What's My Line? - Tom Poston; David Niven [panel] (Jan 3, 1960) [UPGRADE]
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- Replacing the original version of this show, which had significant dropouts due to satellite outages during recording.
MYSTERY GUEST: Tom Poston
PANEL: Arlene Francis, David Niven, Dorothy Kilgallen, Bennett Cerf
NOTE: This video uses two sources in order to patch multiple portions where the satellite signal dropped out in my primary copy. Because the glitched version was in generally better video quality otherwise, I preserved as much of it as possible. As a result, you'll see the video quality change throughout the video, due to the splicing in of segments from the alternate copy.
Here's a link to the original video if you'd like to see the comments already left there: • Video
Many thanks, as always, to epaddon for providing his copy of this show, which enabled me to to patch the missing bits from my prior copy.
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![What's My Line? - George Jessel; Dana Andrews [panel]; Eunice Gayson [panel] (Jan 10, 1960)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/9jAW8xyvJaE/mqdefault.jpg)
![What's My Line? - Bette Davis; Joey Bishop [panel] (Aug 28, 1960)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ktn6bopMo34/mqdefault.jpg)
![What's My Line? - Arlene Dahl; David Niven [panel] (Dec 13, 1959)](/img/n.gif)
5:28 John explaining the mishap with the cards all being mixed up *and* backwards was so endearingly funny, haha
15:08 David Niven passing naughty notes to Arlene was also adorable!
I simply love these candid moments of hilarity with our beloved WML cast :)
David Niven is class and charm personified.
Always Has been; Far as I'm Concerned Always Will Be.. 👏👏👏 While, technically.. not of thoroughbred pedigree - -- I for one have A.) ALWAYS Considered him a Bona-fide, Legitimate 007.. . 👏👏👏👏👏
Perhaps it's I ( as Dorothy, Bennett, Arlene and John would say, oh-so-correctly) in my admiration of him, but it seems to me that Mr. Niven's presence elevated the polish and glamour of the panel. And that ain't no small feat, as me and my kin would have averred, down there in Wytheville on a cold January evening.
I couldn't but agree as me and my kin hunker down and try to become elevated as to our general level of erudition.
Especially on a cold January evening in Texas.
No fake laughter like on today's shows; people genuinely amused and amusing. Formal but never stiff; easy elegance.
All the 'talent' in WML came out of radio with live shows and live audiences and you can still get that 'electricity' of 'its happening now'.
i know I'm quite randomly asking but does anybody know of a good place to watch new movies online?
@Benson Jordan Yea, been using Flixzone for since april myself =)
@Benson Jordan thanks, signed up and it seems to work :) I really appreciate it !
@Griffin Patrick You are welcome xD
Last of 8 WML appearances of one of my favorite guest panelists -- the suave, the debonaire, the English David Niven.
soulierinvestments - A Scotsman born in London, who served in WWII with the Highlands Light Infantry. He'd probably have preferred to be called British.
@Aritosthenes I'm so confused. David Niven was Scottish, but never James Bond that I recall. Sean Connery was the greatest & Scottish James Bond. Did you confuse Niven and Connery? Or did I miss a whole series of films?
@@philippapay4352 David Niven wasn't Scottish. This somehow got started either by him or a film studio publicity department. His ancestry was English going way back. He went to Sandhurst and he came from generations of British military men.
@@lemorab1 You may well know more than I about this. It has been my understanding, lifelong now, that he was born in England of Scottish ancestry, was the cousin of Patrick Macnee, another actor who identified as Scottish (as does Emma Thompson who was born in England of Scottish blood), and he served, commanded a Scottish military division during WWII. Thank you for informing me. I will have to check further into how this all came about, if he was (other than born in England) not a Scottish chap, lad.
