What's My Line? - Minnesota Fats; Ann Sothern; Alan King [panel] (Jan 17, 1965)

[@felixramirez2804]

Ann Sothern was always so beautiful and had a lot of class.

[@betty-jocarlo5980]

I've watched the hustler a couple of times. This is the first time I've seen the actual Minnesota Fats. That was surreal. Thank you. 😊

[@RonGerstein]

Jackie Gleason looks better as Minnesota Fats.

[@evalutzon1570]

Thank you very much for this show,,,,we came in the usa in year 1970,,the show was already on and i just find this super entertainment,,,then was seeing the others and now after years time goes,i am glad it is still ON,,,,in the year 2023,,,,,,and now,i am watching every day ,on,on,on and on again,,,most of the people are gone ,,but for myself, they are alive and i am enjoy ing every minute,,,,thank GOT,,,,,such pleasure,,,,,ALL OF THEM,,,

[@yobynop]

A very civilized show, replete with manners, poise, and style.

[@lisahinton9682]

And Oxford commas, which makes for a more clear communication! 😍

[@Mmdmade]

And vocabulary

[@martinleavitt6094]

👍

[@Deejaay83urj38]

@@lisahinton9682 unnecessarily so in that instance

[@MrMatteNWk]

@@lisahinton9682 Merle Haggard's two ex-wives, Kris Kristofferson and Robert Duvall all agree.

[@MrRJMGREEN]

My grandmother used to shop at Best and Co. One day she was looking through dresses on a dress rack. Ann Sothern was next to her. Ann was wearing a scarf and dark glasses. My grandmother knew who she was and let her be. A fan, from the front of the store, said, "THAT'S ANN SOTHERN!!!" Ann became annoyed and a little nervous. My grandmother stated it was during Ann's overweight years. Ann did not want to be recognized. My grandmother then stood in front of Ann, which blocked her view somewhat from the front of the store. Ann looked up at my grandmother and smiled warmly. The two women shopped together in peace. My grandmother said it was one of those little things you do in life for someone that they truly appreciate.

[@WhatsMyLine]

Very sweet story. Thanks for sharing it.

[@MrRJMGREEN]

What's My Line? You are very welcome. I get to share stories, but honor my grandmother as well. It was my pleasure. :)

[@ginnylorenz5265]

MrRJMGREEN What a dear story. Thank you for sharing it with us. I dearly love Ann Southern. And your grandmother sounds lovely.

[@MrRJMGREEN]

Ginny Lorenz Thank you very much. We lived in Los Angeles for decades. I have many celebrity stories. I am glad to share them with fellow nostalgia buffs, and I also get to honor my grandmother's memory as well. Thanks again. :)

[@ginnylorenz5265]

Ginny Lorenz I can't believe I spelled Ann Sothern's name wrong! Embarrassed!!!

[@OTseven]

Thank you so so much for posting these. They have given me hours and hours of complete joy.

[@PeBoVision]

Could not agree more.

[@rmelin13231]

Add my name to that list. Such an absolute joy to watch these well-assembled masterpieces. They have put many a smile on my face.

[@davidduxbury7530]

Same here...absolutely wonderful and so very entertaining!!

[@alansorensen5903]

I adored Ann Sothern in her TV series. I had no idea before I just now Googled her IMDb filmography that her active movie and TV career extended from her first film in 1927 to her last in 1987. 61 years on the silver screen. Sharp and witty and beautiful all the way.

[@gj4578]

She also played the voice in the TV show "My mother the car", with Jerry Van Dyke. She was the voice of the car. I think it was in 1966.

[@michalolson4014]

A tree grows in Brooklyn! She is so good !

[@Daisnap]

@@michalolson4014She wasn’t in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Maybe you’re thinking on Joan Blondell?

[@robinjuhl6808]

I loved that show, back when it was on! kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5CWm5Z6gLp1qrM

[@daler.steffy1047]

@@sandygort "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" might take that top spot!

[@lennypearl]

The second contestant who manufactured mannequins had such an Endora/Angnes Moorehead vibe to her!

[@VeryBeri1]

I don't think I've ever seen the panel so thoroughly stumped before!

[@jodie4609]

Thats becsuse Dorothy isnt there

[@brianjones8899]

@@jodie4609 She’s on the panel

[@mikebottiaux5850]

I’ve had the chance of meeting with Minnesota Fats in many occasions. He was a nice man.

