I love what happens after Arlene's free guess in the football-player segment. She's always gracious but never more so than here, and appears genuinely remorseful on top of being gracious. I hope she did in fact go to the game. The football player came across well also -- seems like a good guy.
Arlene's apologies when she got the football player on a free guess illustrate the weakness of that concept. If the panel "succeeded" everybody was embarrassed and the potential fun of the spot was drained away
The original concept for the show was based on the question of whether a skilled observer could identify a person's occupation solely on their appearance. Both the free guesses and the Walk of Shame were conceived in support of this concept. But it didn't work -- there isn't much entertainment value even if the panel succeeds. Over the course of the show's early years, the game evolved into a much more entertaining form focused on the questions the panel asked, the potential double-meanings the questions might carry, and the sometimes-convoluted answers John would concoct. The free guesses were retained much longer than they were useful, but they deteriorated into a vehicle for the panel to make wisecrack guesses. Finally, on April 17, 1955 they were eliminated. On at least 9 occasions the panel guessed the occupation on a free guess. The occasions are listed here: www.tv.com/shows/whats-my-line/episode-253-95210/trivia/ Three of the shows no longer exist because the kinescopes were destroyed. The other 6 can be seen on this YT channel.
Some one figured this out and ended the practice. I recall an earlier episode in which one of the panelists guesses, "detective," and the questioning continues regardless. The guy was a house detective!
@@AllenMQuinn I'm combing through all the episodes to see at what point they dropped the free guess. This episode was the first one I've seen so far in which a panelist made the right guess. I didn't like the concept precisely because of what happened here. I might discover that it was happening progressively more often as time went on and so they dropped it -- perhaps around the same time Daly would add to the clues whether a challenger dealt in a product or a service.
This is the first episode I watch, that the panel (Miss. Arlene in the free guess part of the episode) guessed what was the line of the guest 10:35. Though she felt sorry for him and apologized, how nice of her!! .. I like Arlene very much for her classy appearance and talk. Good times back then!!! .. Thanks for the upload.
There were a number of correct or nearly spot-on wild guesses, but this is the first one I have seen where they acknowledge it and it changes game-play.
This was one of the examples of why Hal Block was eventually fired from the show. You could see Miss America rather recoil when Hal went in for the kiss. And then the next shot of John Daly you can tell he wasn’t pleased.
They should have gotten rid of him sooner. I don't like the episodes with him on because he's such a pig, especially since she was 19 and he was almost 40 years old. What a jerk.
I immediately did not appreciate Mr. Block. I would hope that the personality he exuded was what he might have thought would be amusing, but I don't know. He was not fun to watch...for me anyway...
Can you imagine what would happen if some horn dog pulled that stunt on live TV today? We often, nostalgically, comment on the wonderful decorum and mores of the 1950’s, as seen on WML, but this kind of behavior, along with the inevitable wolf whistles whenever a comely woman enters to sign in, help remind us of the rampant and unrelenting sexism of that era. Some things were lost, but others gained.
he first of four times between 1952 and 1960 that Arlene Francis appeared on WML with an eye patch. Variously -- I am not sure in what order -- Peter poked her, shingles, and infections when she poked herself with those nails. In 1962, she sunburned her eyes in summer stock and had to appear on the show with dark glasses. There is a famous photo of Arlene with the CBS eye and Faye Emerson. Incidentally, the CBS eye started up c 1952.
I read through the comments and didn't see anyone mention 7:35 when Hal insinuates that she is a striptease and John Daly seems to cut him off absolutely livid. I can't make out what he says it goes so quick, but the look on his face.
Yes, I saw that look. And the one after Hall kissed Miss America- Daly looks like he is sucking a lemon. 18:29 He was so mad he screwed up a "yes", then he spoke in a VERY crisp voice for the rest of the show. He seemed furious!
I'm running through the series from the beginning and I'm already beginning to tire of Hal Block's incessant ogling and horndog jokes. Seems like that was the only material he had by the time he was let go.
Hal met with John’s censor many times because John was an extremely conservative person. I always found some of Bennett Cerf’s comments to be much more predatory, but due to his more sophisticated delivery got away with it, but I still found them creepy. Hal was harmless.
@@robink620 - Hal just literally sexually assaulted Miss America on national television and you call it "harmless?" Would love to see some street thug randomly take similar liberties with your wife or daughter and then you claim it was harmless. Something tells me you wouldn't have the same carefree attitude in that scenario - and if you did, your wife or daughter ought to fire you for being incompetent.
@@robink620Totally not harmless I'm sure. Otherwise he wouldn't be having those conversations. Most of the men are very complimentary. We used to be able to do that in non creepy ways. Block was creepy. They introduced one woman as married and he asked if she had a phone number. Another time he chased a female minister around off camera. That's what got him.
I admire John Daly for flipping the cards and giving the football coach 25 dollars, instead of nothing because the panel got it correctly on a free guess
@@gilbertotongco1054 Meh, $25 meant a little more back then -- $270 in today's dollars. And at the typical pro football salary back then the players barely made 3X that much per game.
Block acted as if he had done something wrong immediately after kissing Miss America. An internet source indicated Block had been let go by WML because, in part, Block had repeatedly ignored warnings regarding his behavior and comments on the show.
It is amusing that Bennett wondered if he could say "can-can" on 1952 TV. Yes he can say can-can. How mores have changed on TV in a short 63 years. From being shy about saying "can-can" on TV to can-can dancing on TV, to dancing on modern TV that makes can can look old-fashioned and prudish. TV marches onward but not necessarily upward.
That's because they weren't all white knights with a stick up their ass. Times certainly do change though, we've gone from having a sense of humor, to political correctness, to needing a safe space in the corner to cry in.
My Father may have enjoyed this show more than my Mother, mostly because this was the last episode on air before I was born! Miss America and the French Can Can Dancer, Wow and ou la la! Had no idea women were this beautiful (except for my Mom) back in the '50's when the styles were being set by Bess Truman and Mamie Eisenhower. Thank goodness for Jackie Kennedy.
+SAKI BEAR Both women you mention were already very mature by the time they became First Lady of the United States. Bess Truman was 60 years old when her husband became President. Furthermore, while she apparently was quite stylish as a young woman and was especially known for her hats, by this time she was far from being a fashion trend setter. She stayed as far away from the public eye as possible and gave only one press conference in her time as First Lady. Mamie Eisenhower was quite a contrast to Bess Truman in terms of fashion. Remember that she was 56 years old when she entered the White House as First Lady, so her fashion was always age appropriate. She was named one of the 12 best dressed women in the U.S. for every year she was First Lady. But her fashion sense was more aimed at the typical modern American housewife than at ingenue types like Miss America or the can-can dancer, and would be quite different than the type of designer dresses for a much younger woman like Jackie Kennedy. (And remember that mid-50's in those days is closer to 70 these days.) She often wore designer gowns and her trademark dress style was quite figure flattering (and she still had an attractive figure at her age). She also set off a trend with American women for her favorite shade of pink (which became known as "Mamie pink". It was the color of the gown she wore to the first inaugural ball, still one of the most popular at the exhibit of First Lady inaugural gowns at the Smithsonian. The only thing about her style that I am not particularly fond of was her severely bobbed hair with short bangs. This is a link to an article, obviously one person's opinion, but it talks about another first lady who is said to have copied her style quite a bit. It might really surprise you who. fashionablycorrect.com/category/mamie-eisenhower/ By the way Saki Bear, we are very close in age. I will be commenting on an episode later in 1952 that I was born on the very afternoon of a WML show (Sunday's Child is happy and wise), in the very city where WML took place (but in the borough of Queens, not Manhattan).
+Lois Simmons Thank You for the very interesting response to my post. I was about as far away from the show's location and still be in the 48 States at the time. My Dad was a Dean at Whitman College so I was born in Walla Walla,Washington. Sounds like where you lived maybe you were able to see a show or two? Small world when it comes to both of us being born in 1952, Here's one that really amazed me,. I went to a boarding school in S.Woodstock Vt. and speaking of a small world there was a girl at the school who was born the same year and day in Walla Walla .How unlikely is that. My frame of reference that I didn't mention was my Sister who is ten years older than me and I remember her 1959 High School Year Book photo made her look more like she was in her 40's than a teenager. I lived in DC for a couple of Summers and did my College Internship there so I spent plenty of time at the Nation's Attic AKA the Smithsonian and I remember being amazed by the displays of most if not all First Ladies with a mannequin wearing their Inaugural Ball dresses. You are right that the age difference does make a big difference for what would be considered apropos for the First Lady to wear and Jackie did a great job. I guess the 50's First Ladies dared not go for the "June Cleaver" and her string of pearls trademark? So maybe I was a little harsh in my comparisons? Thank You once again for showing me a little perspective from a fellow time traveler from the 1950's going forward. Lets hope these shows get to stay on You Tube. So many of my favorites from the past like "Bonanza" "Hogan's Heros" "Gilligan's Island" etc went away for some reason. Happy viewing and a great Thanksgiving for you.
