Evening star., 1953-12-06
Strike Turns Time Back Three Centuries
AS News Hunqry New York Misses Doilies

Another place where the strike
hit hard was the subways. the
cavernous miles of rumbling fails
where the disposition of jam
packed New York is, usually at
it's worst
Most subways riders withdraw
into a little world of their own
once they board train. And it
is the daily newspaper in front
of their faces that shuts them
off and encompasses their world
/ Take away the protective cover
ing of the paper, and they are
bored travellers in a strange and
naked wilderness.
I'm tired of looking at other
peoples faces" said May Blum
berg, a subway-riding secretary.
And she probably spoke for mil
lions.
The Des Moines (Ia.) Register
took note of this crisis from afar,
1t editorially suggested six SUBJ
stitutes for newspaperless SUBJ
way riders. such as talking to
yourself or singing. What Des
Moines apparently doesn't know
is that either form of self-indul-
gence in a New York subway is
a guaranteed one-way ticket to
Bellevue Hospitals mental ward
Pocket books, magazines, for
eign language papers, regional
dailies, QUITO town newspapers
all blossomed In the subway
last week. But there were still
too many bare faces about.
|. A group of high school stu
dents on a BMT train listened to
a bi-lingual classmate translate
sports scores from a Spanish
language daily.
One absent-minded rider grew
enthusiastic over a bargain liq-
uor sale he was reading about
A friend pointed out that his
paper was from Washington
and the sale was there.
Poor Weather Man.
A girl scanning an out-of towr
paper denounced New York's
weather man for the forecast she
saw before her-completely for
getting it was intended for ar
area several hundred miles away
Some subway riders turned tc
books. Barbara Anderson oi
Port Washington said she's reaC
classics she hasn't touched ir
years during her trip in and out
from her Long Island home.
''Never saw the streets look
cleaner" exulted Sanitation
Commissioner Andrew w. Mul.
rain as he scanned a city devoic
of discarded newspapers. Trash
baskets daily tonnage dropped
from 176 to 1870, street refuse
tonnage from 315 to $50.
Bad news, for once, did moi
travel fast. People died in OBJ
scurity. denied the final dignity
of an obituary notice to mark
their passing.
Said William Morris, a clerl
from the Bronx:
| II always read the obituarie.
and this week friend of mine
died and was buried before
heard a thing about it."
A Navy flier, Ensign James
Shapiro. %, crashed in Ions
Island Sound, bobbed for Il
hours with a companion in 6
life raft, was finally rescued un.
harmed. His parents first ink
ling of his ordeal came from {
telephone report that he wa
safe. His father, spared hours
of worry. said:
I'm doubly grateful that. be-
cause of the newspaper strike
we didn't. know about it sooner.
Hit Christmas Sales.
Business firms were appalled,
at a strike that cut off news
paper advertising just as Christ
mas sales doomed toward theil
annual peak. They scrambled tt
divert advertising to radio ant
TV channels.
Robert K. Christenberry, whit
runs the Astor Hotel and head
an association of Broadwa!
business men, reported:
There is a definite feelin,
that the newspaper strike ha
slowed up business"
Some movie houses suffered
since many patrons had no wa!
of knowing what movies wer'
playing where. Patrons KEEP
ticket Office telephones busy.
Madison Square Garden drew
1882 fans to a double-heade
basketball game. The Garden
vice president. Ned Irish, salt
it would have been a capacit.
crowd of 1920 were it not TO
the strike.
New Broadway shows opened
to good audiences. But they go
no reviews from the newspape
critics. One producer pleaded
with a critic for his persona
evaluation of the show.