Evening star., 1943-04-04
Taking an Extra Share
In Variety of Ways, Large and Small,
Radio and Its People Fight the War
By J. ". Sfebb

The potency of radio In lending
material assistance to the war effort
perhaps most effectively smote the
public consciousness few weeks ago
when the man on Truth or Con-
sequences" directed listeners to send
pennies to the mother of marine.
AS the consequence of the hapless
contestants inability to answer an
unanswerable question, this mother
received tens of thousands of the
little copper coins-and probably is
receiving them yet. Overwhelmed,
Mrs. Dennis Mullane turned over
the sacks Of cash to agencies which
provide recreation for fighting men,
Impressed, if not completely awe
struck, by what his program had
achieved, Master of Ceremonies
Ralph Edwards shortly afterward
offered his services to the War Bond
Drive. The Government and Mr..
Edwards now have an altogether
successful project on their hands
to the beautiful tune of $2,5OO,OOO
worth of bonds sold in the course
OF Cnree programs.
AS Truth and Consequence"
tours the countryside numerically
batting and chastising thousands of
people happy to buy War bonds for
the privilege, a quick look around
for less eye catching national bene-
fits might be in order, for purposes
Of cross-section.
First of all, there is scarcely
money dispensing program on the
networks which doesn't pay its most
learned contestants in the Treasury
Departments favorite currency. On
such quizfests as VOLS Double or,
Nothing, for example, money as
such is unheard of, and Secretary
Morgenthau's bond registers jingle
that much more industriously 1t is
assumed, of course, that winning
contestants do not make it a prac-
tice to dart off to their nearest post
Office to negotiate immediate ex-
changes.
But the practice of mixing War
Bond awards with Encyclopedia
Britannica or eternally guaranteed
fountain pens is not the only means
by which radio people display con-
crete earnestness in the successful
prosecution of the war.
Recently the citizens of Atlanta,
Ga, publicly presented Secretary of
the Navy Knox with a check, from
funds they had canvassed, for the
construction of a new cruiser At
lanta to replace the one sunk in the
Pacific From all over NBC, and pos
sibly other networks which have
neglected to publicize the fact. per-
sonnel of every classification who
claim Chicago as their home have
been chipping in for the purchase
of new warship in honor of that
city's destroyed namesake. Kieran of
Information Please has donated his
typewriter for auction: Charlie Nc
Carthy. his top-hat: Shelton, a VOL
ume of Skeletons best gags; Ginny
Simms, treasured evening gown;
Lurene Tuttle, an equally treasured
doll, and so on. Small contributions
in themselves, admittedly; but also
an anything but Indifferent spirit
behind them. And as for the price
such oddments command? Well
fans are fans everywhere, in the
movies, ball park or radio.
The Importance of radio and it's
performers as protectors and stimu-
lators of that celebrated public soft
spot, morale, hardly needs ampli-
f1cation. Moreover. the manner in
which the job is being handled holds
increasing promise. 1t has even
reached the point where all of
Johns other wives are joining the
WAACS, dragging their cakes of
soap behind them