+Lois Simmons I checked out the link you included and I have to say that Mamie Eisenhower looks quite "Eye Catching" and very elegant in the beautiful gown she is wearing! I can see why the current First Lady would find ample material from Mamie's wardrobe. Thank You for helping shed light on what I thought was a gloomy where is the nearest bomb shelter decade. Too bad we didn't listen to Mamie's husband when he delivered his farewell address to the American people and heed his warnings. But oh well what will be will be PS My compliments to you for your wellspring of knowledge about fashion and American culture. Your reply was most appreciated and enlightening. Thank You.
You sure have a misconception of 1950s styles. I'm a 1950s girl and have taken great pleasure watching all these What's My Line episodes. My style sense is reinforced constantly with how different the styles are when they got into 1960s. In the 1950s the women in both the panel and the guests wore lovely feminine,dresses, stylish sheaths or suits, pretty jewelry, sometimes a hat and gloves, attractive high heels and could walk in them gracefully. That's another thing I really notice is their great posture from every angle. When did that get lost?
You would have too. He was probably only making 4 or 5 thousand dollars in the NFL - one of the reasons most pro athletes during that era had to work second jobs during the off season for income. $25 in 1952 is $300.00 today; about what he made for 1 NFL game (without getting hit to earn it). Before pro athletes free agency, 90% of the profits were kept by the owners. Athletes had to protest and infamously sue for over a decade to get their rightful share.
Block got what he deserved...sooner or later, someone was going to sue the network for his unwanted bodily assaults. If this is the way he behaved on national TV, can you imagine what he did to his secretary or the like, off camera and behind closed doors? Dude was outrageous.
Absolutely loved Mr. Daly's response to the "accidental" recognition of the football player. He was very gracious & made sure he went away with something. He seems very apologetic bidding him good bye as well,though I couldn't make out what he said. What a classy show and team!
Yes, Bennett Cerf looks older here than in later episodes. He used the same hair dye as Ronald Reagan perhaps. I would guess that the producers asked him to do it in order to make his head more distinct on black and white TV. For that same reason John Daly looks sharper in a black dinner suit than in the grey suit he wears in this broadcast. Arlene Francis goes the opposite way in becoming blonde rather than the brunette she seems to be here. As for Hal Bloch sucking his finger during a close-up of his face, he needed more media training if it existed in 1952.
This is odd in that just out of curiosity I checked the lifetime stats of Mr. Kalmanir and he did not play in 1952 which is the year of this video. He had stats in 1949, 50, 51 and 53. The Rams did not play the Giants in 1952 and their first real season game was 9/28 so the 9/18 games against the Giants that they speak of apparently was a pre season game. It would have been their last pre season game. I can only guess that Mr. Kalmanir was injured in that game against the Giants or was cut from the team after that game and was not picked up by another team during the season and was out for the entire regular season. He then played his final season in 1953 with the Baltimore Colts.
I know you posted this over 2 years ago but thought I'd respond. I got the impression that they were playing an exhibition game to support a charity or something. It's possible it would not count as a real game.
Yes, I agree. You'll see in my comments on my original post that I believed it to be a pre-season game as they didn't play each other that year in a regular season game.
Faye Emerson, a stage, screen, and TV actress, divorced from Elliott Roosevelt in 1950; Roosevelt had been a mystery guest on one of the earliest WML shows.
5:07 Bennett is *technically* correct, but he's also off on the wrong track... a classic "Steve Allen" line of questioning before Steve was even brought onto the show, haha! 8:57 When Bennett asked "Can I use the word on television?", it would've been hilarious if John (or Arlene) had replied with "Yes, you can-can!"
*19* states - including 8 connected states in the north and west. New Mexico, most of the Mid-Atlantic states, and most of New England except Connecticut - have never produced a Miss America. Neva is to this date the first and the only Miss America from Georgia. However, *every* southern state except Louisiana has been home to at least one Miss America.
+soulierinvestments And as of Sep. 13, 2015, Betty Cantrell, Miss America 2016, would be the second Miss America from Georgia. As for Neva Jane Langley, her appearance on "WML?" came at a time when the pageant itself wasn't quite ready for TV (not until 1954, anyway), but even before TV, I'm sure she was in the papers and newsreels.
12:50 First time a MG (Neva Jane Langley, Miss America) made their TV debut on WML. Second known time that a regular guest was visiting from a foreign country. When Arlene guessed the football player at 10:22, this was the 4th time a guest was guessed on free guesses. The first three times, on lost episodes, were a motorcycle cop guessed by Arlene, an atomic scientist, guessed by Dorothy, and an umpire, by unknown panelist.
Somewhere in the comments, higher up the page, there's a link to a video this channel put together of all the correct wild guesses for which the video is available, and the Umpire is in them. I think it was Arlene, but I can't remember despite having watched it just a few hours ago.
@@tejaswoman Yes, in that compilation video, it was Dorothy who guessed the World Series umpire in an episode that aired after this episode. But, another umpire was guessed in an earlier, lost episode. In the video compilation, after Arlene guessed the lifeguard, the panel recalled previous free guesses. Steve said, “the two umpires.”
Bennett's hysterically funny questioning looks like a prepared gambit, but Gil Fates insisted that the production staff wrote them only for the comedians -- IE Steve Allen but also Hal Block. Bennett is spontaneous.
soulierinvestments I think he really thought the can-can dancer had something to do with baldness treatments, but he definitely seemed to be trying to milk the idea for laughs. Perhaps he knew about the gambit concept and wanted to try it himself. This is the second episode in a row in which he seems to be doing that. It feels slightly different to me, though, because I think he genuinely developed an idea about what the contestant's line might be and then continued to try to play his hunch for laughs afterwards. Impossible to know for sure, though.
SaveThe TPC Agreed. This is one of many instances where panel members pursued a line of questioning because it wsa producing laughs. In some cases that was because a false clue had been planted as a "gambit," but in other cases a panel member spontaneously came up with an idea that seemed to be working, and pushed it as far as it would go. While it's impossible to say with certainty, this sounds like an example of the latter.
The pageant wasn't televised until 1954, so I think it would have been a better contest if she had been a "Miss X". Sure her picture was in the newspaper, but it was the week before. Putting on the blindfolds and the proximity to the pageant gave more away than her just going out in the raw.
Neva Jane (Langley)Fickling is the First Miss America 1953 from Georgia,She passed away in 2012.She married to William Fickling Jr. in 1954 with four grown children,She one of Macon's Wealthy Socialite.She also played the Piano. 63 years later,2015, Second Miss America from Georgia is Miss Betty Cantrell is Miss America 2016.I never met Mrs.Fickling but I met Miss America's Aunt Dodie Cantrell -Bickley.She was a former News Director for 13WMAZ CBS In Macon Ga and First Coast News(NBC 12/ABC 25) in Jacksonville Fla.Late Mrs.Fickling was the 1st Miss America in Georgia 1953.Now 2nd Miss Betty Cantrell Georgia 2016.
