Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 5 August 1947 — Page 11

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. BEING A MEMBER of the Olsen ard Johnson troupe at the Butlér bow! is slightly worse than beaiing yourself over the head with a sledge hammer. And ‘the guy who said, “There's no business like show business” was so right. I ate a chunk of the Olsen and Johnson fruitcake at the bow! Sunday night and I can't rightly say whether I enjoyed it or nol. When I get back to earth again, I'll know. After trailing Mr. Olsen for an hour through the backstage labyrinth I finally had a chance tg ask if there was a chance of getting a bit with the show. Thumping me sharply on the chest, Mr. Olsen yelled, “You're a maniac!” \ 1 tried my best to explain that I was not. Maniac

The idea. ’

You're a Maniac, My Man “NO, NO, MY GOOD man. Youre a maniac in the show, I like your looks. You'll be great in the part.” I, didn’t like the way I was cast. Too quick. “Go see J. C ” said Mr. Olsen. “He'll tell you what to do. WAIT A MINUTE—wait a minute. Chick, we have a néw man with the show.” Mr. Johnson ran up, shook my hand vigorously and said, “Napoleon?” - - “Great idea Chick,” shouted Mr. Olsen. Then turning to me he said, “You're Napoleon, too.” “Ole, shall we ini him so he can get the feeling of the show?” asked Mr. Johnson. That was Mr. Olsen’s cue. : ‘ d They dragged me to a trunk, jammed a Napoleon hat on my head, stuffed me into a bright coat, threw a Christmas tree at me and called to a midget who promptly was hoisted on top of me. All this to the accompaniment of a terrific yelling routine. I was ready for the maniac and Napoleon. routine. ; Finding J. C, Mr. Olsen’s son, was my first problem. Incidentally, J C. takes after his father. You can tell what I was up against. ! . After a zreat deal of dogged determination I was In the presence of J. C. himself.

FUGITIVES FROM A NUTHOUSE—Ole Olsen (left)! a ‘midget, and Chick Johnson gang up ‘on you-know-who for that pre-performance sendoff. =

Page One Elliott

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5-—Elliott Roosevelt, the man -who poured the drinks at Tehran and took them free in New York and Hollywood, holds a record—congress has paid more attention to him than to any other President's son Other President’s sons have been the subject of public criticism. Robert Todd Lincoln, for example, was derided for staying in Harvard for so long after other boys went off to fight in the Civil war. Elliott first made the headlines in 1936, at the

* age of 26. Then a deposition obtained by the senate

munitions committee from Anthony H. 8. Fokker, a plane manufacturer, revealed that young. Roosevelt

" in 1934 had entered into a contract with Mr. Fokker

to sell airplanes to Russia. He was to receive $500,000 commission on the sale of 50 planes. But no planes actually were sold (the Russians are reported to have balked at the price) and the matter was dropped. Elliott said then he “never ‘received g- prety Irom Ms.-Fokker for myself.” Dog With an ‘A’ Priority NEARLY 10 YEARS later came the Blaze affair which gave the senate military affairs committee a workout. That involved the transportation of Elliott's dog, Blaze, across the continent in an ATC plane under an “A” priority. Three servicemen traveling on emergency leaves with “C” priorities were “bumped off” the plane at Memphis to make room for some “B” priority cargo. The “A” priority dog stayed on. The country howled, congress investigated and Maj. Gen. H. L.-George, chief of the -air transport command, said: “A serious mistake was made and it cannot be justified ” Two days after the committee made its Blaze report, the sendte did Elliott the honor of singling him ott from 77 AAP colonels up for promotion for a special roll-call ycte. The senate approved his promotion, 53 to 11, but only after some vigorous debate.

‘Music Can't Die’

(While Erskine Johnson is on vacation, outstanding Hollywood personalities are pinch-hitting for him.)

