Evening star., 1949-01-30

/. One of the things this department
has managed to greet with some
thing less than wild enthusiasm is
the transfer of radio shows to tele-
vision. There is too much radio in
television already. This Is not meant
10 imply that some of the programs
90 transferred are not satisfactory
rs radio shows. Some of them even
are good as video entertainment, too.
The new medium, however, is
something considerably more than
radio you also can see. Its best
programs are developed by men who
visualize them through the eye OF
the image orthicon rather than
through the ear OF the microphone.
Arthur Godfrey seems to be an
exception to this, but he actually
Is a prime case in point. MIR. God
frey, according to the latest Hooper
ferort. is the second and third most
pocular man in television and he
probably heads the list in homes
where the more violent Milton Berle
Is becoming just a bit of q bore,
Still he manages, on both his AM
TV Talent Scouts" (WOIC-Mon-
day, $3.50 pm3 and his video-only
variety show (WOIC-Wednesday, 8
PM, to regard the camera as an
Intruder.
He has said, sensibly enough, that
he does not intend to jeopardize the
90, 0,000, 900 listener audience Of "Tal-
ent Scouts" to please few thousand
televiewers. He has a point. He
could carry it through to its logical
conclusion by remembering that his
studio audience, to which he plays
consistently. is microscopic compared
with his television audience.
I The ratings, according to Hooper
Iof the two Godfrey shows probably
prove the point as well as anything.
The AM-TV Talent Scouts long
established as a radio favorite, is
the third-ranking video show. Sec
ond only to Mr.. Berle's top-place
"Star Theater" is the new Godfrey
Wednesday night affair, designed for
Aand aimed at the television AUDI
ence. This criticism, please note,
grows out of a prot Godfrey rather
than an anti Godfrey sentiment.
He is a great television personality.
; He could be a great television enter
! tainer, too.
: It may seem strange, unless you
know the radio editor, but these
thoughts developed from watching a
transplanted radio program that
obviously has just been waiting Tor
television to come along They rep
resent a long way of backing into
the report, for those who haven't
chanced on them yet, that The
Goldberg" (WOIC-Monday, 8 PM
are people with whom you'll enjoy
q weekly meeting.
: This is a veteran radio show. 1t
also was a successful Broadway play
Now Molly Berg, who writes 1t and
plays the leading role; Producer
Worthington Minor and Director
Walter Hart have turned 1t into
what seems so far to be an equal
success as a video entertainment.
Mrs. Berg's Molly Goldberg, de-
veloped through a number OF years
Is gem of a character portrait. Her
writing is marked by gentle humor
rather than by the witty wisecrack
- -t
Televiews:
Another entertainment for the
young that parents can watch with
out flinching has come out OF the
Midwest. It is Super Circus" sent
along from Chicago Sunday after
moons at S and telecast locally by
WMAL-Tv. It's permanent cast in
cludes q ringmaster, a clown and O
pretty drum majorette to lead the
band. It intersperses audience par
ticipation games for the kiddies with
good visual acts-jugglers, trampo-
line artists, acrobats, comedy dane
ers, etc. There's a lively circusy look
about the whole thing. The Chicago
show, incidentally, hands over to
WMAL-Tv the welcome business OF
keeping the children happy for two
full hours on Sunday evening. It Is