About Miss America Neva Jane Langley Hall Miller and Neva Jane Langley.gif Born January 25, 1933 Lakeland, Florida Died November 18, 2012 (aged 79) Macon, Georgia Education Wesleyan College Occupation Television celebrity Title Miss America 1953 Predecessor Colleen Kay Hutchins Successor Evelyn Ay Neva Jane Langley Fickling (January 25, 1933 - November 18, 2012) was an American beauty pageant queen. Biography Langley was born in Lakeland, Florida. As a college sophomore she transferred to Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, where she was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority. While attending that college she became Miss Macon, Miss Georgia, and then Miss America 1953.[1] Ms. Langley's first television appearance as Miss America was on What's My Line (September 14, 1952) as the mystery guest. She rode the grand prize most-beautiful float by a commercial firm, called "America The Beautiful", in the January 1, 1953, Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California.[2] She was also known for being the only Miss Georgia to win the Miss America pageant until Betty Cantrell was crowned Miss America 2016 sixty-three years later. On November 18, 2012, Langley died of cancer at the age of 79.[3]
Anybody else notice the head motion Arlene gave to the first contestant at the 2:10 mark as she was doing her walk in front of the panel? It's like she was trying to tell her to get the hell out of there quick before Hal Block could stop her.
it seemed that everyone was trying to protect the first contestant from Hal, from John telling her to run fast down the first part of the line and then as you noticed, Arlene sending her over to John before making it full back to the top of the panel and they cut Hal off at the very end so he couldn't make another 'remark'
Jeff Vaughn I noticed that moment, too, and your take on it is very funny, Jeff, but I think what happened was more straightforward. If you watch it closely, you'll see the contestant hesitate on her return trip-- not because of Hal, just because she sort of froze for a moment and didn't seem to know where she was supposed to walk. Arlene's gesture snapped her out of it. Quite a nice little moment, actually. :)
I've watched that bit over and over. Not convinced it's to do with Hal. It's a glance at the clock and I suspect a technical thought. He looks at the clock each episode and especially when they're running out of time. It looked to me like he was thinking 'oh **** we're still under ten minutes'. Running out of time is one thing but having too much time left would've been a problem with live television. In tne meantime, yep Hal's humour is irritating at times as is Bob Hope's who he wrote ones for. Same trough of 'wit'.
Again, the panel gets stuck when they receive an affirmative answer regarding which sex uses a product. Yes women use it, but men have not been excluded. It's like a brain freeze!
One-track minds. Steve Allen was especially guilty of unjustifiably imputing a sex-related angle in this way. Maybe they figured the producers were looking for laughs and would play that line.
I'll bet Block's comments and activities tonight -- especially his laying a big wet one on that flower of Southern girlhood -- galvanized the producers to get Steve Allen on WML quick. Langley's contract should have read that she did not have to go down the panel. I can almost hear Franklin Heller muttering in the control booth, "Oh lawz, I hope Hal contains himself. Oh no oh no oh NO!"
SaveThe TPC It was within the limits of the character he had developed for this program, but I agree it's a good example of the way those limits were drawn too loosely. If the limits had included "no physical contact, ever" Hal might have lasted a lot longer on WML.
This show was so much better without Hal. Some of his comments are funny, but he just reminds you of a pervy uncle nobody wants at their wedding, and it's just not appropriate or comfortable for this kind of show.
Naturally no one would condone "copping a feel" with an unfamiliar woman. Yet the action on display was perfectly acceptable. First, it was a quick peck on the cheek, not a "wet one." Second, with his "My God, I got my reward" gesture following afterwards, it was much in line with his "girl-chasing" character established previously. Third, although of course he got a momentary jolly, this was all in the context of entertainment, where a little license is allowed in a "fun" setting such as this. Some people get a bit too carried away with their concept of "morality."
@@AllenMQuinn I AGREE! I'm going through the episodes from beginning to end (trying to anyway) and can't wait for him to fired or whatever they did to him. Seems like every time he says something trying to be funny, I say, "shut up, Hal!"
Woman at the start is I guess French-Romanian or married to someone who is! She was so charming. Not surprised she’s a dancer with that physique. When Hal kissed Miss America… IMAGINE if that happened today lol
@@charlespatrick8650 And he kissed Miss America Neva Langley , but see how he kissed Bette Davis. The end came when he chased a church minister /evangelist (a la harpo/groucho Marx style ) after the show ...I don't think he was suited to a show that aired on Sundays and had a conservative church going TV audience
First contestant, she doesnt have a French accent. And her name is Romanian, not French. I'm sure she is not French. She didn't mention she is Romanian by origin
You may be correct that she isn't French -- yes, her accent doesn't sound French -- but there were and are people of Romanian extraction born and living in France, you know.
Mr. Block guessed Miss America from the 'cotton picker ' comment, genius. And Miss Frances opened the door, she was on the right track. Very nice work from the both of them. Mr. Block certainly had a reputation by the questions he asked.
Block's discernment wasn't so much "genius" but mere taking a hint given by the audience's reaction when Arlene Francis mentioned "Ms Cotton Picker." If you listen to Block, that's exactly what he told you...he picked up a hint from the audience's reaction. That was one of the shortcomings of having a live audience...whenever a question get's close to the answer, the audience tended to verbally react; panelist could easily pick up on the reaction and swoop in on the target area.
The low amounts given as prizes seem very low, but $20 then is equal to $120 now! The $50 win is equal to about $500 today so the prizes were ok, but still not comparative by todays game show prizes.
@@NoelleTakestheSky Very true, Jay Leno's remake of Bet Your Life is great fun, and I think the most you can win is $5000 split between the two players. I'd love to see more shows like this where even those who aren't the preferred player with good looks, and a great backstory can compete, and win a few bucks. I had a lady friend who went on The price is Right, and won a lot! I don't recall the exact number, but she had to sell half of it to pay her taxes so the large prizes aren't always what they seem. 👍😎✌🗽
I always love the ones with Hal Block! I hope more can be found from when he was on What's My Line. I really how the lost one with Gypsy Rose Lee shows up.
What a strange coincidence I actually have the program from the preseason annual milk fund football game between the Rams and the Giants that Tommy Kelmanir played on 9/18/1952, John Daley gave it away when he called him Tommy instead of Thomas which he signed
This is why I’m scrolling the comments! I haven’t come across the answer yet. We’ve been binge watching WML with our kiddos and we love it! It make me want to don my closet full of vintage dresses 👗 I stopped wearing a good ten years ago. I miss looking proper in everyday 50’s dresses. 👗 🧤 👛 Be well, stay kind and blessings to all~
At least I've now got the term "saving daylight time" finally confirmed as the same what we up here in the north use to call "summertime" as opposed to "normal time".
SuperWinterborn I think you mean "Daylight Saving Time." I have always been confused by this term myself, and I've grown up with it! It seems to me that you need to save daylight much moreso when there is less of it than when there is more of it, but that's not the way it works. The logic behind this terminology has been explained to me numerous times, and in the moment that it is explained, I can sometimes grasp it briefly. On my own, I still have trouble trying to recall the explanations I've been given!
SaveThe TPC The explanation I have been given is that you're having an hour more with daylight in the evening after work or school. Should allegedly improve quality time with family or friends. It doesn't seem to work very well. ;) During the months May-June-July we now have daylight until 10-11 PM here in the south of Norway. In the north, the sun doesn't set at all these months, so to them this means nothing at all. :) Thanks for the correction! I'll let it stand, with your comment below, for educational reasons! ;) PS. I think it started in Germany, in the 30s.
SuperWinterborn It would seem to be an attempt by less fortunte countries to emulate the good fortunes of Norway! :-) Happy Syttende Mai to all of Norse blood or sympathies!
SuperWinterborn Wow! Happy Birthday, and G-d bless him! Besides being your father's birthday, is it some type of national holiday? As for Daylight Saving Time, yes, I think the logic is that we are getting an extra hour of evening daylight by having the sun come up later in the morning. Since most Americans rarely make use of those early morning hours anyway, we are not losing much that way, but it still confuses me. The only way I can remember which is which between Standard Time and Daylight Saving time is to think counterintuitively -- i.e., remind myself that it is the opposite of what my mind thinks it should be ;). I have to admit that I don't understand why Norway would even need this accommodation if the sun is out for so many hours there anyway.
Bennett was unsure if he could use the word cancan on television. Was it that wild? Or was it the association with "can" (which you may define any way you like.) ua-cam.com/video/3F7B2i02jrM/v-deo.html
I have protested Hal Block's behaviors on pages of earlier shows, but my views are changing. I am now steadily working my way through the years, instead of hopping around as I did before, and have watched Hal closely. My theory is that his lechery was like that of a boy fascinated by the lollipop in the candy store window. He dreams of it, can't have it , maybe gets a taste one day. DId anyone else notice Hal's exultant squirm, almost hiding his head with his arms like a little boy? He was obnoxious, and creepy, but in an innocent and obsessive manner. He had no social skills at all,and little filter, and just let that fascination with women show all the time. He knew how to get a laugh about sex but I think he was genuinely preoccupied. I mentioned it elsewhere, but I wonder if he was "on the spectrum." All the boxes check.
Anyone else think that Miss America looked a lot like Keri Russell in her early Felicity days? When I first saw the episode icon, it threw me for a moment.
This is the second time Arlene got it straight away, she picked out the trapeze artist but that was a bit easier because Ringling Brothers had a big show in NYC at Madison Square Garden at the time and the lady was small, thin and wirey.
