Evening star., 1938-09-07

10 play Tor Z0 guests. linen sne olS-S
covered that IA Of them didn't want
to dance.
Giving an entertaining party Is
mostly q matter Of choosing the
guests carefully-plus smart planning,
plus initiative and friendliness when
the big event begins. Yours will be a
success If you'll follow few simple
but important rules. Today we'll dis
cuss those which should be remem-
bered long before the first guest ar
rives-hoping for good time, but,
saddened by past experiences, not at
all sure Of having one.
First, before you think too much
about the party itself. make up your
guest list. Inviting the right people
is the first big step toward entertain
ing successfully. And by the right
people" we don't necessarily mean the
maids and men to whom you owe an
invitation or those who are" locally
prominent.
THE fun can be ruined far in ad-
vance If you make the mistake Of
asking lot Of social deadheads who
will contribute nothing more than
their physical presence and funereal
air. When dancing Is suggested, they
don't care to d-nce-and they abhor
cards and parlor games.
So invite congenial people - those
who can be counted on to enter whole
heartedly into the gay spirit Of the
evening A majority Of the guests
should know each other. This helps
YOU to break the ice and get the fun
of to q good start. Because new
people are an unknown quantity, don't
invite too especially to q small
party. Having Just few, though,
will add to the good time, as It's usually
an adventure to meet strangers and
enjoy their company.
Try to balance the guest list. II
Connie likes to talk, invite her friend
Tom, who Is a good listener. Make
sure there will be partners for the
good dancers. Match up the bridge
fiends and the parlor game experts.
Don't break up serious combinations.
If you invite Babs and fail to include
Frank, who is the light of her life,
Babs (if she shows up at alb will stare
moodily at the ceiling and snub all
friendly efforts to entertain her.
Neither is it good policy to invite
two men who are madly In love with
/ TaI mill
probably camp on either side of Sue
| and glare at each other, with Sue
making matters worse by maintaining
a hostile silencezjust to prove that
she Is above such petty male bicker-
ing. Then Ted and Joe may decide
to fight it out behind the garage. This
will produce a lot Of coat holding and
hoarse cheers, but will be awfully hard
on the party. You don't want to COM
pete with q side show Of bloody gladi-
| ators.
WHEN the guest list Is complete,
w begin to plan the party-remem-
bering not to attempt something too
elaborate If you're freshman host
or hostess. It's far smarter to start of
simply. gain experience, and then work
up to larger affairs-dances and
trick" parties, idea parties and mas
querades.
Make the party fit the crowd!
That's why the guest list should be
complete before the actual planning
Of the fun is begun. Then you can
intelligently do your best toward pro-
viding good time for every one.
Really entertaining evenings are tailor
made to. fit the guests.
For instance, II they are rather quiet
and aren't good conversationalists, you
won't want to give a dinner party
where conversation, and lots of it, is
very important. But this same quiet
crowd may 60 for bridge or scavenger
hunt In big way.
Along the same line-try to select
games and stunts which At in we'll
It's always important when selecting
| party pastimes to keep In mind con-
stantly the people whom you'd like to
enjoy them. Also. it's better to have
too much to do than too little. Be
prepared to start a new game before
the guests begin to tire Of the old one
Have all your plans made and equip
ment ready long before the early bird,
arrive.
Issue your invitations at least two
weeks before the big night, when you
can be reasonably sure of getting the
people you want. It won't be neces-
sary to do a lot of hectic telephonine
at the last minute.
There they are-the simple rules
to remember before the good time