What's My Line? - Hermione Gingold; Van Cliburn [panel] (Apr 19, 1959)

MYSTERY GUEST: Hermione Gingold
PANEL: Arlene Francis, Van Cliburn, Dorothy Kilgallen, Bennett Cerf

[@gbrumburgh]

10-year-old Tito Gaona was 8 when he joined the brother-sister trapeze act (two brothers, one sister) known as "The Flying Gaonas." The act was originated by Tito's grandfather, and Tito would become the first to perfect the double somersault with two full twists! The siblings were all coached by their father and would travel to the States from Mexico to perform here during the summer. Many years later, he consulted for the Ringling Bros. Tito has an academy in Venice, CA. and his daughter, Victoria is a trapeze artist.

[@Kenngo1969]

Please picture me as Mr. Spock, with raised eyebrow: "Fascinating." ;-D Thank you for that interesting background. Warm Regards and Best Wishes, -Ken

[@Anaxiphile]

Apropos of what?

[@Ceelle2]

Tito Gaona was considered one of the finest trapeze artist ever!

[@gregmoorhead7203]

I appreciate the respect shown to 10 year old Tito Gaona. John was especially complimentary and I believe his kind words were spot on.

[@Noone58319]

John is always so thoroughly gracious to the contestants.

[@simonatheod6867]

I love how kind he was and I love how he flipped all the cards at the end so tito could take the full prize home. You could tell he really liked a contestant when he did this.

[@malcolmmarshall5946]

Little Tito was a very charming young lad, obviously raised by good parents

[@enriquesanchez2001]

TITO GAONA - is a living legend who now runs a trapeze school! ♥♥♥♥ What an exemplary young man, so poised with a gentle confidence! So admirable ♥

[@thebeatnumber]

Harvey Lavan "Van" Cliburn Jr. was an American pianist who, at the age of 23, achieved worldwide recognition when he won the inaugural International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958.

[@mikejschin]

Van Cliburn's performance at that competition (available on KZbin) was thoroughly captivating. The Moscow audience gave him an eight minute standing ovation when it was finished. This occurred at the height of the Cold War, and the judges weren't sure if they would be allowed to declare an American as the winner. They called Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev for guidance, and to his credit he told them that if Cliburn was the best, they should give him the prize. Cliburn returned home to a ticker tape parade in New York, the only time a classical musician has ever been so honored.

[@kulturekritik9665]

Tito was flat out adorable.

[@deboraholsen2504]

I loved Arlene’s hair and makeup at this stage in her life! Her overall look was beautiful and engaging, just like her personality. :)

[@erichanson426]

That was a terrific voice Ginagold pulled on the panelists, it had me laughing 😆 in stitches.

[@kjellhl1975]

Van Cliburn was a tremendous and very skilled pianist. Watching him in this show was a great thrill.

[@photo161]

The days when we had such fabulous character actors such as the inimitable and beloved Hermione Gingold are sadly lost way back in the day.

[@lauraminer9542]

eoselan7 I thought the British still have them.

[@michaeldanello3966]

10 year old Tito Goana was very respectful and showed a lot of class, especially for one who had been "raised" in a carnival environment. To me it shows that he had great parents. It was a delight to watch him. I only wish that Dorothy, who always dragged her questioning out as long as she was able, couldn't have delayed her discovery and let the boy stay on longer. I've seen every show posted since the first one and this is the first time I remember seeing a young person. Maybe my memory is faulty.

[@mistergrandpasbakery9941]

It is certainly good to hear Van Cliburn's voice again. He did the top-of-the-hour station identification for WRR-FM Classical 101.1 in Dallas until he died. I miss hearing his voice on a daily basis! 😢

[@shirleyrombough8173]

Mister Grandpa's Bakery - Me too! I live in the Dallas area and always enjoyed hearing and hearing of him.

[@PersnicketyRed]

Oh my goodness! I would love to have heard him do that! I will have to research and see if there is a recording floating around somewhere! ❤️

[@PersnicketyRed]

Thank you so much for sharing this fact! I have loved Van Cliburn for more than half of my life! I treasure anything to do with him! ❤️

[@ItsMeWendyvee]

Wow. There is a Tito Gaona Trapeze Academy :)

[@MrUhwoody]

Hermione Gingold was superb in "The Music Man."