She nailed it another time where the challenger guest was a lifeguard. Gives you an idea how observant and intelligent Arlene is. These wild guesses have more to them than just pure luck.
What on earth is going on with Bennett Cerf’s head at 09:03 right after he guess at the can-can? He doesn’t look anything like himself. He appears to have something strange growing out of his head!!
Mr Bloch was kinda annoying to me. He's quick with a pun, which I can appreciate, but it's a bit overdone.I look forward to when Fred Allen finally joins the show.
Joe Postove I'm wondering if anybody's mother used a fly swatter on him or her for disciplinary purposes. My mother only threatened (which we took seriously at the time.)
M. M. Lol My grandmother would only use them on us AFTER they began to be made from plastic. The wire mesh ones tended to fray out and could get sharp!
I just bought a new flyswatter that is made as the classic ones were. A wood handle,, wire, and a metal mesh end. New flyswatters don’t work very well! This flyswatter was $8 so I hope it’s worth it. Heh.
In all the hubbub when Arlene guessed the football player, it's overlooked that Hal had jokingly guessed "I think he sells headache powder to Giants fans" (!) ... Hal KNEW? This guy was in town to play the Giants. Btw, I've seen very little of the Hal Block era of WML, so this was an introduction to his lechery. But for all the comments, and for all the subtle "signs" from other panelists ... the audience seems very amused by the schtick. The ladies seemed giggly amused. I don't get the sense here that his welcome had worn thin.
His welcome had perhaps worn thin more to the producers and his fellow cast mates than to the audience. It's hard to say without knowing what kind of mail they received about him. First comment on UA-cam from you, I think, Brian. I think you're becoming a full fledged WML addict. :)
I like Hal Block. He was the down-to-earth antidote to Bennet's more patrician blandness. And sure, he stepped over the line from time-to-time, but some part of the early show's warmth left with him.
What's My Line? Thx. I guess I broke my Lurker's Pledge, when I spotted something original and couldn't resist shouting about it. It jumps out that Hal first made a subtle but spot-on quip about football, but it was eclipsed by Arlene's followup -- a head-on full-body-slam of a guess. But what would've happened if his comment had been allowed to linger on its own? Would it have attracted attention? And DID he know this guy all along?I'm still intrigued by Hal "Dimples" Block. He may rock the boat a little, but I like the mix so far. After a few more eps, his welcome may wear thin with me, too. :) FAYE EMERSON is very new to me, too. I hope to see more of her on WML. And her old movies.
Brian Swift Faye is in quite a few episodes of WML already posted, including the one posted right after the video you're commenting on. Here are all of them: ua-cam.com/users/WhatsMyLineCBSsearch?query=%22faye+emerson%22
someone posted that her husband accidentally poked her in the eye this (the first) time she wore the eye patch, she scratched her eye with her finger nail another time, and once wore dark sunglasses because she sunburned her eyes 👀
9:21 LMAO I love how everyone just ignored Hal. It's pretty obvious none of them like him. Not only is he obnoxious, but his girl chasing gets old real fast. It's a game show, not The Bachelor.
Allen Quinn Hal was the blue collar panelist among the white collar (and mink collar) panelists. You're right, his hounding gets old. But the more episodes I watch, the more I get tired of Cerf' s self-appreciation of his own very humorless humor.
Cerf was a ham and never denied it, that "self-appreciation" was part of his shtick, and his chemistry with John Daly was one of these little things that made the show, Block didn't belong to WML once the show found its audience, you can see how much fun they have and how relaxed they all are since 1953, can't be a coincidence, once Block as out and the two Allens in... the Golden Age could start.
![What's My Line? - Elsa Schiaparelli; Faye Emerson [panel] (Sep 21, 1952)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/OL8Xp8WiL5c/mqdefault.jpg)
![What's My Line? - Elsa Schiaparelli; Faye Emerson [panel] (Sep 21, 1952)](/img/tr.png)
I love what happens after Arlene's free guess in the football-player segment. She's always gracious but never more so than here, and appears genuinely remorseful on top of being gracious. I hope she did in fact go to the game. The football player came across well also -- seems like a good guy.
Watching these shows Ive come to feel the panelists are my personal friends that I could call up and talk with!
Arlene's apologies when she got the football player on a free guess illustrate the weakness of that concept. If the panel "succeeded" everybody was embarrassed and the potential fun of the spot was drained away
It was silly to have it in the first place. Not sure why they ever allowed it.
The original concept for the show was based on the question of whether a skilled observer could identify a person's occupation solely on their appearance. Both the free guesses and the Walk of Shame were conceived in support of this concept. But it didn't work -- there isn't much entertainment value even if the panel succeeds. Over the course of the show's early years, the game evolved into a much more entertaining form focused on the questions the panel asked, the potential double-meanings the questions might carry, and the sometimes-convoluted answers John would concoct. The free guesses were retained much longer than they were useful, but they deteriorated into a vehicle for the panel to make wisecrack guesses. Finally, on April 17, 1955 they were eliminated.
On at least 9 occasions the panel guessed the occupation on a free guess. The occasions are listed here: www.tv.com/shows/whats-my-line/episode-253-95210/trivia/ Three of the shows no longer exist because the kinescopes were destroyed. The other 6 can be seen on this YT channel.
All compiled into one handy-dandy video at this link, in fact! ua-cam.com/video/pbj0uNMfoNI/v-deo.html
Some one figured this out and ended the practice. I recall an earlier episode in which one of the panelists guesses, "detective," and the questioning continues regardless. The guy was a house detective!
@@AllenMQuinn I'm combing through all the episodes to see at what point they dropped the free guess. This episode was the first one I've seen so far in which a panelist made the right guess. I didn't like the concept precisely because of what happened here. I might discover that it was happening progressively more often as time went on and so they dropped it -- perhaps around the same time Daly would add to the clues whether a challenger dealt in a product or a service.
This is the first episode I watch, that the panel (Miss. Arlene in the free guess part of the episode) guessed what was the line of the guest 10:35. Though she felt sorry for him and apologized, how nice of her!! .. I like Arlene very much for her classy appearance and talk. Good times back then!!! .. Thanks for the upload.
There were a number of correct or nearly spot-on wild guesses, but this is the first one I have seen where they acknowledge it and it changes game-play.
This was one of the examples of why Hal Block was eventually fired from the show. You could see Miss America rather recoil when Hal went in for the kiss. And then the next shot of John Daly you can tell he wasn’t pleased.
Could he be any creepier? Omfg.
They should have gotten rid of him sooner. I don't like the episodes with him on because he's such a pig, especially since she was 19 and he was almost 40 years old. What a jerk.
His relentless, over-the-top schtick makes Bob Hope seem subtle.
I immediately did not appreciate Mr. Block. I would hope that the personality he exuded was what he might have thought would be amusing, but I don't know. He was not fun to watch...for me anyway...
Can you imagine what would happen if some horn dog pulled that stunt on live TV today? We often, nostalgically, comment on the wonderful decorum and mores of the 1950’s, as seen on WML, but this kind of behavior, along with the inevitable wolf whistles whenever a comely woman enters to sign in, help remind us of the rampant and unrelenting sexism of that era. Some things were lost, but others gained.
Neva Jane aged beautifully through the years. I think her matter-of-fact personality contributed largely to her great charm and appeal.
he first of four times between 1952 and 1960 that Arlene Francis appeared on WML with an eye patch. Variously -- I am not sure in what order -- Peter poked her, shingles, and infections when she poked herself with those nails. In 1962, she sunburned her eyes in summer stock and had to appear on the show with dark glasses. There is a famous photo of Arlene with the CBS eye and Faye Emerson. Incidentally, the CBS eye started up c 1952.
Thanks for the bedtime story. It worked great !
That's some bad luck with her eyes!! 😵
I wonder if this was the poke, because she said her eye was bruised in a response to the football player having a black eye
I read through the comments and didn't see anyone mention 7:35 when Hal insinuates that she is a striptease and John Daly seems to cut him off absolutely livid. I can't make out what he says it goes so quick, but the look on his face.
Yes, I saw that look. And the one after Hall kissed Miss America- Daly looks like he is sucking a lemon. 18:29
He was so mad he screwed up a "yes", then he spoke in a VERY crisp voice for the rest of the show. He seemed furious!
You can see why Hal Block was fired from the series. John certainly disapproves.
I'm running through the series from the beginning and I'm already beginning to tire of Hal Block's incessant ogling and horndog jokes. Seems like that was the only material he had by the time he was let go.
He’s a very naughty boy!
