coincide with the switch from live to film segments. Produc- tion values given brief layout are topgrade; Free. stant y detracted from ^interest in format and the show. In addition to bemg in -1 temewed, ,pves competed-for , Les Ahdersori emcees th3 show prizes and throe were^broughyn i^jj^ ^P^^^^ the top vocal are . the Cass County BgVS, Marj' Morgan and Jane Davids. Cass County Boys moved in tor three riumbe rs on preem, each of which. registered strongly. Trio vocals as well as accompanying itself with bass* iCoritinued on page 48) moulded by scripter Harfield Wee- din. - , . Stewart Works easily bringing the youngsters into the open and projects in pleasing manner him- self. Phil Booth did a nice job master-minding the camera move-1 ment. ' , • • I . • ( ’