Week of June 15, 1953

Korea - French Chinese assault battalions hit each side of the weakened allied

east-central Korean front in an evident continuation of the biggest Communist

offensive in two years.

Riot in East Germany - A steel-shod Russian armored division smashes bloody

anti-Communist strike riots in East Berlin, killing at least 18 and wounding 119

East Germans.

A former FBI undercover agent testifies that Pittsburgh Communist Leader Louis

Bortz told a Red meeting last December he had been assigned by the party to

assassinate Sen. Joseph McCarthy.

The World’s worst air disaster (so far) kills 129 U.S. servicemen aboard a

Globemaster in a fiery crash near Tokyo.

Justice William Douglas grants atom spies Julius and Ethel

Rosenberg a last-chance stay of execution, but the government

immediately wins a Supreme Court review of his decision.

Douglas, who acted just 36 hours before the Rosenbergs were

due to die, found “serious doubts” that the death penalty could

be imposed against them. He decided they were entitled to

another lower court review and he granted a stay.

Supreme Court vacates execution stay - The Supreme Court and President

Eisenhower swiftly decreed that atom spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg would

die for betraying atomic Russia.

Atom spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

die in the Sing Sing prison electric chair.

Both died within a span of 12 minutes just

before sundown. The couple died for their

wartime atomic espionage for Soviet

Russia. They are the first husband and

wife to pay the supreme penalty, and the

first to die for espionage. Witnesses say

they died with a composure that

astonished them. Julius was the first. At

8:04pm, a shock of 2,000 volts and 10 amperes was sent through him, after two

subsequent shocks, he died. The first of three successive shocks was applied to

Mrs. Rosenberg and she was pronounced dead minutes later.

Week of June 15, 1953

President Eisenhower refused executive clemency for the

second time, denying a similar petition on February 11. Said

the President, “I can only say that, by immeasurably

increasing the chances of atomic war, the Rosenbergs may

have condemned to death tens of millions of innocent people

all over the world. The execution of two human beings is a

grave matter. But even graver is the thought of the millions of

dead whose deaths may be directly attributable to what these

spies have done.”

The bodies of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg lay in a Brooklyn funeral home while

sympathizers plan hero burials for the executed atom spies.

Some 25,000 anti-Communist prisoners of war are released by South Korean

government. American guards tried to prevent the breakout. A statement said

there was evidence of collusion between the escaping prisoners and their South

Korean guards. President Rhee of the Republic of Korea, bitter over allied

armistice plans that would leave his torn country divided, ordered the prison

gates opened during the night.

The 46,380 anti-Communist prisoners were the key to a Korean truce. Delegates

argued for months on their disposition. The allies refused to force them to go

back to Communism. Many of them said they would die rather then return. Rhee

and his South Korean followers wanted them turned loose as civilians in South

Korea. 6,000 were known to have fled.

Communist-hating Korean prisoners

stage new breaks for freedom, fanning

anew the explosive crisis involving the

United Nations, the Communists and the

South Korean government. More than

700 prisoners crashed out of two allied

stockades, reports the U.N. prisoner

command.

The Eisenhower administration says it is

sending a special emissary to Korea to

try to impress on South Korean President Syngman Rhee the grave dangers

which the President and Secretary of State Dulles see his course of conduct. The

U.S. believes that the Reds seriously want a truce in Korea, but there’s concern

about how to meet Red demands for a guarantee that South Korea will observe

the truce.

Week of June 15, 1953

Entertainment - Gene Autry will play British dates for 11 weeks, beginning at the

Empress Hall, London - then on to other dates. Joining him will be the Cass

County Boys, Pat Buttram, Carl Cotner, Tony White Cloud & his Hoop Dancers,

MacQuaid Twins and Gail Davis. It’s Autrey’s first trip abroad since 1946.

Television’s “The Cisco Kid” ( Duncan Renaldo ) says he will

tour for three months - a lot of those will be supermarket

appearances. His fee is $1,500 plus expenses.

More TV - Something called “Vistascope” - a camera lens

device looks promising. It makes possible the effect of highly

realistic settings, artwork and still photos. The networks are

experimenting with it.

CBS-TV’s “ Amos N Andy ” is cancelled.

Seen on Tuesday nights, it was a loser

next to NBC-TV’s Milton Berle and

DuMont’s Bishop Fulton J. Sheen.