Hal met with John’s censor many times because John was an extremely conservative person. I always found some of Bennett Cerf’s comments to be much more predatory, but due to his more sophisticated delivery got away with it, but I still found them creepy. Hal was harmless.
@@robink620 - Hal just literally sexually assaulted Miss America on national television and you call it "harmless?" Would love to see some street thug randomly take similar liberties with your wife or daughter and then you claim it was harmless. Something tells me you wouldn't have the same carefree attitude in that scenario - and if you did, your wife or daughter ought to fire you for being incompetent.
@@robink620Totally not harmless I'm sure. Otherwise he wouldn't be having those conversations. Most of the men are very complimentary. We used to be able to do that in non creepy ways. Block was creepy. They introduced one woman as married and he asked if she had a phone number. Another time he chased a female minister around off camera. That's what got him.
I admire John Daly for flipping the cards and giving the football coach 25 dollars, instead of nothing because the panel got it correctly on a free guess
REALLY?! I wondered if they ever guessed right on those free guesses
She was my Moms cousin.
Coach?? He was the star halfback for the Los Angeles Rams.
The prizes they get is less than what a waitress get for a tip
@@gilbertotongco1054 Meh, $25 meant a little more back then -- $270 in today's dollars. And at the typical pro football salary back then the players barely made 3X that much per game.
Block acted as if he had done something wrong immediately after kissing Miss America. An internet source indicated Block had been let go by WML because, in part, Block had repeatedly ignored warnings regarding his behavior and comments on the show.
He kissed certain women right on the lips. Very weird
It is amusing that Bennett wondered if he could say "can-can" on 1952 TV. Yes he can say can-can. How mores have changed on TV in a short 63 years. From being shy about saying "can-can" on TV to can-can dancing on TV, to dancing on modern TV that makes can can look old-fashioned and prudish. TV marches onward but not necessarily upward.
How odd that they weren't at all concerned by sexist remarks or making fun of someone who was overweight or short.
That's because they weren't all white knights with a stick up their ass. Times certainly do change though, we've gone from having a sense of humor, to political correctness, to needing a safe space in the corner to cry in.
What’s odd is that people confuse broadcast prudishness with at-home moral modesty. In private they could anything, and I believe they did.
@@paperbackonly8438 Excellent point.
@@NoobsShadow How horrible you are
My Father may have enjoyed this show more than my Mother, mostly because this was the last episode on air before I was born! Miss America and the French Can Can Dancer, Wow and ou la la! Had no idea women were this beautiful (except for my Mom) back in the '50's when the styles were being set by Bess Truman and Mamie Eisenhower. Thank goodness for Jackie Kennedy.
+SAKI BEAR
Both women you mention were already very mature by the time they became First Lady of the United States. Bess Truman was 60 years old when her husband became President. Furthermore, while she apparently was quite stylish as a young woman and was especially known for her hats, by this time she was far from being a fashion trend setter. She stayed as far away from the public eye as possible and gave only one press conference in her time as First Lady.
Mamie Eisenhower was quite a contrast to Bess Truman in terms of fashion. Remember that she was 56 years old when she entered the White House as First Lady, so her fashion was always age appropriate. She was named one of the 12 best dressed women in the U.S. for every year she was First Lady. But her fashion sense was more aimed at the typical modern American housewife than at ingenue types like Miss America or the can-can dancer, and would be quite different than the type of designer dresses for a much younger woman like Jackie Kennedy. (And remember that mid-50's in those days is closer to 70 these days.)
She often wore designer gowns and her trademark dress style was quite figure flattering (and she still had an attractive figure at her age). She also set off a trend with American women for her favorite shade of pink (which became known as "Mamie pink". It was the color of the gown she wore to the first inaugural ball, still one of the most popular at the exhibit of First Lady inaugural gowns at the Smithsonian.
The only thing about her style that I am not particularly fond of was her severely bobbed hair with short bangs.
This is a link to an article, obviously one person's opinion, but it talks about another first lady who is said to have copied her style quite a bit. It might really surprise you who.
fashionablycorrect.com/category/mamie-eisenhower/
By the way Saki Bear, we are very close in age. I will be commenting on an episode later in 1952 that I was born on the very afternoon of a WML show (Sunday's Child is happy and wise), in the very city where WML took place (but in the borough of Queens, not Manhattan).
+Lois Simmons
Thank You for the very interesting response to my post. I was about as far away from the show's location and still be in the 48 States at the time. My Dad was a Dean at Whitman College so I was born in Walla Walla,Washington. Sounds like where you lived maybe you were able to see a show or two?
Small world when it comes to both of us being born in 1952,
Here's one that really amazed me,. I went to a boarding school in S.Woodstock Vt. and speaking of a small world there was a girl at the school who was born the same year and day in Walla Walla .How unlikely is that.
My frame of reference that I didn't mention was my Sister who is ten years older than me and I remember her 1959 High School Year Book photo made her look more like she was in her 40's than a teenager.
I lived in DC for a couple of Summers and did my College Internship there so I spent plenty of time at the Nation's Attic AKA the Smithsonian and I remember being amazed by the displays of most if not all First Ladies with a mannequin wearing their Inaugural Ball dresses.
You are right that the age difference does make a big difference for what would be considered apropos for the First Lady to wear and Jackie did a great job.
I guess the 50's First Ladies dared not go for the "June Cleaver" and her string of pearls trademark?
So maybe I was a little harsh in my comparisons? Thank You once again for showing me a little perspective from a fellow time traveler from the 1950's going forward.
Lets hope these shows get to stay on You Tube. So many of my favorites from the past like "Bonanza" "Hogan's Heros" "Gilligan's Island" etc went away for some reason.
Happy viewing and a great Thanksgiving for you.
+Lois Simmons
I checked out the link you included and I have to say that Mamie Eisenhower looks quite "Eye Catching" and very elegant in the beautiful gown she is wearing! I can see why the current First Lady would find ample material from Mamie's wardrobe.
Thank You for helping shed light on what I thought was a gloomy where is the nearest bomb shelter decade.
Too bad we didn't listen to Mamie's husband when he delivered his farewell address to the American people and heed his warnings.
But oh well what will be will be
PS My compliments to you for your wellspring of knowledge about fashion and American culture. Your reply was most appreciated and enlightening. Thank You.
Lois Simmons, you leave the very best comments. Love your input on the You Bet Your Life videos. Thanks for sharing.
You sure have a misconception of 1950s styles. I'm a 1950s girl and have taken great pleasure watching all these What's My Line episodes. My style sense is reinforced constantly with how different the styles are when they got into 1960s. In the 1950s the women in both the panel and the guests wore lovely feminine,dresses, stylish sheaths or suits, pretty jewelry, sometimes a hat and gloves, attractive high heels and could walk in them gracefully. That's another thing I really notice is their great posture from every angle. When did that get lost?
The professional football player managed to look excited when told he won $25.
You would have too. He was probably only making 4 or 5 thousand dollars in the NFL - one of the reasons most pro athletes during that era had to work second jobs during the off season for income. $25 in 1952 is $300.00 today; about what he made for 1 NFL game (without getting hit to earn it). Before pro athletes free agency, 90% of the profits were kept by the owners. Athletes had to protest and infamously sue for over a decade to get their rightful share.
Unfortunately for Hal Block, his behavior is eventually going to get him removed from the show...next season I believe.
Block got what he deserved...sooner or later, someone was going to sue the network for his unwanted bodily assaults. If this is the way he behaved on national TV, can you imagine what he did to his secretary or the like, off camera and behind closed doors? Dude was outrageous.
Absolutely loved Mr. Daly's response to the "accidental" recognition of the football player. He was very gracious & made sure he went away with something. He seems very apologetic bidding him good bye as well,though I couldn't make out what he said. What a classy show and team!
With that eyepatch she's not Arlene, she's ARRRRRlene.
That pun is terrible… atrocious… unforgivably awful, and I LOVE that you made it. 😂😊 Puns for life!!
Yes, Bennett Cerf looks older here than in later episodes. He used the same hair dye as Ronald Reagan perhaps. I would guess that the producers asked him to do it in order to make his head more distinct on black and white TV. For that same reason John Daly looks sharper in a black dinner suit than in the grey suit he wears in this broadcast. Arlene Francis goes the opposite way in becoming blonde rather than the brunette she seems to be here. As for Hal Bloch sucking his finger during a close-up of his face, he needed more media training if it existed in 1952.
One of my favorite episodes!
At 12:50 there's that rarely seen angle of John on camera. They should have used it more, huh?
