Variety (October 1954)

20 LITERATE P$VRIETT Wednesday, October 27,' 1954 Clean Comics Only The Des Moines Pharmacists' Assn., representing 45 of the city’s 100 drugstores, has voted to “clear the racks of all objectionable comics of the weird, horror and sex type immediately.’’ Associ- ation officials said representatives of Hackley News Co. r arid Iowa News Co., tne only distributors of coi ic books here, attended the meeting arid pledged full support. : In itsv resolution, the association stated that “comic books are as much a part of American life to- day as were the. books on the ex-, ploits of Horatio Alger and the Rover Boys a generation ago, and that the wholesome-type comic book is here to stay.” Krorienberger, Chapman ‘Bests' Louis Kronenberger’s "The Best Plays/ 1953-1954“ (Dodd; Mead; $5), arid John Chapman’s "Theatre ’54’' (Random House; $5), make similar selections Of last season’s banner Broadway- productions. Both editors condense the follow- ing plays, in their yearbooks: "The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial,’’ "Tea and Sympathy,” “The Teahouse of the August Moon,” "The Confiden- tial Clerk,’’ arid "The Golden Apple.” Kronenberger, following the cus- tom of the late Burns Mantle, who initiated the “Best Plays” series, selects 10 worthy plays. In. addi- tion to those named, he. offers di- gests of "Take a Giant Step,’:’ “The Immoralist,” "The Girl on the Via Flaminia,” "In the Summer House” and "The Magic and the Loss.” Chapman, submitting "reading v.er- iohs” of a “golden dozen,” adds "Ondine,” “Sabrina Fair.” "The Solid Gold Cadillac,” "The Re- in a r k able. Mr. Perinypacker/’ “Madam, Will You Walk,” "The Pajama Gal ” and "Oh Men,. Oh Women,” Most decorative of the annuals is .Kronenberger’s, embellished not only with stills from the plays, but with repfos of outstanding scenic and costume designs, and With Hirschfeld drawings. Photographs from each of Chapman’s favorite plays adorn his book. In the main, these are Superior to cairiera work in Kronehberger’s volume. . The latter editor, drama critic for Time, uses pictures by Life staff photogs almost exclusively. In some in- stances, these are Unfortunate choices, as, for example, .the awk- ward study of Anne Jackson in "Oh Men, Oh Women.” Krorienberger, in the 3.7th vol- ume of the “Best Plays” series, authors his ow r n recap of the New York season; Claudia Cassidy, aislesitter for the Chicago Tribune, covers the Windy City; Kenneth Tynan of the London Observer, writes from Blighty; and 'Andre Josset, Secretary-General of the International Theatre Thstitute, UNESCO, reports the Paris season; Kronenberger’s well-handled de-’ partments include Variety’s poll of hits arid flops, the usual statis- tical tables, plus an off-Broadway comment by Garrison F. Sherwood (who was co-editor with Mantle of the first two "Best Plays” volumes: ’1899-1909. and 1909-1919), and nomination of three hit tunes of the season: "More Love Than Your Love,” from "By the -Beautiful Sea”; "Hey, There,” froi "Pajama Game," and “Stranger in Para- dise,” from "Kismet.” Book fea-. tures three indexes, covering au- thors; plays and casts; and produ- cers,. directors, designers and stage managers. Chapman, as usual, ig- nores stage, managers. Departments in "Theatre ’54” i - elude an assessment of the London scone by C. B, Mortlock, and an in- complete survey by George Freed- ley of away-from-Broadway pro- ductions, pretentiously entitled "The Theatre , in the United S t a t e s.”' Chapman’s statistical charts, in general, parallel those in the parent annual (this is the sec-, ond year . for Chapman's, books); Howeyer, "Theatre ’$4’s” table of •‘alltime hits” is poorly arranged under a heading that announces: "Attractions marked with an aster- isk were still playing May 31, 1954.’1- Ensuing list is innocent of asterisks. Typos in both volumes are hap- pily. at a minimum, but that trou- blesome hyphen in the title of "The Cai Mutiny Court-Martial” ca- priciously vanishes and reappears in both books. For reference