Variety (December 1950)

Wednesday, December 27, 1950 P^SSiEff TELEVISION BEVIEWS 23 ‘ ^ y As its Christmas Night offering, the Procter & Gaihble-sponsored *i\fiusical Comedy Time’' on NBC- tV oll'ored an adaptation of Victor Herbert's ‘^Babes 111 Toylland/' en- dow it with a cast that included ciuh fine performers as Dennis King, Hobert Weede, Edith Fel- iowes, Gil Lamb, Dorothy Jarnac and Robert Dixon, among others. Alexander Kirkland wrote the TV version, transforming the Herbert classic of the 1929 Broadway sea- son into a 1950-vintaged musical tivat took cognizance of such cur- renl phenomena as video, Milton Berle and Hopalorig Cassidy. Practically everybody and every- thing, for that matter* was written into the book but Dagmar and Faye Emerson,- ( ho’cc of ‘Babes’V as the Yule- tide offering was understandable, bid what was. projected oyer the screen was anything but. Soine- liow the grownups couldn’t make the transition into babes in Toy- land, The fantasy was elusive and lvea\ y-hahded, the Christmas charm seldom if ever permeated and the res ti 11 a n t hodgepodge never bi’onched the light, melodic tempo of the Herbertign frolic. As Dr. Electronic, whose nuclear miiul ultimately proved no match for the creator of Toylarid, Dennis King iiad a hapless role. Even the pei'i nniaUy favorite ‘‘March of the Toys ” and “Toyland” tunes didn't come to life, ill the TV version, though the opportunities for imaginative staging were bound- loss. Dorothy Jarnac and Gil I.am 1) projected well in individual specialties; Robert Weede as the season’s portender of cheer made the one outstanding musical com tiibuUon. but the lengthy number pi iinpressive credits could have labored and brought forth some- thing more rewarding. * The names w e r e ^liXtposing enough, and so was the talent, but the comedy material used to flavor I he ingredients failed to produce the desired results Sunday night On the Bob Hope show. NBC’s “Comedy Hour” found Hope still a very funny guy, but he, too, had his lapses, through no fault of his own. When the laughs don’t come, there’s little that can be done to circumvent the void. ^ The names included Eleanor Roosevelt, Lily Pons, Robert Cum- mings and Betty Bruce for the lure-’em quality, in addition to Hope himself, Mrs. Roosevelt finaled the show with her reprise ol a Yulethne message of peace and goodwill, a message once read , .^"'Gorge Washington himself, and .while this was not entertain- incni per se, it lent the proper spiritual quality to the program, c.spcgially with its choral back- ground (St, John’s Boys Choir). MLss Pons, with a nifty produc- tion background, first did the“Bell Song ” from “Lakme,” and with inis^she socked over strongly. She made a couple of subsequent ap- pearances that were also-rans, but this was because she had little to do except foil for some inferior comedy, Robert Cummings, from films, sulterod also from scriptitis, al- I tough at times he was able to sift tiuough the W'elter of so-called comedy and point up his own per- sonality. He was in several comedy appearance, A C showing him off best, e bit, with Hope, B. iT Bergen, was especiaJly,disastrous. The way the number was written — with the macy s department store as the fulcrum—suggested that the latter sponsor. But maybe it Fi'iVi year, with II igidau;e playing Santa, too. ^ ^ dancing l ot and her taps, as always, were ^ Robert Maxwell, iidipist, likewise was clicko in his ^oio. . - . contributidh was that H i ‘^ries Sanford, the musical dll eclor, with his complex cues of music that ranged from the pops IQ the operatic. ■ ger, Cactus Jim and Ted Mack of the “Original Amateur Hour.” Just what purpose this accomplished is not clear, but it did eat. up 15 min- utes of the show. Thereafter,' the program was back on its customary format*, with comic Mickey Deems, Lauritz Mel- chior, danceivbird trainer Ross Harvey, David Niven and singer Rosemary Clooney on the roster. Deems did his bit on Sunday with the family, and registered solidly. While he’s done the same turn in theatres and niterles and on TV before, it stiU is strong, Melchior excelled in “Vesti la Giubba” and later came