[@lisahinton9682]

"Nice"? He was hustling - pretending to be clueless about the game, and inept, in order to trick people into making bets against him, and then pocketing huge winnings - starting in his teens! He moved from Chicago to Virginia during WWII to do the same to US servicemen on leave! Imagine, did THEY find him "nice"? The man was not nice. Personable, yes. Funny, yes. Nice, no.

[@kurtkensson2059]

@@lisahinton9682 There's a sucker born every minute. Some of them lost money to Mr. Wanderone. I imagine that some of them even thought he was "nice" and were honored to have had the chance to play against him.

[@petersanders5321]

@@lisahinton9682 Alright, you've made your point. Do you go around trying your best to tear people down? Jeez, lighten up.

[@TRIChuckles]

@@lisahinton9682 well... he was earning a living. I believe he was well thought of and he became to well known to do that as much

[@erichanson426]

​@@lisahinton9682I say betting money against a stranger at pool is like buying an old car without testing it.

[@richardwilliams473]

John Charles Daly was such a gentleman!

[@donhailer4994]

I love the new camera position as Ann bids farewell to the panel. A very intimate/candid feel.

[@rmelin13231]

Yes !! I was caught unawares by that one. I'm glad someone else noticed.

[@lauracollins4195]

I like the kiss Ann Sothern gives John Daly at 24:05, and the way she waves at the audience as she leaves. She seems like a lot of fun...someone who would be fun to know. :)

[@gnirolnamlerf593]

They all seem genuinely to like Ann Sothern. I loved her two shows with Don Porter and Ann Tyrell, though by the time I was watching TV, they were only in reruns. However, now we can see them on DVD. Sothern played a woman who was smarter than any other character on the show, the secretary who made sure her boss did the right thing. She was great in Whales of August too, as the youngest member of the leading quartet of characters. BUT, she and Lucy (with Rudy Vallee and Cesar Romero, no less) were great in the first season of the Lucy/Desi Comedy Hours that replaced I Love Lucy. It was very well written, and told the story of how Lucy met Ricky in Cuba. Every subplot was hilarious. It features the amazing conga contest between Lucy and Desi/Ricky. You could tell from their interaction that Sothern and Ball knew how to work together and had done so for decades. Miss them all.

[@oneafter9095]

Laura Collins Me too..I often wonder what others think of Ann Sothern... because I’ve only just discovered her recently and she took me be surprise...I just think she is one of the most wonderful actress and tv personally I’ve ever come across...she’s before my time but I just absolutely adore her❤️

[@Jasper7182009]

Ann Sothern is an actress whom I have grown to admire the older I get. Of all the actresses that I have watched through the years, Ann Sothern is the one whom I would want to have as my best friend. There’s something about her that is warm and friendly and wise. Notwithstanding her movie Lady in a Cage.

[@LANCSKID]

Leave the ‘fun’ to children in playgrounds.

[@adamodeo9320]

Ann Sothern great actress great singer - in her youth she was one of the most beautiful women "last time I saw Paris"

[@eddiepower3876]

Well done Arlene on "Whats my Nein" she was so quick

[@bravehome4276]

I've watched many of these, and this is the first where the panel was stumped on all guests! They are usually so quick to guess!

[@preppysocks209]

rare but not unprecedented

[@_Peremalfait]

They always treated their guests, even the unfamous ones, with such courtesy. We need this back in our society. Cool to see Minnesota Fats. He's so quiet here, but I remember him as a flamboyant larger than life character.

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

The patter was part of the hustle. I've read his auto bio, The Bank Shot. And grew up in the Golden Age of the carnival business. The patter is part of the hustle. Or not. Really, load your mark, and let them talk themselves out of their $$$$$$$😂

[@LANCSKID]

He looks much like my dentist. He, however, went on a drastic diet and hated billiards, pocket or otherwise.

[@patrickryan1515]

Ann Sothern - a most delightful personality. 11/2019

[@richardpoplis6777]

Awesome show... wish this was on now... great panelist...

[@neilphelan145]

Simply put, John Daly was the best of the best!! The yard stick by which all other moderators are measured.

[@Deejaay83urj38]

He was

[@DexterHaven]

No, he was too pompous and needlessly wordy, silly. Be honest. Exhibit A: 8:06 on. Far too self-indulgent and prolix.

[@patricia7823]

Indeed! They don't make them like that anymore!

[@yankee2666]

@@DexterHaven When the rest of the world doesn't think the way you think or feel the way you feel about something - you might want to give that something, as well as yourself, a second look.