@@philippapay4352 I got information about his British ancestry from Graham Lord's biography, "Niv." I highly recommend it. It is considered to be the most comprehensive biography to date about David Niven. If you have read only "The Moon's A Balloon" and "Bring On The Empty Horses," as I had before reading "Niv," then you are in for many surprises and discoveries. Niven was posted to the Highland Light Infantry upon graduating from Sandhurst. In WWII, he was in the Commandos (headed by the Duke of Kent) and trained soldiers at a remote location in western Scotland. He did have Scottish ancestry, but if you believe Graham Lord's research, he was mainly of British ancestry. (I would love to have heard Niven talk, after a few scotches, about what he thinks happened to the Duke Of Kent. His death remains one of the murkier episodes of WWII.)
The score cards are on backwards, and we finally see what's on the back of them. No surprises: handwritten notation 'x' down 'y' to go. And they stay backwards the entire show; with its being live, there's no opportunity to fix it. John has a pad on which he keeps track of the score.
Robert Melson -- J.C.P.C.D. did the right thing in explaining to the audience and the panel what the problem was. I have to wonder who took the cards off their rings and reassembled them. The initial question mark card was fine and so was the $5 card, but from $10 onward they proved to be a problem. Taking the rings off their mountings to sort out the cards must have been enough of an undertaking that they couldn't do it during a commercial break.
ToddSF 94109 The cards need to be swapped out every week, or at least every time there's a change of sponsor. Sunbeam percolator this week, silhouette of Florida next week. A lowly job for as lowly a prop assistant as there can be. And much too complicated for JCD.
BTW, I find those Sunbeam cards to be interesting, because each one has a different small appliance on it, including the excellent 1950's version of the Sunbeam Coffeemaster vacuum coffeemaker. I grew up with one of those -- way better than any percolator as to the quality of coffee they brewed. That one is on the initial question-mark card. Also one of their self-lowering toasters where you'd put the bread in, and that would move a "trigger" and a motor would lower the toast and raise it when the toast was done, without a sudden "pop up". Sunbeam made great appliances back then . . . .
ToddSF 94109 I had not noticed--that "each one has a different small appliance on it"! I'll be sure to watch for it now. Thanks for that observation.
+ToddSF 94109 I opened up my mother's 1950s Sunbeam toaster recently to get it working again - all it needed was cleaning out crumbs after all these years. The smooth raising and lowering of the toast is not motorized, but rather is actuated by levers and springs controlled by a heat-sensitive bimetallic strip as in thermostats. As the heating elements are switched on (a little trigger under one of the slots actuates the switch when the bread is inserted) the bimetal strip flexes and the levers "amplify" that movement to lower the platforms under the bread slots. At the end of the toasting cycle, the process works in reverse and the toast quietly and smoothly rises. It's a clever design and far more durable than a motor would be near that kind of heat.
The panel were all in a jolly mood today!😁
1:40 >> I adore Arlene Francis's gown, but I am amazed that she manages to stay upright given that she is wearing my nomination for the heaviest necklace ever seen on WML
+soulierinvestments I wondered if her heart necklace was under all that hardware.
@@iamintheburgI was just thinking about her heart necklace -
Her heart necklace was stolen by a mugger as she exited a taxi cab in NYC.
Mrs. Norma Brooks was a drop dead beauty.
David Niven is so cute!
Love the card blooper!
A one degree of separation element of Golden Fleecing is that a young Suzanne Pleshette was also in the cast. In the 1970s of course, she played Bob Newhart's wife on "The Bob Newhart Shoe" and in the 1980s, Tom Poston appeared with Bob on "Newhart." When this show aired, "The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart" had yet to be recorded.
Tom Poston & Suzanne Pleshette were a couple during this time. Of course, years later they ended up married
And Suzanne Pleshette appeared as did Poston on the last episode of Newhart.
The dental assistant, Norma Brooks, I could not find, but the oral surgeon she worked for, Thomas J Nidiffer, is retired, but still alive as of Sept 28, 2019
If you back to the beginning of these comments and read down, you will find more info on Mrs. Brooks.
She past away 16 Dec 2012.
"This stream-of-consciousness is very interesting. Can we have a question?"
Very nice opening theme! Thanks for posting.
Thank you for posting Poston!
Lorenzo Semple, who I remember as a writer of Batman 1966-8, wrote "Golden Fleecing." Abe Burrows directed this before he got involved in the huge hit "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying."
