Evening star., 1955-07-11

~ easy w oau AAos
Sherman to take another whack
at TV. you won't have to work
at ALL" he may have said. Just
come on for a few minutes to
steady the youngsters"
So Sherman returned, as pixie
lish as ever. with a musical ap-
lpreciation" interlude, apparently
none the worse for his long lay
Ioff and cutting those sly comic
corners on one wheel as only
he can do.
With brilliant young Jonathan
Winters as the guest headliner,
there can, indeed, be no COM
Iplaints about the infrequency of
laughs on the opening half-hour.
Winters was wonderful with
his one-man depletion of a group
of Marines heading for a landing
in a Hollywood movie. This is
basically the kind Of routine
that shot Sid Caesar to stardom.
with Winters adding a couple of
vocal touches that Sid would
have been proud to call his own.
Sherman's flute number with
the winners of the Ransom Sher-
man Chamber Music" contest,
all of whom were named Petrillo.
was the master at his best. If
you've never seem him before,
his style of speaking may re-
mind you of a number of pomp-
Gus people we all know. Espe-
cially those who employ, on for
NAL public appearances. a num-
Der of phrases, rococco sayings
and words whose real meaning
they have never quite grasped.
Sherman's pronunciation of
culture" is an essay in itself.
And daresay you've never heard
that most logical rendition Of
"co-operation" before.
John Scott Trotter's orchestra
is around to supply the music
and that's all of Gobel's old show
and treatment that remains. The
program was staged tastelessly
and there was an idiotic song
ambulance number whose charm
completely eluded this viewer,
the cameras, and the director.
*##
Now to the new claptrap:
Musical Chairs: This half hour
musical information please"
show Saturday. WRC-4 in
cludes Johnny Mercer on the
panel. and last week his one op-
portunity to sing number was
interrupted by a vocal group,
another panelist, and an over
ambitious orchestra. Mercer, as
a singer, is in stylish Armstrong
tradition. He has a quick wit. an
amiable disposition and has writ
ten some of the top tunes of the
past two decades.
My recommendation for this
show would be to change the
title to Musical Chair" and let
Mercer. alone and unaided, carry
on for the full half-hour.
Denise Darcel, the buxo m
blonde who knows when to stop
yacking. Zone of the places isn't
lTV), was Saturdays guest and
that's enough to sink the stout
est panel.
\ 4 4
MAKE THE CONNECTION:
(Thursdays, WRC-4). Goodson
and Todman, the panel kings,
came up with another slick
package that gives ex-WTOP
staffer Gene Klavan, now a New
York disc jockey, his first net
work chance.
Gene did okay in his debut,
too. which is more than can
say for the show. The panel
idea is variation of place the
Face where a guest tries to
figure out what part a stranger
played in his or her life.
On this stanza, the panel of
four has to make the connec-
ton" between the two guests.
Wally Cox, who sometimes can
destroy a panel shows pacing
with his long pauses, saved this
one with q merry rendition OF
his new record. the "Pushcart
Peddler's Song"
| Eddie Bracken and Betty
white are the other regular
members of the panel and II the
Messrs. 0oodson and Todman
can come UP with some livelier