[@DexterHaven]

@@yankee2666 You say, "When the rest of the world doesn't think the way" like a dummy who commits crass fallacies of 'hasty generalization' and 'ad populum'. How do you know 'the rest of the world" disagrees with what I said, jerky, especially given the plain evidence I cited in support of it? Evidence you ignored and could not refute, I might add. Lame.

[@bme7491]

Ann Sothern looked darn good at 56 years old.

[@kenyongray2615]

It was surprising to me that no one recognized Minnesota Fats. I believe he did some television matches against the great Will Mosconi. Both were two of the best players of all time.

[@jazzmanchgo]

Was he doing those matches against Mosconi yet at this time? I think he had recently adapted the "Minnesota Fats" name when this was taped; he took it on after "The Hustler" was released in 1961.

[@rickrick5041]

Maybe too soon

[@PeBoVision]

Jackie Geason really seared himself on audience consciousness with his Oscar winning performance 3 years earlier. Also, broadcast signals and the televisions that displayed them did not have the clarity of today. You'd be hard pressed to recognize in person, someone who you'd only ever seen playing billiards on television in the 60's (if you could pull in the broadcast at all through the rabbit ears). I would have killed to watch TV with the clarity of WML on KZbin in 2022.

[@rmelin13231]

Probably not the type of show the panel members would gravitate toward.

[@bbailey7818]

​@@PeBoVisionAnd cast onto a big home wall screen that we'd have thought was science fiction on 1965.

[@bostonblackie9503]

Love how everyone was so polite and civil!

[@TheBlackhawkbrat]

Do you listen to old time radio show Boston Blackie, voiced by Dorothy Kilgallen's husband, Dick Kollmar?

[@moonlightray8493]

Alan's question about whether or not you'd need someone to demonstrate the product before purchase was actually a rather unique and clever one!

[@morganfisherart]

11:07 "Oh, FATS!!!" - Arlene is delightfully spontaneous and uninhibited. She's really someone you want to meet at a party!

[@breckrichardson390]

She said "Oh yes!"

[@morganfisherart]

@@breckrichardson390 OK, let's agree to disagree 🙂

[@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath]

That’s probably how she ended up cheating on her first husband with Martin Gable

[@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath]

If Cerf took a trip to the grocery store, he’d have it announced on WML

[@warriormanmaxx8991]

@@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath - a) are you confusing Arlene with Dorothy K. ?!? b) Arlene and Martin had a solid marriage.

[@michaelgasiciel9317]

Loved Ann Sothern.

[@neilphelan145]

Ann Southern play the voice of a 1928 Porter automobile in My Mother the Car starring Jerry Van Dyke in the 60s. As a young man back then I loved the show. I even built the model that had come out at the time.

[@chrisn7259]

I guess because I grew up watching her TV series, Ann Sothern's voice was so instantly recognizable, I'm surprised the panel didn't catch it.

[@joanbrigid6987]

Love John Daly’s German: “Nine down und vun du go...” 😄

[@lauracollins4195]

Joan Brigid - Too funny! At 22:25. Followed quickly by Arlene’s What’s My Nein comment. :D

[@Eddie_Schantz]

I believe this is the first time I have seen this show where the panel did not guess the occupation of the first two contestans nor did they guess the mystery guest. They batted .ooo tonight.

[@leannsherman6723]

I love to see all the cursive signatures. I’d also love to see the schools bring cursive back.

[@margareteplaetzer3127]

Should never have stopped teaching it.

[@daler.steffy1047]

I retired from teaching high school English in 2007, but during my career, I talked extensively with my students about the value of writing, and, subsequently, I had them writing quite often during the year (=2 semesters). The first requirement was to write a rough draft in pen or pencil so it would "become" a very hands-on experience; and they had to show all of their own editing on this first (rough) draft, which is were I encouraged writing in cursive. ( Then they type the second draft so that I could more easily edit their work. ) (11/22/24)

[@nsnopper]

Johnny Olsen imploring us to buckle our seat belts. Instead of hitting the audience with another product to buy, the producers used the time to deliver an important Public Service Announcement. That’s class.

[@tnate6004]

It was probably the network - they inserted PSA's like the one Johnny did during or after the credits in order to keep in good graces with the FCC and also as a favor to their affiliate stations so they could log the PSA as part of their record that was reviewed at license renewal time. But I love announcements like this one - when networks and stations took their responsibility to the public seriously.

[@christinalw19]

Ann Sothern was married to Robert Sterling before he married Anne Jeffries. Topper. Their daughter is Trish Sterling, who is now a florist in Idaho!

[@johnfd0210]

Tisha Sterling had a brief career as an actress; I didn't know she was a florist. Thanks for the information.