HOLLYWOOD, Aug. 5—All over fhe country they're saying the music business is dead, but it hasn't ehough sense to lie down. I don’t believe it! The Music Makers and I just returned from a six-

week tour of one-nighters and now we're touring the

East coast. The kids are still dancing and still buying records, but they haven't quite as much money to spend, and their musical tastes have changed. Fronting my band from Long Beach, Cal, to Providence, R. I, the dancers crowd around the bandstand requesting tunes. In the°past 10 years, going through my library, ‘I can see that their likes are varying. . The Harry James orchestra had little more than pin ‘money . when we recorded a little thing called “You Made Me Love You” and, fortunately for us, it made the country love us.

Jump, Jive Runs Wild

DURING THE WAR, the jump and jive tunes ran wild. We found the most popular to be “The Mole,” “One OClock Jump,” “Strictly Instrumental” “Trumpet Blues,” “Trumpet Rhapsody,” “Flight of the Bumble Bee,” “Eleven 8ixty P. M.” and many, many more. Life is settling down a little and this is reflected in the way people want to dance, and the tunes they like to dance to—“When You're a Long, Long Way From Home,” “It Seems to Me I've Heard That Song Before,” “Blues in the Night,” “Don’t Take Your Love

We, The Women

“THEY sure look funny,” said the young man after

sizing up & Window full of long, elaborately-styled

fall dresies that might have come out of an old photograph album. :

“If his reaction to what women are supposed to

‘themselves in the audience. As the house darkened

/ hurry. Iwas tired’ from running up and down lad-

‘“S0, you're in the show. Here's a runoff sheet. Watch your cués and be there when the time comes. How would you like to do a bit during the overture? You can also help throw split peas in the mystery scene.” : : When I nad my cues firmly in mind, I took a seat way off to the side. I didn't want to talk to anyone else. All I wanted was one bit and now I had four, Terrific, as ;

long circus coat were hotter than blazes. ence laughed. Hot dog. My runoff sheet became my Bible telling what would happen to me if I missed a cue. The Napoleon scene was coming up. Into costume and into position. My position was on top of the permanent stage setting next to the

v 3

“You're Napoleon?” My cue. Taking a deep breath of the heated air from the spotlights I let go with everything I had: - “He's crazy. I'm Napoleon.” I made it. I was well on the way to the nuthouse.

Headed for the Nuthouse

SCRAMBLE DOWN, fight your way through the|%

hordes of people and get into position for the mystéry

scene. Get that cue, get that cue, was going through §

my mind. In the mystery scene several of the men planted

and Mr. Olsen said, “A spider will spin its web” we started to heave the peas. Pretty effective stuff from the shrieks and bellers that went up as split peas flew down open collars and backs of dresses. The whole show is based on hurry and more

ders and steps of the bowl. The maniac scene was coming up. Run backstage, get into costume, see if the guns are loaded and get back to the top of the bowl Just as I was getting my breath, in between huge amounts of worry about the cue business, Mr. Olsen was giving the pitch again. “There's a maniac in the house who is going to shoot the man who is here with his wife. To avoid a tragedy this man better come on stage and get away through the back.” Plants throughout the audience bégan to run. Then the maniac (me) started in. Babbling, as I was instructed to do, was easy The first shot went off right next.to my ear. My eardrums went on the blink. I continued my mad dash to the stage firing the blank gun and yelling. : “ J. C. met me backstage with “Great. Terrific. Now how would you like to . . .” With one loud shriek I took off through the back and onto the football field. * One good thing about the Olsen and Johnson show, you can go raving mad and you're still in character. ,Wo00-woo0.

By Earl Richert

Four months later he was back in the headlines and the house ways and means committee was investigating. This concerned -a loan of $200,000 obtained by Elliott from John Hartford, president of the A. & P. grocery chain, for one of Elliott's radio projects. Mr. Hartford received only $4000 back, this paid to him by the then commerce secretary, Jesse Jones. Mr. Jones said the $4000 was “my personal money.” Mr. Hartford wrote off the $196,000 loss as a “bad debt” on his income-tax return and the internal revenue bureau allowed It. The ways and means committee kissed off the affair by approving the internal revenue bureau's decision to let Mr. Hartford deduct his loss. Currently, Elliott is playing a feature part before the senate war investigating committee in the Howard Hughes investigation.

