Week of January 4, 1954

In a nationwide radio and television

broadcast, President Eisenhower says

that every legitimate means is being

used to maintain the nation’s prosperity

and will continue to be used as

necessary. The president hit out at “self-

appointed” peddlers of gloom and doom

and said his administration will not

tolerate “a boom-and-bust American”

dependent on war or threats of war for

prosperity.”

President Eisenhower orders “a new approach” to military reserve policies:

1) An “immediately callable reserve” consisting of well-trained men who would be

ready for immediate military service.”

2) A “selectively callable reserve” composed of men who would be subject to

recall or deferment on the basis of occupation, special skills, age, marital and

paternal status, and other factors.”

In Rome, actress Shelley Winters walks out on her husband, actor Vittorio

Gassman. “We had quite an argument... “I’m doing some deep thinking.

Honestly, I can’t say just now how it may come out.”

Files for divorce - actress Jane Wyman charges

grievous physical and mental suffering against her

husband, Frederick Karger. They have no children or

community property.

Actor Clark Gable is ordered to pay $4000 damages to

a Tucson woman who claimed she suffered

permanent injuries in an automobile accident in which

he was involved in December of 1951. He was first

sued for $25,000. Gable told the court he was

attempting to pass a truck-trailer and was blinded by

heavy rain.

An Amphibious plane returning from a duck hunt with a

group of prominent businessmen, crashes near Shreveport,

killing 12 persons, including Tom Braniff , president of the

airline which bears his name. Ivy Pool, night manager of the

Shreveport Airport, said amphibian pilot Buddy Hudddleston

Week of January 4, 1954

radioed minutes before the crash - that the plane was icing over and he would

attempt an emergency landing on Lake Wallace. “I don’t thing we can make it,”

radioed the pilot. The plane slammed down into an empty camp house alongside

the lake, crashed on the shore and burst into flames.

Buy Buy, not Bye Bye - Elmer

Wheeler is considered the best

salesman alive. He’s the one who

taught restaurants to “sell the sizzle,

not the steak. He taught gas station

men to say “fill ‘er - up?” instead of

“How many?” He also taught soda

fountain men to ask drinkers of

malted milks - “one egg - or two?” -

the result - millions of eggs were

sold that otherwise would have

gone unsold. Wheeler - who’s 47, is

a sales consultant to 240

corporations. Wheeler says no one in this country under 30 knows how to sell.

“The war did that.” (Because of scarcity of products due to the war) “People

have been pointing to a thing and saying ‘I’ll take that,’ hoping to beat the other

customer to it. Now that’s over, and salesmen are going to have to learn how to

sell.”

Men’s styles - oversize cufflinks are more popular than ever. New cuff designs

are out, including personalized links, with the owner’s signature in color.

Car tip - If your hood doesn’t look as shiny as the rest of your car - you can

probably blame the heat from the motor. Try applying a coat of aluminum paint to

the underside. It will deflect the motor heat, which causes wax and polish to melt.

If you are sending someone a gift in Britain, be sure to include peanuts and

peanut butter. It’s just about impossible to get ‘em over there.

The Supreme Court upholds the right

of motion-picture distributors to deny

first-run films to neighborhood

theaters with limited drawing power.

Crest Theater in Baltimore had

charged conspiratorial action by eight

major distributors in refusing to

license first-run pictures to it. A judge

said there was no direct evidence of

Week of January 4, 1954

illegal agreement between the distributors and that if the Crest Theater were to

receive first runs its license from the distributors would have had to have been an

exclusive one. That is, no other theaters in Baltimore or the suburbs could have

shown the same picture at the same time. “However, and exclusive license would

be economically unsound because the Crest is a suburban theater, located in a

small shopping center and served by limited public transportation facilities and

with a drawing area of less than one-tenth of that of a downtown theater, it

cannot compare with those easily accessible theaters in the power to draw

patrons. Hence, the downtown theaters offer far greater opportunities for the

widespread advertisement and exploitation of newly released features, which is

thought necessary to maximize the over-all return from subsequent runs as well

as first runs.” The distributors included RKO, Fox, Warner, Paramount and

Loew’s.

