What's My Line? - Cliff Arquette; Martin Gabel [panel] (Jul 26, 1959)

[@kenyongray2615]

Cliff "Charley Weaver" Arquette was always my favorite "square" on the Hollywood Squares game show. Thanks for the video.

[@deedonnerramone4757]

I was three days old! God Bless Mom, Dad and Stork. What gets me, is all the panelist were Blue Bloods from the Fashionable Upper East Side with Ivy League degree - it was a little club. Today, it would last two seconds. I grew in the former America and despite its flaws - do I miss it. America today is worlds apart from July 26, 1959.

[@kennethbutler1343]

I was 7 days old! Having been born on a Sunday, there is a birthday episode of WML for me.

[@mrbob4u495]

Indeed.

[@inkyguy]

Thanks, God. Because the people of the 50’s, especially the young, could not wait to throw off it’s claustrophobic rigidities. The prosperity that was enjoyed in that era was a result of the Roosevelt and Truman New Deal programs that created that prosperous society, which essentially continued until Reagan began reversing so much of what had been built and prevented more from being done.

[@dannydoc1969]

As a kid I read the comedy books written by Cliff Arquette (Charlie Weaver), and to this day I remember the very vivid image he painted in words, of a couple from "Mt. Idy", "He was so bow-legged, and she was so Knock-kneed that when they walked down the street together they spelled "OX".

[@maureenevegrowney2796]

The old t.v.programs are funny ⁰+enjoyed when as a kid even now ⁰to share somehow with my children as adultsb

[@lynnbrunn7865]

Hahaha!

[@donevans2109]

I watched these as a kid now im hooked again... thanks for the re-runs

[@lennypearl]

Mirja is a Finnish name, the first I've seen on WML so far! I live in Finland, so it's nice to see Finnish where I least expect it :-)

[@patriciaannking8601]

Dear sir, thank you for information on Mrs. Rose's first name. Our mother is of Finnish decent and we are second generation Finns. We appreciate your efforts. Thank you again,

[@hcombs0104]

I wonder if she had recently come to America? She didn't really talk, and seemed not to easily understand what was being said. Anyway, she was a very attractive young lady.

[@dekelanson5280]

She certainly had that suomalainen look.

[@randylovering24]

Dorothy looked like a living doll

[@elisabethlinz4256]

Hahaha, true!

[@hcombs0104]

True. This was her best period, looks-wise. Remarkably pretty.

[@Saxeh]

In this episode in particular, wow!

[@loissimmons6558]

Arlene invents "Truth or Dare" as a home party game (17:00).

[@miketheyunggod2534]

great one with Charlie Weaver.

[@dalemcdougall9240]

Thumbs up.

[@519djw6]

My God! Mirja Rose was absolutely gorgeous! And I have never heard such applause when an "ordinary" contestant signed in.

[@519djw6]

@Mata Man If you think she was "slow," it might have been because she was nervous; and, with name like "Mirja," I'm guessing that English might not have been her first language.

[@inkyguy]

Yes, she was perhaps the most beautiful guest in the run of the program, especially if you don’t include the celebrity mystery guests.

[@Mmdmade]

I knew Bennett would frown with the lie detector revelation.

[@williamlynnroden]

@M J. I noticed that whenever that type of device (different ones over the years) made an entry over the years, Bennett was always skeptical. That follows the predominant thinking now as they are seldom allowed as court evidence.

[@juliansinger]

I was gonna say, I wasn't sure if I approved of someone coming on in character, but then, that's basically what, for example, Jack Benny did, only less broadly. So I retract my nascent objection.

[@loissimmons6558]

By 1959, Cliff Arquette rarely appeared in public out of his Charley Weaver character. I think it was far more appropriate than for Richard Boone to appear dressed as Paladin, a character he was playing on TV for onl a couple of years.

[@dizzyology7514]

And Art Carney appeared as Norton, Phil Silvers appeared as Sgt. Bilko -- though both of them also appeared on later occasions outside their stage personae.

[@inkyguy]

As did George Burns and Gracie Allen. Of course, with George it is hard to know where the character ended and where he as a person began, but other than her voice, which was its actual sound, Gracie’s onscreen persona was always a role she was playing. I know of absolutely no record in any medium of her out of character. That was something of hers that was not for public consumption.

