Variety (June 1956)

48 nAOIO-TELEVISION P^AKIETY Wednesday, June 13, 1956 TV Reviews Continued from pace 35 in Canada on telefilm and effec¬ tively programs Vincent Tovell as narrator and various films of UN work in several lands. Opener showed UN member- countries at work with mother and child health centers in Burma, progress in the fight against yaws in south-east Asia, helping fisheries in the Far East, farmers in Afghan¬ istan and communities in India. In all cases, initialler showed, ex¬ perts, advice and equipment from other, more advanced lands, went ito the assistance of the needy countries through United Nations agencies. While this type of airer will never be a threat to Gleason or the Dorseys, it fills a documen¬ tary need and is in a happy spot at the Sat. 6:30 p.m. position. To- vell’s closing gab says, "We’ll show you no miracles but we will show you achievement,” and through "In the Common Interest,” Canadian viewers will get an idea what the UN is doing besides arguing in New York. Gorin. FRONTIERS OF HEALTH With Dr. Richard Judge, others Executive Producer: Garnet Gar¬ rison Production Supervisor: Hazel Schumacker 30 Mins.; Sun. (10), 10:30 p.m. WARD, New York An informative, public service program, rather low in dramatic values, preemed over WABD in the late Sunday slot. “The Birth of a Babe” was the first in the filmed public health series, pro¬ duced at the U. of Michigan Medi¬ cal Center. The initial 15 minutes of the film was taken up by a discussion between two university doctors, Richard Judge, host for the series, and Tommy Evans, obstretician and special guest. The M.D.’s used slides to aid their exposition. Re¬ lief from the static quality of the film came when a short film clip was inserted, showing the prepar¬ ation a mother goes through upon entering the hospital and the de¬ livery of a baby. The film clip, unlike the exposi¬ tion, had dramatic quality and used the medium to its advantage. The scene of the actual birth was tame, the bed swaddled in sheets allowing nothing of the stages in birth to be seen. Nevertheless, the stages could be followed by the advice of the doctor to the patient, as heard by the viewer. These few engrossing moments were then ended with the return of the two doctors, talking to each other around the table. While spe¬ cialized audiences may find the clinical exposition interesting as well as informative, the medium could be used to better advantage with the addition of more dramatic qualities. The entire program was keyed to an adult level and done in good taste. TAUL ASHLEY AND HIS PUPPETS Producer: Denise La Marque Director: Arnee Nocks 60 Mins.; Mon.-thru-Fri., 12 noon v PARTICIPATING WABD, New York If Madam Lily Pad, Buffy Mac- Duffy, or I. Phiffelgate Snoop, all puppet characters of Paul Ashley, would Stick around more, this could be a much better show for the moppets, as well as for elders who would like to lose themselves in a noon fantasy. The puppets though, at the preem show caught Mon. ill), acted virtually only as introducers for the kiddie film fare. The cartoons, while entertaining, were of somewhat ancient vintage Among those shown from the Sterling library were "The Magic Forest,” "Pony Express,” “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Fearless Fosdick.” Ashley, who did the 'H.M.S. Pinafore” puppet show over the same station last April, appears to have a way with his puppet characters. Perhaps in future shows, if he uses them more, the program could lift itself out of the just fair category. , MEN, MONEY AND MARKETS With John Clark Producer: Sue Burnett Director: Jim Eakins 30 Mins.; Sun. (3), 3:30 p.m. KPIX, San Francisco This first in a series of Sunday half-hours on the workings of the Frisco Stock Exchange was several cuts above the ordinary low- budget, low-interest “public serv¬ ice” program. A prime asset was John Clark, a San Francisco State College teacher who turned out to be a crisp, intelligent moderator with poise and personality. Clark ex¬ plained “Making a Corporation”— to which this first half-hour was devoted—in clear, non - egghead terms and proved a perfect link to the film clips which