[@FrothingFanboy]

+MrUhwoody Balzac!

[@jenniferyorgan4215]

@MrUhwoody She was also very good in Gigi.

[@lethaluks2942]

I haven’t seen that movie a lot so don’t remember her in it but I thought she was wonderful in Gigi!

[@Marcel_Audubon]

yes! she was glorious as Eulalie Mackechnie Shinn, wasn't she? "I think he means peep!"

[@americandreamer6092]

Hermione Gingold was great in 'Gigi'.

[@randysills4418]

And also great in "The Music Man"...

[@rogerlephoque3704]

@@randysills4418 In Gigi, she stole scenes aplenty from Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jordan & Leslie Caron...

[@waitwhat6882]

@@rogerlephoque3704 your opinion only

[@loissimmons6558]

Van Cliburn was something of a dud as a panelist, but at least he had the decency to pass, and rather quickly, when he didn't know what to ask.

[@tracy2648]

You should see his appearances as the Mystery Guest - 2 or 3 times - he was hilarious and very entertaining.

[@Caocao8888]

Van Cliburn seems pretty dense.

[@loissimmons6558]

Bennett's suspicions were spot on that the WML staff would arrange it with Van Cliburn on the panel that one of the challengers would have something to do with music. With Cliburn being a prodigy, Bennett and Dorothy suspect that the first guest, 10 years old, would be a music prodigy too. Then he figures it must be the MG. He was outfoxed as they saved the connection to Cliburn for last.

[@ginnylorenz5265]

I am often amazed to see how much time the panelists spend readjusting their hair and faces (especially the ladies), and talking amongst themselves when they have just guessed the mystery guest, instead of looking right over at the guest. It has always seemed rather rude to me. And by the way, THANK YOU for posting all of these wonderfully entertaining shows. I watched them as a child, and now enjoy them even more in my 70s. You've done us all a great kindness!!!

[@orgonkothewildlyuntamed6301]

maybe because many(not all) of the mystery guests once they have been guessed couldn't leave soon enough

[@bethearly4593]

The women usually wore masks that were tied and smashed the hair, which they probably spent a lot of time in a chair to get that way. Then: fake eyelashes and make -up (Arlene is pulling them out of her eyes at one point), television cameras, audience and there are some very good reasons why they had their hands up by their faces after removal.

[@randylovering24]

Thank God Bennett is not running this show

[@poolside123canadian7]

You can still book flying trapeze classes w/ Tito. He lives in Florida now. That would be cool if I lived there, or had athletic talent of any kind. lol

[@joycejean-baptiste4355]

Mr. Van Cliburn has large hands. He's a tall guy but still huge hands. I guess that's why he played piano so well.

[@golden-63]

"If it goes in your mouth, you have to say yes!"

[@sweiland75]

That's got to be the funniest thing I have ever heard Bennett say LOL

[@preppysocks209]

@@sweiland75 he forced a yes, and that completely threw him off. Served him right.

[@MrYfrank14]

mice can be eaten. if you put them in a blender, you can drink them. the correct answer would be, it is possible to eat them but very few do and I don't think anyone eats them in this country. or, when she deals with them they are not intended to be eaten.

[@mehboobkm3728]

I can't believe we have to wait 2 weeks before we see next episode of WML!

[@taraxacum]

I didn't quite decipher all of Mr. Daly's convolutions in his answer to Mr. Cerf's question, but I think he did mean that the product could be edible or drinkable. He just left out that it was not so by humans. Did anyone else catch Bennett's comment after the contestant's line was revealed "Oh, you mean by cats!"

[@shirleyrombough8173]

Little Blue - Yes, having a cat myself!

[@tomitstube]

11:20 holy moly, look at the size of van cliburn's right hand. prior arlene does a great job getting the occupation the lab technician, but they obviously hit a brick wall after that.

[@poetcomic1]

Van Cliburn was INCOHERENT - I think he was just nervous and WAY too young.