[@bluecamus5162]

In 1958, Greer Garson appeared in character as Auntie Mame, a role she had been currently performing on Broadway.

[@Camop-iz9kt]

According to Peter Marshall's book, Cliff Arquette often brought female escorts to the studio while taping "Hollywood Squares".

[@AaronHahnStudios]

Is Cliff Arquette & Charlie Weaver the same person?

[@MrThesper]

Yes, they are!

[@AaronHahnStudios]

@@MrThesper Now that makes more sense, thank you Mr Thesper.

[@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116]

I can understand why some comments are derogatory toward comedians like Charlie Weaver and Red Skelton, after all, they never cursed and even had the audacity to toss in a "May God Bless."

[@accomplice55]

And Red Skelton was reportedly filthy-minded and -mouthed offstage.

[@dougearnest7590]

@@accomplice55 - I heard a story once that an actress on the Red Skelton show was doing a skit with him in which she had to reach into his pants pocket for his keys. She commented "I feel silly doing this" and he responded "Go any lower and you'll feel nuts."

[@marlonvasquez6531]

This one was aired when my grandmother was a day old.

[@davidsoulier6375]

and not one of the WML Sunday videotapes, Black and White or Color, survived.

[@actownsend7288]

Daly when did you learn German?? And Charlie I almost fell out of bed watching this laughing so damn loud!!

[@beadyeyedbrat]

I've always wondered how it is that contestants had a hard time hearing, but John Daly always heard clearly.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Being live in 1959 primetime television was not unusual, though many shows had gone to tape and film. I thought that John may have mentioned that this is the first What's My Line episode using the new electronic tape technology. Although the use of tape was a few years old by then, I'll bet most people were fairly unaware of how it worked. I would suspect that everything not filmed would be thought live by most people? It was not a big deal to be live in 1959 (or am I wrong about that)?

[@WhatsMyLine]

No, I think you're right. The public would have thought of TV shows as being either live, or filmed in advance. Videotaped pseudo-live broadcasts were *very* uncommon in the 50s, probably because videotape was actually expensive back then. Interestingly, just a few years later, CBS forced "The Twilight Zone" to videotape 6 episodes from the 2nd season as a cost cutting measure over filming, so the price must have dropped precipitously by that point.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

I remember that taped episode, and all these years I thought it was an experiment by Rod Serling. I didn't know that CBS forced him to tape a show. I have never heard of another instance like that. In fact, throughout the 60's almost everything on primetime tv was filmed. Tape was used for news oriented shows, and quiz and game shows. Also variety programs. I have never seen this, but I remember a "Police Woman" episode being advertised as trying out videotape. But even by the 70's using tape for any show that had much movement had poor results. I remember that on occasion soap operas would tape a scene outdoors and it looked awful.

[@WhatsMyLine]

Joe Postove There were actually 6 videotaped episodes of "The Twilight Zone", not just one. Rod Serling fought tooth and nail against this cost-cutting measure, which necessitated a totally different style of production than film which he felt, rightly, completely at odds with the style the show had developed by that point. Some of those videotaped shows are good ("Long Distance Call", for one), but none of them are as good as they could have been if they had been filmed as usual.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

It is however cool to see a dramatic show from the era on tape. If only for it's historiography.

[@44032]

@@MrJoeybabe25 Taped shows always look like current live broadcasts to me, despite their age, while filmed or kinescoped shows were clearly done a long time ago.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

I am shocked, shocked, that once the word "detecting' was introduced someone on the panel did not pounce. They were a bit lazy thinkers on this one.

[@loissimmons6558]

+Joe Postove Here are your winnings, Captain Renault. :-)

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Who were the announcers over the course of the show? And was Johnny Olsen the longest serving one and the only announcer to appear on camera?

[@dancebandleader]

I know Hal Sims announced many early ones, later Johnny Olsen, there may have been someone between them, but not sure.

[@saifonlawrence2044]

Charlie's name was Weaver,but he was indeed a fine weaver as well.

[@billyshepard5514]

He was like Larry the cable guy, known by his Character name more than his real name

[@trentaccid2177]

YOU HAVE TO LOVE CHARLIE WEAVER. I HAVE ONE OF HIS MOVABLE BAR KEPPER FIGURES.

