Imperial Valley press., 1938-03-13

dreaded tn / II gI. D. DhioNoL'
happened. It was the gathering oi
American humorists. sponsored by
Harry Newman, publisher of Judge.
Three hundred solemn faced wits
and their friends were there. LoWeli
Thomas. dapper to the tips OF his
curly black hair. presided. There
were four microphones In front of
the speakers. so nobody thought 10
issue a warning to be careful.
A soft accented stranger from
North Carolina was telling a harm
less story. He thoughtlessly let out
an oath that is seldom printed and
never aircasted. There was no time
to stop him. Thomas was on MS
feet, blushing and pointing to the
mikes. The speaker went right on,
Three sentences later he handed the
air another swear. The speaker who
followed dropped one more forbid
den word. and the nervous tension
of Thomas would have lighted a
cyclone cellar.
That program went right on to
the time limit. But its rumored
that the big stations will insist
eating broadcasts be preceded by
off-air warnings against purple
language in future
There is radio legend about a
children's broadcaster who almost
ended his career with a sentence
He thought he was off the air, and
gave his opinion of his audience in
a few bliStering words. But the
mike was open and the station had
to apologize.
The British Isles were shaken to
their marroWbones last year when
a slightly crooked announcer said,
"Damme, the fleets all lit upi' Not
such a horse frightening word, but
the British Broadcasting Corpora
ton is controlled by the Govern
ment, and His Majesty's Govern
ment doesn't say damme, or even
goodness gracious.
Rube Goldberg is an exception to
the tradition that funny men are
dour and sad. He laughs at the
drop of a hat-pin. His face has
gone all grinny in wrinkles from
thinking up funny things. He is a
dinner table fun-maker who has
few equals when he talks extern
pore. But he suffers from mike
fright in broadcasting. There's a
project to build a Rube Goldberg
crazy invention house at the New
York Worlds Fair, and If it's done
its apt to be SO funny there won't
be any war.
Will Rogers, like Rube, laughed al
his own jokes, making them all the
funnier. Bugs Baer seems to force
the grin when he WoTs ~slis audi
ence with a nifty that creeps in
between the phrases. Berton Braley
the poet of good cheer, and Rollin
Kirby. cartoonist, have ke-Shapeo
gray heads, and neither ever smiles
as they play billiards at The Play
ers. George M. Cohan uses the
side of his mouth for witty thruStS
and talks straight ahead when he;
serious. Lew Lehr speaks in ar
embarrassed manner, like a bare
footed boy at a MISUNDERSTANDING
picnic, when he's talking "out oi
character"
Memory: Climbing up to the tor
shelf of the tall cupboard to gel
my fathers only razor TO sharper
my pencils, when the folks were al
gone to church.
One OF the few isolated retreats
for metropolitan folk is beginning
its last quiet season. Two ritzy
toll bridges are planned, to connect
Shelter Island with the mainland
of Long Island Shelter Island
four hours seaWard from Manhat-
TAM has a summer colony of artists
and writers, as we'll as estates OF
bigottys in finance and industry
Old fashioned ferry boats charge
a dollar fifteen to carry car with
passengers from Greenport to the
Island SO the Shelterites live al
most primitive seclusion. Artist
Louis Biedermann, who has a sum-
mer home there, is thinking uE
schemes to lure the bridges TO some
other island, where they'l be APP
nrapiafpd