Evening star., 1951-12-21
On the Air:
TV Promise
Realized in
Wilder P|uy
On the Air:
By Harry Macarthur

By Harry Macarthur
Every now and then a silver of
|television's bright promise is real
lied and fills the living room with
wonder and awe. For giving you
this one thing you can forgive
television its transgressions, its
oft-repeated jokes. its octopus
like commercialism. At the same
time you wonder why. when it
clearly can achieve heights, II
doesn't achieve them more often
Thornton Wilder's wonderfully
imaginative salute to the human
race, The Skin of Our Teeth"
was the vehicle on which televi-
sion rode to triumph this week as
Pulitzer Prize Playhouse" re-
turned to the air (WMAL-TV-
alt. Wednesdays, 10 PM. This
was TV entertainment which sent
the imagination soaring, a poig-
nant dlstillate. both witty and
wise of the entire human comedy
Mr.. Wilder's play. which opened
on Broadway during the war, has
been described as the most con-
Itroversial work the American stage
ever produced. 1t transcends time
and space and still pinpoints be-
fore you the whole Of the expert
ence Of man, who has been get
ting by by the skin Of his teeth
since Adam
This, naturally, calls for imagi-
nation on the part of the playgoer
as well as the playwright and
there were those who didn't know
what Wilder was talking about in
this far-asy and consequently de-
cided he didn't know himself.
Then there were those who were
filled with wonder and delight and
called this the greatest American
play yet and who haven't changed
their minds.
This latter is close to what
it seemed in one living room
on Wednesday night. Joseph
Schrank's adaptation was a flow
ing teleplay. literate and lively
and fine performance by Thomas
Mitchell. Nina Foch and Peggy
Wood made it glow with life.
1t is such things as this produc-
ton of THE Skin of Our Teeth"
which emphasize forcefully what
a wonder we have 10 television
Being controversial, the play
wasn't liked by all who saw it.
But 1t still is. at the very least,
one Of the great works OF the
American theater and television
permitted it to be seen in one
hour by an audience of several
million. far, far more persons than
have seen it yet in all its stage
performances.
Christmas Cheer-The air In
the immediate future will be filled
with televisicn observance of the
yuletide. Special programs will
be concentrated for the most part
on Christmas Eve and Christmas
Day, but regularly scheduled
shows already are making their
various festive bows to the sea-
son.
On Monday night NBC-TV
fWNBW) will turn most of the
evening over to Christmas Eve
programs, starting with Christ
mas music by Eleanor Steber and
the Firestone Symphony Orches-
ira and Chorus at $50. At $50
the new Clan Carlo Menotti
opera, "Amahl and the Night
Visitors" will have its hour long
premier performance. At II
o'clock Charles Laughton will pre-
sent an hour of holiday readings.
including the story of the Ma
tivity from the Book Of st. Luke
and the Christmas chapters from
Charles Dickens "Pickwick Pa
pers." From midnight to 2 am.
Tuesday the NBC-TV cameras will
be bringing viewers the pontifical
mass at st. Patrick's Cathedral
in New York.
Our Lady's Juggler." Anatole
Frances classic story Of the Jug
gler-Monk, Barnabas, who gave
his best performance before a
statue Of the Blessed Virgin, will
be televised in several different
guises. AS a TV adaptation by
Mel London titled 1.-The Smallest
Gift" it will be seen on Du Mont
(WTTG) at 9 o'clock Monday
night and Nadine Gae will pre-
sent dance Interpretation of the
story on CBS-TV's Fred War
ing Show" Sunday night at
(WTOP TV). On ABC-TV
fWMAL-TV) a dramatization of
"Our Lady's Juggler" is scheduled
for 6:45 pm. Christmas Day.
One Of the major Christmas
undertakings in television will be
Walt Disney's next exploration of
the medium. 'The Walt Disney
Christmas Show" is scheduled for
an hour at 8 pm. on Christmas
Day over CBS-TV. It will include
Give" guests with Kathryn Beau
mont acting as hostess and scenes
from past Disney Aims, plus some
excerpts from his forthcoming
Peter Pan"
Another joint holiday program
by the Symphonette and the Cho-
raliers will be seen and heard al
$50 Christmas afternoon on CBS-