1st contestant was a looker
You're not allowed to say that.
This is odd in that just out of curiosity I checked the lifetime stats of Mr. Kalmanir and he did not play in 1952 which is the year of this video. He had stats in 1949, 50, 51 and 53. The Rams did not play the Giants in 1952 and their first real season game was 9/28 so the 9/18 games against the Giants that they speak of apparently was a pre season game. It would have been their last pre season game. I can only guess that Mr. Kalmanir was injured in that game against the Giants or was cut from the team after that game and was not picked up by another team during the season and was out for the entire regular season. He then played his final season in 1953 with the Baltimore Colts.
I know you posted this over 2 years ago but thought I'd respond. I got the impression that they were playing an exhibition game to support a charity or something. It's possible it would not count as a real game.
Yes, I agree. You'll see in my comments on my original post that I believed it to be a pre-season game as they didn't play each other that year in a regular season game.
Oh Ok. If you Abbott and Costello there is a good podcast out in Stuff You Missed In History Class that has a good history about their act. FYI.
Thanks! I'll check it out!
It was indeed an exhibition game (one of 7, and the last, played by the Rams in 1952.) The Giants won 30-17.
What year did they stop the "free guesses" thing? This show demonstrates the folly of doing this.
someone posted that it ended with the April 17, 1955, show
Faye Emerson, a stage, screen, and TV actress, divorced from Elliott Roosevelt in 1950; Roosevelt had been a mystery guest on one of the earliest WML shows.
Thinking of the most famous (to us anyway) Miss America, Bess Myerson turned 90 on July 16th.
I think Lee Meriwether went on to become more famous than Ms. Myerson.
Bennett looks older in the earlier episodes. The wonders of hair dye.
A fly-swatter is used more in one room than another?? She must have flies that are trained not to fly out of the room.
Hahahaha! 😅😅😅😅
⛔❓🐝
One of the episodes where the 'free' guess discloses the 'line'.
This showed the night before I was born!
This showed the night after I was born.
5:07 Bennett is *technically* correct, but he's also off on the wrong track... a classic "Steve Allen" line of questioning before Steve was even brought onto the show, haha!
8:57 When Bennett asked "Can I use the word on television?", it would've been hilarious if John (or Arlene) had replied with "Yes, you can-can!"
Never seen Faye Emerson but she was beautiful.
Miss America 1953 is extraordinarily beautiful.
The prettiest Miss America ever!
Nowadays the Miss America contestants are men🤮
You're not supposed to say that.
@@dbarker7794 LOL! A lot more positive things were said about her on the show than I'd even mentioned here.
I'll admit it. When Bennett Cerf acts creepy ... it's just creepy. When John says something creepy ... I think it's charming. Go figure. LOL
You don’t get the feeling that John Daily would go off and get handsy with a contestant.
*19* states - including 8 connected states in the north and west. New Mexico, most of the Mid-Atlantic states, and most of New England except Connecticut - have never produced a Miss America. Neva is to this date the first and the only Miss America from Georgia. However, *every* southern state except Louisiana has been home to at least one Miss America.
+soulierinvestments And as of Sep. 13, 2015, Betty Cantrell, Miss America 2016, would be the second Miss America from Georgia. As for Neva Jane Langley, her appearance on "WML?" came at a time when the pageant itself wasn't quite ready for TV (not until 1954, anyway), but even before TV, I'm sure she was in the papers and newsreels.
The South is where belles come from.
12:50 First time a MG (Neva Jane Langley, Miss America) made their TV debut on WML.
Second known time that a regular guest was visiting from a foreign country.
When Arlene guessed the football player at 10:22, this was the 4th time a guest was guessed on free guesses. The first three times, on lost episodes, were a motorcycle cop guessed by Arlene, an atomic scientist, guessed by Dorothy, and an umpire, by unknown panelist.
Somewhere in the comments, higher up the page, there's a link to a video this channel put together of all the correct wild guesses for which the video is available, and the Umpire is in them. I think it was Arlene, but I can't remember despite having watched it just a few hours ago.
@@tejaswoman Yes, in that compilation video, it was Dorothy who guessed the World Series umpire in an episode that aired after this episode. But, another umpire was guessed in an earlier, lost episode. In the video compilation, after Arlene guessed the lifeguard, the panel recalled previous free guesses. Steve said, “the two umpires.”
One year before I was born....wow
Bennett's hysterically funny questioning looks like a prepared gambit, but Gil Fates insisted that the production staff wrote them only for the comedians -- IE Steve Allen but also Hal Block. Bennett is spontaneous.
oh, interesting, I did not know that, thanks,
soulierinvestments I think he really thought the can-can dancer had something to do with baldness treatments, but he definitely seemed to be trying to milk the idea for laughs. Perhaps he knew about the gambit concept and wanted to try it himself. This is the second episode in a row in which he seems to be doing that. It feels slightly different to me, though, because I think he genuinely developed an idea about what the contestant's line might be and then continued to try to play his hunch for laughs afterwards. Impossible to know for sure, though.
Bennett was one of the brightest men in New York at that time. If he saw through Hal's techniques, he certainly had the talent to try it out himself.
SaveThe TPC Agreed. This is one of many instances where panel members pursued a line of questioning because it wsa producing laughs. In some cases that was because a false clue had been planted as a "gambit," but in other cases a panel member spontaneously came up with an idea that seemed to be working, and pushed it as far as it would go. While it's impossible to say with certainty, this sounds like an example of the latter.
Emerson showed up as a substitute fairly regularly up to 1960. I think she was the best guest panelist female of that period.
Emerson was so popular in the early 1950s that it was rumored that the newly created Emmy Award was named after her.
The look on John Daly’s face after Hal block attacked Miss America. He was pissed.
I had to go back and look. John was not pleased.
Quite understandably, he was furious.
I'm sure that the folks at Goodson/Todman and CBS weren't too thrilled either!
such class........never to be seen now....
The pageant wasn't televised until 1954, so I think it would have been a better contest if she had been a "Miss X". Sure her picture was in the newspaper, but it was the week before. Putting on the blindfolds and the proximity to the pageant gave more away than her just going out in the raw.
Joe Postove
I *beg* your pardon! Choose your words carefully, sir. ;)
SaveThe TPC I meant it in the nicest way possible, TPC. Like all my goodies.
Joe Postove
True enough, that could be the nicest way possible.
corner moose I thank you!
I hate to consider what that eye patch would have looked like if this had been an NBC production.
So strange seeing John in a tie instead of a bow tie.
@Bigwave2003 Bowties were becoming outdated😊
Neva Jane (Langley)Fickling is the First Miss America 1953 from Georgia,She passed away in 2012.She married to William Fickling Jr. in 1954 with four grown children,She one of Macon's Wealthy Socialite.She also played the Piano. 63 years later,2015, Second Miss America from Georgia is Miss Betty Cantrell is Miss America 2016.I never met Mrs.Fickling but I met Miss America's Aunt Dodie Cantrell -Bickley.She was a former News Director for 13WMAZ CBS In Macon Ga and First Coast News(NBC 12/ABC 25) in Jacksonville Fla.Late Mrs.Fickling was the 1st Miss America in Georgia 1953.Now 2nd Miss Betty Cantrell Georgia 2016.
when the Giants were rightfully called NY at least up until 1976
About Miss America
Neva Jane Langley
Hall Miller and Neva Jane Langley.gif
Born January 25, 1933
Lakeland, Florida
Died November 18, 2012 (aged 79)
Macon, Georgia
Education Wesleyan College
Occupation Television celebrity
Title Miss America 1953
Predecessor Colleen Kay Hutchins
Successor Evelyn Ay
Neva Jane Langley Fickling (January 25, 1933 - November 18, 2012) was an American beauty pageant queen.
Biography
Langley was born in Lakeland, Florida. As a college sophomore she transferred to Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, where she was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority. While attending that college she became Miss Macon, Miss Georgia, and then Miss America 1953.[1]
Ms. Langley's first television appearance as Miss America was on What's My Line (September 14, 1952) as the mystery guest. She rode the grand prize most-beautiful float by a commercial firm, called "America The Beautiful", in the January 1, 1953, Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California.[2]
She was also known for being the only Miss Georgia to win the Miss America pageant until Betty Cantrell was crowned Miss America 2016 sixty-three years later.