‘l Want to Be a Captain’ HIS. - ROMANCES. nove s7govillgd considerable news. He married his second wife five days after he divorced his first. He married his third wife, Actress Faye Emerson, in December, 1944, in an observation station on the rim of the Grand Canyon. His second wife, the mother of three of his four children, had obtained a divorce earlier in the year. Elliott entered the army in September, 1940, and was commissioned a captain. Immediately, derisive “I want to be a captain, too” buttons appeared on coat lapels throughout the country. Elliott tried, to resign but the army refused to let him go. He made an excellent war record and won a number of decorations. ; His chief activities since the war have been the writing of the controversial book about his father “As He Saw It,” and his interview with Marshal Stalin. He orice described himself as the Roosevelt who made the large-type headlines. It is likely the Republican congress will do what it can to help him keep this honor.

. By Harry James

From Me,” “I Don't Want to Walk Without You,” “I'l Buy That Dream,’ “Manhattan Serenade” and others of that “memory music” type. No, the music business isn’t dying, and it isn’t dead. It's just as alive as it can be, but the public's taste is changing, just as women’s skirts are getting longer, and shirts are getting louder. It's still the greatest thrill in the world to stand in front of an audience anywhere in this countty and give the downbeat to put feet in motion and romance to rhythm.

‘Musicians Part of World’ AS FOR WHAT next month and next year will bring to the music world, I feel that we will settle down to normalcy like the rest of the country, Musiclans are part of “this world” and not “out of it,” as some people believe! Our salaries will come down a bit, in keeping with the amount of money people have to spend for amusement, and our music won't be quite as wild and “kpocked out.” You'll be able to dance to our tunes, and what's more, youll be able to recognize the melody. Arrangements will be more simplified and vocalists ‘will concentrate on singing rather than swooning. But music can't die because music is as much a part of our people as eating and sleeping. We sing when we're-blue and when we're happy. There's always a& song in our heart—whether a symphony or some catchy little tune.

By Ruth Millett

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SECOND SECTION

Film

st. Scene will be part of safety mo

Police Movie to Be

Faced with a mounting death to

wrong in traffic.

Slays Wie, 2, Over Swim Party

Truck Driver Asked Two to Dump Body

PITTSBURGH, Aug. 5 (U., P.).— Police charged Robert Herman, 26, Pittsburgh truck driver, with the murder of his 20-year-old wife today after friends reported he pleaded with them to “throw her body in the river.” The body of the victim, Mrs. Frances Herman, was found, clad in a nightgown, in her apartment in the Lawrenceville district. Herman admitted he strangled her early yesterday after a quarrel over her staying out until 3 a. m. at a swimming party. Herman was. arrested as he attempted to flee from a barroom where he had spent the day drinking after the slaying. Two truck drivers, with whom he had been drinking, tipped police to the killing. 7 Didn't Believe Him The drivers told police Herman had asked them to get a truck and “get my wife's body and throw it in the river.” They said they didn't believe he had killed his wife until he took them to the apartment and showed them her body.

The two men, Steve Schumacher and William C. Bishop, took Herman back to the bar to “get another drink.” They notified neighbors: to call police. The officers arrived as Herman was leaving the saloon, but they easily overtook him when he attempted to flee.

Revelers Steal V. F. W. Rifles

Here To C

In Fall; Features Speeder Chase MR. INDIANAPOLIS motorist will star in a film being produced by the city police department on the do's and don'ts of traffic.

trafic department has begun taking pictures to show what people do These are offset by pictures of proper traffic conduct.