pur- poses Kronenberger again has the edge on Chapman. Down. Slowpoke Scully Example of how art is long and time is fleeting is illustrated in a contract just signed between Frank Scu.Ily and the % publisher Green- berg. Greenberg has wanted an in- spirational book from the Variety niugg for. 20 years. In fact they signed for urie in 1933, but the project was shelved for a while. Two years ago it was revived. Firially in September author and publisher agreed on the formula- autobiographical with is p I r it u a I overtones, under the working title of "One Man’s Faith.” Publisher wrote, into the contract that the manuscript. was to be delivered Nov. 1, as he planned it as the big book for the spring list. That gave the mugg six weeks Jo write What had been discussed for 22 years. He says he once wrote, a book in 72 days and it nearly killed him. So he changed the six weeks to six months, meaning the_book will not see publication till tfie fall of 1955. Greenberg also, publishes Scul- ly’s ‘‘Blessed Mother Goose/’ a de- brutalized 1 version of nursery rhymes. 1992 Ad Blueprint One of the season’s drollest, raffishly-penned pieces of fiction is Shepherd Mead’s "The Big Ball of Wax:. A Story of Tomorrow’s Happy World,” (Simon & Schuster; $3.50). When Mead ‘ not scriven- irig satirical items about the mores; of the advertising hemisphere arid Madison Ave. tycoonery, he is cast in the sound role of veepee arid, radio arid teevee copy chief of Ben- ton & Bowles; His first book, "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying,” is now required reading in such illustrious centres of higher learning as the Harvard, Wharton and Baruch Schools of Business. As for "The Big Ball, of Wax,” it may well throw a boldface hydro- gen bomb into the midst of the Advertising Club and other haunts of the agency toilers because of its revolutionary concept of what’s ahead in the merchandising world of 1992, When the urge to buy .will be an obsession to buy. "The Big Ball of Wax” is a blueprint of the highly mechanized, super- charged business world, of 1992, in which television plays a tremen- dous role—•until the moment When a new form of entertainment com- pletely Wipes out all other kinds arid, as usual. Variety is on hand, to cover this major event. The thing that shakes the world of to- morrow 'is. a machine, with headr rest gadgets on a barber’s chair With knobs and dials on it. It makes television as* dated, as a crystal set receiver and. proves to be the ultimate gimmick in reaching the mass mind. This machine assures any adver- tiser the biggest audience in his- tory and Variety quickly dubs it XP, the XP standing for Experi- ence or Utter Ecstasy, for Every- body by Electricity. How the sacri- ficing hero of "The Big Ball of Wax” grapples with this huge prob- lem in the interest of his employer. Con Chem, provides us With" one of the sauciest tales of this de- cidedly oldrfashioned nuclear-fis- sioned, abstract art age. Ranson. Jim Moran’s Book Pressagent Jim Moran, in con- junction with illustrator Roge^ Du- voisin, has Written a juvenile book, "Sophocles the Hyena,” being re- leased today (Wed.) by Whittlesey House. Book, a basic lesson in tolerance, is scheduled to provide the theme for a series of recordings. with, a symphony orchestra and narrator. Moran is also .planning an animated film based on the tome'. ; all among the rest of the books. ! Answer, of course, is a largescale i advertising - promotion - nierchan- ! dising push to ,make the public [ aware of the mag and seek it of its own accord, If PB isn’t prepared to furnish this, the magazine may go the way of many other well-inten- tioned but ill-fated ventures. Chan. Hard-Cover $2.95 Mag New concept in magazine pub- lishing, the publication of a hard- cover, permanently bound bi- monthly without advertising, is beirig planned in. American Heritage, new venture to be backed jointly by the American Assn, for State & Local History and the Society of Ariierican Historians. Books—or magazines— dealing with all phases of