Eddie Fisher, the young singer fresh from

appearing in London, is doing a twice-

per-week show over NBC-TV. Critics say

it needs a little polishing, as compared to

Perry Como’s show on CBS-TV and

Dinah Shore’s NBC-TV show.

“Howdy Doody” has another sponsor - Blue Bonnet Margarine. NBC-TV says the

children’s program is sold-out sponsor-wise.

Radio - WLS Dance Barn going strong

in Chicago . Over 2 million paid

admissions to the Eighth Street Theatre

since the National Barn Dance moved

there in March, 1932. Favorite Barn

Dance artists are Lulu Bell and Scotty,

Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers, Bob

Atcher, Red Blanchard, Beaver Valley

Sweethearts, Dolph Hewitt, Skeeter Bonn and others. All are part of a staff of 15

entertainers maintained by WLS radio for its daytime Barn Dance originations.

Others include Home and Jethro, Phyllis Brown, Arkie and Grace Wilson, plus 22

staff musicians. WLS radio, dial 890.

Week of June 15, 1953

Comic Jackie Gleason’s pop

orchestra album “Music For

Lover’s Only” has hit 100,000

sales. Capitol Records says his

second album “Lovers’

Rhapsody” is selling nicely as

well. The label is preparing a third

Jackie Gleason album for the fall.

Top TV shows according to

Arbitron -

I Love Lucy - 70.6%

Dragnet - 52.1

You Bet Your Life - 49.3

Godfrey’s Talent Scouts - 47.3

Godfrey’s Friends - 47.1

What’s My Line - 45.7

Colgate Comedy Hour - 42.4

Our Miss Brooks - 41.3

Jackie Gleason - 37.6

Red Buttons - 37.3

Mr. & Mrs. North - 36.0

My Little Margie - 35.1

Your Hit Parade - 35.1

This Is Your Life - 34.9

Strike it Rich - 34.8

Two For The Money - 34.6

Blue Ribbon Bouts - 33.3

Monday night television -

CBS - Perry Como, Godfrey Talent Scouts. Forth

50 th Anniversary Show

NBC - Bob and Ray, John Cameron Swayze,

Howard Barlow Orchestra, Ford 50 th Anniversary

Show

ABC - Homicide Squad, Twentieth Century Tales, Talent Patrol

DuMont - Captain Video, This Is The Life

CBS/NBC - Ford 50 th Anniversary Special - With Mary

Martin, Ethel Merman , Marian Anderson, Amos ‘n’ Andy,

Oscar Hammerstein II, Howard Lindsay, Lowell Thomas, Bing

Crosby and others.

Week of June 15, 1953

More music news - A disc jockey poll says that 78rpm records are still favored.

Of the poll, some 50% had the 45rpm turntables but only 15% of this group

requested 45rpm platters.

Pop music this week in 1953 -

THE SONG FROM MOULIN ROUGE (Where Is Your Heart) - Percy Faith &

Orchestra

APRIL IN PORTUGAL - Les Baxter & Orchestra-

I’M WALKING BEHIND YOU - Eddie Fisher-

RUBY - Richard Hayman]

SAY YOU’RE MINE AGAIN - Perry Como-

I BELIEVE - Frankie Laine

ANNA - Silvana Mangano

THE HO HO SONG - Red Buttons

PRETEND - Nat “King” Cole

THE DOGGIE IN THE WINDOW - Patti Page

CRAZY MAN, CRAZY - Bill Haley & Haley’s Comets (Essex)

At the movies -

Young Bess - Jean Simmons, Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr,

Charles Laughton

(Stereophonic Sound/Wide Screen where available) - The 5000 Fingers of Dr. T

- Peter Lind Hayes, Mary Healy, Hans Conried, Tommy Rettig.

Tonight At 8:30 - Valerie Hobson, Stanley Holloway

Dangerous When Wet - Esther Williams, Fernando Lamas, Jack Carson

Pickup On South Street - Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter

Moulin Rouge - Jose Ferrer

Man In The Dark (In 3-D) - Edmond O’Brien

Never Let Me Go - Clark Gable, Gene Tierney

Gentleman’s Agreement - Gregory Peck, John Garfield, Dorothy McGuire

The Seven Deadly Sins

(In Stereophonic Sound, Wide Screen, 3-D) - It Came From Outer space -

Richard Carlson, Barbara Rush.