Poston appeared in a number of Broadway hit shows in the 50s and 60s. "Golden Fleecing" lasted from Oct. 15, 1959 to Dec. 26, 1959. Since this program was videotaped before the "Golden Fleecing" Christmas holiday closing, all the praise from John, Bennett, and Dorothy did it no good.
soulierinvestments A very short run for so good a show. I can vouch for its funniness -- I saw it done by a touring company the following summer. Back in the early 60s, computers were the size of battleships, and this show is about just such a computer.
Even when I didn't know what they were laughing at, I found myself laughing through most of the show too. Laughter is really contagious. I would like to know what Niven wrote in that note, though. ;)
SuperWinterborn One of the enduring mysteries of WML, the contents of Niven's note, yes. :)
What's My Line? It was Dorothy's indignant "I didn't write it!" that really made me curious. David Niven's contributions didn't make this episode less entertaining. ;)
SuperWinterborn And did you notice Bennett sticking his neck way out to get a glimpse of it? :-)
dizzyology Yes, in fact, I did! But I thought I'd better leave that one to a possible reply to my comment. My English isn't of that kind, allowing many literary antics, although it was tempting to comment on Bennett's obvious curiosity. ;)
SuperWinterborn Your English beats my Norwegian any day! :-)
And here I thought that "Doggie Downers" were a fake product on a comedic TV commercial satire from "Saturday Night Live", along with "Puppy Uppers".
One of many great bits from the early days of SNL. As I recall, it featured Gilda Radner and Laraine Newman.
@@loissimmons6558 Actually, the product was "Vali Yum Yum" - that line is my creation, hope you like it!
Now you're giving NBC ideas. Make them pay to use your idea.
Dorothy is good at rooting out the truth. She made J Edgar Hoover very nervous....
Good one!!
TOM POST
ON
i laughed out loud lol
A nod to the role he regularly played on the Steve Allen Show: the man on the street who could never remember his own name.
thus the pitfalls of live television when someone puts the cards the wrong side
What surprised me is that some stage hand was not directed to fix the cards during a commercial break.
Greg .Patrei maybe one minute commercials were not long enough.
I just noticed something. When John flipped the card after Dorothy's no response what should up was a question mark, they cut over to David Niven and then back to John and it said 5
He just said the cards were all mixed up
Norma Brooks' tiara fell down.
Lol I cracked up when Mr. Daly had a conference with the first contestant.
I'm STILL dying to know what was in the "nahhhsty" note that David wrote during the 2nd segment!
It was a joke. Geez.
Me too
If this episode aired on January 3, that would’ve been eight days after the play The Golden fleecing closed.
Omg Tom Poston was so cute!! I love George Utley.
Love Dorothy's dress!
Sadly, though obviously very funny in content as per the panel members, Tom Poston’s play, “The Golden Fleecing” only ran from October 15-December 26 of 1959, and then closed. So I am guessing, based on the date, this episode was not filmed live, but rather before Christmas when the show was still playing.
That would account for why there were no merry christmasses or happy new years like they usually did. Then the announcer said that it was pre-recorded, right at the end.
Love Tom Poston. He's very cute
I was curious to see if they would mention the tragedy that befell Martin Gabel two nights before, Jan. 1. The play he was producing was in it's pre-Broadway run when it's star, Margaret Sullavan died. The show would not go on. I didn't think they'd mention it, and they didn't, even though they had touted the play the week before.
SCTV "What's My Shoe Size" skit, must watch for WML? fans. Search it on YT.
For all the sleuthing in these comments about when this episode was recorded, my guess it was on or about 12/13/59 - the date that David Niven also appeared on the panel.
I crossed paths with David Niven on Park Avenue in NYC and he was so freshly clean, like talcum powder.
Does anyone know anything about that lovely dental assistant, the first guest? Information like how much longer she worked at that job and when she died.
See comment from Mark Richardson, above.
if it was that easy the crew would have fixed it during a commercial.
I just love them!
Rare instance of a younger Niven not wearing a toupee?
Benett couldn't stop chatting about that dental assistant he got a crush on from Kansas City ! 😁🥰
Can’t believe the cards were backward!!! Someone is going to get it!
