Evening star., 1951-05-31
On the Air
What KIuvun
| Needs Is q
| Director
By Harry Macarthur

and he is firing it at the big time
in broadsides. In one way OF
another he seems also certain to
hit the target sooner or later
Right now, however, he stands in
glaring need of an editor
show-wise director. say, who can
channel the Klavan comedy tai
ent, get rid of the extraneous
matter and put the rest to best
use.
Sid Caesar was in much the
same spot several years ago and
he would be the first to tell you
that he might still be playing
dates and movie-bit
roles if Max Lehman hadn't come
along. Caesar isn't much fun
nier as the bright head man OF
Your Show of Shows" than he
was when he played the old .Ro-
many Room here. Producer Lieb-
mans long experience in and
of show business, how
ever. was there to make Caesar
one Of the big guns of television
when the "Show of Shows" op-
portunity turned up for both Of
them.
Klavan's need for some sort
of Svengali was in evidence when
the new Gene Klavan Show OF
Studio y" made its bow as
Tuesday-at-7 feature on WTOP'
Tv. A viewer who hasn't the
taste and good Judgment to watch
"Kukla, Fran and Ollie" at Z pm
deserves what he gets somewhere
else, of course. but it is unfair te
call Klavan a punishment.
X X Il X
The worst that can be sale
of his new enterprise, on the basis
of its maiden effort, Is that it il
aimless. 1t gives you-at leas1
it gave one viewer Tuesday night
the feeling Of having accidental
ly come upon some people goins
through the motions of a show
they might put on, without being
sure whether or not they really
ought to do it.
The promise of novelty which
seems to precede everything Kla'
van does was not fulfilled in thi:
case. He did manage a couple Of
funny skits (an imitation of disc
Jockey at work and an imitation
of a high school boy taking ar
examination). Johnny Salb DEM
onstrated his skill at the electric
organ and Doris Hart sang a
couple of songs soulfully. All
pleasant enough.
If Klavan wants to become the
John Conte of Washington he
ought to manage it with this, but
if it's the Garroway approach he
is aiming at land he obviously isl
he'd do we'll to remember that
"Garroway at Large" is not bull
on Garroway's casual style but or
Writer Charlie Andrews skill al
using that style.
All things considered, though
Klavan is young man to watch
He might even get this informa,
TV session off the ground If ht
keeps trying.
Meeting of the Twain: There i.
to be a cocktail party this evening
at the Old New Orleans to intro.
duce Miss Ruth Wallis to the loca
disc Jockey fraternity. Since Mis-!
Wallis, now singing at the. .SaZerat
Room there, makes records anc
since disc jockeys are a large fac
tor in the sale of records, there il
nothing unusual about such {
party.
Where she and the people WHIT
play records on the radio will flint
a common meeting ground is an
other question, however. No dis
jockey is his right mind woult
play one of Miss Wallis record
on the air unless he had just de
cided to call the boss and resign
before the boss called him.
There is nothing wrong will
Miss Wallis voice. 1t is, in fac
easy to listen too. She is easy tt
look at. too, and might even de
corate television screen. Not will
those songs, though. They are
shall we say. elemental. A numbe,
Iof them are funny, too, in thei
Ione-track-minded way. In fact, il
the dark of night, in the prope
surroundings (Sazerac Room sur
roundings. say), Miss Wallis i
quite a rousing entertainer.
Can't understand. though, hov
she and those disc jockeys will
Iget together.
X X X X
TV Tomorrow Night: Senator
Estes Kefauver, Herbert O'Conno
and Charles Tobey will appear ol
1--WE, the People" (WNBW-8:30)
Judith Evelyn. Louisa Hortol
and Pat Kirkland will be tn,
three in Three in a Room" OF
Ford Theater" (WTOP-TV-9)
|. Dorothy Gish will play tn,
leading role in "Detour" on "Pulit
zer Prize Playhouse" (WMAL-T1
30. Mindy Carson will hell
celebrate the anniversary of "Ca.
valcade of Stars" (FTTG-10). :.
Connie Hains and Comic Alar
Carney will visit Morton Downey
on Stars of the Family" (WTOP.
TWO. Paddy DeMarco will
meet Eddie Giosa in a 1O-rounc
lightweight bout (WNBW-10D..
II ~
Another Tenant. The next pro.
gram to move into WMAL-TV'.
new auditorium at the Connection
avenue television center probably
will be "Quiz of Two Cities" TIL,
former radio program will resum,
as a TV feature next Wednesda,
Iat 10:30 pm. alternating between
Baltimore and Washington, will
teams from the two cities com.
peting for prizes in a question
answer session.