[@kenbrown438]

Dorothy looks REALLY good in this episode !!!!

[@warriormanmaxx8991]

Dorothy ... Dorothy ... you left us all ... Too Soon !! If JFK was never murdered ... your life would have been longer.

[@sitarnut]

Gorgeous thrush Ann Sothern... been mad over her since 1959.....so natural acting without artifice. A fantastic singer who can phrase, articulate, swing and link words together with classical correctness...following clip is a favorite: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZmbThmmiabV4gNk

[@davidsanderson5918]

Wanderone's reply to Cerf's question about whether or not he is featured in The Cincinnati Kid speaks volumes. Just like in a game of pool, if he could find an angle, that guy, he was sure to exploit it.

[@Robbi496]

Both Arlene and Dorothy had something which is severly lacking today, POISE!

[@robertlongwill8856]

They also had class and dignity

[@eightinches6094]

Dorothy was very attractive.

[@davidsanderson5918]

Of course people still have 'poise', what do you mean? This is just a half hour programme where they are all dressed up for the occasion and elevating their communication skills. It's not real life!!! It's like me watching Miami Vice and saying wow everyone was so good looking and cool in those days. Nonsense.

[@stevekru6518]

@@eightinches6094 Don’t you mean Arlene was very attractive. Arlene is the woman who has a chin

[@eightinches6094]

@@stevekru6518 .....no, I meant Dorothy, chin or no chin.

[@brandonflorida1092]

Actually, Minnesota Fats was a character in a series of novels and Wanderone merely attached himself to it after the fact.

[@curiouscharacter1]

I thought Mr Daly pronounced the last name Wander-own correctly. But, all the panelists pronounced it Wander-row. Also, Fats is the first person I have seen in my almost 70 years on this earth who pronounces illinois as ill-uh-noise. I realize this is an alternate pronunciation but have never heard it outside of grammar school students who didn't know better.

[@WAL_DC-6B]

I lived in downstate Illinois while attending Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. I do recall hearing a few rural folks there pronouncing the "s" in Illinois.

[@christinalw19]

Regional pronunciations. My husband is from Washington State and puts a “t” at the end of “across.” DRIVES ME CRAZY. Then I met a school teacher from WA St and she did it, too. 🙄

[@curiouscharacter1]

Yes, that random added "t" is annoying. I have a lady friend in her 80's who adds a "t" to the word "twice." She pronounces It as a single syllable. Sounds to me like something the backwoods folk in the movie Deliverance would say.

[@pgronemeier]

He said he was born in IllinoiS here. But Wikipedia says NYC. Hmmmm.....?

[@ItsKrma00]

​@@pgronemeier I'd bet on him knowing.

[@LearnMusclescom]

I love Bennet Cerf! And Arlene Francis is soooooo sharp!

[@ddtalk]

Never new Fat's real name. Loved watching him play.

[@jazzmanchgo]

I still wish there was a way to see that final match he had with Mosconi when he finally beat Willie. It doesn't seem to be available anywhere.

[@jazzvampire]

Dorothy's ensembles have been spot-on lately. With the big sparkly jewelry and hair teased to the heavens, it's head-to-toe gorgeousness!

[@michaelgasiciel9317]

Watching these between 50 and into the 60’s love the different ‘dos and dresses.

[@shuroom57]

Wait until you see what she's wearing NEXT Sunday!

[@galileocan]

Another classic line from Arlene..."The name of this show is "What's my Nein"..... ROTFL!!

[@scotnick59]

she had lost a lot weight by this time

[@MrJoeybabe25]

From Wiki: "Wanderone adopted the nickname "Minnesota Fats" from a character in the 1961 film The Hustler, claiming that the character was based upon him. He parlayed the association with the film into his own book deals and television appearances, including a series of matches with rival Willie Mosconi".

[@kennethbutler1343]

A rare episode where the panel is swept!

[@waynej2608]

I believe it's the first time I've seen this happen.

[@lopa2828]

No it happened before in one episode where Van Jhonson came as mystery guest. They panel could not guess any guest's true line.

[@ludenasan1]

Arlene's dress is scrumptious! It fits the lady.

[@DA90027]

Ann was brilliant in Lady in a Cage...

[@davev5031]

Minnesota fats was known as New York fats before the movie came out. He took the name after that and made a lot of money with it. He was a good entertainer and a good player but not at the world championship level. Mosconi challenged him to a 100,000 straight pool match which is what brought about the TV match in the late 70s which Willie won easily.

