Evening star., 1951-03-02
On the Air
Gala Show
Will Honor
Rodgers
By Harry Macarthur

By Harry Macarthur
Richard Rodgers will be the
man of television's hour Sunday
night. The hour will be that
usually occupied by "Television
Playhouse" (WNBW-9 PM,
given over for the occasion to
America Applauds: An Evening
for Richard Roogers.' America
has been applauding Richard
Rodgers music for a quarter of a
century; he gained his first fame
with the score of the 1925 seasons
"Garrick Gaieties."
Rodgers followed this with a
long list of Broadway hits. first
in collaboration with Larry Hart
and later with librettist Oscar
Hammerstein I'd. He won the
Pulitzer Prize in 1914 for the
score of "Oklahoma!" and the
Donaldson award in 1945 for the
"Carousel" music and in 1948 for
Allegro Through the years
America has been singing his
songs from such other shows as
South Pacific" the current hit:
"Babes in Arms" "a Connecticut
Yankee" ION Your Toes" pal
joey" and the movie, "State Fair.
His 25th anniversary as the
composer of a long list of the
country's favorite songs will be
celebrated on television by cast
which is impressive even by NBC-
TV special event standards, The
Hart and Hammerstein words and
the Rodgers melodies will be sung
by such as Mary Martin Tin her
first TV appearance), Bing Crosby,
Celeste Holm, Dorothy Maynor,
Patrice Munsel, Vivienne Segal
and Alfred Drake. There also
will be an informal quartet from
the Metropolitan Opera. composed
of Lawrence Tibbett, Charles Kull-
man, Brian Sullivan and Jerome
Hines and Dancers Zorina and
Valerie Belts will lend some
visual decoration to the Rodgers
music.
Man of Action: When Don
Ameche does something, he isl
nothing if not thorough. He
played Alexander Graham Bell
with such thoroughgoing realism
once that he made lasting i'm
preston. He still suffers from
unending gags about it and the
telephone still is referred to often
as "The Ameche"
Having left Hollywood behind to
become the head man on televi-
sion's Holiday Hotel (WMAL-
~ Thursday, 9 p.mD. Mr..
Ameche seems to be attacking
the new mediums with some in
tensity. Recently he managed to
appear within four days on three
shows on as many networks
NBC-TV's "Four-Star Revue" with
Jimmy Durante, his own ABC-TVI
show and the CBS-TV Celebrity
Time" Ended UP scarcely breath
ing hard.
New and Varied: WNBW is
juggling its daytime schedule next
week with three new shows, two
from the network and the third
Jeanne Warmers Time Out"
which she hopes will go eventually
to the network. Miss Warmers
program will be seen Tuesdays
and Thursdays at 1880 pm,
Miss Susan" starring Susan Pc
ters, will be seen Monday
through-Friday at 3 pm. and "a
Guest in Your Home" with Edgar
A.. Guest. will be on Monday
rough-Friday at 3:15.
Miss Warmers program will
have music and interview guests
whose names are in the news. 1t
has been described in advance as
"a women's show, but with a diff
ferent slant" 1t was inspired, its
star says, by the success of the
United Nations and Senate hear
ing telecasts. This led her to be-
lieve that the feminine audience
would welcome a certain amount
of something more serious than
television usually gives it in the
daytime hours.
Miss Peters, who has pluckily
continued her acting career
though confined to wheel chair,
comes to TV in a SIP opera,
which will originate in Philadel-
phia, veritable hotbed of day.
time serials. "Pietro's Place"
(WNBW-Thursday noon) also
comes from there.
Mr.. Guests program will in
clude informal interviews with
interesting people from all walks
of life" and, naturally, recital by
the author of some of his new and
old poems.
y X X
Week End Guests: Yma Sumac,
the Peruvian singer with the CO.
lorful four-octave voice, will ap-
pear tomorrow night on the Jack
Carter portion of Saturday Night
Revue" (WNBW-8 p.mD >. :.
Tony Martin takes over "The
Comedy Hour" Sunday (WNBW-
8 p.m.). with Milton Berle and the
Andrews Sisters as guests /. 9. :.
Isabel Bigley, the doll of Guys
and Dolls" will visit Paul White
man Sunday tWMAL-TV-7 p.mo
Bonita Granville and Bill Will
liams will appear in MAKE Your
Bed" Sunday on "Bigelow Thea
ter" (WTOP-TV-6 pmD.