bdek to sing “Some Enchanted Evening,’’ doing a charming waltz with an eight-year old girl from the dance group. Niven appeared in a scene from R. C, Sherriff’s World War I play, “Journey’s End,” which, while competently done, lacked dramatic pertinence out of the complex 6f the entire play; Harvey scored in his turn with his trained Australian budgie bird.s. Stint requires a degree of audience participation in that some members of the audience are asked to hold the birds on their fingers. But the delightful quality of the act registers with home viewers too. Miss Clooney com- petently sang a couple of pops. Henry James has now provided “Philco Television Playhouse” vyUli three topflight vehicles. On Sun- day (24) the NBC-TV stanza offered a dramatization of his “The Pupil,” which was movingly staged. Story is that Of a tutor, played by John Newland, who was hired to teach a spoiled 10-year-old (Jud- son Rees). However, he quickly learned that the child’s unman- ageability stemmed from his par- ents’ failure to give him love. Be- cause he himself had been an orphan, and knew a kid’s need for affection, Newland cared for the youngster and finally he and his bride-to-be took him away with them. More important than the plot was the psychological depth which James gave his novels and which Stephen deBaun’s adaptation re- tained. The piece made an incisive indictment of parents who are more concerned with their finan- cial affaire than with tneir, chil- dren, a theme which has figured in much of James’ Works. Newland brought understanding and charm to the role of the tutor and young Rees was believable as his problem charge. Viola Roache handled the part of the callous mother well and Ann Summers clicked as the tutor’s fiancee. Because Of the Christmas Eve skedcUng, commercials were de- leted from the " intermissions and 1 the time saved was devoted to a five-minute session of carols at the end of the airer. Presumably, in kinescope cities which see the pro- gram after the Holidays, commer- cials will be restored and the carol segment dropped. V,. Sullivan . decided it' va.sn t worth competing with Bob Hope, who was on NBC-TV at the Sdine time as Sullivan’s CBS-TV loast of the Town,” or he could / '‘R enough' variety tal- out a full hour. At any late, the first 15 minutes of his inow were devoted to introducing ® ^hmber of stock video characters respite a strong talent lineup uioreaftcr, the show lacked its cus- tomary glitter and sharpness. - Mpening with Paul Jones’ danc-r ' W’oup of , youngsters 'from plamiord, Cpnii., Sullivan kept and inthidii^ed them' lo 'tfa'ptliiW'VldW,* tHe Vidftdi'Ran- ! Joey Adams bandied badinage jWith Abe Burrows and George S. 'Kaufman on “This Is Show Busi- ness’’ (CBS> and almost made it kidding-on-the-square in rebuttal and otherwise. He did an okay stint, based on his “Rate Your Mate’V quiz (also a CBS show, AM not TV). Kitty. Carlisle was the guest femme panelist. Incidentally, Clifton Fadiman has dropped his cheaters which is a good visual idea in view of the high-dome as- sists from permanent panelists Burrows and Kaufman. A performance that will be long remembm'ed by those that saw it was delivered Monday (25) night by Fay Bainter on CBS-TV’s “Lux Video Theatre.” Playing an inn- keeper’s wife in an adaptation of the late Stephen Vincent BenefS “A Child Is Born,” she endowed the role with the mystic, poetic quality that gave spirit and mean- ing to The story of Christ’s birth and all that story conveys^ Benet's tale itself, like most of his Work, has a mystic quality about it. It tells of how the inn- keeper’s wife gets the revelation of the meaning of the birth of the Child in the stable' of her Inn and how she gets that meaning across to the rest of those in the Inn. Story is set in. the cruel reign of King Herod, and the Child’s birth comes to her as a symbol of hope for freedom for all men ai)d for all thne. Miss Bainter delivered her lines as' inspirationally as the mood of the story itself. In her better m6- mehts—or superlative, since they were all good^fhey flowed like poetry. Gene? Lockhari was coni-: ►pletefly effective in'an ^antithetical (Continued on 'page fiB>'' CHRISTMAS SONG With Lois Hunt, Norman Scott, Gordon pilworth, Harold Brown, Beverly Jan^, Margery Myer, Stephen Kennedy* Joe Helgesen, Jon Silo, others Producer: Paul Rosen Director: ‘'Larry White Stager: Roger Gerry Writer: Barbara Boothe Music: Robert Russell Bennett 60 Mins.; Mon. (25), 9. p.m. Sustaining DuMont, from N. Y. ; For its special , Christmas offer- ing, DuMont trotted out this ambir tious, hour-long original produc- tion demonstrating how Christmas affects a supposedly typical Man- hattan community. But, While the musical portions were well-han- dled, the weak thesping and cliched script militated against full projec- tion of the Christmas spirit, for which; the show was supposedly aiming. Web is to be commended for staging such an apparent costly venture on a sustaining basis, but the. show just didn’t have it. Story was set in a lower-class apartment house, supposedly on the lower east side, which per- mitted for the inclusion of N. ^.’s polyglot life. Main story line had the landlord, in love with a young femme tenant, seeking to have the building torn down so he could erect a warehouse. What was more to the holiday atmosphere Was the introduction of the tenants, each of whom emigrated to the U. S. from a different Country. In pick- ing up the story of each, the show segued neatly into depicting how Christmas was Celebrated in each of their native lands. Several original songs, mostly of the dramatic shbyvtune variety, were defied for the production by Robert Russell Bennett. While none had much pop appeal, they sounded like good Broadway musi- cal prospects, In comparison, though, Rodgers - Hammerstein “Soliloquy” from “Carousel,” which was sung capably by Ste- phen Kennedy, was standout. Show was backgrounded by an attractive set, with simulated snow, showing the front of the apart- ment building. Cast sang much better than they acted. Production and camera work were adequate. Stal. FAMILY CHRISTMAS With Burl Ives, Margaret Johnson, David Anderson Writer: AI Crews Producer; Rudy Bretz Director: Crews 30 Mins.; Mon., 9:30 p.m. Sustaining ABC-TV, from New York Hrotestant Radio Commission, in cooperation with ABC-TV, turned out a fine Yuletide program in “Family Christmas” which the net aired Monday (25). Kingpin of the informal session was Burl Ives, who presided over a family gatbering around a living room tree. 'The pipe-smoking balladeer set the holiday mood with impromptu songs in verse and led family mem- bers in Christmas carols around a piano. Atmosphere of “Family Christ- mas” was informal, but with a quiet dignity that typified many similar scenes in other American homes. High point of the stanza w'as Ives’ explanation of the Bibli- cal and contemporary significance of Christmas to his 10-year-old son. He re-told the story of the Nativity and drew a parallel from the troubled times when Christ was born to our o\^)n uncertain period of the present. Tauchiiig on the Communist menace, Ives counselled his off- spring that we’re not mad at the Russians—only their government. “We mustn’t hate people,” he add- ed, “forwhen w'e have good will in our hearts toward people and they have good will to us, then we will have peace.” Withal, “Family Christmas” ranked high among holiday special shows, for it related the story of the birth of Christ and its relation to the present era in terms that children could readily understand; Gilb. ■ - i' I. I' UNCLE MILTY’S CHRISTMAS PARTY With .Milton Berle, Lauritz Mel- chior, Maxellos. Martin Bros.