In the Wake of the Week's Broadcasts

Radio Record, 22 July 1938, Page 6

In the Wake of the

Week's Broadcasts

NEW ZEALAND TALKS |. ARE DIFFERENT

Radio talks in New Zealand. are con: siderably different, it seems; from radio talks in Australia. "Station 25M, Sydney,’ has taken up Michael. Hutt, who sailed away with another 1ZB ‘person-

ality, Colin Moore, on board Count Felix von Lucknaer’s yacht "See Teufel." On Sunday nights

at 11.30 (New Zealand time). Michael ‘Hutt broadcasts a sponsored half-hour, Last week he told of several of his adventures in many parts of the world with a rare turn of wit and skill, Of ¢ourse, New Zealand listeners scireely knew Michael Hutt for the man he really was. Sydney gives lim a remarkable opportunity, for he talks

openly and with relish of the gaols be has been in, the laws he has broken, and other things most people want to do at times, but are scared to try.

THIS BRIGHTNESS IN THE EARLY MORN

In a syncopated frame of mind, with breakfast undigested inside me, I have just enough strength left to protest once more against the "Brighter Breakfast" broadeasts of the NBS.

Inside me the egg is still jazzing joyously on its strip of bacon, and the por-

ridge is not at rest. The old days, when breakfast used to lie pleasantly, soothed to satisfaction by the "Merry Widow" waltz or some other gentle tune, ure gone, alas, forever!

FAMILIARITY BRINGS PEEVISHNESS

Lives of women seem never-ending subjects of radio talks: +4YO is handling now "Lives of Famous. Women," starting the ball rolling with Cleopatra, who simply cannot be ignored (it

seenis). when tLlamous women are discussed... I am not going to count up

the number of tinies I have heard something about Cleopatra on the air, nor am JI going to point out the number of discrepancies I have observed between the refereuces. My argument is simply that there are hundreds cf subjects which have never even been touched upon as radio material, either in the form of addresses, playlets, or any other pre-

sentation, and it is time these subjects came in for consideration, and famous women (and other repeated material) were left alone for a time. The second series in 4YO’s feature, due to start next week, is "Madame Curie." There is more likely to be freshness in that subject. I only hope it is brought out. ke

CIVIC PLAYERS ADD TO LAURELS

od That curious drama, "Murder in the Silo," presented over 3YA by The Civie Players recently, touched a highwater mark in its type of entertainment, The first play of the evening,

G41YCR VY UBe pase group, was "One Goes Alone," a story of the air.

It was short, but splendidly produced. The Civic Players are steadily winning themselves an appreciative following in Christchurch and beyond.

EDDIE CANTOR SPOKE ON ROAD SAFETY

es One of the plums to be gathered on shortwave during the past week was a concert from Daventry about 2 p.m. on Sunday, featuring a personal appearance by Hddie Cantor. The fam-

ous pop-eyed American comedian, who is at present making his second

visit to Wngland, gave a bright programme of songs and patter. I tuned in too late to catch the preliminary announcement, but recognised the Cantor voice and the Cantor manner almost at once, thanks to a long experience of Cantor films.

His jokes were not particularly brilliant in themselves, but in the way they were put over they sounded extremely funny. Hddie went serious toward the end with a rather emotional, but very effective, appeal for road safety, imploring motorists to take care of children on the roads. I wonder if Mr. Semple heard it-it might give him some new ideas.

WONDERING HOW HE MISSED iT

K So well was the Fitzsimmons-Jeffries fight for the world’s boxing championship reconstructed by the NBS in its "Scenes from the Sporting Past," heard last week from 2YD, that I know of at least one listener who

was wondering how on earth he had happened to overlook the fixture in

the newspaper cables. Considering the fight took place in 1902, this lapse on his part was not surprising. The fact that, for a moment, he was taken in gives some idea of the realistic manner in which the radio ghosts of these former giants were conjured up to strut their brief hour once more. The announcer was "seeing" the fight in his mind, and listeners saw it too, quite clearly; saw Jeffries (almost beaten by the New Zealand wonder) come back with amazing resilience and drop Fitzsimmons at the last while the announcer shouted above the roar of the crowd, "He’s down! 4He’s down! HE'S DOWN!" "Scenes From the Sporting Past" is one of the most ingenious radio productions yet hearg from the NBS, and, in its own way, a work of art. *

TAKE NOTICE, CREEUNERS AND OTHERS!

