www.americanradiohistory.com 1 Bandleader Ted Weems, of Heartaches fame, renews acquaintance with old WHB listening frienc 2. Burl Ives, "America's Mightiest Ballad Singer," recently originated his Friday night Philco show frc Kansas City. 3. The president of the National Association of Manufacturers, Morris Sayre, during exclusive radio interview. 4. The girl at the microphone, University of Kansas City's Dorothy Smi wins a contest sponsored by Berkson's of Kansas City, a flight to St. Louis and a position on I reviewing board of Minx Mode, manufacturers of junior fashions. S. and 6. The outside and inside a tarpaper house -trailer, home of Donnie Platt, the br 'zve little invalid, who recently won a raft prizes from Mutual's Heart's Desire program. www.americanradiohistory.com foreword for April April, 1948 Vol. 4 No. 4 FOR four springs now we have C O N T E N TS reported the coming of April as it looked to us -old softies that we ARTICLES are for lilacs and young love and FAKE SCHOOLS .........Stanley S. Jacobs 3 MODERN TROUBADOR Arthur S. Posti. 7 the pink and silver explosions of THE CASE OF THE HOMELESS HEAD..Ted Peterson 11 the tulip tree. Swing's first April THE DIMES MARCH ON...... Walt Angrist 15 MUSCOVITE JOKERS ........._.__._.....Liza Zown 17 was the last of the war, and since THEY'RE STILL ROLLING .. Maxine Block 21 that time it has been our hope to FRANCIS GALTON: HUMAN YARDSTICK ...... .................. ................Carol Carter 23 report the spring in terms as glow- THE MAGIC WORDS OF ing as the finest days and that feel- ELMER WHEELER Carl Clayton 29 A GARDEN FOR MRS. NELSON....Favius Friedman 43 ing you get inside. But alas for the JOHN BULL SOUNDS A state of the world! Each spring WARNING Sir William Y. Darling 46 grows more troubled, and this one DEPARTMENTS would seem almost the edge of dis- HEAVY DATES ..._.. 2 aster. Thus our account must run: MAN OF THE MONTH 37 SWING IN WORLD AFFAIRS 52 bigotry, selfishness, hypocrisy, cruel- SWING SESSION 54 ty, lust for power, sanctimony, CHICAGO LETTER 56 greed, stupidity. That's the CHICAGO PORTS OF CALL 58 story. NEW YORK LETTER ......... 60 There is no good news any more. NEW YORK THEATRE 62 And the fault is not in the stars. NEW YORK PORTS OF CALL. 65 KANSAS CITY PORTS OF CALL 66 Still, we cannot be one -sided. We must report the whole story -and Editor the other half of it is that no mat- MORI GREINER ter what we've done to mess up the orld, April has come to our part Art Editor f it again packing its ancient wal- DON FITZGERALD op. And only those too stubborn Business Manager .o thaw will escape unscathed. JOHNNY FRASER, JR. April plays rough, tangling you up inside until you have the urge to Publisher behave as the lady poets would have DONALD DWIGHT DAVIS ,you to and turn cartwheels down :he wind in a backwash of apple Contributing Editor: Jetta Carleton. Assistant Edi- )loom! There is that about the tor: Patrick Dennihan. Associate Editors: Rose- nonth that will not change in spite mary Haward, Evelyn Nolt, Verna Dean Ferril, June Thompson. Chicago Editor: Norton Hughes )f us, and thank your lucky stars Jonathan. New York Editor: Lucie Brion. Humor or that! April hits hard and not Editor: Tom Collins. Music Editor: Bob Kennedy. veryone has learned to duck. Look Circulation Manager: John T. Schilling. )ut, Pbotograpby: Hahn -Millard, Sol Studna, Johnny Mac! Here it comes again! Fraser, Jr. Art: Don Fitzgerald, Hugh Broadley, Rachael Weber, Frank Hensley, Rannie Miller, John Whalen, F. E. Warren. Front Cover: Harold Hahn. Back Cover: Courtesy Trans World Airlines. www.americanradiohistory.com APRIL'S Jleavy 2aieó IN KANSAS CITY Art .. Conventions . (The William Rockhill Nelson Apr. 2.6, International . Brother Gallery of Art and the Mary hood of Boilermakers (Special), Atkins Museum of Fine Arts.) Hotel Phillips. Apr. 3, Missouri Society of X -Ray Loan Exhibitions: "Modern Art Technicians, Hotel Continental. in Advertising" circulated by Apr. 4-14, John Deere Plow Corn - Container Corporation of Amer- pany, Hotel Phillips. ica. Apr. 5-6, American Society of "Paintings by Kansas City Art Anesthesiology, Regional, Hotel Institute Instructors." This ex- President. hibition will include paintings Apr. 7.9, Missouri Valley Elec- by Ross Braught, Edward Lan - tric Association, Engineering ing, Myron Sûkole, Fred James Conference, Hotel President. and William McKim. Apr. 11.13 , MissouriKansas Bak- Masterpiece of the Month: "Ma ers Association, Hotel President. donna and Child," attributed to Apr. 12-13, Missouri State Cham- Nanni d'Antonio di Banco ber of Commerce, Hote. (circ. 1373. 