made up a good deal of the program. Much of the first 15 minutes, in fact, were clips, but producer Sue Burnett used them purposefully, showing some of the components of capitalism. Interspersed were quick talks by Ronald Kaehler, president of the Frisco Stock Exchange, and W. Randolph Burgess, the undersecre¬ tary of the Treasury. These talks, actually were the dullest parts of the program. Most of the second 15 minutes were spent following the trials and tribulations of a hypothetical small businessman, capably portrayed by David Parker. Purpose was to show how a little businessman, gets money to develop his firm into a big business. A simple script ful¬ filled this purpose nicely. Show, jointly conceived and put together by the Stock Exchange, KPIX, the State College and the Frisco public schools’ adult divi¬ sion, is no world-beater, but is smooth and interesting enough to hold its own against much more lavish competitors. Stef. FATHER RIGNEY SPEAKS With Joseph Meegan Producer: Con O’Dea 30 Mins.; Thurs., 7 p.m. Sustaining WBKB, Chicago Father Harold W. Rigney, Catho¬ lic priest who spent four years in a Communist China prison camp, is describing his experiences over a 13-week summer run on WBKB in Bishop Fulton Sheen’s previous Thursday night ABC-TV period. Father Rigney is hardly in the same forensic league with the Bishop, and the story of his arrest, imprisonment and subsequent re¬ lease by the Chinese Commies has been recounted fully in the local press and in his book “Four Years In a Red Hell.” Therefore, despite his obvious sincerity and dedica¬ tion to his crusade to bring about the freedom of the 13 Americans still held by the Reds, the padre is faced with a tough problem of sustaining general interest over the 13-week course. Even the first installment (7) seemed attenuated as he spent most of the half-hour telling about his arrest in ’51 when he was the rector of Fu Jen Catholic U. in Peking. His plea for letters to be sent Moa Tse-Tung asking the Red Chairman to honor his promise to free the remaining U.S. captives was quietly impassioned. It’s hoped its effectiveness won’t be dulled in repetition during the weeks ahead. Pastor is assisted by Joe Meegan, director of the Back of the Yards Council, and their finale question and answer segment provided some of the program’s best moments of warmth and informality. Dave. WHIZZO, THE CLOWN I With Frank Wiziarde Director: John Tilton Producer: Wiziarde 60 Mins., Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m. KMBC-TV, Kansas City, Mo. One of the few live programs in this area which is proving effective with the pre-school set is this morning entry on KMBC-TV daily. It began several months ago as a half-hour session, developed a firm following and moved into the hour- long bracket. Always a bugaboo in the tv selling field has been what to do with the real smallfry that haunt the tv screens. This one is one answer. Whizzo is Frank Wiziarde, a staff member and vet announcer, direc¬ tor and master of ceremonies, who comes from- a circus family and has himself worked under the big top as a clown. All this he brings to tv, with traditional grotesque makeup, flapping hands for feet and other trademarks. Plus plenty of conversation, which he explains is true to the original conception of the clown. Needless to say, he fascinates the kids. He has a bevy of them on the show as “little clowns,” with appropriate costumes and a chance ■ for them to take part in a talent inning, which now and then pro¬ duces a real entertainer. He has a number of regular features, such as the Whizzo dog puppet, the magic bubble, the talking chair, and others. And when he needs a rest he runs in a Little Rascals film or a cartoon for a few minutes. The show is Wiziarde’s from start to finish, and he handles the producer reins. Directorial chores are handled by John Tilton of the station staff, and Harry Jenks of the music staff works the organ and piano for the many needed effects. Out of this set up comes one of the highest ratings in town, shad¬ ing most all of the other live shows here. That it has pulling power is seen from the list of sponsors which