ture film is finally completed, developed and edited, it will comprise

© WATCH THE TURNS—The Police Department films do's and don'ts of traffic as Sgt. Wayman Herkless (with camera) records: Officer Sam Byrd holding back a motorist's right turn while pedestrian crosses at Capitol ave, and W, Washington

vie now in production,

Shown to Pupils

11 from traffic accidents, the police

When the 1000 feet of motion pic-

a 20-minute show of traffic education. » . » THIS FALL the film will be shown to public school children, P.-T.A. groups, commercial firms having truck and car fleets and any other groups interested. Inspector Audry Jacobs, traffic department head, has assigned three officers to the job of filming Mr. and Mrs. Indianapolis and the children driving to work, crossing streets, walking to school and get ting on and off streetcars. The department hopes the film will make a deep impression on those who see it. Heretofore the department has shown films of this type which were taken by traffic organizations in other cities, It is hoped that local scenes and persons will create more interest in the film,

. - » A FEATURE of the film will be a motorcycle officer catching a speeder. It will {illustrate the chances the cyclist takes in seizing a motorist going 50 miles an hour. The film will shdw a close-up of the motorcycle speedometer registering 70 miles as the policeman overtakes the car. Another section of the film will show the hazards of jaywalking and crossing the ’ street against the green light. Proper hand signals in driving also will be shown. Capt. Harry Bailey, Sgt. Wayman Herkless and Corp. Randall Schubert are filming the traffic produc~ tion. The photographers have already taken 250 feet of film.

Mother Errs on Food, Baby Girl in Hospital

A 6-month-old baby girl was taken to City hospital yesterday after she had drank a formula of milk, water and permanent wave solution,

An unidentified group of revelers, who apparently had drunk too much milk, swiped six rifles from the Ernie Pyle post of the V. F. W. over the| week-end. : They also took three cases of blank ammunition for the rifles, which are used by the post firing | squad in funeral ceremonies, and! left in return a badly mauled and | partly consumed case of milk. Post members discovered the loss yesterday. It was learned several blanks were | fired out the window of a third-floor | room at 46 N, Pennsylvania sé. Sun- | day night, but because of various | noisy diversions in connection with | the current Legion convention, the | shots were passed as “just fun” by| passersby.

Mrs. Irene Williamson, 633 E. oth st., said that after shé mixed her daughter Bonnie's formula, the baby became ill. She then found she had accidently mixed a portion of permanent wave solution with the milk and water.

Former AAF Officer Gets U. S. Air Post

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (U. P.).— John R. Alison, wartime AAF colonel credited with shooting down six Japanese planes, has been appointed assistant secretary of commerce for aeronautics. A resident of Gainesville, Fla., he served as a fighter group commander under Maj. Gen, Claire Chennault in China.

i

‘Carnival =By Dick Turner

The Indianapolis o's And Don'ts Of Traffic urb Rising Death Toll

Roark’'s Travels—

Long Lines of Trucks

Grain elevators in the Texas

ship it eut. So they are trucking wheat into Hartley day and night. They take their places at the tail end of the line stretching far down the highway, and move forward slow'y until all cars are filled. Then they sit and wait for hours—till a train brings more empties. In the medntime the line grows and grows. » » . BUT EVERBODY is patient because everybody is happy. “We're getting from 10 to 15 cars a day, and we could use 40,” says W. O. Bishop, president of ths Farmers’ Supply Co. a co-op fo which many of the farmers belong. “There are about a million bushels of wheat on the ground in this territory ” He said the situation wasn't as bad as it sounded, however, because damage to the. unprotected, grain, even in case of bad weather wouldn't be over two per cent. With wheat selling around $2 a bushel, the value of. the crop of even the smallest farmers runs into money. “We're selling about 50 per cent and holding the rest,” Mr. Bishop said. “We're trying to hedge against a crop failure next year.” ” . . THE FARMERS get warehouse receipts for the wheat they put into storage, and then they can borrow

|from the government on it—"90 per cent of parity, or about $1.84 a

bushel.” And they don’t have to pay income tax on the borrowed money,

Yes, they're doing a lot of figuring. And they aren't drunk with prosperity, either. They know there are going to be some drought years and perhaps a return of dust

Address Shifts On G. |. Bonds

Indiana ex-servicemen today were advised of a new mailing address in submitting applications for terminal leave pay. > ‘Maj. Gen, Willlam H. ‘Kasien, army chief of finance, said that becate of the deactivation of Ft. Benjamin Harrison at Indianapolis, claims by Hoosiers should be sent to the finance office, U. 8. Army, Army Base, Brooklyn, N. Y. The

: original {lfor terminal leave was Aug. 1, 1947

ut was extended recently f ear. : {4

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Herkless as he gives a sticker for § many hazards of fast and illegal driving on Indianapolis streets.