[@orgonkothewildlyuntamed6301]

not good yes but incoherent? i understood everything he said even if he didnt say much or passed; probably 1 of the reasons i dont believe he was ever a panelist but he was a good mystery guest the 2-3x he appeared

[@TheNomadicview]

His questions to the piano tuner were indecipherable. .

[@MrYfrank14]

it appears that many panelists didn't do any research. maybe they thought it would be easy. I would have watched the show or talked to the regular panelists first for tips on what to say so I don't look stupid. I assume I would have made up made a list, or the panelists would have given me a list, of the standard, general, fishing questions to ask if I got stuck. do you work for a profit making company? do you work for a government? do you provde a servce? is there a product involved? etc. if you get a no you don't look stupid and if you get a yes it might help you think of a second, related question.

[@neilmidkiff]

@@MrYfrank14 Producer Gil Fates wrote a book about What's My Line -- you can read it online at the Internet Archive -- and indeed he includes the list of suggested lines of questioning for new guest panel members, very much like the ones you inferred. So only a guest panelist in a hurry, or one who thought too highly of his abilities as a panel member, would be unprepared. I'll be charitable and assume that Cliburn was too busy practicing the piano to read the list.

[@stevekru6518]

@@orgonkothewildlyuntamed6301 I also understood everything Cliburn said, but it wasn’t easy, and it’s possible your understanding and my understanding were not the same. Therefore, incoherent.

[@TheWriterWalker]

Trapeze artists ARE acrobats!

[@tomitstube]

ikr?!

[@MrYfrank14]

the show has to use definitions that are commonly used. I think the majority of people do not consider trapeze artists acrobats. the only difference is trapeze artists are in swings and walking on wires and acrobats are on the ground. they have two different names because they are two different things.

[@jennhoff03]

Right??! I kept going, "But... but... he's an acrobat!"

[@jennhoff03]

@@MrYfrank14 I would say that, much like every square is a rectangle but not every rectangle is a square.... trapeze artists are acrobats but not every acrobat is a trapeze artist. :)

[@randyhutton9371]

​@@jennhoff03 John Daly was a verbal acrobat.

[@BillyAlabama]

Tito was amazingly adroit for a ten year old!

[@loissimmons6558]

For the third time in 6 months (the others being Nov. & Dec. 1958), WML is pre-empted on the last Sunday of the month. There was no WML on 4/26/59.

[@mikejschin]

@Mary C John Daly mentioned a couple of weeks before this that the show would be pre-empted for a special on 4/26.

[@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath]

The thought of somebody paying Bennett Cerf to lecture is quite amusing

[@thezmanchar]

She was fantastic on Maude.... and Mary Poppins.

[@spongevee1]

That was Hermione Baddeley

[@tisha812]

I'm very interested to know to WHY John Daly didn't classify Tito as being a trapeze artist. He was starting to give an explanation, but Arlene cut him off. I think at times the panel (especially Arlene) was "over" Mr. Daly's long and and at times painfully thorough explanations. I personally find his short speeches fascinating. : )

[@neilmidkiff]

Listen again -- I think he "didn't classify Tito as being an acrobat" instead.

[@davidrbecken]

Van Cliburn...WTH?

[@hopicard]

I always understand "a word from our ultimate sponsor" :))

[@bigwilson8794]

+hopicard alternate

[@lllowkee6533]

HOW could anyone be proud of raising any kind of animal to be tortured ???

[@SP123311]

Wow Van Cliburn's hands were huge!

[@sleb99]

I quickly noticed how unusually long VC’s fingers are. His thumb was longer than most people’s finger! Great asset for a pianist.

[@inkyguy]

You may notice that he was a rather tall man too.

[@erichanson426]

Let's just say I have a little fear 😨 of those white creatures the 2nd contestant did research on, and when Cerf asked if it could go in your month, I almost gaged, for time ever while watching this series, which is mostly non-gross.

[@mercedeslatapie9772]

Dorothy and Aileen have such beautiful dresses, I wonder if they are given to them from the show or they own them. If they own these beautiful clothes they must have tremendous closets ! Just wondering.