The handy man is so young
Bennett was as good as anyone at guessing the mystery guest.
Very good Dorothy: Are you a dental assistant?
Tom Poston was still alive in 2007.
He died in April 2007
Dorothy had to look at her notes on the desk to introduce David Niven.
Dorothy was not an entertainer and I think the pressure of having to "perform" live on air was hard on her.
If you want to laugh your head off forget about The Golden Fleecing play with Tom Poston and watch What’s My Line!
Wonder what the "nahsty" note said...
The Brave Introvert Arlene may have been teasing David rather than anything exceptional really being in the note. Just a thought observing her mildly perverse sense of humor, which I find delightful!
I'm surprised that Bennet stood to shake hands with that attractive dental assistant.
*_Dental Assistant_*
*_Sells Tranquilizer Pills for Dogs_*
Ta dah!
In the last episode they didn't mention the end of the 50s, and here not a word about the beginning of the 60s...
Maybe it was prerecorded.
and our mystery guest got $10
I think it was a tiara that didn't stand up.
Now I wanna know what the “nasty” note David Niven wrote
these 2 women were so smart - outsmarting the men
Shame there was no mention in how he signed in 😂
our second challenger gets $50
In 1950s - 60s money. Considering inflation it's a lot more money than you'd think.
Of course, nowadays David Niven's nasty note to Arlene would get read on live modern TV.
soulierinvestments remember this was Arlene’s funny remark. There may have been nothing naaasty in it!
@@sleb99 if you listen when it's revealed that it's tranquilizers for dogs david niven says "that's what I wrote!" Drugs for dogs were not as common back then as they are now. Hence Arlene's remark that it was nasty.
What is that jewelry on the forehead of Mrs. Brooks(dental assistant)?
He's Shaken.. ...but Not Stirred.. .
😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣😂😂😍😂😂😂😂
I wonder if someone on the production staff got fired because the score cards were messed up?
@gcjerryusc Goodness, your standards are pretty high. Most days I make two or three equally serious errors before lunch.
I really don't think so when John Daly couldn't even figure out how to fix them
the first contestant gets $25
Dick Wilson, except for David Niven, a Brit, the other accents were definitely an affectation.
John Daly was raised by his British mother in South Africa for the first decade of his life, then upon his father’s death moved to the US and attended prep school where he was often teased about his accent and would say he had to be taught to “speak American”. His accent was quite real.
Ok, now can someone explain to me WHY it was so hard for John to take those cards off that ringer and switch them over? It's just like a Binder; you open it up and switch them (looks simple enough to me)!
You can check at 17:50
The show was broadcast live on Sunday nights. Perhaps at the Commercial break.
Sometimes you are too busy to look at them in detail
Was Tom Poston famous in 1960?
Why the elaborate gowns?
It’s only a game show not the opera.
Just trying to draw attention to themselves
What is it with the British accents, either real or affected.
John was born and raised in South Africa by his British mother. His father died when he was 10 and he and his brother were brought to the US and enrolled in prep school in New England where he was often teased about his accent.
And David Niven was, in fact, British. Moron.
Arlene Francis was taught to speak that way, as were other actors who began in the 1930s.
For the first contestant, John is just making up the scores there. I mean, where did the first $5 come from?
It was the very first question. Bennett asked if it had anything to do with entertainment, because she was so pretty. Answer was no.
As seen by the first contestant, was it a fashion style in the early 1960s for women to wear necklaces draped across their forehead????
I have no idea what the first contestant saw.
That dental hygienst was very pretty and ruined it with weird junk jewelry.
Wardrobe was often used to distract or confuse the panel. May not have been her choice.
@@michaelclark6223
A sensationally pretty female, one of the prettiest I have ever seen! - a knockout (as my dad would have put it)
It's curious that there were no wolf whistles from the audience as she signed in. Although they would be considered incredibly rude today, they were regarded as acceptable in WML's era, and they commonly occurred when an attractive female contestant entered.
I liked that weird look of a necklace pinned across the dental assistant's forehead. It might have been weirder if she had not been so attractive.