[@DerekWitt]

I wonder if Grandpa Jones was inspired by Charlie Weaver. :) I see a lot of similarities.

[@wildboar7473]

Be interesting if parents called in Lie Detectors to see if children lied... could not use during Politicians speeches or Congress hearings. Yes too bad he could not help himself.....

[@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116]

Was Mrs. Rose just playing dumb or...?

[@michaelclark6223]

English wasn't her first language.

[@hcombs0104]

@@michaelclark6223 that's what I was thinking. Recent immigrant?

[@jackgibsxxx0750]

~11:15+... Interesting that he said "These 50 states". This ep is July 26, 1959. Hawaii would not become a state for another month.

[@jackgibsxxx0750]

Well maybe I'm wrong about the ep date. It's not the right spacial guest so maybe the date on the description is wrong.

[@ronflatter1235]

Congress had approved statehood for Hawai‘i in March, so the setting of the date was an expected formality.

[@randallmacphee7260]

People looked better ; acted better , the woman were feminine and glowed and the men were more masculine .

[@lisahinton9682]

AND people could spell "women" correctly, too! Don't forget that!!!

[@randallmacphee7260]

We are living in some dark times , Lisa .

[@melodymoon900]

I loved how they dressed then

[@inkyguy]

It is a television show for public consumption to sell a consumer product. It is a very, very thin slice of a heavily altered and manufactured reality. It is not an actual representation of how the vast majority people lived or interacted, including those on the show. Dorothy Kilgallen, for one, had a very sad marriage. Instead, it is primarily aspirational, not representational. Along with shows like this there were simultaneously also women’s roller derby and men’s “professional wrestling.” As for “dark days” being somehow today compared to the 50s, McCarthyism and the Red Scares were at their peak (Talk about “political correctness”; people lost their jobs!), nuclear annihilation was a genuine fear, everyone was certain communism was winning, the USSR was beating the U.S. in the space race hands down, people routinely abused and overdosed on pharmaceutical drugs, smoking was inescapable in the workplace or in public, or race riots erupted over allowing African American children into hitherto whites-only schools, the average age of death was 67. Most people couldn’t afford to go to college. Children dying and being permanently disabled by polio had only begun to ebb within the last three years after the Salk vaccine was announced in May 1955. There is no birth control other than condoms. Abortion is illegal. The greatest cause of poverty was the loss of a male breadwinner because so few jobs were open to women. Catholic priests were abusing children and being protected by their bishops. A major social issue was juvenile delinquency/crime and urban gangs. I could easily go on, but the point is that people far too easily romanticize the past and believe that the present is uniquely challenging.

[@randallmacphee7260]

@@inkyguy Your points are valid , but I think in general people were doing much better in those days . Almost everybody out there at one time or another has been involve with drugs ; makes a difference . I can remember those days .

[@kristabrewer9363]

Who's Cliff Arquette?

[@peternagy-im4be]

God knows.

[@accomplice55]

Try "Google." It's easier to type his name into your browser than to ask people who might not see your question for months or more.

[@toinimoore3463]

Arlenes hairdresser should be taken to task her hair is simply awful!

[@shoredude2]

Cliff Arquette is said to be the only comedian who could make Jack Webb (Joe Friday from Dragnet) crack up.

[@vegeboyx]

Dorothy looks so beautiful! I love that hairstyle. I wish ladies of today would still have it.

[@anneroy4560]

She wore a hair piece ...

[@janeiwasduncan8463]

@@anneroy4560 Who said?? Or are you just jealous that a lady can look ladylike????

[@jess4metoo]

vegeboyx I also thought Dorothy was an elegant, beautiful, classy, smart lady. Did I leave anything out? Oh yes! Kind.

[@Ja-be5cy]

Jess4metoo And I'm glad you left it out, because it's pretty far from what she really was.

[@ItsMeWendyvee]

@@janeiwasduncan8463 It's fairly obvious that she was ... and not sure why you would think it rude to say so??

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Cliff Arquette (Charley Weaver) was a much beloved personality from the 50's to 70's when he died. But I don't think he ever could be considered on the "A" list of show biz. I wonder why? When he was on Paar and later on Hollywood Squares he was at the top of his game. Maybe he was more like Sam Levinson, a storyteller, folk humorist (I am showing my age!) than a comic?

