Items From The ZB's

New Zealand Listener, Volume 8, Issue 196, 26 March 1943, Page 10

Items From The ZB's

"GIVE It a Name" Jackpots had a big moment last Monday, when £24, the biggest quiz prize ever won at a ZB station, was carried away by Miss Edith Newton, The question was: "Who is generally credited with being the father of the mercery trade? This English chemist was born in 1791, and made many important discoveries in dyeing and calico printing. He is chiefly famous for the invention of mercerisation and the preparing of cotton for dying by’ use of chemicals," Miss Newton did not hesitate, As soon as the announcer finished, she said: "I should say that was John Mercer." Afterwards, Miss Newton confessed that she had been almost too nervous to come down to the studio, and had had to be egged on by a friend. She knew the answer because she previously worked in the office of a large mercery firm at Sunderland, in England, and frequently heard references to John Mercer himself. * * * HE fact that nearly every one comes under the spell of magic is perhaps a throwback from the Dark Ages, when sorcerers and witches were held in awe by the unenlightened public. To-day,

we laugh at magic, but we are none the less mystified by the magician, How is it done? Tune in to 4ZB every "Monday night at 6.0, and you will be enlightened. Even the famous Indian rope trick will be explained by Major Cedric Talisman, and you will learn a parlour trick, too. % % % A SPECIAL feature in the ZB children’s session on Monday evenings is the presence of Lieut. Fred Babo, U.S.M.C., who invites children in to talk about anything at all. Uncle Fred wastes no time on formalities, but sits on the floor with the visitors round him. Any child can ask a question, and Uncle Fred does his best to answer. He has been asked for ghost stories, the biggest river in America, whose photo is on a 10-dollar bill (he didn’t know that one), what American girls and boys do ‘in their summer holidays, and the names of U.S. Presidents, * * * ISTENERS like hearing their own requests played. over the air, Since the Request session started from 2ZB some six months ago on Wednesday evenings, there has been such a flood of requests that a new session on Sun- days: between 12 and 2 p.m. has been begun. Vocal numbers are in special demand, and swing, on the whole, is out of it.