Wheat Farmers in Texas Pa Rush Harvest of Record-Breaking Crop

Onto Box Cars in Threatening Weather By ELDON ROARK, Scripps-Howard Staff Writer

HARTLEY, Tex. Aug. 5~This is just a wide place in the road where the wind used to sing folks to sleep. But today it is a busy shipping point, and the train whistle is music to the ears ‘

chance the farmers now have of getting their record-breaking wheat crop in.out of the weather is to load it directly into railroad cars and

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SAFE PLAY hese children have found s safe place to play ball in Brookside park out of reach of speeding automobiles. Sat. Herkless took other pictures of children playing in the street as an example of the wrong place to play.”

"WHERE'S THE FIRE—Motorcycle officer William Moulton is fimed by Sat. peeding to a motorist. The police film will show the

»

Load Golden Grain

Panhandle are bulging. The only

storms. They doubt the storms of the future will be as bad as those of the 1930's “because we've learned our lesson.” No more burning off of fields and leaving the soil bare and unprotected, no more plowing under the stubble. And they know the value of cover crops. Several farmers in this area have harvested more than 100,000 bushels of wheat this year, but consider the case of one of the small farmers— A. R. Fletcher. He has only: 180 acres, a mere garden patch out here,

Yet, he got about 3500 bushels worth $7000.

po I ’

“AND I SOLD $3000 worth of cattle I fattened in my wheat field,” he says, “You can let your cattle graze on the wheat all winter. It just keeps on growing and makes a crop. We try to make pasturage pay the cost of planting.” Stocky, red-faced J. L. Aldridge is a share-cropper, He ‘works 2100 acres, furnishes his own equipment,

and gives the landlord a third of

the crop. : “That's prefty steep,” he says. “Some give a fourth. But even at one-third, it was a good deal this year." Bra He had to hire three or four men at $10 a day to help him plant the crop and a combine outfit to help him harvest it. “The combine men furnished their own crews,” he explains, “and charge $3 an acre, plus 10 cents a bushel for all over 20 bushels to the acre. I'had some land that made 40 bushels.”

Shutterbugs Can Win $5, Get Shots Printed in Times

No Limit to Number of Prints Submitted, And Prizes Will Be Paid Amateurs Weekly

The Times is going to make fit

possible for amateur photographers

to see their work in print—in. The Times—and to win cash prizes. All amateurs are invited to send their best pictures on any subject to The Times, The hest photo received during the week will be printed in The Times. In addition, the photographer will receive a $5 prize.

The possibilities are unlimited. midnight. Photographs received after Friday will be entered in the following week’s contest. 3 A $5 prize will be awarded each week for the best photo received. You may submit as many photos as you wish and they may be on any subject. \ J It may not be necessary for you to win the $5 prize to have your photo published. If the subject matter is of sufficient interest, several photos may be published at the close of each week’s contest. There are no entry forms to fill out and there are no fees of any kind. Just follow these few simple rules: : | Must Be Black and White Only amateur photographers may | compete. An amateur photographer is one whose chief source of in. come is not derived from .photo~ graphic work. Photographic black and white. 3 Entrant must write his name, address, telephone number, type camera used, shutter speed, diaphram speed and type of film’ uséd on the back of each “print sibmitted, ih Judging will be done by the editorial staff The

prints must be

The weekly deadline is Friday at

Mail or bring all entries to Amateur Photo Contest, Indianapolis Times, 214 W. Maryland st., Indian. apolis 9.

WORD-A-DAY

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