Ameri- can history, will have Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton (“Still- ness . at Appomattox”) as editor, arid Ralph Parton of the publish- ing firm of Thorndike, Jensen & Parton as publisher. . American Heritage is slated for i itial publication iri December, with individual issues priced at $2.95 and; annual subscription at $12. Each issue will cover all phases. Of American history and will be illustrated in black and white and in color. New PB Mag Pocket Books’, new book-format quarterly magazine,,. the Pocket Book Magazine,, represents some radical, though certainly not un- welcome, departures in publishing.. Guiding principle behind its 'pub- lication; according to the preamble by.; editor Franklin Watts, is to bring to the public articles of im- portance and interest, - articles with some degree of permanency. This it's done, with such pieces as Phil- lip .Wylie’s “ Arnerica-—The World’s First Pediarchy.” Chester Bowles' "The Asians Fear Our Foreign Policy/ Richard B. Morris* "The McCarthys of Yesterday” and’Her- bert Weinstock’s "What Makes a Conductor Great.” These and other pieces meet the bill—informative, provoking arid,of more than pass- ing interest. The possible fallacy in the PB idea is the -format, itself. Not that it’s tough on the eye, blit simply that it looks like another Pocket Book from the cover. Selling the mag may shape up as Something of a problem for the paperback outfit. It may prove difficult to get newsstands to display it separately, arid for the casual paperback huv- er, it doesn’t seem like too much of an attraction, if it’s noticed at CHATTER Jack Hamilton in Hollywood to take a look at the film situation for Look. . Cameron Shipp is doing a pro- file of George Gobel. for Cosmos politan mag. Leonard Aihster, formerly with the Kenneth Later Agency, has opened his own literati office. "A Pictorial Treasury of Opera iri America,” by Daniel Blum- will be published Friday (29) by Green- berg. Louis L’Amour will lecture on "The Western Story” before the California Writers Guild in Pasa- dena Nov. 6, New nine-volume fifth edition, of Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians fo, be published by St. Martin’s Press Nov. 30. Dale Evans Rogers’ latest book, "My Spiritual Diary,” will be pub- lished in February by the Fleming H. Revell Co. of Westwood, N. J. Radio Novels Inc. chartered to conduct , an. artists-agency business in New York. Prentice-Hall. Cor- poration System Inc./90 Broad St., filing attorney. ;. John Gassner has taken over Bernard Sobers annual . assign- ment penning the l$git articles for The New International Year Book. Sobel had the chore from 1947 to 1953. Series is published by Funk. & Wagnalls. Bert Garmise, publishing con- sultants appointed Gilbert. R. Ga- briel Jr; as-executive v.p. He has been g.ni. of the Garmise organiz- ation for seven years. Also named vice presidents were Steve Thorpe and Milton L. Kaye. Kimball Flaccus, former radio Writer, set up "Author On His Craft” lecture series at Pratt Iristi- stitute, Brooklyn. Speakers to in- clude Albert Perkins, Oscar Car- gill,. Robert Coughlan, Wade Ar- nold, Don Mankiewicz. " Mary Jane, daughter of A1 B. White, former vaude actor who now runs 0 bistro on Long Island; is joining her husband, Homer Cable, in Germany. Formerly on Newsweek and Look, Cable is now [ picture ed of Stars & Stripes. Earl Wemyss,, prexy of National Trust of Scotland, off to America and Canada on eight-weeks’ lec- ture trek to boost Trust’s Work for ancient Scot buildings and castles, including President Eisenhower’s clifftop castle at Culzean, Ayr- shire. John A. Hall,, editor of the Jamestown. (.N, Y.) Post-Journal, is new president of the New York State Associated; Press Assn. J. Leonard Gorman, of the Syracuse Post-Standard, is vice-president, arid W. Norris Paxton, AP bureau chief Albany, secretary-trea- surer. Unusually frank correction by a publisher is Rinehart’s statement that Geoffrey Bocca, author of “The Woman Who Would Be Queen,” did not have access to Lord