[@belindaalbright8798]

There was also the Charley Weaver Wax Museum in Gettysburg, PA. The wax figures were very realistic and the tour was quite eerie. That tour I took was many years ago, guessing about 56. The museum has since closed but Mr. Weaver was well versed in the battle of Gettysburg and a smart man in general. He was often seen around the museum. His quick wit and snappy comebacks were a reflection of his intellectual abilities.

[@bluecamus5162]

I agree, a folk humorist, in the vein of Garrison Keillor maybe, but much narrower. I came of age in the '70s and he certainly never caught on with us. I recognize his wit and creativity, but as Big Max Calvada once said, "his particular charm eludes me".

[@VahanNisanian]

Cliff Arquette is the grandfather of Patricia, Rosanna, Alexis, Richmond, and David Arquette.

[@janeiwasduncan8463]

One of his sons appeared on The Waltons, playing Mr. Pickett.

[@jess4metoo]

gcjerryusc It was his schtick, the silliness.

[@losthor1zon]

I only ever saw him on the "Hollywood Squares" in the 70s. I had no idea what else he did or what he was famous for. So it's interesting to see a little bit of his schtick here.

[@scotnick59]

That's wonderful!

[@larrygrebler5054]

@@losthor1zon Same here. I always thought he was a country singer.

[@sixpakshaker88]

I loved watching Charley on the Hollywood Squares.

[@dancebandleader]

It's a shame that many of these videotapes only exist in less sharp kinescope transfers like this one. Evidently some networks erased tapes after showing them (that's what happened to the first ten years of the Carson/Tonight show) Even some early color shows only survive in fuzzy black and white versions. Sad

[@acousticshadow4032]

stop your whining - this is great stuff & we're lucky to have it in any form!

[@hcombs0104]

One of the only shows that was kept in videotape form was The Dinah Shore Chevy Show. Videotape was VERY expensive at the time; it was more cost-effective to transfer to kinescope, and reuse the videotape again for a later show.

[@rmelin13231]

I have to say that I find the video quality of these shows to be exceptionally good, given their age. The quality is far better than when I watched them back when we lacked vertical hold. I, for one, am grateful that these are provided with such good quality to enjoy.

[@karensmith5318]

I adore John Charles Daly...

[@sylviekrause1571]

So do I 🙋‍♀️!

[@michaelsergejhelgesson1637]

This was just two days after he had been in Moscow as a reporter, witnessing the famous " kitchen debate " between Nixon and Chrusjtjov.

[@rr7firefly]

Cliff Arquette was the grandfather of actors Rosanna, Patricia, Alexis, and David Arquette.

[@satori03]

Exactly

[@kbrock9146]

So, while I never especially cared for Charlie Weaver as a character, I loved going to his museum in Gettysburg. It was very sad indeed when it closed. A wonderful little piece of Americana was lost that day.

[@mikejschin]

I'd forgotten about the Soldier's National Museum in Gettysburg. My father took me to Gettysburg in 1963 and again a few years later. In the 1990s and early 2000s, I took my daughters there. They loved the experience, and the younger one was even inspired to become a historian and has gotten her Ph.D. in the subject and works as a historian for the state of Virginia. I am very lucky to live in a virtual museum. My house is on land once owned by George Washington's father and roamed by young George himself. During the Civil War, Union heavy artillery units bivouacked on what is now my property, and many artifacts have been found buried in my yard. And the nearby battlefields: Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Courthouse, and a few lesser ones. And so much more from the colonial era, including the inn where Thomas Jefferson stayed while writing amendments to Virginia's laws to comply with the new Constitution. Sorry to run on so, but colonial and Civil War history still excite me at age 70.

[@saran3214]

@@mikejschin No, it's interesting. How did you happen to acquire the land?

[@mikejschin]

@@saran3214 Hi Sara. There's nothing spectacular about my acquiring the land. Over the centuries, Augustus Washington's farm was sold off in parcels. I live in the 1/4 of it that he sold before he died, so George Washington didn't inherit it and thus never owned it himself. In the 1950s, the neighborhood I live in was developed into half acre lots. My house was built in 1959 and we bought it 6 years ago.