[@soulierinvestments]

At least Arlene got Alan King's name right this time. Stayed tuned for what she did to him in February.

[@lauracollins4195]

soulierinvestments - I think I found the one you mean, on March 21, 1965, when Arlene introduces him as Alan Dale!?

[@ta2686]

It is hard to believe that just 8 months after this show aired Ann Sothern played a 1928 Porter (voice) in My Mother the Car.

[@soulierinvestments]

I hope you don't think less of me, but as a kid in 1965, I actually watched "My Mother the Car." I must have been the only one, because it disappeared after a season with few traces. Jerry Van Dyke, Avery Schriber, and Ann Sothern in a huge waste of talent.

[@jazzvampire]

Oh, man, I remember seeing reruns of that. It has to be up there in the Worst TV Shows list!

[@MrJoeybabe25]

soulierinvestments Today such a crime of a show would have lasted ONE EPISODE. In 1965-66 it lasted a whole season. Sheesh!

[@VahanNisanian]

Joe Postove Back then, you were given a minimum of 13 chances (13 episodes basically) to prove that your show was good enough for being renewed. Nowadays, if the show bombs even on the first episode, it is yanked without warning. For the record, MMTC filmed and aired 30 episodes.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

The 13 and out rule was not absolute (there had previously been shows cancelled after as little as 3 episodes. ABC's 1963 game show 100 Grand comes to mind) and would soon be gone altogether when ABC started it's "second season" campaign Tammy Grimes was notorious for being axed after only four episodes in 1966, and to be fair, that was a laugh riot compared to MMTC. Even into the 60's there were a few spots on the schedule that belonged to the sponsor and they did pretty much as they pleased. I don't know, but this sounds like that kind of case.

[@IPlayOneOnT.V.]

When the panel brought up Lucy, I was sure somebody would figure out that Ann Sothern was there.

[@hemming57]

Minnesota Fats was a character in the book, The Hustler. He wasn't Minnesota Fats, but he told everybody he was, and he made a career out of a lie.

[@jazzmanchgo]

He took that name after the film version of "The Hustler" was released in 1961.

[@hemming57]

@@jazzmanchgo Yeah, but a lot of people believed him

[@peternagy-im4be]

That's incorrect Peter old sport

[@soulierinvestments]

It must have been a big sacrifice for Arlene to take "Beakman Place" out of Paramus New Jersey in January and move it to Palm Beach. The show must go on.

[@gbrumburgh]

Ann Sothern did not disguise her voice all that much. I'm surprised the panel did not pick up on her.

[@johnfd0210]

When she started laughing (at Arlene's remark), I was sure they would get her

[@TRIChuckles]

I love it!!! Still

[@warriormanmaxx8991]

What exactly ... do you "still love it?"

[@TRIChuckles]

I apologize. I thought it was an obvious statement. I Still love the tv show. But thank you for your input

[@soulierinvestments]

In early 1965, in this time period, Vivian Vance decided to end her association with Lucille Ball / "The Lucy Show." Vance lived somewhere in Connecticut with her second husband and found the commuting to Los Angeles problematic. Lucy and her producers seriously considered replacing Vance with Ann Sothern, who in the spring of 1965 appeared a number of times on "The Lucy Show" as Lucy's old friend Rosie, who had managed to marry a French count. He died and left Rosie her debts. Eventually either Ball or Sothern decided not to go through with the idea. " Lucy Carmichael" left Danfield Westchester County and moved to Hollywood in September 1965. "Vivian Bagley" got remarried and stayed in New York.

[@dancelli714]

Ann Southern would have been a great TV pal for Lucy.

[@randysills4418]

He was Vivian Vance's third husband...

[@wardarcade7452]

23:27- While Miss Sothern (1909-2001) undoubtedly looked her usual glamorous self here, it was a bit surprising that she had been willing to depict a character who looked downright frowsy and derelict in 'Lady in a Cage' ( 1964) while playing a wino drifter's [former?] prostitute flame who helped him loot Olivia De Havilland's character's fancy home during a power outage before the two of them were overpowered by younger and stronger thugs. Surprisingly Mr. Daly said that this performance should have net her an Academy Award but the closest she'd get would be a nomination for 'Whales of August' (1989) in which Miss Sothern played the lifelong friend of the protagonist sisters (played by the legendary Lillian Gish and Bette Davis) which had Miss Sothern actually be shown as a redhead (which HAD been her natural hue before the studios convinced her to go blonde).

[@Soxruleyanksdrool]

They said that he didn't work with anything that used to be alive, but his wooden pool cue was once a real live tree.