Beaverbrook’s files while writing this intimate biography of. the American-born Duchess of Windsor. The error stemmed from the fact that Bocca’s story ran seri- ally, in Beaverbrook’s London Daily Express; The 155-year-old Keene (N. H.) Evening Sentinel, one of the old- est dailies in' America and almost continuously in the founding family’s hands, has changed own- ership. James D. Ewing, former publisher of the Bangor (Me.) Com- mercial, which suspended publica- tion last January, and Walter C. Paine, for the last three years as- sociate editor of the Baltimore Sun, take over Nov. 1. i Hillcrest Set Pays tip’ Service Continued from pace s cal interlude was an amusing spe- cial song, "Little Hits Mean a Lot,” by Danny Shapiro, sung by Tony Martin with Hal Borne at the 88 Naturally, it concerned the Giantg’ victory iri the World Series. Groucho thought Durocher should be . more obviously thankful to Willie Mays, Hank Thompson arid Monte Irvin.. "If Leo had any gratitude,” Groucho said, "he’d divorce Laraine and marry Dena Home.” Groucho added, "They’re having a week-long celebration iri Kansas City. It's just been nounced that the Athletics are staying Philly.” As for D.ui- rocher's past penchant Tor making an umpire’s life a bed of baseballs, Groucho said; "Leo could spit in an umpire’s eye arid be at the race- track by the fourth inning.” Haney and Dressen Were strictly baseball interludes, both paying their respects to Durocher’S man- agerial ability. Dressen, hpwever, found it difficult to get off, arid more difficult, to hide his pique at the Brooklyn baseball club, from which he vamped in ’53. .When he sat 'down, Je.ssel iriforriied the crowd that "I’m, sure we would have learned a good deal, about the inside of baseball if Charlie hadn’t been reluctant to talk.” Burns, was brief, after opening with, “I spoke at the last Durocher dinner and the reason Pin-here is because 1 have a few jokes left over,” Froin then on nothing he said could be published. Benny had a funny routine about trying to hire Durocher “cheap” for his tv version of “The Caine Mutiny,” Benny sard he figured Durocher would be glad to appear for him and “I’d send him a pres- ent—it would cost rne $10 or $12— just for goodwill.” However, Benny explained, Durpcher’s agent, Bert Allenberg, got into the situation, which changed immediately. “Allenberg told me,” Benny said, ‘“Durocher wants $7,000. I had temporary paralysis. I don’t mind paying big money—-I just, don’t want to set a precedent.” Benny then, added that he settled with Durocher. fpr $274, Benny also referred to his re- cent: court. battle with the Internal Revenue boys; a matter involving around $1,000,000 to the cmiiedian. Benny said: "I call it (capital gains. They claim the gains should go to the capital—Washington.” Danny Kaye as Stonehani Following, him. came Kaye, in- tro’d As Horace Stoneham and do- ing one of the. best comedy drunks seen in years. He was a tough man to •follow/ but Ned Cronin, the L. A. Daily News sports col- umnist, did himself proud, with a droll delivery and telling wit, •Danny Thomas scored with two jokes, orie stag and one about an Italian immigrant seeing his first ball game; and then came Martin. —and then Durocher, who made no attempt at comedy but was easily the evening’s highlight with his reminiscences of the Giant team. He minimized his own part in the pennant and Series vic- tories, giving the chief credit to his players. "Some managers play it close/' he said. “Some , play it by the. book; some managers gamble—and I guess I gamble more than the, others/’ He admitted the Giants got the “breaks/' He disclosed that while he, has been , getting, a great deal of credit for Rhodes, the Giants’ power- house in the clutch, fie had tried to get Horace Stopeham to ^release Rhodes last spring. According; to Durocher, Rhodes “can’t run very good; he can’t field very good—and he’s liable to get hit right on top of the head with a ball But he can hit- 1 —and he can do one thing better than any man I know— drink