[@saran3214]

@@mikejschin I am sure George walked all over your property, as you said. He is one of my favorite presidents.

[@mikejschin]

@@saran3214 Hi Sara. He did live on the farm on the banks of the Rappahannock from age 6 to age 19, so it's likely that he explored the entire property. A portion of the original farm has been preserved and is open to the public (for a fee). The George Washington Society has had a replica of his boyhood house built on the site of the original building. If you ever visit the Fredericksburg area, you won't want to miss seeing that.

[@movieman9100]

Long Live Charley Weaver.

[@shirleyrombough8173]

What a pretty dress on Ms. Rose. She looks somewhat delicate for a life guard though that may be a stereotype.

[@johnsmisek02]

Mirja Rose looks just like Jessica Lange!

[@kumppi]

Maybe due to the fact that they both share Finnish ancestry. Now I am assuming Mirja does too because her first name is as Finnish as it can get.

[@519djw6]

@@kumppi Olen varma, että hän oli suomalainen.

[@kingbee1500]

I assume the beginning of videotaping greatly relieved or eliminated the "quick turnaround" at CBS' 50th St. Studio between the 8:58 ET end of the live "Ed Sullivan Show" and the 10:30 start of live "WML." BTW, 50th St. Studio is now named after Sullivan...yes, Letterman's old place.

[@spongevee1]

It gave them a chance for vacations, or for John to cover a story elsewhere, but as to the site, they did WML at the Mansfield Theater on West 47th St. until June of 1960.

[@ronflatter1235]

Daly was on assignment in Moscow the week this show aired.

[@loissimmons6558]

After the second segment, one of the few times that Bennett is not smiling after the panel lost and the line was revealed. Usually the camera catches him with a broad grin.

[@11lucygoosey]

he was just mad because he didn't think lie detector ever went to homes to be used

[@preppysocks209]

he did not smile after the lifeguard either. Bennett can be a poor loser when he comes nowhere close and he thinks he has been misled. He rarely indicates that he thinks his failure to know the line is his own fault to any degree.

[@sanseifromkofu728]

@@preppysocks209 That's what I was thinking. In fact, he more often than not looks like a sourpuss if the panel fails, unless the occupation is truly hilarious.

[@paulmorin6569]

@@preppysocks209 yeah he was insistent it was about babies. He's like Fonzie. I was wr,... I was wr....(can't get it out) wrong!

[@leannsherman6723]

I noticed that too.

[@Danmark30]

Cliff Arquette is the grandfather of PAtricia, Roseanna, Alexis and David Arquette.

[@accomplice55]

And Richmond.

[@TyrSkyFatherOfTheGods]

A LITTLE corny?! John - the man's a walking bottle of Mazola.

[@dancebandleader]

But funny all the same.

[@randylovering24]

They used pre recorded for the first time

[@leannsherman6723]

The Y is certainly a charitable organization

[@kingalexander2704]

Weaver would've stumped the panel had he not given it away. He just wanted more time for the interview I think.

[@SuperWinterborn]

Is pronouncing "Pearls" as "Poils" a N.Y.-phenomena/or joke, or has it another origin? (English is not my first language)

[@savethetpc6406]

SuperWinterborn I think that pronunciation is supposed to sound like an exaggerated New York/Brooklyn accent.

[@SuperWinterborn]

SaveThe TPC Thanks! By the way, what does "TPC" in your username stand for? :)

[@surferpam1]

It's actually more Bronx.

[@steveburrus9347]

We are still waitig for your answer to that question "What does the TPC stand for?"

[@loissimmons6558]

There was at least one episode of The Honeymooners where Norton suggests that some piece of machinery needs a "drop of earl". Jackie Gleason, a native of Brooklyn, had the show take place in the heart of Brooklyn. Or that great poem: Me and my goil Were sitting on the coib Watching the boids choip. And another great poem: Spring has sprung. the grass is riz I wonder where the boidie is? They say the boidie's on the wing. But that's absoid. The wing is on the boid.

[@andrewmorrice9139]

Every time an attractive female guest is on this show the panelists always go on about it and how she should be using her looks in some way as part of her job.

[@neilmidkiff]

Just in case the younger readers here don't know why the studio audience reacted with laughter to Mrs. Rose's job as YMCA lifeguard, it should be mentioned that most YMCA swimming pools were NOT coed at the time, and that during all-male swimming sessions men and boys generally swam without swimming suits.

