Evening star., 1954-10-25
An Old Hand Will Be at Queens Elbow
Bx Ann Cottrell Free

elizabeth comes TO washington
November 4-10. she viii find one
must" on her schedule that wasn't
there the last time. It will be q meeting
with the JCPRTCNP. That's short for
the combined Capital press corps.
Meetings between royalty and the
Washington fourth estate have become
a regular thing in the last few years.
Not visiting crowned head has missed
out on these affairs since they began.
So the Queen Mother will be no execp-
ton. If she doesn't have good time,
she can blame it on her daughter.
Elizabeth, and on gentleman she will
find at her elbow throughout the after
noon of November S. His name Is Paul
Wooton.
Being at queens elbow Is part Of
the job of chairman of the Joint Com
mittee OF Press, Radio and Television
Correspondents and News Photogra-
pliers. Paul Wooton, for 40 years WASH
ington correspondent for the New Or
leans Times-Picayune, has become
practiced at steering royalty around. He
started with Elizabeth, the younger. in
1851. Between the two Elizabeths, the
peripatetic Mr.. Wooton has presented
Queens Juliana and Frederika to the
press, not to mention kings, emperorS,
princes, presidents and prime ministers.
The managerial capacity of maitre
d'hotel, the tact of a diplomat and the
political savvy of good newsman are
all prerequisite for leadership of the
JCPRTCNP. Mr.. Wooton, the groups
first and only chairman, seems to have
them all.
A busy, bustling man, short of stature,
quick of step, Mr.. Wooton tries not
to be flustered by his burdens. But
there are times when nobody would
be in the least surprised to see him
pull big round gold watch from his
waistcoat pocket and mutter like the
White Rabbit. "Oh dear, Oh dear, I
shall be late for the Duchess" and then
disappear down hole.
But this would never happen no
matter how great the pressures or i'm
patient the duchesses. Mr.. Wooton
is an old hand at organizing press
functions. Fourth in seniority in the
Washington press corps, now nearly
1900 strong, he has been president or
held Office in virtually every news
paper organization there is. This in
cludes the National Press Club, White
House Correspondents Association and
Overseas Writers. Just about the only
exceptions are the two women's press
clubs He has been called by editorial
writer's godfather" of the press and
it's indispensable man." On his 10th
birthday, three years ago. Washington
press national and civic leaders threw
a surprise party for him and filled the
air with eulogies usually reserved for
funerals.
So it was to Mr.. Wooton, logically
enough, British Embassy aides turned
in 1851 when they heard that HRH
Princess Elizabeth and her handsome
husband were coming to Washington.
They remembered with something akin
to terror the hassle over who was to
meet Elizabeth's royal parents in 1899.
Various press groups started bidding
early for the presence Of the young
pair.
There was only one thing to do:
Call together the competing heads of
each of the Capitals ten press groups
and persuade them to give party to-
gether. Mr.. Wooton was the man to
summon them and this he did. Thus
JCPRTCNP was born. And later the
grateful British made Mr.. Wooton an
honorary officer Of the Most Excellent
Order of the British Empire.
Mr.. Wooton as toastmaster tries to
keep protocol to minimum. He went
so far to the other extreme once that
he left one queen speechless. He sur
prised Queen Frederika Of Greece with
fx;r H.
cream soda-her first ever-in front
of nearly 1000 news reporters looking
for story.
These meetings are not press con-
ferences in the usual sense. Sometimes,
as in the case of Sir Winston Churchill,
written questions are submitted. But
Mr.. Wooton sometimes finds himself
on the answering end of questions
posed by royalty. Princess Elizabeth
once came to him with a question
What to wear? Her mink cape, should
she wear it, carry it over her arm, or
take it off altogether?
Juliana of the Netherlands whispered
to him during a luncheon:
How does one best lose weight?"
Before he could think of diplomatic
answer, she answered it herself:
will power" she said. pouring an
other helping of cream into her coffee.
Once Prime Minister Churchill turned
to Mr.. Wooton, after sip of his Scotch
highball, and growled:
THE damn things too weak.T
Mr.. Wooton caught walters eye
A double Scotch appeared forthwith, on
the double.
Becoming an expert on the care and
feeding of royalty and assorted heads
of state is something Paul Wooton
never dreamed about. But as lad,
living near the banks of Swamp Greek,
Clinton County. Ind. he had dreamed
of royalty. On rainy afternoons he bent
his head over "A Child's History Of
England" And he held in awe the
people who walked through its pages.
Many years passed before he met any
Very Important Persons, let alone