bourbon.” Durocher said that after the first; Series game, when Rhodes* popu- larity really zoomed, Rhodes said he would run for Mayor of Rock Hill, N. C. But when Dusty hit in Cleveland, he said that he would rio longer be satisfied with being Mayor, of Rock Hill but would run for Governor of the whole state. Durocher went down the line praising every player in the Giant lineup, plus the coaches, Frank Shellenbach and Fred Fitzsim- mons. He omitted nobody, but he. held his Warmest, most affection^ ate words for Willie Mays, “in. my.. opinion the greatest ballplayer i the history of baseball “Groucho. said I should divorce Laraine' end marry Lena Horne,” Durocher said, ‘‘but it would be Willie Mays.” Durocher said:.that after Mays* sensational catch that saved the first Series game, everybody Was making comparisons With hiis pre- vious feats in the field, Durocher said he asked Mays how he coi pared the. catch, and Mays; swered: “I don’t compare ’em-^-I just catch them.”'. . Durocher declared .that if a ball. stays in the air long enough, Mays' Will catch it. He added that tie doesn’t know ; how Mays does his amazing fielding—“he just does it.” From the standpoint of tearri spirit; Durocher declared, there never i^as any doubt in his mind that the Giants would beat Cleve- land. He didn’t think, however, that they’d take them four straight —“maybe four out of five or four out of six, but not four straight;’' In suinming Up, the very 1 articu- late Durocher said:. “What else can you say about 27 ballplayers—I’in deeply grateful to them for mak- ing my. dream come true.” Later, when the Giant, manager arrived at his home, his; Wife, Laraine Day, handed him the keys to a brand new Cadillac Eldorado purchased as a gift by a few local friends. Miami Drive Continued ...from page l aasa premises, fingerprinting, mugging and registration of all owners and employees of all cafes, night clubs and beer-bars in Miami proper. The drive to eliminate clip joints started last week when a tab for $280 1 was.presented.to two Nation- al Guard lieutenant colonels, here for a convention and* making the late rounds. Spot involved was the Trench Quarter, a strippery, with the management insisting on pay- ment or jail. The officers chose the. hoosegpw. but., then: called City Manager- E, A.' Evans, himself a Brig, General in the Guard, who had them released. Bill was finally settled /for $90, but a general' crackdown, followed with two ar-. rests made ’ at, the "French Quarter several nights later, Janine John- son, a stripper, was charge,d .with indecent exposure and., manager Irving Alexander charged with al- lowing. her to doff too many gar- ments. Miami City Commission this week; passed a stringent anti-per- vert ordinance designed to keep the sex deviates out of the city’s bars and .cafes, either as patrons or as employes. Law provides for a 60 day jail sentence, -a fine of $500 arid loss of their liquor, license by all opera- tors and owners in liquor estab- lishments violating the ordinance; The measure applies only to Mianii proper, With most surrounding communities such as Miami Beach having provided their own ordi- nances to coiribat the problem. Farrell s5 Continued from. page. 2 on his 'show. He said he called Sharpe for comment for his col- umn, and Sharpe told hint that fari from ftis marriage beirig trou- bled, he Was sore at Mme. Arpels and warited a way of “replying” to her allegations: Farrell therer upon invited him, Miss Larson and Arpels on “to show they are all good friends.” No- mention of the suit Was made on the show. . Latter fact kept Farrell’s phones buzzing all that night, plus an item on the just-preceding Walter Win- chell broadcast that Mrs. Farrell was in Lying-In Hospital, about to give birth. These, plus a later ap- pearance the same night on the WRCA-TV, N. Y., “Igor Cassini Show” in connection with the “Beau Bruhimell” . awards/ kept Farrell’s phone tinging, but it wasn’t until the next morning (25) that the doctor called with the most. important message—it was a girl.....