has included, or now in¬ cludes, Milgrams, the big locally owned grocery chain; Nabisco crackers; Sealtest ice cream; Cake Box bakeries; Johnny McGuire clothing store, and Hill Brothers shoes. The whole lineup, with a talent staff of one man, is one of the solidest on live shows here. Quin. BARRIER With Edward Howden Producer-director: Edward How¬ den, assisted by Paul Obludda 30 Mins.; Sun. (3), 2:30 p.m. KRON, San Francisco • A half-hour of roundtable dis¬ cussion on the fairly abstruse tech¬ nicalities of anti-Communist legis¬ lation is scarcely calculated to titil¬ late a Sunday afternoon television audience, and' it’s safe to say that KRON’s ratings took a beating in this strip. “Barrier” is a series on civil liber¬ ties, and the Fund for the Republic is picking up the tab from Frisco’s Council for Civic Unity, League of Women Voters, Anti-Defamation League, etc. In addition, KRON is donating the time. None of the high-class brains in these organiza- ZIV HAS THE HOT SHOWS! IK 4-STATION CHICAGO beating Milton Berle, Robert Montgomery, Godfrey and Friend*, Ford The¬ atre and many other*. AA*-J«n. 'U ZIV TELEVISION PROGRAMS. INC. ( -- Ci-.-rgo H -,: 1 tions was evidenced in this half- hour, unfortunately. Edward Howden, who is execu¬ tive director of the Council for Civic Unity, spoke briefly at the program’s start and said this was to be a typical panel discussion, much like many currently being conducted in Frisco homes by the League of Women Voters. College dean Lloyd Luckman and lawyer John Garfinkle were introduced as panel leaders and made brief, learned pitches about freedom of speech, press, religion and " as¬ sembly. And then the panel started chewing the rag about the Smith Act of 1940, the Communist Con¬ trol Act of 1954 and other anti-red laws. It was evident, very quickly, that the panel was not at all typi¬ cal but was, in fact, made up of four or five liberal lawyers and a couple of housewifely fill-ins. Re¬ sult was discussions of “clear and present danger,” a minority opin¬ ion of Justice William O. Douglas and such phrases as “the general ethic’’ and “the effective social scene.” This sort of discussion has a definite niche in the classroom, of course, but it makes poor Sunday afternoon televiewing, especially because, in this case, the liberal viewpoint completely swamped the conservative and extinguished any spark of controversy—and dramat¬ ic interest—which might have been aroused. The topic scheduled. "Liberty and Seditious Activity,” surely could have been handled more ef¬ fectively. Camera work, too, was dull, with camera often delayed 30 or 40 sec¬ onds in switching from speaker to speaker. Stef. PRIMER FOR A JUROR Producer-director: Gene McPher¬ son 60 Mins., Thurs. (24), 8:30 p.m. WBNS-TV, Columbus “Primer for a Juror,” WBNS- TV’s latest public service program, was a deftly-written, well-produced yarn about what serving on a court jury entails. It was written by the producer- director, Gene McPherson of WBNS-TV, and Richard Miller, a member of the Consultants Com¬ mittee of the Columbus Bar Asso¬ ciation. The association helped present the production. Don Riggs was the capable narrator. The program’s opening shot was that of a jury during its heated deliberations of a civil case. From that point the show traced the story up to that point through live studios pickup as well as film seg¬ ments. It also told how justice was dispensed in centuries past. The closing segment of "Primer for a Juror” reported what verdict the jury had reached in its case. This device helped build a certain amount of suspense and give the production continuity. Left to less capable hands than those of Mc¬ Pherson and Miller, the show could have been a hopeless hodge¬ podge. As it was it was entertain¬ ing as well as educational. Conn. Tele Followup 1 Continued from page 35 — closed with song, in between knocked off a clever bit of danc¬ ing. She’s a graceful and spritely terper who charms all the way. In a single tune, Miss Francoise, dou¬ bling from the Persian Room of the N. Y. Plaza Hotel, essayed a single song, “Mademoiselle de Paris,” in which she could do no wrong being a familiar