To Tell the Truth - Chester Lauck of Lum 'n' Abner; Miss Indian America 1957 (Aug 27, 1957)

PANEL: Polly Bergen, Ralph Bellamy, Kitty Carlisle, Hy Gardner
CONTESTANT #1: Chester Lauck (Radio's Lum on "Lum 'n' Abner")
CONTESTANT #2: Delores Shorty (Miss Indian America 1957)
CONTESTANT #3: Michael McDougal (Gambling detective)
Many thanks, as always, to epaddon for providing his copy of this episode.
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[@donniepitchford5269]

It's great to see this on KZbin! "Lum and Abner" is probably my all-time favorite Old Time Radio show. Well, that's why I now write and illustrate the "Lum and Abner" comic strip!

[@Pygar2]

I just wish the Yahoo groups hadn't died. I guess after the distro there was nothing left to say...

[@helenamirian908]

It's my second favorite after I discovered Vic and Sade. It seems normal unless you pay attention- then it's truly bizarre. 🤪

[@juangalt3496]

The 39th Annual Lum and Abner Festival starts tomorrow June 3.

[@soulierinvestments]

"Lum N Abner" was -- hands down -- one of the most funny radio series of the 40s. Right up there with the best of Jack, Fred, Fibber, and Gildersleeve. It went through a number of incarnations, but the quality of the humor -- bordering on the surreal -- hardly ever flagged. The 15 minutes a day version of L&A also featured some of the best organ scoring I ever heard in radio.

[@519djw6]

soulierinvestments I was surprised that in 1957 "Lum 'n' Abner" seemed to be so far in the past that Polly Bergen got it mixed up with "Amos and Andy." As late as the 1960s they were still selling products using the image of "Lum 'n' Abner." And I don't know why I even remember this, because it was on a long time before I was born, but I think this show was supposed to be set in Arkansas and that the two eponymous characters had a business called something like "The Jot'em Down Store." (I think I may have heard about this from my parents.) Is my information correct?

[@soulierinvestments]

Your memory is correct. I cannot quite remember the name of the town in Arkansas, but it was a real town.

[@savethetpc6406]

soulierinvestments and 519DJW I have only heard of "Lum 'n' Abner" since I started listening to old Fred Allen radio shows over this past couple of years. I've heard Fred mention or refer to them several times, and there is one episode which features a long, involved setup sketch to which the punchline is "Lump and Abner." I totally did not get the joke when I first heard that episode and had to do some research to figure out why that was supposed to be funny. What surprises me, though, is that none of the panelists recognized Chester Lauck by sight, even though his affidavit said he'd appeared as Lum in several feature films!

[@totellthetruthcbs4220]

SaveThe TPC No one said they were popular feature films. ;)

[@michaelkuypers9798]

@@519djw6 Pine Ridge, Arkansas. I had no trouble identifying the voice of the real "Lum."

[@HannibalFan52]

'Vass you dere, Sharlie?' was one of my father's favorite phrases. It ranks up there with 'How do you dooooo?' (Bert Gordon as the Mad Russian) and 'Monkeys is de crrrrraziest peoples' (Lew Lehr).

[@peterblauarsch800]

Delores Racine was Miss Indian Amerika 1959 - the name is wrong and how could this be broadcast 1957 ??? 😆😆

[@Beson-SE]

6:50 Good one, Bud! :)

[@savethetpc6406]

Johan Bengtsson A real groaner! I wonder if Bud Collyer and Bennett Cerf ever got together to trade puns. They could have had their own game show in which they tried to outdo each other with wordplay to see who could make the audience and panel groan the loudest! ;)

[@Beson-SE]

SaveThe TPC Bennett would have won without even trying. :) This was the first "bad" pun from Bud. I think he is an excellent host. Very warm and friendly.

[@Beson-SE]

11:20 Number 4..?! :)

[@saltyroe3179]

9:20 Miss Indian America

[@GirGir183]

Number 4, what tribe are you from?

[@VahanNisanian]

18:35 Isn't there also Atlantic City?

[@savethetpc6406]

***** Gambling did not become legal in Atlantic City until 1976, and the first Atlantic City casino opened in 1978. According to my reseaerch, our old WML pal, Steve Lawrence had a symbolic role in the early history of Atlantic City gambling: "May 26, 1978: Less than two years after voters agreed to amend the state constitution to allow casinos in Atlantic City, singer Steve Lawrence, accompanied by Gov. Brendan Byrne and other dignitaries, throws the dice at Resorts Casino Hotel to open New Jersey’s first legal gaming hall." (from:www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/07/atlantic_city_timeline_of_even.html) Btw, I had to research the exact year that gambling became legal in Atlantic City, but I knew that Nevada was the only place in the U.S. where casino gambling was legal in 1957, because I remember what a big deal it was when that changed.

[@juangalt3496]

Gambling legalized in Atlantic City in 1976 - first casino in 1978.