[@toinimoore3463]

Well at the Y they had rules even old Oregon that guys wore bathing suits !

[@shirleyrombough8173]

I thought I read somewhere that men and boys did not wear bathing suits at the Y. I hope that wasn't the case when Ms. Rose worked there.

[@sanseifromkofu728]

@@shirleyrombough8173 Whenever it was co-ed, men and boys had to wear suits. The only time a woman would be present during males-only swim times would be incidentally passing through, or when little boys (12 and under, usually) would learn to swim and their mothers and sisters might be present.

[@butziporsche8646]

More brains in one room that all of the current networks put together. I loved this show when I was a kid (60s/70s).

[@ronflatter1235]

Two days before the air date, John Daly covered the Nixon-Khrushchev kitchen debate in Moscow.

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

*_Lifeguard at Y.M.C.A._* *_Operates Lie Detector_*

[@tullochgorum6323]

The YMCA is the largest youth charity in the US - not sure why they would have thought otherwise...

[@frankj.artino2203]

Charley Weavers Museum, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania was the GREATEST!

[@carollee444]

Dorothy never looked beautiful!

[@accomplice55]

Huh?

[@peternagy-im4be]

@@accomplice55 Huh?

[@accomplice55]

@@peternagy-im4be: I was replying to Carol Lee's comment of "Dorothy never looked beautiful." I thought it was inexplicable. YMMV.

[@mikejschin]

One of Bennett's greatest lines at 17:19, speaking to the lie detector lady: If you ever put that on Daly, the machine would break.

[@kali3665]

And the look on John's face when Bennett said THAT! Classic!

[@alexhu7939]

Bennett was rude, not funny at all!

[@lisahinton9682]

@@alexhu7939 Bennett and John ribbed each other all the time. It was all in fun. Relax.

[@peternagy-im4be]

@@alexhu7939 he could be rude to some on the panel but he and Daly had a special rapport.

[@kentetalman9008]

@@alexhu7939 Oh, please! Get a life.

[@carolv8450]

For some reason, Bennett Cerf is not funny when trying to make a joke about John Daly...

[@alexhu7939]

Carol V I agree. He was rude. I believe Bennett was jealous of John’s command of English and wit because he lacks both!

[@dougearnest7590]

Bennett gets to be really annoying after a while. It might not have been so bad just seeing him once a week, but it becomes quite obvious when binge watching.

[@poolside123canadian7]

12:18 one of the rare “qualified no’s” I think.

[@soulierinvestments]

Arquette was such a tease. LOLOF.

[@SuperWinterborn]

soulierinvestments And seemed to be a warm, large and nice person too! :)

[@keithhyttinen8275]

Imagine the roar if Elvis or Marilyn had come out as the mystery guest. Alas, not to be.

[@aspenrebel]

What does being a lifeguard at a YMCA pool have to do with the health industry?

[@drumbum3.142]

"Cahh mon. Schweetee !" 🤣😂😂😂😂🤣😂😂😂😂

[@Fush1234]

Arlene Francois must have met a hairdresser a short time after this episode

[@josephlacerra8433]

Never really 'got' Cliff Arquette, aka Charlie Weaver. When I was a kid I thought him a boring old fart. But now that I am an adult I think of him as a boring old fart.

[@neilmidkiff]

And now that I'm on the verge of being old I'm surprised at how young he looks here, despite the character mannerisms. In fact he was then 53. During most of the 1960s when I first saw him on TV, he would have been younger than I am now. Scary thought.

[@dancelli714]

Hahahahaha !!!

[@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116]

@@neilmidkiff Bucolic humor is an acquired taste for big city folks and Cliff was a master at it.

[@neilmidkiff]

@@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116 Though I lived in Kansas City as a boy, my grandparents lived on farms in the region, so we had no trouble relating to bucolic humor. The roots of that adjective mean "about cows and those who raise them" and that was all in the family for me.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

For the beautiful first contestant... kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6Kzdnd-ptunfJI

[@keithhyttinen8275]

Charley is in his 40's here.

[@jeffreycrippen]

Were all the shows recorded earlier after this? No longer live shows? Thanks for posting the episodes!