[@stmilo]

It had been decided among the panel in previous episodes that “alive” means animal.

[@RalphWLundvall]

In that Era weren't some cue balls pure ivory which comes from elephant tusks. Animal. Fact check please.

[@warriormanmaxx8991]

Good Grief !! ... "once a real live tree" !!

[@mhk3360]

0 for 3 on that night. I'm surprise nobody recognized Minnesota Fats. I thought the panel would have been blindfolded for that one. But it didn't make any difference.

[@patriciamooney928]

I really like Dorothy's hairdo. That flip must have taken a LOT of hairspray.

[@Johnnycdrums]

I love it when the panelists lose. I especially like the episode with Salvador Dali, for he does everything.

[@VahanNisanian]

This is actually Ann Sothern's third Mystery Guest appearance. The second one from May 19, 1957 was lost due to the rushed assembling of "What's My Line at 25". It was also, apparently, the only lost episode with Martin Gabel on the panel.

[@WhatsMyLine]

Really bugs me they were so careless. All for a special that aired exactly once, and 11:30 at night no less.

[@VahanNisanian]

What's My Line? I read on Facebook about how people were disappointed in the special, in that it didn't truly represent what "What's My Line" is truly all about. Aside from the lost of some episodes/footage. Sure, the Mystery Guest is always the highlight of the show, but at best, that's just a Bonus Game. What the show is really about is identifying unusual occupations of everyday people. While I'll still look forward to seeing the special again (haven't seen it since 2008), I do see why some people were disappointed by it.

[@WhatsMyLine]

***** Yes, I'm one of the two people who complained about the over emphasis on mystery guests in the special. Also less than ideal is that they were so determined to cram in as many clips as possible, none of them last very long, most of them well under a minute. But it's still pretty good despite its faults, the real treat being the chance to see John Daly again in what was almost certainly his last appearance on television.

[@TVonthePorch]

What's My Line? It was not his last appearance. I very specifically recall a one-time program that appeared on PBS in 1982 that had something to do with the concerns of seniors. An ad for it appeared in TV Guide. I guess if I'd saved my TV Guides like I should have I'd be able to provide a little more detail.

[@WhatsMyLine]

***** Interesting. Not being familiar with that program, I'm only able to go by (1) imdb listings, which show nothing after the WML at 25 special, and (2) general internet searches on JCD, which also have turned up nothing. Thanks for putting this later show on my radar!

[@barrypatrickius]

Ann Southern Is so beautiful here as always, I was 7 years old when I fell in love with her in "Gold Rush Maisie"

[@gregoryadkins2213]

Alan King was pissed,that seemed to be right up his alley.

[@Rosey01222]

What lives these celebrity panelists led! Schedules that took them on travel countrywide as well as to international destinations of cultural and political significance. For them a customary weekly routine. Locally, they were a group of the New York social elite, representing sophistication and career achievement on an exalted level. The show itself presented them as hosts of a get together of good friends inviting ordinary Americans the treat of entering into the exclusivity of their party game. Dorothy, Arlene, Bennett and the assorted guest panelists anything like the average American is a big...naah uh.

[@dariawells7438]

There was another guest on another episode of WML with an almost IDENTICAL outfit to the second contestant's on this episode!!!

[@robertdiotalevi2882]

Yah, I luv dat Vhat's My Nein 22:38 Ya-voll!

[@petersanders5321]

Daly, that silver tongue... and with such an array of people. I mean, Minnesota Fats - the real one.. Hard to beat this...

[@johnnyaingel5753]

Ann southern what a beautiful lady loved her dearly as a boy

[@wyldebyll3089]

and a great actress. The voice of the car on My Mother the Car.

[@LANCSKID]

I didn’t know she had been a boy. Gender reassignment … uh?

[@soulierinvestments]

2:00 == Dorothy, now entering the zenith of her big-haired sophisticate Woman of the World Reporter period.

[@lauracollins4195]

soulierinvestments - You just made me laugh out loud in my living room.

[@paultheaudaciousbradford6772]

Didn’t recognize the man or the actual name, but I certainly recognize the title “Minnesota Fats”.

[@Hithere-ek4qt]

That's because the moue 'The Hustler' created that character. Rudolf Wanderone adopted that name because he was a self promoter, looking for attention. He was previously known as New York Fats.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

The character Minnesota Fats was an original creation of Walter Tevis, who wrote the book "The Hustler", upon which the 1961 movie starring Jackie Gleason was based. Though a real pool hustler, Rudolf Wanderone, who began calling himself "Minnesota Fats" in 1961, claimed to be the inspiration. Tevis denied Wanderone's claim, though Wanderone capitalized on it for years.