On November 18, 2012, Langley died of cancer at the age of 79.[3]
Anybody else notice the head motion Arlene gave to the first contestant at the 2:10 mark as she was doing her walk in front of the panel? It's like she was trying to tell her to get the hell out of there quick before Hal Block could stop her.
it seemed that everyone was trying to protect the first contestant from Hal, from John telling her to run fast down the first part of the line and then as you noticed, Arlene sending her over to John before making it full back to the top of the panel and they cut Hal off at the very end so he couldn't make another 'remark'
Jeff Vaughn I noticed that moment, too, and your take on it is very funny, Jeff, but I think what happened was more straightforward. If you watch it closely, you'll see the contestant hesitate on her return trip-- not because of Hal, just because she sort of froze for a moment and didn't seem to know where she was supposed to walk. Arlene's gesture snapped her out of it. Quite a nice little moment, actually. :)
No female, middle aged or younger, could safely pass by him. Hal Block was more like a "road block".
Dig that final guest Mrs Novek's hat! Wow! I wonder where that hat is today?
9:25 John D looks slightly ticked or relieved or both. I think Hal B. Irritated him.
Agree. I noticed that as well and didn't like it .. really irritating.
He looked mad to me about Hal kissing Miss America.
I've watched that bit over and over. Not convinced it's to do with Hal. It's a glance at the clock and I suspect a technical thought. He looks at the clock each episode and especially when they're running out of time. It looked to me like he was thinking 'oh **** we're still under ten minutes'. Running out of time is one thing but having too much time left would've been a problem with live television.
In tne meantime, yep Hal's humour is irritating at times as is Bob Hope's who he wrote ones for. Same trough of 'wit'.
@@davidsanderson5918 correct and there are some odd cuts too since this is a very old footage.
Again, the panel gets stuck when they receive an affirmative answer regarding which sex uses a product. Yes women use it, but men have not been excluded. It's like a brain freeze!
One-track minds. Steve Allen was especially guilty of unjustifiably imputing a sex-related angle in this way. Maybe they figured the producers were looking for laughs and would play that line.
They are just trying to narrow it down. But it can send you down the wrong track.
Despite the No answer, the last contestant's product could be used in the preparation of the food called...Shoofly Pie. #Cerfing
Hal Block was a damn macho. Unbelievable.
Yeah, too bad this is so frowned upon now. He's an adorable soul.
Beginning of the end for Hal Blockhead. What a tool!
Hal Block reminds me of an unctuous embarrassing relative that no one would admit to as part of THEIR bloodline.
That would rightfully be labelled sexual assault today.
Maaaa foaks dinnt eevn know aaa wusss coming uuup. Beautiful old southern accent.
I'll bet Block's comments and activities tonight -- especially his laying a big wet one on that flower of Southern girlhood -- galvanized the producers to get Steve Allen on WML quick. Langley's contract should have read that she did not have to go down the panel. I can almost hear Franklin Heller muttering in the control booth, "Oh lawz, I hope Hal contains himself. Oh no oh no oh NO!"
soulierinvestments I have been a staunch defender of Hal's value to the panel lately, but even I think he overstepped his bounds with that kiss.
SaveThe TPC It was within the limits of the character he had developed for this program, but I agree it's a good example of the way those limits were drawn too loosely. If the limits had included "no physical contact, ever" Hal might have lasted a lot longer on WML.
This show was so much better without Hal. Some of his comments are funny, but he just reminds you of a pervy uncle nobody wants at their wedding, and it's just not appropriate or comfortable for this kind of show.
Naturally no one would condone "copping a feel" with an unfamiliar woman. Yet the action on display was perfectly acceptable. First, it was a quick peck on the cheek, not a "wet one." Second, with his "My God, I got my reward" gesture following afterwards, it was much in line with his "girl-chasing" character established previously. Third, although of course he got a momentary jolly, this was all in the context of entertainment, where a little license is allowed in a "fun" setting such as this. Some people get a bit too carried away with their concept of "morality."
@@AllenMQuinn I AGREE! I'm going through the episodes from beginning to end (trying to anyway) and can't wait for him to fired or whatever they did to him. Seems like every time he says something trying to be funny, I say, "shut up, Hal!"
I am impressed by the honesty of the last woman. Nor did it harm her.
Oh I love John's face
The iconic CBS eye patch!
I'm glad for Arlene (it's hard to know who to root for in in this show lol) but I thought if they got it on the free guess it would be Dorothy
Arlene should have worn a 1/2 blindfold
The first episode she had the eye-patch, I thought it'd be funny if she just wore a second one over the other eye during the mystery guest segment. 😅
Woman at the start is I guess French-Romanian or married to someone who is! She was so charming. Not surprised she’s a dancer with that physique.
When Hal kissed Miss America… IMAGINE if that happened today lol
Wow, one of the free guesses actually landed. Ya love to see it
Hal was being very "Block" in this episode.
First time I've seen Mr. Daly with a light colored suit on the show. Interesting.
You could tell that John Daly was cautious about Hal Block from the beginning of the show. He blew off Block's comment at the end of game one.
It's pretty obvious that Hal wasn't liked by the panelists or John Daly.
Allen M. Quinn he was fired after making a crude comment about the sponsor's product sometime in 1953
@@charlespatrick8650 And he kissed Miss America Neva Langley , but see how he kissed Bette Davis. The end came when he chased a church minister /evangelist (a la harpo/groucho Marx style ) after the show ...I don't think he was suited to a show that aired on Sundays and had a conservative church going TV audience
And I'm sorry if it seems like I'm kicking him down ... like the others Hal Block was hard working and he came to a tragic ending
Cue-lennary?...cuh-lennaryArlene🎩
CAN CAN DANCER
PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL PLAYER
MAKES FLY SWATTERS
First contestant, she doesnt have a French accent. And her name is Romanian, not French. I'm sure she is not French. She didn't mention she is Romanian by origin
You may be correct that she isn't French -- yes, her accent doesn't sound French -- but there were and are people of Romanian extraction born and living in France, you know.
Mr. Block guessed Miss America from the 'cotton picker ' comment, genius. And Miss Frances opened the door, she was on the right track. Very nice work from the both of them. Mr. Block certainly had a reputation by the questions he asked.
Block's discernment wasn't so much "genius" but mere taking a hint given by the audience's reaction when Arlene Francis mentioned "Ms Cotton Picker." If you listen to Block, that's exactly what he told you...he picked up a hint from the audience's reaction. That was one of the shortcomings of having a live audience...whenever a question get's close to the answer, the audience tended to verbally react; panelist could easily pick up on the reaction and swoop in on the target area.
@@waldolydecker8118 Hint, hint, good point.
I feel they should've warned the audience not to give any hints to panelists 😮
The low amounts given as prizes seem very low, but $20 then is equal to $120 now! The $50 win is equal to about $500 today so the prizes were ok, but still not comparative by todays game show prizes.
The prize money was kept relatively low because the entertainment aspect of the show was to be foremost, said Mr. Daly.
Shows can be more lighthearted and fun when life-changing amounts aren’t on the line.
@@NoelleTakestheSky Very true, Jay Leno's remake of Bet Your Life is great fun, and I think the most you can win is $5000 split between the two players. I'd love to see more shows like this where even those who aren't the preferred player with good looks, and a great backstory can compete, and win a few bucks. I had a lady friend who went on The price is Right, and won a lot! I don't recall the exact number, but she had to sell half of it to pay her taxes so the large prizes aren't always what they seem. 👍😎✌🗽
I always love the ones with Hal Block! I hope more can be found from when he was on What's My Line. I really how the lost one with Gypsy Rose Lee shows up.
He was a dick..
You really chose an episode where he sexually assaulted a woman to say this?
@marywebb9127 Hal had a teenager mindset in an adult body😊
Bennett Cerf was funny: Can you say cancan on television?
Back then certain things weren't said!!😮
What a strange coincidence I actually have the program from the preseason annual milk fund football game between the Rams and the Giants that Tommy Kelmanir played on 9/18/1952, John Daley gave it away when he called him Tommy instead of Thomas which he signed
Okay fine, I'll ask.
Why was Arlene wearing a eye patch? (not the first time, or the same eye).
This is why I’m scrolling the comments!
I haven’t come across the answer yet.
We’ve been binge watching WML with our kiddos and we love it!
It make me want to don my closet full of vintage dresses 👗 I stopped wearing a good ten years ago. I miss looking proper in everyday 50’s dresses.
👗 🧤 👛
Be well, stay kind and blessings to all~
At least I've now got the term "saving daylight time" finally confirmed as the same what we up here in the north use to call "summertime" as opposed to "normal time".
