Evening star., 1936-09-20

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,ences, yet rise as q unit and surge
forward arm in arm to chant knock
knocks by the hour.
Long before radio entered the house
via the parlor and living room 1t had
started to bring great groups together
in common and curious causes. A
decade and a half ago, when broad
casts sneaked into crystal sets kept
in cobwebby attics and damp cellars.
GOOD old Jerry Sullivan. pioneer
Chicago manufacturer, had millions
'aping his strange way of signing OH.
which ran: xxx, Shi-CAW-go."
rising brilliantly to q shrill CAV"
that no cornfield crow could hope to
emulate. incidentally, Jerry is now
enjoying revived popularity in the
city he once so ably publicized.
THAT little freak of pronunciation
took hold despite the slight cir
culation radio then enjoyed just as
did the veteran Lambdin Kay's "WSB,
At-lan-tuh Jaw-Juh. covers Dixie
like the dew" They captured an
American public that earlier had
. stopped everything to chirp in unison
the anomalous reply Of the unfortu-
nate fruit vendor: YES. we have no
bananas"
Fortunately that plant was at its
height before radio had q chance to
pick it up and nurture it into the
devastating popularity Of the fast
receding knock-knock. But 1t was
soon afterward that a composer TO-
tally lacking in rural sympathies
thrust upon susceptible Nation that
dirge of the elements: 1T Amt
Gonna Rain No More"
From birth to death, Americans are
easily innoculated with fads. There
Is the local newspaper man whose
year-old heir burst out with gleeful
,"Popeye," selected from Websters
100000 words for his initial ora
torical effort. And everywhere in
fants gather in sandpiles to drool the
popular: II fights to the finish,
cause eats my spinach"
At the same time their big brothers
and sisters are shouting Amos n
Andy's Jaw wah, aw wahW Not to
be outdone, their parents are explain
ing that they're requested" with the
present state of affairs, or promising
that Its only the beginning, folks,
only the beginning"
IN PULLMAN smokers, where breth-
ren of the padded expense account
are won't to spin yarns about the in
nocent offspring of soil tillers, every
other story approaches its climax with
a "So-o-o-o," done in the best Ed
Wynn manner.
And when the late arrival bursts in
upon the patiently waiting bridge
fiends, she is likely to emit handker-
chief waving "Hell-oo-oo" in the an
noying falsetto exploited by Fred
Aliens wife Portland. Only to be
asked, Wanna buy duck?" as in
dicted by Joe Penner, who also shared
q nation into calling each other you
nasty man." with the emphasis scat
tered according to rhythm and the
breath falling just back of the false
teeth in the style affected by the
cigar-smoking comedian.
OF course, not all public tancies
are stimulated by radio. Take the
recent handles, for instance. Few
handles were thrust into microphones
earlier in the season, when vocal
communication was almost dropped
while Johnny @. and all the little
Publics knotted their hands in the
digital depicting of questionable sit
uations. What might have happened
to handles if television had arrived
prematurely, is dangerous to cogitate.
IF YOU can survive day without
encountering that sing-songy and
nasal "All right, all right" of Maj.
Bowes, why either a miracle has oc-
CURED or the day hours have been
spent in solitary confinement. There
Is just as much danger of running
into Walter Winchells Lotions of
Love" at the end of a letter, or of be-
ing greeted either by Kate Smiths
ringing Hello, everybody" or Jack
Benny's "Jello again.
GvCA P1CoC3ltAlS JulllOl
with q piece Of pie, chortles Il hope
you like it" better than the "Old
Maestro" can say it, and follows up
with a crack about six delicious ia
vors, "all "99 and A hundredths per
cent pure"
And grandpa will chuckle like q
kid as he sits down to- breakfast
with Rudy's "Heigh-ho, everybody"
and perhaps remind Susie after the
kitten disappears that Time marches
on" or advise mother to forget the
dishes and "Parkyacarcas" for while.
FIRST recriminations against radio
on the score of partisan political
discrimination came from the Com
munist party last week. Through the
American Civil Liberties Union it has
asked the Federal Communications
Commission to investigate charges
that its speakers have been excluded
from the use of two radio stations
and the uncensored use of a third
the Hearst-owned WCAE, Pittsburgh;
the independently owned WIRE, In
dianapolis, and the newspaper owned
WTCN, Minneapolis.
Already buying time on N. B. G.
networks and on special hookups of
New York State radio stations, the
Communists this year are spending
much of their reported $250,000 cam
,paign budget on radio, taking advan-
tage Of the equal opportunity" clause |
of the radio law which requires that |
al candidates be accorded the same |
rights on the radio.
THE Communist radio campaign |
- strategy, in addition to its hookup |
periods, has been to buy time on local |
stations during the speaking tours of |
its presidential candidate, Earl Brow
der. WCAE declined to clear time for |
Mr.. Browder on N. B. c., 1t is charged,
because Of an important local COM
nitment-but the Communists assert
such commitment does not supersede
the network time contract.