[@waynej2608]

So, he even 'hustled' the name. I wonder how Tevis felt about it. Or Gleason.

[@mikejschin]

I only now realized that Tevis wrote both "The Hustler" and "The Queen's Gambit". The latter was about an orphan girl who becomes a chess prodigy and was made into a mini-series on Netflix in 2020. The book and the series are very much worthwhile, even for non-chess players. The psychology and struggles of the main character form the story; chess is just a backdrop.

[@jamesabrams6908]

I mentioned here before I had a boyhood crush on Ann Sothern. Watching this episode again I thought she seemed like a fun date back in the day, playful, cutely beautiful, zaftig figure.

[@kevinkingston6488]

Ann Sothern so beautiful , and great personality ...wow❤

[@vickihshallenberger3644]

Mrs Humphrey looks like Endora from Bewitched!LOL

[@robertcunningham8394]

I was thinking the samething.

[@ModMokkaMatti]

And yet there was only one Agnes Moorehead

[@randyroe5494]

Ann Sothern is ADORABLE. Loved her also in WHALES OF AUGUST & as the rich mom in LOVE, AMERICAN STYLE. see it! On KZbin.

[@oneafter9095]

You're right Randy she is every bit ADORABLE..I wouldn't be surprised if you'd look up the word and found a picture of her. I just find Ann Sothern fascinating! And the thing is I've only just discovered her earlier this year 2018..!! I wont get in to that right now cause I can just keep on commenting about her. So far I've watched everything I could get of her on KZbin and TCM. Lets just say to me she eclipsed just about every Hollywood star I've ever known.

[@randysills4418]

Ann Sothern was quoted as saying that Bette Davis shortened her life when they worked on "The Whales Of August" together...

[@waynej2608]

Ann is a fine actress. One of my favorites is Letters to Three Wives. Both Ann and Linda Darnell were stand outs, in that ensemble.

[@andytaylor5476]

Ann received her only Oscar nomination for Whales of August.

[@VahanNisanian]

Minnesota Fats and fellow Billiard player, Willie Mosconi, were rivals.

[@Hithere-ek4qt]

Fats was a BSer, Mosconi was the best of his day. Efren Reyes is now considered by most folks as the GOAT

[@TheBraveIntrovert]

Well that was a new camera angle when Ann Sothern went to shake the panels hands. Wonder if they kept that around. If not, why.

[@vocalartistsmgmt]

I really liked that!

[@cruiseboston638]

Hmmm jmo.....but I believe that camera angle was for Ann's benefit. Taking the camera and flipping it to her " best side " was not a coincidence. Her face was beautiful.

[@Baskerville22]

The film referred to in the Ann Sothern segment, Lady in a Cage (1964), had James Caan in a leading role with Olivia de Havilland. That surprised me...but Caan was born in 1940. The film had bad reviews initially. From WIKI: "The film was initially received with negative reviews from critics who considered it to be vulgar and sub-par for an actress of de Havilland's stature. Bosley Crowther wrote a special column in The New York Times criticising the film, calling it "reprehensible", which led to a press controversy. Columnist Hedda Hopper wrote "The picture should be burned. Why did Olivia do it?" Variety said that there is "not a single redeeming character or characteristic" in the "vulgar screenplay", criticizing de Havilland's performance as Oscar bait and Caan's as a copy of Marlon Brando. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette also negatively compared Caan's performance to that of Brando and criticized the plot holes of the movie. Time mentioned that the film "adds Olivia de Havilland to the list of cinema actresses who would apparently rather be freaks than be forgotten"

[@harrysharp3838]

..."judging by your expansive physique"- Bennett had a very expansive arrogance.

[@gailsirois7175]

Very arrogant

[@warriormanmaxx8991]

Arrogance is required ... running a publishing house !!

[@VahanNisanian]

You can hear Johnny Olson say "Live" in his spiel for a fraction of a second.

[@randall-king]

Vahan Nisanian Is that possibly an editing error? It seems like there’s a cut right at that moment. I think these episodes are pieced together sometimes from multiple sources.

[@VahanNisanian]

Nice shot of Bennett kissing Ann at 24:13! This particular camera angle would also be used when the Mystery Guest greeted the panel after the game on the Syndicated revival.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

This is first time I've seen this angle.

[@ellenhannon5298]

I'm suprised they didn't guess Miss Sothern she really disguise her voice tgat much

[@stmilo]

I thought when Arlene made the “What’s my Nien” comment,Ann’s laugh was a dead giveaway.