[@savethetpc6406]

At 14:16, Mr. Daly says, "Bennett, I think we would do you a disservice if we were to deny that this product was not edible or drinkable." That sentence was so convoluted that neither Daly, the panel, nor the contestant even noticed that what he said was actually the opposite of his intended meaning! The triple negative combination ("disservice," "deny" and "not") of this sentence actually conveys the meaning that this product is NOT edible or drinkable. (But, again, apparently nobody on the show noticed, so his intended meaning carried for the duration of the game anyway. ;) )

[@ginnylorenz5265]

+SaveThe TPC Wow. Well spotted!

[@savethetpc6406]

Ginny Lorenz Thanks! :)

[@tomitstube]

+SaveThe TPC - is "disservice" really in context with the other two negatives? "deny" and "not" definitely refer to edible or drinkable, but i don't see "disservice" applicable in that context.

[@savethetpc6406]

***** The quote: "...we would do you a disservice if we were to deny that this product was not edible or drinkable." What I think he meant to say: "...we would do you a disservice if we were to deny that this product *was* edible or drinkable." Or: "we would do you a disservice if we *said* that the product was *not* edible or drinkable." Or: "We will _not deny_ that the product is edible or drinkable." The word "disservice" is used as a negative way of presenting the proper answer, but JCD got a bit tangled up. That's what I meant by "triple negative," though I see your point, too.

[@tomitstube]

SaveThe TPC isee your point as well, "dis" is definitely a negative, i was splitting hairs perhaps.

[@preppysocks209]

Does anyone know what Bennett's lectures were like? Did he lecture on topics of the day? Lecture on authors he knew or the publishing business? Lecture about appearing on WML? Something else? Did he give the same lecture over and over?

[@slaytonp]

@Mark Richardson Are you just guessing? I would have guessed that too, but don't have any documentation of his lectures.

[@waitwhat6882]

Who cares

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

*_Flying Trapeze Artist_* *_Raises Mice For Research_* *_Piano Tuner_*

[@peternagy-im4be]

Please remove this complete and utter troll from the comments section. Unfortunately today's awful society is full of pathetic losers intent on ruining other people's enjoyment of social media.

[@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116]

Kilgallen enjoyed breaking down preteen challengers.

[@TheNomadicview]

Here's a nice surprise. "World-renowned aerialist Tito Gaona is the owner of the Trapeze Academy, which offers flying trapeze instruction in a safe, nurturing environment." titogaona.com/

[@weldonstevens1165]

I’m in 2018. All these people from the 1950s are now 90 or 100 plus years old or have died. Very interesting!!???

[@sleb99]

Mary C hay kid! I watched the original shows too, one of my favorites. I was born in ‘45. We had the only TV in the neighborhood and kids would come watch with me. We had one station in 1952, another later, and 3 in 1957. We were ecstatic. The big question: how will we ever decide what to watch?

[@robbob1234]

Tito Gaona is still around!

[@slaytonp]

@@robbob1234 So am I, and I'm 17 years older than he is. When you think about it from this perspective, it really wasn't all that long ago--

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

All of us commenting here will be dead in another 60+ years. Not so incredible.

[@RichardHannay]

Man, Van Cliburn was useless in this episode lol.

[@pp312]

Well, if they'd asked him to tap out the questions on the piano I'm sure he'd have been much better.

[@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath]

Cerf was tipped off again

[@cellom.9227]

It amazes me how John Daly could first of all decipher some of the signatures of the guests but also how to pronounce them. I wonder if he was prepped beforehand ?

[@WhatsMyLine]

I think he must have been, yes. There are shows where guests from foreign countries signed in, e.g., in Japanese, and he still pronounced their names flawlessly! I seriously doubt John knew how to read Japanese. :)

[@taboracho621]

He most likely knows who's going to appear in the show. In the case of the first guest, the boy had only written "Lilo" and John was already pronouncing "Tito". The name Lilo does exist and it's the masculine of Lila.

[@kenlieberman4215]

@@WhatsMyLine Of course, and it was frequently mentioned that they had gone over things before hand. For example; is a trapeze artist an acrobat? JCD makes it clear that was discussed before hand. The producers always prep you before hand. I've only been on TV twice and in a studio maybe half a dozen times, but they try not to leave anything to chance. They also tested out the MG voices. If they were real bad JCD would try and answer for them to provide more cover.

