The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1952-08-14
HOLLYWOOD
NOTES
BY BOB THOMAS

HULL WOOO vi interview
ing Danny Thomas is not like in
terviewing Gary Cooper. You don't
get "Yep" or a "Nope" for an
answer.
Thomas has made a fortune from
his gift of CAB. So l got a full
explanation when I asked him why
he is quitting television. He is per-
hapS the first of the top comedians
to give up the new medium of his
own free will. So I queried him
about it on the set of "The Jazz
Singer" in which he is playing
the AL Jolson role. Then l stood
back and listened.
81 am a stand-up entertainer"
he began very elementally. 10th
ers l could mention of this same
type are Danny Kaye, Judy Gar
land and Betty Hutton. Go down
the list about IL and you come
to Thomas. We have this in COM
mon: that we can entertain an
audience alone and without props
for an indefinite period of time.
Il am not a clown. l paint a
word picture. I can hold an au-
dience in a cafe or theater for an
hour and five minutes merely by
talking and singing few songs.
But this type of entertainment is
not possible in TV as it is now run
by sponsors and advertising agen-
cies.
"a sponsor sees me in a cafe
and decides to buy me for TV.
He says he wants me to do my
'Wailing Syrian act just as he
saw it. But it runs q minutes.
The agency says it has to be cut
down to four minutes. Another rou-
tine runs seven minutes; they want
it at two and half. The agency
claims that the TV audience will
not watch a single person on the
screen for more than a few min
uteS."
The comedian said fatty that
only a couple of his dozen shows
last season were up to his stand
ards.
"You can't hope to create in
six days what takes 10 or IL weeks
in a motion picture studio" he
remarked. equality is bound to
suffer. That's why I am throwing
my lot with the movies. Instead
of tossing a show together and
hoping it will be good, the movie
makers take time and care, so
that each frame of film is like a
perfect picture"
Thomas listed his other objec-
tons to TV:
"You can't appear so often and
keep your audience. / revere the
acting talents of Cary Grant, Spen-
Ger Tracy and the late Walter Hus-
ton. But if / were to see them on
SCICCu III &C
months, / would tire of them.
Il can't play to cold audience.
In TV your audience is looking
at the camera, the stage hands,
the props, anything but the comedi-
an. But l need those people to
bounce off of and to play with.
l can't get laughs from a camera.
Its hard to perform with all
those gadgets between you and the
audience. like to be free to move
around. l might be getting to my
best punch line, and I'll hear the
No. l cameraman talking over his
phone to the director: That's as
close as l can come in; you'll
have to get him on No. e.
"Also, the TV routine gets you
down. You're always worrying and
attending meetings. They bring out
charts-blue charts, yellow charts
and red charts. Terrible they
say, we lost two listeners in st.
Louis last week."
Thomas indicated he would limit
his future activities to movies Che
has four to do for Warmers in four
years., night clubs and theaters.
There is a half-million dollars
waiting for me in night clubs in
this country every year." he re-
Elected. "And l can't feel sorry
for anybody who's playing The
Ia C;ruap ~