The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1940-04-11
ma A TYPEWRITER

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George Jean Nathan once told me
that in all hts 3O-odd years of
reviewing shows and actors-he has
never made reply to an attack :.
~When you are in the brick-throw-
ing business" he added, you must
expect to get hit by a brick now
and then" Another counSelled:
"Never get indignant. People who
get indignant always look funny"
I've wasted several pieces Of pa
per trying to say what I think Of a
critic who has popped me four times
never mentioning my name :.
But I can't get hoped up about it
I don't feel mad And
when Q columnist doesn't sock back
he is accused Of mellowing
Or of yellowing Maybe now
that I'VE turned 43 I have acquired
some wisdom Il wlsn could
get my dander up instead I
remember the time not SO long ago
that got my best exercise and re-
creation throwing typewriters at
punkS who threw them at me
Heywood Broun's best stuff seemed
to be the pieces he did in haste
when he was burned up about some
thing But for the life of me
I can't get excited The critic
has suuawked about me four times.
but always with the same exclama-
ton marks When I read his
latest communicate all found my
self saying was: "This Is where I
came inl"
He is angry with Oman Hoover
for a personal reason He
always growls about newspaper
ethics, blah, blah-but reserves the
right for himself to use his column
and outlets to punish people he
doesn't like About three years
ago, maybe longer, he visited the
Oman in Washington =. :. He
hoped Hoover could arrange it for
him land no other reporterD to get
into Alcatraz prison He want
ed to do an exclusive series on 1t
Mr.. Hoover was sorry, but he
couldn't oblige him :. That's not
nv department" said John Edgar.
that has to be arranged by the at
torney-General's Office or the Prison
stuff" implied our paragon of vir-
tue and integrity, you fix it up for
me and I'll play ball with you"
This is the comedian who said news
papermen should do favors in return
for new tips Ethical i'm
propriety, he called it Well, 1
haven't been seeing crooked so long
that I've forgotten how to see
straight.
He denounces my brand OF re-
porting, which almost every news
paper in the nation has purchased
OF orderad copied . . My stuff Is
inaccurate, he says, uncouth, no
good Well, that's no exclusive
SCOOP of his. know many people
who agree-and have already said
SO On the other hand there
happen to be some newspaper peo-
who think I'll do Capt. Pat
terson is one. Cap works on the pa
per across the way. His editorial
page has testified that I'm news
paperman and that's all the rating
! expect Neil MacNeil is one
of the editors over at the N. Y.
Times. His new book on journalism:
without Fear On Favor" admits
me into the newspaper heaven
with this malarkey: 'Winchel
still sets the pace: It is a poor town
that cannot boast of its own little
Winchell. Even the colleges and
schools have them q. Few of them
have Winchells talent and almost
none his adroitness He has his
code of ethics" We reprint Mr.
MacNeil's stuff just to make a bum
out of the bark that "all legitimate"
newspapermen are opposed to me
I knew this crack was an
exaggeration the moment I looked
at the latest list of papers from the
syndicate. A new one in Panama
and one in Japan-plus dozen new
American gazettes " Apparently
the more than 100 U. S. editors who
hire my nonsense do not agree with
the Inaccurate and careless crusader.
He poses as the hottest of jour-
nalists, vino Is never in error. He
never plumbers He, if you please,
is the healthy example of newspa-
perman, by gum Well, he's not
that pretty His argument that
newspapermen should never accept
free drinks from cafe owners clash
es with the facts He accepts
them-often did Fight and
rassling tickets, too Most CHS
lers wouldn't think Of paying their
NAvun 4 Ae.