[@ItsMeMissV369]

I thought the same. And Palm Springs in Cali.

[@GirGir183]

21:46 Who's Delia Ballotts...and why is she out?

[@aliciaballesteros-mitchell1059]

"its not fair because theyre all indian." um... and all of the guys were white soo...

[@joannalexander846]

They were so racist to the native american women.

[@nowvoyagerNE]

i think you mean sexist

[@oldfart4751]

I agree especially Polly!

[@snickelman]

How?

[@ih82r8]

no they weren't!!!

[@ElCid48]

Polly "Bourbon" should've been her name.

[@marthahanley6650]

Polly?? Heck, Orson Bean seemed looped and gulping down water constantly.

[@audw2534]

I don't think we can blame the alcohol.

[@marthahanley6650]

NOW I can say that Polly Bergen just needs to stop acting like a little girl and playing airhead. But mainly how *DISRESTFUL* two of these people are. Kitty Carlisle excluded. I wish I could HEAR the answers as well. Dang I am getting old. :D

[@TacitusR]

" Boy, they get around don't they" Polly is surprised to hear the Mohawk girl lives in Brooklyn. Yet the Mohawk are native to the area now know as New York State. They've been there all along, Polly.

[@kikia6611]

I thought the same thing. This is a different era but there are still many people today who don't know who the original east coast tribes are.

[@anthonyochocki6535]

It's because Polly is a DENSE as a piece of wood. An Inarticulate intellectual---LoL......

[@bjrnet]

One of the contestants, Mickey MacDougall is now listed in the Encyclopedia of Blackjack at bit.ly/2CAdRGs . MacDougall accompanied Edward Thorp and Russell Barnhart to Las Vegas and Reno between January 23 - 31, 1962, to test out Ed Thorp’s new card counting system.

[@TheHaratashi]

Those Native ladies were so awesome. They should have treated them with more respect, but that was just the way it was back then. And those ladies outclassed everyone on that panel.

[@sbalman]

They absolutely did. The arrogance of the panel in this segment was painful to watch.

[@laurenduvall8547]

@@sbalman agreed. And the producers should have prepped the panel better

[@VahanNisanian]

For Game 2, I thought it was gonna be no. 1.

[@savethetpc6406]

***** Me too, and I was surprised that either of the other contestants were truly full-blooded American Indians.

[@skyedog24]

I used to know girls from Weippe, Idaho 83553 🇺🇸

[@donnawoodford6641]

9:21 Begins Native American (Miss Indian America).

[@larryteren5054]

i'm guessing goodson and todman were happy when polly bergen had to spend more time doing movies and left the show. she started out on the early episodes being cute and a breath of fresh air. but she morphed into being annoying and a time waster to everyone else.

[@honeywell5455]

She's like a Hal Block, from " What's My Line" (1950-1975) but "operating within acceptable parameters" . She wasn't, "Pushing the envelope"= testing limits and trying out new, often radical ideas, like Hal Block did, He was 20 yrs.ahead of his time.

[@ItsMeMissV369]

She was lovely but definitely domineering, I can’t see people being at ease around her but rather on eggshells. I dunno.

[@sbalman]

And, horribly rude.

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

Man #3 in Game #1 Lady #3 in Game #2 Man #1 in Game #3

[@peternagy-im4be]

Unfortunately KZbin trolling and spoiling seems to be a popular activity these days

[@Beson-SE]

4:50 I feel very proud that even I know about Kingfish, "Amos 'n' Andy" and not Polly. :)

[@SuperWinterborn]

Johan Bengtsson Apropos Polly, Johan. It's her birthday today. :)

[@Beson-SE]

SuperWinterborn Same as my mother. :)

[@SuperWinterborn]

Johan Bengtsson It's my parents wedding day as well. :)

[@Beson-SE]

SuperWinterborn A Happy Day for all of us. :)

[@louisecoleman1281]

I know Polly Bergen was on the panel as the ditzy lady comic but she could be really obtuse if not down right offensive. The Indian contestants out classed them all.

[@davidforbes6250]

They obviously can't see the three!

[@tomy5868]

name the 55 tribes? YOU name the 55 tribes. horrible jokes.

[@geraldkatz7986]

The joke was about the number. It's not easy to name the 50 States today.

[@nowvoyagerNE]

they are awkward, unfunny and dull during this particular show....not even fun to watch.

[@ItsMeMissV369]

What’s Kitty famous for? Being an elite debutante? I’ve never understood her purpose in these games.

[@kenyongray2615]

Either the two phonies in game 1 were not taught their roles well or the questioning was horrible. Both probably. Delores #2 in the 2nd game was a babe. Polly is getting tiring. She always votes for someone then says she thinks it is someone else. She is constantly trying to take over the shows or playing dumb. Maybe that was not a role she was playing. Thanks for the video.

[@elliebellie7816]

Polly and Kitty - so disrespectful to the young Indian ladies. I always liked Kitty up until now but I've completely changed my mind.