[@stevensaunders1580]

This clip is over 50 years old and it still drives me nuts that Dorothy keeps saying "Mr Wandero" instead of pronouncing it correctly as "Mr Wanderone" in the Minnesota Fats segment.

[@littleredhen]

This show came out the day after I was born ✨🤗👶🍼✨

[@Arthur_McGowan]

She's really doing nothing to disguise her voice, which was almost as distinctive as Eve Arden's.

[@susanruda]

Dorothy going to the Lyndon Johnson Inauguration is like going into the Lion's Den, considering she was murdered later that year.

[@direcorbie]

to be factual she died later that year; I personally dont believe that she was murdered.

[@malcolmmarshall5946]

Accidental overdose.

[@dorothykilgallenwasmurdere1653]

Murdered is correct

[@tomhavens6006]

Definitely murdered!!! Read Mark Shaw’s great reads!

[@dorothykilgallenwasmurdere1653]

@@tomhavens6006 I have. He has a new book out. Thanks for reminding me. I need to order it.

[@garyzerr9821]

The second contestant reminds one a bit of Endora! (Agnes Moorhead in costume)

[@miss_midge_]

Thank you. I was just thinking the same.

[@robertfiller8634]

@@miss_midge_ To me, she looks like an older sister of Audrey Meadows.

[@hemming57]

For the record, Minnesota Fats was a fictional character from the book "The Hustler", this guy took the name after the movie came out. Why he never got sued I'll never know.

[@standamann100]

He actually sued the author of The Hustler, and won money from him. Wanderone was known in some circles as "New York Fats", but never Minnesota Fats, who was indeed a totally fictional character. And Wanderone was never the best pool player, like the fictional Minnesota Fats. Wanderone was a good player, particularly in a game called "one pocket", but was never near the best overall player.

[@Arthur_McGowan]

People were a little less into squeezing people for every possible penny, and terrorizing them, than they are today.

[@EricPetersen2922]

Stan daMann well said ***Fatboy Approved***

[@Robbi496]

One of Ann's LEAST memorable parts was as the voice of the 1928 Porter in "My Mother The Car"

[@paultheaudaciousbradford6772]

Robbi496 It may have been the least excellent, but hardly the least memorable. The show is memorable precisely because it lacks excellence.

[@spiff8862]

That '28 Porter was a '24 Model T powered by a Chevy 283 cid V-8 mated with a 2 speed Power Glide automatic transmission. Hollywood illusion masters up to their old tricks.

[@preppysocks209]

The NY Times film critic, Bosley Crowther, not necessarily due specifically to Ms. Sothern's performances, described "Lady in a Cage" as "reprehensible" and "Sylvia" as "a travesty."

[@bt10ant]

Wouldn't it be sort of wrong to describe Mr. Fats as "salaried"? Doesn't he just earn his living from various tournaments and endorsements?

[@jefflewis4]

He was salaried at the time. He was vice president of Rozel Industries a company that made Billiard tables. He would promote the tables by doing shows, trick shots etc, etc.

[@1nm1]

At the time of this episode he was employed by Rozel Inudstries as a promoter of their products. While he played a great deal of pool/billiards, he typically did NOT play in the professional tournament circuit (he was a pool hustler instead).

[@tomitstube]

i find it amusing how rudolf (minnesota fats) wanderone said he was "from" dowell illi-noise... lol, i looked it up, the guy grew up in washington heights manhattan, he didn't move to southern illi-noise until around 30 years old. it's believed he was born in 1913 but he was known to change that too.

[@VahanNisanian]

Barbara Stanwyck and Vivian Vance were never Mystery Guests.

[@anthonym9923]

As a big fan of The Big Valley, that is MISS Barbara Stanwyck :-)

[@markusadanitsch648]

those days of good maner and behavior are gone and never will return TIMEMASHINE PLEASE oh boy why must i live today 30 years earlier and all would be have been fine.those humans where so wunderfull NORMAL in regards to the jerks wich nowadays are round one....

[@piraterobber]

I can't believe I used to watch this. Time flies.

[@KororaPenguin]

17:14 -- "Spearhead from Space" would not be written for five years yet, and would take longer to reach the States.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Where next for poor old "Beekman Place", Peoria?

[@loissimmons6558]

Altoona

[@UnitTheory]

u can just tell by looking at dorothy she knew so much

[@billsweigart]

😅The panel missed every single one on this episode. I don’t remember that’s ever happening before.