Dies - Countess Dorothy di Frasso (66) - famed and wealthy

international hostess, intimate of film stars and friend of the late

gang leader Benjamin (Bugsy) Siegel - is found dead of a heart

attack in her roomette aboard the Los Angeles Limited train. Her

body was discovered by actor Clifton Webb, who was traveling

with her in the same car from Las Vegas.

In sports - Ben Hogan, called the greatest golfer who ever lived,

is voted male athlete of the year for 1953 in the 23rd annual year-end Associated

Press poll. Here’s the list:

Ben Hogan - golf

Rocky Marciano - boxing

Willie Shoemaker - racing

Johnny Lattner - football

Paul Giel - football

Roy Campanella - baseball

Al Rosen - baseball

Mel Whitfield -

track

Ted Williams -

baseball

Wes Santee - track

Speaking of sports - Robert De Laney, who was a

sports announcer with the Boston Red Sox, will

assist Russ Hodges in broadcasting the New York

Giants games next season over WMCA radio and

WPIX television in New York City.

Week of January 4, 1954

Don’t forget the Welch’s

Hey Kids - of you’re in the Hollywood area -

wow what a treat! Starting this week - for two

weeks only, lovable, freckle-faced Hoody Doody

... with Buffalo Bob, Clarabell the Clown, Chief

Thunder-Thud and the whole Doodyville gang ...

are in town to visit and entertain their friends.

They will go on the air from Burbank at 2:30pm

each weekday afternoon and will be seen locally

over channel 4 at the regular time period of

5:30pm. This means you can come to the show

in person, then go home (or to your hotel) and

Week of January 4, 1954

SEE YOURSELF ON TELEVISION the same day. Howdy and all the others from

Doodyville are looking forward to meeting you during their visit, so ask Mom to

bring you to the NBC studios in Burbank - at Olive and Alameda Streets before

2:15pm. You don’t need tickets ... just say HOWDY DOODY and come on in!

No more time for Beany - Stan

Freeberg and Daws Butler ,

who perform the voices for the

popular “Time For Beany” kids

show seen coast to coast in

syndication - are leaving the

show. Says Stan - “Cecil has

been a part of my make-up for

the past five years. Lots of fans

don’t even know my name. But

they know I’m Cecil. We just

couldn’t get together on

contracts that were satisfactory

to Dawes and myself and

Producer Bob Clampett. So

we’re bowing out of the series.

Freeberg (27) is busier than

ever. He just added a new television show to his schedule “Musical Chairs” for

which he and songwriter Johnny Mercer provide a ton of laughs.

So - what about Stan Freeberg ?

... Besides doing “Time For Beany”

for the past five years, he’s famous

for St George and the Dragonet - a

comedy record that is a takeoff of

“Dragnet.” According to Capitol

Records - it’s their biggest selling

record of all time. The record

peaked on the charts beginning in

October, and stayed at #1 for four

weeks. He’s the son of a retired

Baptist minister and still lives with

his parents in the old family home

in Pasadena, CA.

Week of January 4, 1954

Steve Allen (32), star of the “Tonight” Show on NBC-

TV says, “If the audience likes you, it will laugh at

anything you say.” He adds: “The better you are and

the more effort you expend, the quicker they’ll get tired

of you. The reason people don’t tire of Arthur Godfrey

is because he doesn’t do anything. (Dean) Martin and

(Jerry) Lewis put on a much better show, but the

audience gets tired of them quicker. And I have found

that people get tired of you on television nine times

faster than they do on radio.” On The Tonight show,

you can catch Steve playing the piano and singing,

along with regulars Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme

and instrumentals by Bobby Byrne’s orchestra. Allen

loves to get into the studio audience for interviews,

plus there’s time to interview invited guests. “Any

human being is just naturally funnier at night than he is in the daytime, if he’s

awake. Also, I find that the longer you’re in this business, the more the people

are inclined to laugh at you. I once went to see a Bob Hope broadcast and the

studio audience laughed at him for two solid minutes when he first walked out,

although he had not opened his mouth.”