[@pp312]

@@WhatsMyLine And yet, when a Japanese guest signed in in both Japanese and English, Mr. Daly said, "I'm glad you wrote it in Japanese as I wasn't quite able to make out the English." He also once mentioned spending some time in Japan.

[@JJJBRICE]

Ms. Gingold sips from a water glass . I hope they change glasses after each contestant . The outstanding about WML was the fact that the moderator and panelists were known for another line or job . They were not known as only WML panelists. This was a side job to their main gig .

[@waitwhat6882]

Seriously? You think that’s news?? Of course this was a side job!!!

[@enriquesanchez2001]

Did anyone notice HOW LARGE Cliburn's HANDS were? No wonder he could play the piano well! ♥♥♥♥♥♥

[@feraudyh]

I was thinking the same thing. Rachmaninoff also had huge hands.

[@enriquesanchez2001]

@@feraudyh Indeed, probably most famously for that.

[@taboracho621]

What the hell, does Dorothy have a flowchart to follow and an encyclopedia or what,. All the trouble the guests go thru to be in the show just to be discovered by her in a few questions. She takes all the fun from the show.

[@gilliankew]

I love to watch her run with the ball after the others have dropped it!

[@inkyguy]

@Tabo Rancho, I find her questions brilliant and stimulating.

[@kulturekritik9665]

What the hell is with Van Cliburn's hair?

[@inkyguy]

It’s his natural curly/wavy hair. There’s nothing remarkable about it.

[@accomplice55]

@@inkyguy: He does have a very low forehead.

[@lllowkee6533]

A head full of curly red hair is hard to manage. He couldn’t help what kind of hair he was born with.

[@Cruz0e]

you need degree to raise mice? lol ?

[@RobertLofrano]

I didn't know that she was a real person. Hamyina Gingo

[@inkyguy]

Hamyina Gino wasn’t. Hermione Gingold was. (The spelling is in the video’s title.)

[@kentetalman9008]

You seriously never heard of Hermione Gingold?

[@arttrombley7385]

Did anyone else notice that the Super Rich Arlene Dahl was wearing a 10 dollar pooka shell necklace and the mouse lady was wearing 4 strands of beautiful pearls ?. Kind of ironic don't you think ?.

[@lauraminer9542]

Art Trombley . Those are most likely not real pearls. Even Jackie Kennedy's were not real. Arlene tended to wear costume jewelry by stylish designers of the day.

[@loissimmons6558]

+Art Trombley Very ironic because while Arlene is a doll, the Arlene of the panel since the very beginning of WML is Arlene Francis, not Arlene Dahl. And no doubt her necklace was meant to compliment her animal print.

[@inkyguy]

Arlene Dahl??

[@lllowkee6533]

Arlene Francis

[@michaelnak2681]

This show would not be allowed in this politically correct world because of child endangerment and animal abuse.

[@salvatorepedi9027]

Years ago, I was walking on 42nd street and saw Hermione Gingold walking towards me. She immediately shifted her eyes away from me as if she couldn't be bothered by this strange human looking at her!..she then showed her true colors towards one who paid for a ticket to see her movies!, the admiration I once had for her quikley turned into "disdain!"...her loss!.. "stupid woman!"..

[@YOGI-yl4ff]

How quickly they forget who helped them get to where they are. I too have been lucky to meet a few Celebrities. Some are a big disappointment because of the way they treat you. Eddie Albert was a pleasure to meet as well as a few others.

[@bobtaylor170]

I wish people would consider how assaultive it must be for any real celebrity to be constantly assailed by strangers? An actor or singer has a gift. If you've enjoyed it, appreciated it, been entertained by it, why would you think you have any claim on a moment of that person's life? It's not too many steps from that to one's becoming a Mark David Chapman.

[@marcuspd7502]

She avoided eye contact with you and everyone else that day on the street, because she didn’t want to have to stop every minute to talk with every fan who passed her by. The real “stupid woman” here is the one who thinks she is entitled to a meet and greet with someone they see on the street just because they’re famous.

[@tomitstube]

i obviously don't know hermione gingold but your critique of her seems rather impulsive based on the one moment.

[@RobertLofrano]

@@bobtaylor170 yeah ok