Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1962-06-24
BY BETTY BEALE


uncritically accepted by many
people. Actually the Duke of
Wellington never played at
Eton. AS I understand it, the
most exercise he ever did
there was to jump over a
ditch"
CHARLIE WILLIS, who
was on the White House
staff under Eisenhower and
is now president of Alaska
Airlines, got two calls from
London on Saturday the 10th
and one from here asking
him where the 1889 900 was
for the three paintings he
bid on at Sotheby's famed
auction house in London.
The auction that took
place on Thursday the 14th
saw a Renoir go for $4,000.
a Van Gogh go for 1924, 900
and a WILLARD for $4,000
all to a man who simply
gave his name as Charlie
Willis and then disappeared
not to be heard from again.
Since the WilliSes are known
in London where the former
Elizabeth Firestone has been
invited to Princess Margaret's
house, it wasn't long before
this Charles w. was tracked
down to Washington.
The first call from the art
editor of the London Daily
Express woke him up at 8
am. When are you going
to pick up your paintings?"
asked the British voice on
the transatlantic phone.
What paintings?" Mr.. Willis
asked him. Then the man
listed the works of art and
the sale bid that outbid every
other bidder.
My goodness, that's an
awfully nice compliment"
said the agreeable airline
president. But I haven't
been to London for a while
and I wouldn't spend that
kind of money on paintings
if I had it,"
At IL the same morning
another member of the same
paper called from London,
and at IL that night just
after he had gotten to sleep
the papers Washington
representative telephoned.
Charlie, who was in Seattle
with his wife the day of the
auction, Is now beginning to
wonder if some ex-friend of
his was playing a prank. On
the other hand there could
be still another Charles Willis.
Just a month ago he picked
up a paper in Alaska and
saw that Charles Willis had
fallen out of a boat and
drowned, and he was the same
age as the Washington
Charles.
But the London one simply
faded into thin air.
GERMAN MINISTER of
Defense Franz Josef Strauss
recalled here a couple of
weeks ago his visit to the
White House last year with
Chancellor Adenauer. The
latter was shown Abraham
Lincoln's portrait in the State
Dining Room and told that
recent material uncovered led
one to think that Lincoln's
Secretary of War Stanton
was involved in his asSassi-
nation conspiracy. 1T doesn't
surprise me a Bit" observed
the Chancellor dryly in front
of his Defense Minister.
Strauss is one Of the lead
ing contenders for Adenauer's
job.
HITLER AND YON: Amer
lean Ambassador to Denmark
and Mrs. William Mccormick
Blair are anticipating the ar
rival of their first born in
August. The July issue
of House and Garden on
Washington may we'll start
a new trend in decorating.
The superb color pictures of
the inside of some of Wash
ington'S loveliest houses show
what tremendous charm blue
or green decor gives to a
room, or blue and green as
in the Robert Kennedys' at
tractive house which is pic
tured in detail beginning with
the cover. PakiStan Am
basSador AZiz Ahmed thinks
we Americans are a paradox
ical people. On the Elvis
Stairs party aboard the
Sequoia the other night he
told Perle Mesta, II don't
understand you Americans.
In the wintertime you have
your houses so warm it's like
summer. And in the summer
time VOlI have them ca oo1d