Evening star., 1951-10-03
On the Air
Thut BIure
Is sWork Of
.GremIins
By Joy Cormody

III
Cody Pfanstiehl of WTOP ha:
name that may leave your iland;
permanently disfigured after you
have typed it, but he is a most
lobliging chap.
He is as happy as the next
fellow to make your problems his
problems when they relate to radio
Ior television.
Take. for example, this problem
that has been going on in our liv.
ing room ever since they delivered
the television set rather a long
time ago. To judge by the COM
IplaintS of readers, it is asvexation
in number of other living rooms
We refer tat long last) to the
blare of commercials in the mid
die of otherwise mellow-toned
programs.
why is this?" we put it straight
to c. P.
'Is it?" he came back, about as
abruptly as possible in a language
with so few monosyllables.
What do you mean, is it?'"
we said, slightly of balance.
Well" said c. P, what mean
is are you sure there is amplifica-
ton of the commercials over the
rest Of the program sound level?"
1--WE have beautiful, reliable
ears, nurtured through decades of
listening to Ethel barrymore, Ethel
Norman, Ethel Waters and Bethel
Leslie" we shot back. 1--WE would
not want them knocked off by
radio or television commercials,
and that is what is going to
happen one Of these nights. Ears
are our livelihood in the theater.
We live by them. as others live by
their wits. their talents, or the
skin Of their teeth"
"I'll look into it," c. p. promised.
And, unlike most people who say
that. he looked into it.
What he did was get in touch
with Orville Sather, a high man
in the technical caverns of Colum-
bia Broadcasting. And what did
Sather say? This:
Orders have been issued to
ride gain evenly throughout the
show Gall shows). We peak every
thing except music at 100"
Translated. this means that it
is not because some engineer f1ips
a control that the commercial
comes I'D like something played
by calliope.
If is does" says Mr.. Pfanstiehl
who is not saying you are crazy
or that we are crazy, something
else is responsible"
What else?
"Mmmmmm," huns Mr.. Pfan-
stiehl. maybe. it is because most
announcers who do the CONNER
cials are hired for the punch and
vitality of their voices. Without
the aid Of a single unit of addi-
Itional electricity, or a mechanical
gadget of any kind. they just
sound louder than anyone else
on the program. And. Of course,
being announcers, they work di-
rectly into the microphone. This
also may be a factor. Any other
questions?"
Yes" we said, why is is that
commercials come up so loud that
we have to reduce the volume so
the neighbors will not think Ted
Lingo has moved into the apart
ment house?"
"MNdMMMMMMM," Mr.. Pfan-
stiehl hummed, this time in capi-
tai letters, "if you would care to
think that the psychological effect
of commercials creates the illu-
sion Of noise in the brain, go
ahead. It's your BRAIN"
All this, of course, makes ii clear
that it really is Gremlins in the
set. Gremlins. of course, are what
come of mans having tampercu
with electricity until he found
ways to send sounds and images
through the once so beautifully
empty air.
World Series Line e-up-Televi-
sion will get there first, IS minutes
before radio. with tomorrow's
opening world series game. And
the first face you see, and voice
you hear, will be that of Dizzy
Dean. with his NBC-WNBW game
preview at 1890 pm. Radio.
with some TOO Mutual Broadcast
ing System stations, will join up
at 12:45. and. of course, the air
will be glutted tonight with inter-
views with players, managers, ex-
perts, and perhaps a mere fan or
two.
Cross Country Shows-Two new
coast-to-coast television shows
will climb aboard the micro-Wave
link tonight, both on ABC-Tv and
On the cultural side
and very funny at the same time
will be a new TV drama produc-
ton. "Ah Wilderness" by Eugene
O'Neill. 1t will go on the air at
3 pm. At 8, east bound from
Hollywood, the same network will
an hour-long ice revue.
Frosty Frolics," on film.
And Back They Come-Radio
also will pick up tonight where it
left off in early summer with the
return of NBC-WRC's Halls of
Ivy" 8 pm, starting the same old
faculty. Mr.. and Mrs. Ronald
Coleman. Mystery Theater,"
formerly on CHS becomes an ABC
feature at 8 pm, opening with
The Case of the Gilded Jade. u
JOY might as well reign, too, over
the return at 9 pm. ,NBC-WRC,
Of Groucho Marx with his Bet
Your Life" And, most of all per-