Evening star., 1948-07-18
For Radio Listeners
By Harry Macarthur

One thing any success in the
entertainment world can be GER
tain Of Is that it will not remain
the only one of its kind. 1t is sure
to be copied. Frank Capra, the
skilled movie director, was taking
note of this awhile back when he
was explaining why there are film
cycles. The sad fact, he declared
is that no one really knows, with
certainty, what goes into the max
ing of a hit film. When a pic
ture is success. every one else In
the business picks it apart, analyzes
it and immeditely cooks up some.
thing else with the same ingredi.
ents. Thus the cycle is started.
It must be. judging from the evil
dence presented our ears, that nc
one really knows, with certainty
what goes into the making of q
popular radio show. Surely the
movies have no monopoly on that
business of cycles. Let new radio
Program catch on and the boys
at the other networks are busy 1r
q flash, trying to figure out how
they can do the same thing, with
Just slight twist to avoid the
cry of plagiarism.
Radios leading cycle Of the mo-
ment, of course, is the one which
finds all those programs lavlshlne
wealth upon their listeners. Give
away" shoes aren't new, but never
before have they become so hyster-
lcally abundant. Ralph Edwards
probably pointed the way with his
Mr.. Hush, Mrs. Hush, Walking Man
and Miss Hush contests. Then came
Stop the Music" taking to the
air a few months ago on the sad
dest Sunday night in Fred Allen
life.
"A number of people in radio feel
Incidentally, that the jolt Mr.. Allen
got Ito down among the soap
operas in the Hooperatings) is not
entirely a thing of dismay. He's
been complacently using that same
formal for a long time. The think
ing radio people know, however, that
It would have been much better
for radio as a whole If Mr.. Allen
had been nudged in his secure posi-
ton by a superior entertainment
instead of Nationwide lottery in
which you don't even have to buy
tickets.
Regardless of its merits as an en-
tertainment Cor demerits), Stop
the Music" and its sudden success
did show the broadcasters what a
lot of their listeners wanted. A lot
Of their listeners like to play guess
ing games, like to listen to other
people coming into sudden wealth
and like to sit there thinking II
might, just possibly, happen to
them; after all it happens to some
body.
There are other cycles, too, tc
be noted on the summer air One
of them includes a set Of programs
which owe thir formal to the fact
that q man thought up radio
show called "Information, Please
several years ago. Two of these are
VINO odlQ l1ldl. WRS-I 4doy
$50 PM and Let's Talk Holly
wood" (WRC-Sunday 7 p.m).
Of the two, "Who Said That?" il
closer to it's father, Information
Please" both in its l. @. and is more
general appeal. 1t is, in fact, moth
ing more than a sort of specialized
Information, Please" dealing II
questions about newsworthy quota,
tions of the seven days preceding
each show. Robert Trout is the
man who asks the questions anc
those on the panel are well-knowr
figures at least literate enough u
give usually interesting answers
when he asks, for example, "Wht
said, No matter under what terms
conditions or premises a propose
might be couched, I would refuse
to accept the nomination. "Whc
Said That?" is generally good lis
tening, or at least it has been so far
The other above mentioned de-