Marilyn Monroe is suspended by 20th Century-Fox for

not showing up for her latest movie project - “Pink

Tights.” Hedda Hopper says she has been in San

Francisco with Joe DiMaggio. Her attorney says the

actress is angry because she has not been permitted to

see a script of “Pink Tights.” There’s a rumor that the

couple is married - not so according to Dimaggio “We

are not married. If and which we are married, it will be

announced as a blanket statement to everyone. No

scoops.”

Station WOR-TV (channel 9) in New York City says it is

going to keep its 810-foot tower , located in New Jersey,

across from Manhattan’s 79th street, even though it’s not

being used. The station use to broadcast off the tower, but

is now transmitting its video programs off of the Empire

State Building with the other New York TV stations. Said

Gordon Gray, VP and General Manager - “It would be

improvident and impractical to destroy the only available

emergency facilities which might be used by any or all

Week of January 4, 1954

local stations in the event of failure from any cause whatsoever of the Empire

State Building equipment.” In the meantime, it could be used for educational

telecasts. (Unfortunately, a private airplane would eventually hit the tower,

destroying it)

Red Skelton signs a three-year contract for a daily radio show - probably the

biggest radio contract in recent years. Ziv Co will produce and distribute the

show. It will not interfere with his television and movie commitments. Skelton

should bank $1.5 million for the deal.

Debuting in television syndication this week - “Annie

Oakly.” Annie is played by Gail Davis . She’s a bit like

Calamity Jane and in the first episode, solves a bank

robbery and brings the culprits to justice. Gail Davis

has plenty of experience with cowboys. You might

remember her as Gene Autry’s leading lady in 15 of

his epics of the old west.

Thursday Night Radio -

CBS - Edward R. Murrow, Meet Millie, Junior Miss,

Meet Mr. McNutley, Time For Love, A Minority of One

NBC - One Man’s Family, One Night Stand, Kay Armen Show, Eddie Cantor,

Fibber McGee and Molly, Can You Top This?

ABC - Three-City Byline, Sammy Kay Orchestra, Hollywood Starway, recorded

highlights of President Eisenhower’s address

Mutual - Eddie Fisher Show, Official Detective, Crime Fighters, Mystery House

Thursday Night Television -

CBS - Jane Froman Show, Meet Mr. McNutley, Four-Star

Playhouse, Video Theater, Big Town, Play, Place the Face

NBC - Dinah Shore, News Caravan, Groucho Marx: You Bet

Your Life, Treasury Men In Action, Dragnet, Play, Martin Kane-

Mark Stevens, Foreign Intrigue

ABC - Lone Ranger, Quick As A Flash, Ray Bolger Show,

Coach of the Year Dinner, Play of the Week, Stars of

Tomorrow, Racket Squad.

Week of January 4, 1954

At the movies -

Forever Female - Ginger

Rogers , William Holden, Paul

Douglas , James Gleason and

introducing Pat Crowley

How To Marry A Millionaire -

Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable,

Lauren Bacall

Calamity Jane - Doris Day,

Howard Keel

Knights of the Round Table -

Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner,

Mel Ferrer, Ann Crawford,

Stanley Baker

( Rita in 3-D) - Miss Saide

Thompson - Rita Hayworth, Jose Ferrer, Aldo Ray

Forbidden - Tony Curtis, Joanne Dru

All The Brothers Were Valiant - Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger, Ann Blyth

Border River - Joe McCrea, Yvonne DeCarlo

Easy To Love - Esther Williams, Van Johnson, Tony Martin

From Here To Eternity - Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Cliff, Deborah Kerr, Frank

Sinatra, Donna Reed

Hondo - John Wayne

Let’s Do It Again - Jane

Wyman, Ray Milland,

Aldo Ray

The Great Train Robbery -

Red Skelton, Car Williams,

James Whitmore

Beneath the 12-mile Reef -

Robert Wagner, Terry

Moore, Gilbert Roland, Peter

Graves

How to Marry A Millionaire

- Marilyn Monroe, Betty

Grable, Lauren Bacall

Moulin Rouge - Joe Ferrer

The Robe -

Man in the Attic - Jack Palance, Constance Smith

Walt Disney’s The Living Desert - the first feature-length true-life adventure