Evening star., 1951-06-04
On the Air
Peabody
Award Is
Judges Due
BY Harry Macarthur

eo@sNee-~~~@~s
The name of Judge Henry w.
Edgerton is hereby respectfully
submitted for consideration for
a special Peabody award for 1851.
He has faced the hucksters and
told them to go do their huck-
Istering to people who are free
to flee it.
For several years now. here in
Washington, we have been sorely
beset by radios in the buses and
Istreetcars. Some people have not
minded this and some even have
been deliriously happy about it,
most especially those who have
Icynically exploited the captive
audience for private gain.
Outraged ShriekS of pain from
those who would call their ear
drums their own have gone un-
needed. You're a minority, we
have been told by those so boldly
selling our trapped ears. and you
must bow to the will Of the ma
ljority. Yes, we have answered,
and If nine men and a girl are
riding on a bus and 80 per cent
of the passengers decide all the
girls on the bus should be kissed
then and there that's a majority,
too.
But it has been to no avail.
THE Public Utilities Commission
saw no reason why Capital Transit
shouldn't pummel its customers
with sales pitches if it wanted
Ito. The Transit Riders Associa-
tion got to District Court in the
search for silence. but was re-
buffed.
It seemed hopeless. 1t was with
dragging footsteps that We ap-
preached the bus stop at night
tired after a days work but Ger
tain that we would be even more
tired by the time the man got
Through shouting at us about the
pickles, the date bureau and the
bread that stays fresh in the ice
box. We seemed doomed to a life
of din.
Then Judge Edgerton appeared
on the scene. He couldn't have
brought more hope with him If he
had ridden down Pennsylvania
avenue on white horse reciting
the Bill of Rights. With a stroke
lof his pen-with several trench
ant strokes Of his pen. in fact-he
produced the decision. concurred
lin by Judges David L. Bazelon and
Charles Fahy of the United States
Court of Appeals. which put the
Ihucksters in their place.
You can't do this to free men,
he told them and the sunshine
seemed brighter. the air more zest-
Iful to breathe and freedom more
free.
There are those, who feel
strongly about this, who think
Judge Edgerton is in line for
Nobel prizes for literature (the
Transit Radio decision is fine
Ireading) and for humanitarian
service. This may be overenthu-
siastic. but he certainly deserves a
Peabody award for restoring radio
to its proper place, that Of a
friend we can turn to for enter
tainment and information when
we want it. not that of a heckler
yelling over our shoulders when
we'd rather turn attention to
something else.
Evidence: Jerry Strong claims
his Block Party" (WTTG -
Thursday. 1880 p.m) never lars an
|egg. as the saying goes in the
trade. Could be, but he was seen
emerging from the studio the
other night carrying not one but
Ia dozen eggs. There were no
chickens in there, either.
Celebrity: Eddie Gallaher's
"Sundial" show on WTOP will
originate in New York tomorrow
morning, which is where he now
is being a movie actor. 1t isn't
anything permanent unless, of
course, his impersonation today
and tomorrow of a disc Jockey in
a film named disc Jockey
bowls over the bobby-soxers. The
Gallaher supporting cast in
cludes Ginny Simms, Tommy
Dorsey. Russ Morgan and the
Weavers.
Reviewed in Brief: Jack E.
Leonard's first week as the Tues
day-Friday comic On Broadway
Open House" (WNBW-11 p. M }
came off well, it seemed to this
observer. He's as funny in this
spot as he always has been on
the Capitol stage, he's shown us
a new Dagmar dancing, yeti and
if he can keep up the pace, he'll
have lifted this affair out of its
doldrums. What he needs to do
right now is become more aware
that he's on television, not just
doing a stage show.
u + y y
Program Notes: The Pulitzer
Prize Playhouse" sponsor is drop
ping the name to spend the money
lit costs on other things and is
moving to CBS-TV on Fridays
at 8 next fall. The program will
be IAN entirely new concept in
full-hour, weekly television dra-
matizations. Peter Lind
Hayes and Mary Healy will take
over Morton Downey's "Star Of
the Family" (WTOP-TV-Friday
10 p. No. in July. :. Midwest
ern Hayride," a favorite with the
Cincinnati viewers. will be the
summer replacement for the Sid
| ToncaN