tune and one that she did well. To compensate for three single femmes, Sullivan then put on five single men. Nat "King” Cole, one of the smoother singers about, started with "Somebody Loves Me” and “Dream Sonata” and thence into a pleasant bit of piano ram¬ bling to “Just One of Those Things” and even following a batch of songsters, he impressed as a top performer, Ventriloquist Ricky Lane, an es¬ sentially funny gent, with his Yid¬ dish accented dummy, got over some good material before making his getaway with a parody'for a good overall' bit. T. C. Jones, com¬ ing into N. Y. in “New Faces” in femme garb, did an impression of Bette Davis doing "Bill” unveiling of the toupee revealing a bald head, was a strong part of the act, coming off as a complete surprise. Comedic conception was excellent. Jack Carter got off some good lines before reprising some of the bits he did in a pair of musicals, "Call Me Mister” and "Top Ba¬ nana” before going into his current "Mr. Wonderful.” He did okay in this bit. Joey Clay is the kind of singer, if he is to grow on the audience, needing much more than the one number he did to get off the ground. Nothing happened. Sullivan reprised the cartoon, “A Short Vision,” a warning on atomic warfare. A bit grisly, he rightfully warned parents to get the kids out of the way. Jose. Playwrights 56 A pleasant, inconsequential little tale that combined humor, pathos and an overdose of silly dramatics was spun on “Playwrights 56” on NBC last week (5) with the presen¬ tation of “Nick and Letty.” Yarn seemed strong enough for a half- hour niche rather than full-hour show. Adapted by Nelson Gidding from the novel, “Ship’s Company” by Lonie Coleman, this was a tale about two people, sick of playing the role of the clown, and drawn together in their loneliness. Back¬ ground was an army cargo ship taking a group of nurses to Okinawa during the war. Nancy Walker, taking time out from “Fallen Angels” on Broad¬ way, was cast in the part of the army nurse and came through with a fresh and engaging performance that was savvy in its edgy charac¬ terization. Miss Walker had pathos and yet strength, and there’s no one quite like her when it comes to punch across a laugh line. Playing the awkward lieutenant who falls for the “ugly duckling” even before he’s laid eyes on her, Norman Feld had warmth and-a gentle quality that made for real¬ ism. His scenes with Miss Walker were alternately funny and touch¬ ing. That’s where Arthur Penn’s direction was at its best. Supporting parts were ably filled by Mary Fickett as a captain, Rob¬ ert Culp as a lieutenant, Sidney Armus, Joyce Smight, Jack Weston, John Marley and John Travis. Apart from the fact that it helped fill time, it’s difficult to understand why Gidding included the scene where Miss Pickett went into a screaming panic with the approach of enemy planes. She was pulled out of it via a long kiss from Culp. Scene played like comedy. How¬ ever, Miss Fickett managed to be properly emotional, which is to her credit. This was okay tv fare for a hot summer night. Unfortunately, that evening being quite cool, “Nick and Letty” added up to a pre-sea¬ son letdown. Hift. Dissenting Note On RKO’s WGMS Buy Washington, June 12. An effort to block the $400,000 sale of WGMS in Washington "to. RKO Teleradio Pictures was made yesterday (Mon.*) when a minority stockholder of WGMS urged the FCC to disapprove the transfer. Lawrence M. C. Smith, owner of five shares in WGMS, told the Com¬ mission the station should com¬ mand a higher price. He also ob¬ jected to a five-year employment contract between RKO and M. Robert and Terry Rogers, general manager and station manager, re¬ spectively, of WGMS. Smith, who owns FM station WFLN in Philadelphia, previously filed suit in Delaware to prevent the sale. Philadelphia—WHYY-TV, Phila¬ delphia’s first educational tv sta¬ tion, has set up shop in WCAU’s former midtown headquarters. Telecasts are skedded to begin in October. More than $300,000 has been raised to launch station. TEXACO STAR THEATRE SATURDAY NIGHT—N.l.C. Mgt.i William Morrli Agency IVIRY DAT ON IVIRY CHANNIL 1 BROOKS COSTUMES I W«4 MilN.Y.C.-T*). n.