1421) . Muehlebach. Concerts: Mondays, at 3:30 p.m., Apr. 12-13, Institute of Dietetics Music .. Hotel Continental. and Fridays, at 8:15 p.m., in (Music Hall) the Gallery Auditorium. Apr. 14.16, Midwest Hospital As Apr. 4, Barbershop Quartet Pro- sociation, Municipal Auditor Apr. 9, Conservatory of Music. gram, Matinee. ium. Apr. 5, John Charles Thomas, Apr. 11, Sigma Alpha Iota. Apr. 17-18, Alpha Sigma Alph i baritone. Regional, Hotel Continental. Apr. 23, Piano recital by pupils Apr. 7, Stan Kenton concert, of Mrs. Paul Willson. Apr. 17-19, Society of State Di Municipal Auditorium Arena. rectors, Hotel Phillips. Apr. 25, Mu Phi Epsilon. April 8, High School Orchestra Apr. 19-24, American Associatio Apr. 30, Piano recital by pupils Festival. for Health, Physical Educatio of Mrs. Miles Blim. Apr. 9, St. Mary's (Xavier, Kan- and Recreation, Municipal Auc sas) Spring Festival. itorium. Motion Pictures: On April 2 and Apr. 10, Mercury Caravan. 4, The Iron Duke. On April Apr. 26, Nelson Eddy, baritone. Apr. 26.28, Grand Council Roy - 16 and 18, The Eagle (with & Select Masters and Gran Chanter Royal Arch Mason Rudolph Valentino) . Dancing . (Pla -Mor Ballroom, 32nd and Hotel President. Special Events . Main.) Dancing every night Wrestling . Apr. 1, Shrine Ceremonial, Mu- but Monday. "Over 30" dances Wrestling every Thursday nigh nicipal Auditorium Arena. Tuesday, Wednesday and Fri, Memorial Hall, Kansas Cit day. Kansas. Apr. 2-9, Ice Capades, Pla Mor Apr. 3, Russ Morgan Arena. Apr. 6, Professional wrestlin Apr. 10, Guy Lombardo. Municipal Auditorium Arena. Apr. 3, Campfire Girls, Munici- Apr. 17, Del Courtney. pal Auditorium Arena. Apr. 24, Henry Busse. Boxing . Apr. 9, .R.O.T.C. Circus, Mu- Apr. 2, Professional boxing, M nicipal Auditorium Arena. nicipal Auditorium Arena. Apr. 10, Tennis match, Munici- Baseball . pal Auditorium Arena. Kansas City Blues, American As Apr. 11, Eagle Scouts Meet, Mu- ciation. All games played sic Hall, 3 p.m. Ruppert Stadium, 22nd a Apr. 27, Rotary Club Fair, Mu- Brooklyn. nicipal Auditorium Arena. Apr. 27, Indianapolis. Apr. 30, DeMolay dance, Munici- Apr. 28, Indianapolis. pal Auditorium Arena. Apr. 29, Indianapolis. is published monthly at Kansas City, All rights of pictorial or text content reser Swing Missouri. Address all communications by the Publisher in the United States, Gr to Publication Office, 1102 Scarritt Building, Britain, Mexico, Chile, and all countries p Kansas City 6, Missouri. 'Phone Harrison 1161. ticipating in the International Copyright C 333 North Michigan, Chicago 1, Illinois. 'Phone vention. Reproduction for use without expt Central 7980. Price 25c in United States and permission of any matter herein is forbide Canada. Annual subscriptions, United States, Swing is not responsible for the loss of p3 a year ; everywhere else, $4. Copyright solicited manuscripts, drawings or photograj 1948 by WHB Broadcasting Co. P -inted in U. S. A. www.americanradiohistory.com Slickest swindle of all is the education fraud! SCHOOLS: Our Meanest Racket by STANLEY S. JACOBS AYOUNG Chicago business wom- peddlers, who sell jerrybuilt or phony an, possessor of two university courses in everything from piano tun- degrees, always boasted that she could ing to book- binding. spot any confidence game a mile off. The Chicago woman sent her child Yet she eagerly paid $600 to a fake to school for several weeks until the "talent school" whose glib salesman promoters skipped town with the assured her that his institution could tuition money of 60 aspiring young- land her child a Hollywood contract sters. after six months of schooling. The Nebraska farm girl, whose In Nebraska, an aging farmer and voice was passable in a rural choir, his sick wife who had saved pennies to actually couldn't sing free over any pay for their daughter's education at Kansas City radio station. But her a state teachers' college, were dazzled hopes of fame, money and a future by a man in a handsome convertible were nurtured by a crew of slickers coupe who raved about their daugh- and a broken -down tenor who re- ter's voice. ceived $75 a week to keep his classes "I represent a school in Kansas in an optimistic frame of mind. City directed by a former Metropoli- tan Opera star," he said. "Your girl Competent teachers later told the is a born singer. But she needs de- girl that she could never hope to be a velopment. After eight months at professional singer. But she had no our school, she'll be ready for import- recourse at law to recover her par- ant roles in radio which pay even ents' hard -earned money, for the sly mediocre singers $200 a week!" schoolmasters had been careful not to promise her a job in writing. Convinced that the girl's talents would be wasted as a schoolma'am, Education today is America's most the parents gave her $1,000 -their marketable commodity. Reliable total savings -and she drove off to schools of journalism, beauty culture, heartbreak and disappointment in music, drama, business, law, account- Kansas City.