A certain New Zealand male singer, heard on recording from 3ZB not very long ago, sang very pleasantly about the "meeune" and the "teeune." This distortion of the "oo" vowel sound is

heard whenever you like to listen to amateur trials® on the stage or over the air. Mhare ijt

can be forgiven, but when it comes to recording there should be a higher standard, he

BLACK MARK FOR SPORTS RELAY

7s Black mark against 2ZB last weekend was the commentary on the women’ hockey match, New Zealand v. England, at Wanganui on Saturday afternoon. Handled by Kingi

Tahiwi, this was probably the worst sports broadcast of 2 major game that

has yet been heard over the Dominion network-convine-ing proof if one were needed. that sports commentary is a study in itself, not to be undertaken haphazardly by announcers who have had their training in other sessions. Kingi’s too staccato delivery, which he speeded up to tell every detail of the game, came tumbling over the air so fast that the whol. ~4lay, with its background of girlish shrieks and barracking, was faintly reminiscent of the Spanish war -Kingi ag a slightly faulty machinegun. For my part, I was so puzzled deciphering individual words in the torrent that I couldn’t tell my Dest friend now what the game was like, who was outstanding or how the scores

fell, Kingi even failed to announce the goal-total ag it altered, probably assuming, the optimist, that everyone who was interested in women’s hockey wou.d tune in at the beginning of the mateh and stay through the bitter, bitter length.

RADIO TALK DESERVED FIRST PRIZE

If a prize were offered for the most unusual and most interesting radio talk given from any New Zealand station in the last 12 months, I might nominate Mr. W. G. McClymont’s talk on ‘The Records Office," re-

cently heard from 4YA, This London office houses all ‘im-

portant state papers dating from the Conquest until to-day-a remarkable collection headed by the Doomsday Book. There is no original of Magna Carta, strange to say, only a facsimile;, but there are many other documents which the harassed nobility forced wicked King John into signing. An interesting record, dated 1567, shows the actual spot where the body of Lord Darnley was found. There is the letter to Lord Monteagle which led to the arrest of Guy Fawkes, and saved the life of King James I. There is the last letter Lord Nelson wrote before he lost his right arm, and the first he wrote with his left hand. There are letters from Commander Bligh about the mutiny on the Bounty. There are no fewer than 176 "authenic" signatures of William Shakespeare. Without a doubt, had Mr. McClymont’s talk been extended to twice its length it would still have been brief! a

FAR ro MUCH GOOD THINGS

Some time ago complaint was mude in this section against the too-frequent use of "Maytime" records over the air. I had meant later to beg for the softpedal on "Donkey Serenade," but by

now tne snotgun must be pointed on the latest Nelson Eddy importation--

"Rosalie," Why is it that the perfectly good tunes from the films of both Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald seem fated to be ruthlessly played to death? Admittedly, there are listeners still who get a dreamy look in the eye when the radio gives them "Donkey Serenade." On the other hand, there are tens of thousands who would cheerfully seng Allan Jones on a- Russian holiday and not even pray for his soul. Incidentally, entertainers who are going to curse New Zealand radio oue day for a deadly blow are the Comedy Harmonists. Their concerts have been echoing far beyond natural phenomena, As for. "Wb and Zeb" and the Japanese houseboy, I gave them up long since. They are like porridge on .summer mornings-always there for someone to eat, but so traditional everyone has learnt how to ignore it. the

PIANO RHYTHM WITHOUT ANNOUNCERS

7. Fifteen minutes of piano rhythm comes to listeners from 1ZB every day in the form of recordings by such pianists as Raie De Costa, "Fats" Waller, Charlie Kunz and Phil Green.

This new session is entertaining and a distinct change, The recordings are

easy-to-hear with no aunouncements between. It gives the listener a "bréather," so to speak.