SuperWinterborn I think you mean "Daylight Saving Time." I have always been confused by this term myself, and I've grown up with it! It seems to me that you need to save daylight much moreso when there is less of it than when there is more of it, but that's not the way it works. The logic behind this terminology has been explained to me numerous times, and in the moment that it is explained, I can sometimes grasp it briefly. On my own, I still have trouble trying to recall the explanations I've been given!
SaveThe TPC The explanation I have been given is that you're having an hour more with daylight in the evening after work or school. Should allegedly improve quality time with family or friends. It doesn't seem to work very well. ;) During the months May-June-July we now have daylight until 10-11 PM here in the south of Norway. In the north, the sun doesn't set at all these months, so to them this means nothing at all. :) Thanks for the correction! I'll let it stand, with your comment below, for educational reasons! ;) PS. I think it started in Germany, in the 30s.
SuperWinterborn It would seem to be an attempt by less fortunte countries to emulate the good fortunes of Norway! :-) Happy Syttende Mai to all of Norse blood or sympathies!
dizzyology Thanks you very much! :) (It also happens to be my father's birthday. He is 89 today. :)
SuperWinterborn
Wow! Happy Birthday, and G-d bless him! Besides being your father's birthday, is it some type of national holiday?
As for Daylight Saving Time, yes, I think the logic is that we are getting an extra hour of evening daylight by having the sun come up later in the morning. Since most Americans rarely make use of those early morning hours anyway, we are not losing much that way, but it still confuses me. The only way I can remember which is which between Standard Time and Daylight Saving time is to think counterintuitively -- i.e., remind myself that it is the opposite of what my mind thinks it should be ;). I have to admit that I don't understand why Norway would even need this accommodation if the sun is out for so many hours there anyway.
It's been a while since smoking was seen by the MC/panelists. I'm glad.
🙄
Bennett was unsure if he could use the word cancan on television. Was it that wild? Or was it the association with "can" (which you may define any way you like.)
ua-cam.com/video/3F7B2i02jrM/v-deo.html
She certainly can can-can. :)
I have protested Hal Block's behaviors on pages of earlier shows, but my views are changing. I am now steadily working my way through the years, instead of hopping around as I did before, and have watched Hal closely. My theory is that his lechery was like that of a boy fascinated by the lollipop in the candy store window. He dreams of it, can't have it , maybe gets a taste one day. DId anyone else notice Hal's exultant squirm, almost hiding his head with his arms like a little boy? He was obnoxious, and creepy, but in an innocent and obsessive manner. He had no social skills at all,and little filter, and just let that fascination with women show all the time. He knew how to get a laugh about sex but I think he was genuinely preoccupied. I mentioned it elsewhere, but I wonder if he was "on the spectrum." All the boxes check.
ADHD.
@jennymode. My sentiments exactly!! A man with a teenager mindset. I was the same in my 30s😅.
John should shut up, he gibes too many clues!
"Goodnight Miss America"...😂
Anyone else think that Miss America looked a lot like Keri Russell in her early Felicity days? When I first saw the episode icon, it threw me for a moment.
I first read your comment as comparing her to KEN Russell, which certainly threw me. ;)
What's My Line? yeah, but was it the English film director or the pro wrestler?
Joe Postove What's My Line? Bah, humbug!
Tommy Kalmanir: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Kalmanir
This is the second time Arlene got it straight away, she picked out the trapeze artist but that was a bit easier because Ringling Brothers had a big show in NYC at Madison Square Garden at the time and the lady was small, thin and wirey.
She nailed it another time where the challenger guest was a lifeguard. Gives you an idea how observant and intelligent Arlene is. These wild guesses have more to them than just pure luck.
Beautiful Miss America. She got married in 1955 an had 4 children. Died in 2012.
She died Neva Fickering of GEORGIA around 2012
What on earth is going on with Bennett Cerf’s head at 09:03 right after he guess at the can-can? He doesn’t look anything like himself. He appears to have something strange growing out of his head!!
Mr Bloch was kinda annoying to me. He's quick with a pun, which I can appreciate, but it's a bit overdone.I look forward to when Fred Allen finally joins the show.
Agreed. He was too obnoxious.
You're all from another era😂
WML: You have a couple of inappropriate comments below that need to be removed! There's no room for racism or cursing on a site like this.
Mark Richardson Ugh. Modern talk. We're nostalgising here!
Wow...This is the second dancer in as many days (although I may be wrong on the days count). Did they have a lot of dancers on in the early days?
How much are flyswatters today as opposed to 1952. I wonder what a vintage flyswatter from that era would get you on EBay?
Joe Postove I'm wondering if anybody's mother used a fly swatter on him or her for disciplinary purposes. My mother only threatened (which we took seriously at the time.)
M. M. Lol My grandmother would only use them on us AFTER they began to be made from plastic. The wire mesh ones tended to fray out and could get sharp!
I just bought a new flyswatter that is made as the classic ones were. A wood handle,, wire, and a metal mesh end. New flyswatters don’t work very well! This flyswatter was $8 so I hope it’s worth it. Heh.
@@BigbadwhitecrackerIt was definitely used for punishment back then. I was a recipient 😅
Not in the world of entertainment?
Look how askew Block wears his mask in the Celebrity Guest segment
And it looked like he actually raised it from behind just before he got the answer.
In all the hubbub when Arlene guessed the football player, it's overlooked that Hal had jokingly guessed "I think he sells headache powder to Giants fans" (!) ... Hal KNEW? This guy was in town to play the Giants.
Btw, I've seen very little of the Hal Block era of WML, so this was an introduction to his lechery. But for all the comments, and for all the subtle "signs" from other panelists ... the audience seems very amused by the schtick. The ladies seemed giggly amused. I don't get the sense here that his welcome had worn thin.
His welcome had perhaps worn thin more to the producers and his fellow cast mates than to the audience. It's hard to say without knowing what kind of mail they received about him.
First comment on UA-cam from you, I think, Brian. I think you're becoming a full fledged WML addict. :)
I like Hal Block. He was the down-to-earth antidote to Bennet's more patrician blandness. And sure, he stepped over the line from time-to-time, but some part of the early show's warmth left with him.
I don't see why he was let go, he added a spark to the panel.very entertaining.
What's My Line? Thx. I guess I broke my Lurker's Pledge, when I spotted something
original and couldn't resist shouting about it. It jumps out that Hal
first made a subtle but spot-on quip about
football, but it was eclipsed by Arlene's followup -- a head-on
full-body-slam of a guess. But what would've happened if his comment
had been allowed to linger on its own? Would it have attracted
attention? And DID he know this guy all along?I'm still intrigued by
Hal "Dimples" Block. He may rock the boat a
little, but I like the mix so far. After a few more eps, his welcome may
wear thin with me, too. :) FAYE EMERSON is very new to me, too. I
hope to see more of her on WML. And her old movies.
Brian Swift Faye is in quite a few episodes of WML already posted, including the one posted right after the video you're commenting on. Here are all of them:
ua-cam.com/users/WhatsMyLineCBSsearch?query=%22faye+emerson%22
anyone know...whats with the eye patch....haven't watched the program yet so im asking...
someone posted that her husband accidentally poked her in the eye this (the first) time she wore the eye patch, she scratched her eye with her finger nail another time, and once wore dark sunglasses because she sunburned her eyes 👀
I was just wondering if one of the celebrities ever guessed correctly on their free guess!
18:30 John D had "had it" with Hal B.
Can't blame him, so have I.
It MAY be funny once, after that he made himself look like an idiot
is she well built and everything? smutty for the times
Miss America IS entertainment. They got that one wrong by saying she’s not in entertainment.
These days, it’s entertainment. Back then, it was actually something else.
OMG Hal!!! How times have changed....
My god, Arlene is stunning!
9:21 LMAO I love how everyone just ignored Hal. It's pretty obvious none of them like him. Not only is he obnoxious, but his girl chasing gets old real fast. It's a game show, not The Bachelor.
Allen Quinn Hal was the blue collar panelist among the white collar (and mink collar) panelists. You're right, his hounding gets old. But the more episodes I watch, the more I get tired of Cerf' s self-appreciation of his own very humorless humor.
The terminally gauch Hal Block was so often a horrible embarrassment . His presence on the show was tolerated far too long
Cerf was a ham and never denied it, that "self-appreciation" was part of his shtick, and his chemistry with John Daly was one of these little things that made the show, Block didn't belong to WML once the show found its audience, you can see how much fun they have and how relaxed they all are since 1953, can't be a coincidence, once Block as out and the two Allens in... the Golden Age could start.