Evening star., 1951-12-03
By Harry Macarthur


the production code. Others which
might have felt more restrictions
than they did are "A Place in the
SUM-" September Affair."" His
Kind of Woman" and People Will
] Talk"
So far this laxity hasn't hurt
! the movies too much and, in fact
probably has allowed some o1
them to look less like fairy tales
] alongside realistic foreign pictures
The code guardians Of the
Johnston Office are not looking the
other way entirely, Of course
They did, it is true. pass the script
for Clash by Night" in which
Barbara Stanwyck leaves her hus-
band and children for an affair
with another man, then returns
with all forgiven and none OF the
payment usually demanded Of
such transgressors by the code.
Vigorous objection was made to
one proposed scene. however-one
which was to have shown Barbara
Stanwyck smoking In bed. Insur-
ance underwriters complain like
crazy when one like that sneaks by.
Premiere Thornton Wilder'S
Pulitzer Prize winning comedy.
The Skin of Our Teeth" will
be the initial offering Of the new
season when Pulitzer Prize Play
house" returns on December 10
to alternate with "Celanese Thea
ter" (WMAL-TV-Wednesday, 10
PM. This should prove q Mt
/ ting companion for the program
| which probably is the best new
one on television this season and
| it is safe to predict that the hour
on Wednesdays at 10 pm. will
be attractively filled during COM
| ing weeks.
| "Celanese Theater" will pre-
| sent s. N. Behrman's mo Time
/ for Comedy" on December IL.
! Philip Barry's THE Joyous Sea-
son" with Lillian GishO on DE-
cember rs and Robert z. Sher-
woods Reunion in Vienna" on
January Q. Pulitzer Prize Play
house" will follow the Wilder play
on January 2 with Hill 346," dra-
matization of some of Marguerite
Higgins prize-winning dispatches
from Korea.
- 4E*
Hooray for Me-Public service,
according to word from WTOP-
ITV, reached q new and individual
high around there the other day.
The station got q telegram. ad-
dressed to "WTOP. Washington,
D. c." which read To-day IS
Willie Woods 34th birthday.
Please announce God bless him. I"
It was signed Willie Woods. I"
Mark Evans wished him q happy
birthday on his Z pm. television
show and if this draws the sta
ton a rash of similar kilograms.
it has only itself to blame.
Programs and People - Gene
Klavan will be master of cere-
monies this week for the first Of
series Of Wednesday evening
shows to be presented at the new
USO center in the old Belsaco
Theater. Herb Shriner will
take over the Sid Caesar spot on
December 8 and Is on Your
Show Of Shows" while Caesar
takes a two-week vacation.
Fair warning department: Deal
is reported in the works for
Mickey Rooney to make his TV
bow late in January with Jimmy
Durante. When "Top Banana
opened in New York the critics,
almost to a man, began worrying
about Phil Silvers' health. suggest
ing that the show would run as
long as he could stand the strain,
which he probably wouldn't be
able to stand. Well, TOP Ba-
mana" is such q burden to Mr..
Silvers that he now Is thinking
of launching q new radio-TV Sc
ries in addition to it. Sub
lime to ridiculous note: Ezio
Pima and Milton Berle will share
the guest spotlight on Kate
Smiths evening program Wednes-
day (WNBW-S p.m). Chris
Drake, Marine Corps hero and
ex-member of Carlson's Raiders,
will play the leading role in Five
Star Swindle." on Racket
Squad" Thursday night (WTOP-
TV-10 p.mD.
+ $3.50
Already Aroused - Television
will arouse and mature public
opinion, Sylvester L. Weaver, NBC
vice president in charge of tele-
vision, said the other day at the
networks convention at Boca
Ration, Fla.
USED for good" he said. used
Iintelligently, this medium can
communicate an upthrust to the
mental level, the maturity level,
the knowledge level, the alertness
level of this Nation that will
bring about almost a mutation In
us.
by design, NBC television will
create an aroused, alert, knowl-
edgeable. balanced, mature pub
lie opinion. :"
Now, when he has that conven-
ton out Of the way. Mr.. Weaver
can get around to that mail in
spired by the curtailment OF
''Kukla. Fran and Ollie" You
can't say NBC-TV doesn't know
how to arouse public opinion.