Evening star., 1951-04-04
On the Air
Bondage
Just Won't
Compress
By Harry Macarthur

BY Harry Macarthur
Somerset Vaughan recentl.
sent an enthusiastic cable to tht
producers of Somerset Maughan
Television Theater," noting will
pleasure that the program woule
expand to a full hour with tn,
switch to NBC-Tv (WNBW-al,
ternate Mondays, $3.50 p.m). 9Th.
horizons are widening" wrote Mr.
Vaughan happily on his cable
gram blank.
Mr.. Vaughan might have dont
his TV producers and his admir-.
ers in the television audience 9
favor if he had added something
which he. as a skilled teller o1
tales, certainly knows. The hori.
IONS may be widening, but the;
have not widened far enough tc
encompass "Of Human Bondage
This must have been fairly OBJ
vious to every one concerned by
1925 Monday night, when "O1
Human Bondage" in televisior
form, was concluded and the busi-
ness of reading credits and selling
hair-dye was taken up. No viewer
who had never read "Of Human
Bondage" could have qualified. at
that point, as an expert on Mr.
Maugham's photographed novel
of the same name.
The fault did not lie with Theo-
dore and Mathilde Ferro. who did
the adaptation; with Martin Ritt,
who directed. or with the cast,
Tom Helmore and Cioris Leach
man were, in fact, fair enough
facsimiles of Mr.. Vaughan :
Philip Carey and Mildred Rogers.
The real culprit Monday night
was the man who decided in the
first place that "Of Human Bond
age" could be sandwiched into the
50 or So minutes left over from the
commercials on an hour-long tele-
vision show.
The ruinous fascination the
sleazy waitress held for Philip
Carey was painful in the Vaughan
book, but it was logical. The au-
thor did not introduce Mildred
until Chapter SIS, when Philip and
the readers were prepared. The
television script brought her into
his life on Page 8 and Philip Carey
never looked sillier. No Vaughan
work ever looked more like a soap
opera, either, than the episode
account which followed of Philips
and redemption.
n X X y
Monday Night Blues: That new
night television schedule
on ABC (WMAL-TV) distin-
guished itself chiefly by not turn
ing out as planned. "Hal in Holly
wood" scheduled for the 8 o'clock
spot, was Cancelled before it started
and the substitute seems to be a
series of Buster Keaton comedies.
Mr.. Keaton is funny man, but,
at least in the prints used during
the first program. his art was not,
shall we say, brought to full
fruition.
This Could Be You" at $50,
Is not precisely the ammunition
you would select If you wished to
throw fear into the heart of
Arthur Godfrey. its CBS-TV COM
petition. It did indeed, as prom
Ised by an earlier viewer, display
several couples who were urged
TO tell how "our song" came into
their lives and to sing or perform
1t. Astounding is a good word, if
wants a quote for an ad.
The arthur Murray Show"
which started on Du Mont and
this week to Mondays at
on ABC-TV. is a variety show.
Its distinction is Mrs. Arthur
Murray, who is an enthusiastic
hostess.
BY Leaps and Bounds: Televi-
sion in the Washington area con-
,inues to grow. The latest (April
d figure announced by the Wash
ngton Television Circulation
Committee shows that the number
If sets-in-use here has passed the
luarter-million mark, or, to be
specific. is 253,760. The latest
IBC survey reports 11,748,000I
'ets-in-use in the country on
March /.
Program and People: Edgar
Charlie Mccarthy. Vera
Iague and Nadine Conner will be
,uests Of James Melton tomorrow
light at 9 when he launches his
lew Ford Festival" (WNBW) :. i
Jot new. but returning tomorrow
hight at $3.50 (also WNBW) will
'e Treasury Men in Action" :. !
rhe opening date for the amos
n Andy" filmed television series
las been set by CBS-TV. It will
tart Thursday. June 2S. at $3.50
,.m.~. John McQuade has taken
,ver the title role in Charlie
Wild, Private Detective" (WTOP-
TV-Friday, 8 p.m0.
\ \ X +
Radio. Department: Curt Schif-
eler, manager of the Raleigh Ho-
el, will be guest soloist with the
Philadelphia Symphony on April
%, when Eugene Ormandy con-
iucts a special concert at Walter
Reed Hospital. Mr.. Schiffeler not
,nly sings German lieder better
han any hotel manager you know,
out better than lot of concert
singers. You can check for your
self any Sunday at 1890 pm. on
VOL. E.. Dorothy MCGUIRE will
play the leading role in a radio
lramatization of Helen MacIn-
1ess' "Rest and Be Thankful" to-
morrow night at $3.50 on Hall
mark Playhouse" (WTOP).