Evening star., 1952-03-21
On the Air:
s-------.4-.--.-
Sometimes
.AMonl Gets
Suspicious
By Harry Macarthur

IOuSpIGIOuS
BY Harry Macarthur
There is . terrible suspicion
lurking around here. There is M
reason In the world. Of course
why any man should suspect any.
one in the broadcasting trade
This. as any one knows, is full o
upright and fortnight individual
who would not, either. cut q com
petitor's throat without batting
an eyelash.
A man is q churl. at the very
best, to harbor these suspicious
thoughts. but sometimes q mar
can't help being what he is.
; Dagmar, as you must know I'M
less you just arrived here this
morning on . flying saucer from
is starting her own show
'sDagmar's Canteen," on NBC-TV
tomorrow night. The cast Of this
affair viii include Dancer Ray
Malone, Milton De Lugg, the
orchestra leader who rests his
plea for fame on the composition
Of Orange Colored Sky" and .
comedian whose name will remain
q secret until show time tomor-
row night, which will be 12:ls
am. Sunday.
Up to Q point this looks just
like Broadway Open House.
where Dagmar first burst into
The point. Of course
is the unnamed comedian. which Ii
where this terrible suspicion comes
in.
Dagmar's comic couldn't pos
sibly be Jerry Lester. even though
he is on the NBC-TV payroll with
to do. NBC would stand
. better chance Of talking Milton
Berle into joining Dagmar's sup
porting cast. The frightening
thought around here today. how
ever, is that NBC-TV is trying tc
recapture that Broadway Open
House" mood and that NBC knows
as well as any one that Jerry Les
ter is the easiest comedian in the
world to emulate.
He has o brother, Buddy.
They've been feuding for years
over who stole the act from whom
So, there's one viewer sitting here
quaking with the fear that his
screen will light up tomorrow
night to reveal that Dagmar's new
foil bears q close resemblance to
The old one.
Yelping before you are hit in
the face with the custard pie that
may never arrive may not be
cricket, but suspicious are hard
70 subdue.
Significant, ]. G.-When 1t was
announced that Mickey Rooney
would make his TV drama debut
IN "Celanese Theater" in Max
we'll Anderson's Saturdays Chill
iren," it was hailed as q "signi-
icant" first. A significant first is
aot q thing to be ignored. So.
;purred by the optimistic thought
hat the new Mickey Rooney
night differ in some way from the
I'D one, and remembering that
work, as Benjamin Franklin or
maybe it was the managing edi-
or once said, comes before pleas
ire, the fight was passed over
Wednesday night.
Saturdays Children" on ABC-
rvs "Celanese Theater" proved
o be q delayed action bomb. You
lever saw such suspense. It was
full Is minutes before Rooney
to squelch the thought
hat maybe he was caught in q
raffic jam and wouldn't make it
o the studio at all. He appeared,
and the suspense was
,ver.
It Immediately became obvious
hat the new Mickey Rooney is
he same as the old one except
maybe older and that "signifi-
ant" now has q new meaning
hat Webster never expected it to
lave.
The last few rounds Of the fight
we're q lot more exciting than the
irst round Of Saturdays Chill
lren." Funnier, too. The cur
ent heavyweights and light
leavies may not be the best crop
4 fighters ever. but they some
lines appear to be the clumsiest.
)r maybe there always have been
lighters who knocked themselves
Iown, but before television 1t
wasn't noticed by 50 many.
Anyhow. Wagner had only him
elf to blame. You don't beat
Iardico by betting him in the
loves with your jawpone. no mat
er how tough it is.
For that matter. Rooney had
My himself to blame, too. It
wasn't like his old days at Metro
Ioldwyn-Mayer. when he could
,oint an accusing finger at q
casting director. Not unless
some one stood over him with a
,lub here and made him play q
sort of post-teen Andy Hardy,
vooing a girl who appeared to be
20 years his junior.
If you are an answering Mickey
Rooney admirer. Of course. we
hope you had q lovely time.
Programs and PeOple-Yvonne
De Carlo, it says in a report just
received, will make her dramatic
TV debut" Monday night at 8 on
Lights Out" (WNBW) in "An-
other Country" Restraint,
man. Don't say a word :. Fred
Allen and the residents Of Aliens
Alley will be back Sunday night
IN Royal Showcase" (WNBW-
p.m.) :. The Comedy Hours
this week end will be Martin and
Lewis (WNBWSunday. 8 PM
The president Of the Krazy
Klavan Klub. George Lee, snd
several Of the members he has re-
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