* Martha Rayc, Trixie, Gaudsmitli Bros,, Delage Sc Shirley, James Little, Manuel Sc Marita Perez, Al Goodman orch Producer: Irving Gray Director:’ Arthur Knorr Writers: Hal Collins, Jay Burton, Bobby Gordon, Buddy Arnold. Woody Kling 60 Mins., Mon. (25), 3 p*m. Participating NBC, from N. Y. • (Ki(*'Swcttery Milton Berle put on a special fUll-hour variety show I'dr kids Christmas Day (25). afternoon, and bfecause the acts were shrewdly chosen for kid appeal,- and breezily paced,' the airer came off well. There was-a good^ informal quality *l(C0iit1liueabbltegte 29) ’’ ’• HANSEL AND GRETEL With* David Lloyd, VirginiaHas- kins, Claramae Turner., Frances . Lehnerts, Paul Ukena, Michael Splvak Director: Charles Polacheck Producer: Samuel. Chotrinoff 60 Mins.; Mon. (25), 2 p.m. Sustaining NBC-TV, from N. Y. Humperdinck’s opera, “Hansel and Gretel;” was trimmed into an engaging 60-minute Christmas afternoon video offering for juves and adults .alike. Based. on an English translation by ’Townsend Brewster, this holiday opera was imaginatively .staged within the limitations of. the video screen while fully utilizing the technical flexibility of the TV cameras. This . production was cleverly presented as a fairy’ tale with music. While Humperdinck’s score was used with only minor dele- tions, the video version of the opera was Primarily angled to- wards a lucid narration of the familiar legend. As such, this pro- duction eliminated the elaborate dream sequence of the original in favor of retaining a steady focus on the adventures of the two cen- tral characters. Hansel and Gretel' Three simple sets vvere adequate for this prodiiction which was run off without interruption. The sequence in the forest, where, the children become lost after dark, was a model of theatrical ecoii- omy. The terrors of the night Were .fully communicated thrbugh the utilization of only a couple of camera tricks. Similarly, in the witch’s house, camera_ superim- positions created the illusion of the witch riding through the air on a broom. While effective, the camera tricks were wisely not overdone. On a par with the physical pro- duction, the performances were standout. Virginia Haskins and David Lloyd, as Hansel and Gretel, sang flawlessly besides entering into the spirit of their juvenile roles. Claraniae Turner also was impressively sinister as the witch, while Frs^nces Lehnerts and Paul Ukena handled the parental foies competently. Herin. LET’S LIVE With Bill Leonard and family Producer-director: Paul De, Fur Writers: Al Morgan, Leonard 15 Mins.; Sun., 12:30 p.m. MACMILLAN WCBS-TV, New York BUR Leonard’s “This Is New York” strip on WCBS (which has the aid of a large and hep report- ing-script staff) is one of Goth- am’s most literate morning airers. In view of that, Leonard’s video, entry, “Let’s Live.” is a sad dis- appointment. Preem Sunday (24) had Leonard with his wife Adele and three of their five sons gath- ered in their living room and chat- ting on Christmas. Aim is to provide relaxed, lei- surely conversation. However, it came off as stiff and static. Leon- ard’s handling of his kids was un- natural and formal. He tended To monopolize the time and his wife wasn’t fully integrated into the proceedings. The family-gabfest format, in short, is too compli- cated to provide a smooth show. Furthermore, the airer lacked a clearcut angle. There was some talk about their Nativity creche and a reading of a couple of stan- zas of “The Night Before Christ- mas.” Fact that this was.cut short added to the program’s feeling of incompleteness. Production, -on film, was marred by bad camerawork that lacked closeups, and a slow pace that used less than a dozen shots in the quarter-hour span. Future telecasts, Leonard ex-r plained, will deal with photog- raph 3 % boating, skiing, etc., in which books on the subjects will be brought in as commercials for the Macmillan publishing house. Dealing with more specialized top-, ics, such as these hobbies, may provide the appeal to a specific viewing audience that the series peeds, Bril. MAGIC BY CHRISTOPHER With Milbourne Christopher Producer: George Poisal 15 Mins,; Wed., 6:40 p.m. SCHRElBEil FOOD MARKETS WAAM, Baltimore Milbourne Christopher is a youth- ful, smooth working magico with a good line of patter to sell his tricks with small stuff, mainly ropes* cards, cigaret lighter, etc. He keeps his show at a good pace and rings jn a “party puzzle” give- away trick, offeilng more of such to writers-in. it’s a nice switch from the song and dance, drama and commentary stuff pre'ceding and following his particular slot and oHers possibili- ties of more ambitious auspices. Sponsoring food markets display nathe branded items with good mention which may be a tipoff as i to how the tab is being