Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-12-14

lTHERES more than a handful OF
people around the country who
have suspected that Gene Tun-
Il ney has been the victim of a lot
of dumb advice. The kind OF
bad advice, that is, that caused him to
place himself in bad light before the
public.
Even when I knew that all the talk
OF Tunney's being a literary teller and
! really thorough high-brow at heart,
was Just bit of fiction devised to give
him public personality different from
that OF other fighters, confess that
never could quite get rid of the impress
sion 1T left. I've known several sports
| writer's. too, who knew all the ms and
outs of it, and yet were affected the
same way.
Laid column to column, all the
stories about his lecturing on Shake
| speare and going in for cerebral as we'll
| as physical feats of strength made
Tunney out as nothing much better
than snob. And it was a downright
injustice. He likes books, Of course,
| and he's interested in things which
wouldn't get rise out of the ordinary
boxer, but that's another matter
Left to himself Tunney's as natural
and simple as they come. The other
night he came to the studios to make
an appeal for funds for hospitals
Something of a fuss had been made
over him and the ordinary celebrity
would take 1t for granted that every
one in the studios was all agog to know
| he was there.
However, he gave away the fact that
| he really is a pretty unassuming chap
in little incident that took place. Just
before the broadcast a newspaper man
was getting copy of Tunney's speech
from q representative of the hospital
fund. Tunney, standing nearby, turned
and said, IF you can wait until after
the broadcast you can have this copy"
he said, pointing at the manuscript he
was holding. See, I've made a few
changes here and there that I didn't
have time to write into the other
copies"
He tipped the pages, and then, blush
ing little, he added, "Oh, 1 beg your
pardon; my names Tunney." And the
folks standing by swear it wasn't a gag;
he just took it for granted that the re-
porter didn't know who he was.
y
T SUPPOSE Horace Heidi and his or
L chestra are the only men who have
Internationally assaulted the dignity of
king and gotten away with it Scot
free.
1t took place when the broadcasting
Californians we're playing at Monte
Carlo; Jerry Bovine, the cornetist, was
all set for one swell blast, when he dis
covered that all he could get out of his
instrument was opposition. Looking it
over, he found a hard roll had been
crammed in the bell. And looking at
Heidi he saw a tell-tale grin.
Aiming the bell of the cornet at
Heidi, he took deep breath and blew
for all he was worth. Out popped the
roll, with plenty of velocity, but Heidi
ducked. The King of Sweden, sitting
at nearby table, caught 1t in the neck.
For moment it looked like riot,
and probably the guillotine. But the
King arose, bowed and smiled, and that
was that.
Most of the members of the band,
which was organized at the University
of California, have been with 1t since
1t was organized six years ago. 1t is
run on a cooperative basis, by the way,
and, contrary to the custom in good
many big dance orchestras, all the men
share in the big fees.
Perhaps that, coupled with talent and
the fact that practically every man in
1t ic given a chance to star as much as
the leader, explains the orcheStra's sue
cess. Then, too, they have almost daily
sessions where all the players get to-
gether to dope out new ways OF getting
variety into their programs.
Between dance groups they are likely
to bring in anything from hill-billy
songs to grand opera and they aren't
above introducing Lobo, Clarence
Moore's big police dog, to the radio, or
any other audience, when they can't
think of anything else. The bells, whis-
ties and sirens aren't there just to wake
UP the customers; Heidi says they are
to keep the orchestra from getting
sleepy. AS long as they are wide awake
he says he doesn't have to worry much
about his listeners. Which isn't a bad
idea.
You may not know it. but all those
l. relatives Willie and Eugene Howard
talk about in their broadcasts really
exist. 1t seems the comedians have
hordes of them around New York, and
they all listen In to every Howard pro-
gram. They'd be an adequate radio au-
dience for anybody.
No matter what liberties Willie and
Eugene take with them, it's all OK. the
next day. The ones who haven't been
mentioned call up to ask when their
turns to be razzed on the air will come
To tell the truth, it's not only a lot
of fun, but it's good business, too. For
instance, noC long ago Lney coupled the
name OF good doctor Of their family
with that comedy song, "I Can Get Il
for You wholesale" They told enough
about where he lived so a good many
Brooklynites could find him in the tele-
phone directory. Within a week the
doctors patients doubled.
Willie, you know. is in Girl Crazy"
on Broadway. Eugene isn't in the show,
but you can find him backstage with
Willie every night You just can't keep
them apart
They are real veterans of the mike.
too. Several years ago they seemed to
have monopoly on travelling around
the country to open new broadcasting
stations Those were the DAYS when
apparatus was delicate and an uncon-
stdered sigh might blow the transmittAr
OF the air. You had to lean away from
the mike u YOU used any volume ah al