[@romeman01]

Apparently from this date, inclusive, 77 episodes were pre-recorded during John Daly's tenure as host. Most of them were episodes that aired in July, August, and December. www.tv.com/shows/whats-my-line/episode-474-96852/

[@WhatsMyLine]

romeman01 Well, if they were going to resort to pre-taping, this is the best reason I can think of to do so. It's interesting that Fates mentions none of this in his book (that I can recall). He goes into excruciating detail on other technical aspects of the program that are far less interesting than this (e.g., how they went about circulating the videotapes around the country for the syndicated version). I wonder if it was an intentional omission.

[@romeman01]

What's My Line? John Daly confirms, "... I'm particularly grateful to that miracle called video tape which, for the first time in nine and a half years, allowed me to be absent and still be here for the last two weeks' programs ..." (02 min 26 sec of the Aug. 9, 1959, program that you uploaded today). I should probably get this Fates book one of these days....

[@soulierinvestments]

Only 77 episodes of the 876 WML Sunday episodes were videotaped in advance. Every so often, the company did two shows on an evening. Typically the company videotaped the show during the 8 o'clock hour, followed by the live broadcast at 10:30 pm. This way the company got to take breaks, particularly in July and August. This scheduling technique allowed WML never to broadcast a rerun -- ever.

[@WhatsMyLine]

romeman01 To be clear, I wasn't intending to sound like I doubted that some of the shows were taped, just noting surprise that Gil Fates doesn't even mention it in his book.

[@keithhyttinen8275]

I can remember this time -- (July 1959). I was three and a half years old. The cars with the huge taillight fins were shiny and new. LOL

[@garyfrancis6193]

I don’t understand why they automatically accepted Are these your people.” as guessing Cliff Arquette unless that was a popular catch phrase he used at that time.

[@smilingkevin]

lol “special training” for a polygraph. Might as well need training for a Ouija board or love tester.

[@contrarian8870]

I feel like WML should've had a category "an associated object" (in addition to "product" or "service"). Often there's an object connected to the work (like a lie detector) that isn't a product. It would be faster to just tick the category "an associated object", instead of explaining it every time.

[@inkyguy]

The product would be the report.

[@ivormctin6367]

John was a bit misleading with his answers with Mrs Rose

[@juliansinger]

Mrs. Rose was, in addition to her YMCA activities, also a local tennis champion for a few years. And now, a publicity picture: Mrs. Rose and a welding machine -- www.terapeak.com/worth/1966-press-photo-ywca-mirja-rose-ambrose-brownell-orb70540/391285266592/

[@loissimmons6558]

Alas, another link that's broken. +juliansinger I enjoy the background work you do on the non-celebrity challengers, even if it does take away some of the fun I would have in doing the same thing. :-)

[@josephlacerra8433]

When growing up I remember thinking the then popular Charlie Weaver about as funny as a dead nun.

[@dizzyology7514]

You have to be fond of Kansas in August to fully appreciate his style.

[@paultheaudaciousbradford6772]

Which dead nun?

[@washoe4827]

what if nun are dead ?

[@keithhyttinen8275]

He was all hat and no cattle.

[@jerrysky4598]

Too bad the song YMCA was came after this show's heydays. It would've been fun to see the panel dance it.

[@poetcomic1]

Never cared for Charley Weaver or Red Skelton when I was young. I hate all that mugging. Weaver was like Jonathan Winters without the genius.

[@peternagy-im4be]

Another gormless and utterly clueless contestant. The lie detector lady is yet another in the long list of idiots who apparently didn't even know their own occupation. Kept looking at Daly when even the easiest question to answer was posed. You have to wonder about some people.

[@sanseifromkofu728]

Give her a break, some people get nervous on TV! Daly even talked about how a lot of celebrities would hold his hand behind the desk because they'd be shaking so hard, even though they'd been on TV plenty of times.

[@galileocan]

Did the first contestant undergo a lobotomy shortly before the opening of the show? WTH....

[@RikardPeterson]

I'd say it's mostly nervousness, probably coupled with not being used to appearing before a big crowd. And she wasn't that awkward anyway - I've seen worse.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Gee, the first contestant was a dame and a half. I love that dimple! I can hear what Bennett is thinking! She's a real dish!