picked up. * • v> i •: I r u 5 BAfm. ONE-HOUR IN WONDERLAND With Walt. Disney* Kathryn Beau- . mont* Bobby Driscoll* Hans Conried, Edgar Bergen, Fire- house Five Plus Two, others Producer-writer: Bill Walsh Supervisory .director: Disney Music: Paul Smith 60 Mins.; Mon. (25), 4 p.m« NBC-TV* from New York (film) iD’Arcy) The art of Walt Disney socked over a special houriong Christmas show, delightfurto'young and old/ Which NBC-TV aired Monday (25). The program, made on film iii Disney’s Hollywood studios, was a fine blend of human and cartoon Characters, with real people such as Disney and Edgar Bergen mix- ing well with ventriloqual dummies and such pen-and-ink . stars as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. Format had Bergen, Charlie Mc- Carthy and. Mortimer Snerd at a Coke party Disney tossed, with the guests calling on a magic mirror to reprise segments of their favorite Disney features. The in- terplay between the real and fantasy worlds made for some wonderful effects. There was Mc- Carthy’s cynical comment that the niirror was “just a hopped-up tele- vision set” and the-looking glass* acid retort that it summoned up the old reels “without the aid of vulgar knobs, tubes or aerial.’* Hans Cohried's performance as the mirror genie was neat, ^and the W’eird effects used in the occult glass were charming rather than frightening. , ' Disney released Ills stable of characters for video as a healthy plug for his upcoming “Alice in Wonderland” pic. Taking part in the production were Kathryn Beaumont, Alice’s voice in the film, and Bobby Driscoll, Academy Award-winning juve who , also worked on the feature. Disney and his daughters also acquitted them- selves well in the party scenes. Outshining the real scenes, however, were the Disneyana reels. There was the gay “Happy Song’* from “Snow White arid the Seven Dwarfs,” some sock antics with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck' and Goofy as they cavorted on a clock tower, a laugh-getting excerpt from “Uncle Remus” with Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Fox and Br’er B’ar, and a winning piece in which Pluto and a bulldog wrangled over a bone in a carnival hall of mir- rors. Piece de resistance was a pre- vievy of, the tea party episode from “Alice,” In this Ed Wynn does the voice of the Mad Hatter and Jerry Colonna does that of the March Hare. ; The Lewis Carroll fantasy, it would appear from the sample, should prove a smash, faithful to classic’s spirit with the addition of typical Disney in- ventiveness. Firehouse Five Plus Two orch pmvided a novelty arrangement of Jingle Bell,’’ and the airer wound with a cute scene as McCarthy tried to make a “deal” with the magic mirror, only to find the' genie replaced by Mortimer Snerd. Pictorial quality of the Techni- color cartoons was good, although a bit of the separation was lost, and pointed up a reason for color video. Coca-Cola commercials were tastefully restrained and effective. Bril ’s‘Mate’Proves Answer to Diehards On Any doubts still held by the “all- television” diehards about what Hollywood can contribute to the medium ,must have been complete* ly shattered Friday night (22) with the presentation of “The. Pharma- cist’s Mate” on ABC’s “Pulitzer Prize Playhouse.” For here, in an hour-long film produced by N. Peter Rathvon’s indie firm and di- rected by ; Irving Pichel. was the type of professiona] drama video has been awaiting. Spontaneous or not, the show, from dialog through camera work and lighting, was near-perfect in executipn. And, in addition, with Pichel evidently paying .strict attention to TV’s re- quirements. the film certainly con- tained as much “intimacy” as any live video production. Hollywood names studded the cast and production credits, with all i turning in top-drawer perform- ances. Script was penned by Budd ; SchulbCrg for his first major TV writing assignnient. Brian Donlevy j and CJene Raiymond starred, and j Darryl iliekman, Alan Hale, Jr., ■ Frank Jenks and other Hollywood '• feature players topped the support- ! ing cast. While the-entire story jtook place.instdpia aubfiierged sub- I (Contitiuied' Oii page *26)‘