Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-03-11

bE4SSOu mace his Nv O6DuC.
ut was 20 years ago to the day,
just few days ago." said the
vitamin-charged elder statesman
of singers. "They put me in front
of the camera in London and
sent the television to Copen-
hagen. Across the ocean. They
can't do that today, even."
Five years earlier. in 1928.
John Logic Baird, the English
inventor who sent Brisson's pic
ture to Copenhagen, had con-
tributed an even more Spectacu-
lar milestone to TV progress. In
1928, he sent a picture of an I'M
identified girl across, not the
North Sea, but the Atlantic
Ocean, from London to New
York. But you don't argue with
the man who, even at this late
date, could give some of our cur
rent heavyweights trouble. You
just let Mr.. BriSson, without in
terruption, tell how it was on
television in 1888.
"The makeup was fierce" he
continued. '"They painted me
white until I looked like the Ku
Klux Khan, then put me in a
cage full of lights.
''It impressed me so much that
invested and lost 1000 pounds
in television. And Baird died
without seeing television come
into USE"
Mr.. Brisson was more i'm
pressed by a post-telecast event
than the televising itself. After
the long-distance test of the
Baird-invented TV system, the
singer got a phone call from
Copenhagen. He had come
through fine, an early Danish
viewer told him. AS he hung up,
he noted the famed scientist and
electronicS wizard standing at
his side. Mr.. Baird was glazing
balefully at the telephone. one
of those new-fangled dial instru-
ments just coming into use.
Twill you do me a favor?"
asked Baird of Brisson. II can't
figure out how to work that
thing. Would you ring up my
wife for me?"
| + Il -
REBUTTAL-You have to be
careful what you say when on
television. State an opinion and
some one is sure to turn up dis
agreeing with you and yelling
for equal time and facilities"
This is exactly what happened
to Alben w. Barley and the re-
suit is that he will not be on his
Meet the Weep" program next
Sunday, on NBC-TV at $50 pm.
The former Vice President has
consistently said that he hopes to
avoid political controversy during
his weekly visit" with the TV
audience. He got caught up in
precisely that, however, just a
month after he started the pro-
gram. He started it on February
l and on March l the matter of
tidelandS oil came up.
1t was his opinion, Mr.. Barley
said, that those resources should
be conserved by the Federal Gov
eminent. Not long after he said
that, NBC heard from Senator
SpeSSard L. Holland of Florida,
who said he represented 80 other
Senators. They wanted the, equal
time and facilities promised by
the FEC in controversial matters
to present the case of the States.
They will get time and facili-
ties as equal as any one ever got.
Senator Holland will appear in
Mr.. Barkley's place next Sun
day. setting forth his views on
tidelandS oil.
u II 4
RETURN-Those of you who
have, been missing Liberace, the
pyrotechnic pianist who was such
lively replacement for Dinah
Shore last summer, can take
heart. Liberace is returning to
network television by way Of a
series of Hollywood-made TV
films. The half-hour program
will start here next Sunday at
1870 pm. on WTTG, under the
auspices of the Pepsi-Cola Bot
ting Co.
The first film of the series was
previewed yesterday and if it is
fair sample of what is to fol-
low, Liberace fans will be quite
happy about the whole thing
The pianistics are exciting and
colorful. the recording is full and
resonant and the camera work
is lively and interesting without
ever .overpowering the music.
There is only one minor quib-
BILE. The producer of the Libe-
race series has Succumbed to that
old Hollywood theory that we are
a nation of backward idiots in
capable of emotion until we are
shown the nature of the emotion.
The sound track on the Liberace
films is studded with the grating
and phony sound of applause
and, when the occasion demands,
laughter. It may be that Holly
wood denizens do not know what
is good or funny until warned
by the applause or laughter of
some one else. It will be a happy
day for viewers, however, when
the TV film makers discover that
this does not hold true in living
rooms all across the country.
If it's good, you'll enjoy it. If
it's funny, you'll laugh at it.
II it is neither, no sound track
claque will change your mind.
Still, it must be noted that this
is less important matter in the
case of Liberace than in some
other cases. These brief annoy
ances are small price to pay for