Newspaper Page Text
JACKIE K. COOPER
§/^ < 3hat t s PT^ll
finte/itadimcnt "
I know that you have
probably seen the movie
version of "Barefoot In
The Park" a few thousand
times and maybe a couple
of versions by different
little theater or dinner
theater groups, but I urge
you to go to Macon and see
the staging of this Neil
Simon comedy by the
Macon ACT group. I went
*|to the opening last Thur
sday night and I don't
know when I have laughed
and enjoyed a play more.
It is being presented with
the maximum en
tertainment being wrung
r ■ _
v 4
She was concerned, she
said, because her son, a
bright boy, was flunking
his freshmen English and
history courses. "He just
can't write for those
instructors," she
sighed. Johnny (not his
real name) is not alone. A
nationwide phenomenon,
more and more students
who cannot write a
coherent sentence are
graduating from high
school each year.
"Why don't they," the
mother complained,
"teach children in high
school to write anymore?"
"They" are the
beleagered tribe of English
teachers, to whom the
buck is eternally passed,
*land I, a battered
tribesperson, pass it in
turn to the real source of
Johnny's trouble: Johnny
cannot write because he
cannot or will not read.
Reading is to writing as
prerequisite and allied as
WATCHES FOR
CHRISTMAS!
I
We have a great line |
of Bulova Watches for |
f
the man on your list! f
f
§ BULOVA |
DIGITAL J
& J
ACCUTRON |
WATCHES |
I , ♦
See our line of f
t t
| gifts for anyone ■ I |
f on your shopping f
I list. |
f t
| Omtou JeweQeits |
Downtown Perry
t t
from every line.
Gail Copeland and
Gilbert Lee are Corie and
Paul Bratter, the
newlyweds and they both
are good constantly and
more than good in many
scenes. Her high point is
the second act and his is
the third. Morris Purcell
appears in the first and
third acts as the telephone
repairman and he makes a
few lines and a mobile face
a goldmine. He goes as far
with the part as it can be
taken.
Dick Hancock has a bit
as the delivery man which
walking is to running. The
composition teacher is
only a sideline coach
whose training rules for
the writing game are
based on a balanced diet of
reading. The coach's drills
help the runner develop
good form, personal style,
gain weight and reduce
wind. But the runner will
faint if he has not eaten.
Johnny is a victim of the
pop culture. Everywhere
his attention is distracted
from the printed page by
the student voices of the
electronic age, on film,
radio, stereo tape,
telephone and television.
These are wonderful
things--in their places.
Educational research is
just beginning to assess the
damage done to the young
by lengthy, indescriminate
viewing of television.
Constant exposure to
programming unsuitable
for children deadens their
senses to violence. They
is fine for its worth. On
stage more is Devoy White
as the roue' Victor
Velasco. Mr. White is a
fine actor but this part just
didn't fit him tor some
reason. He seemed a bit
uncomfortable in the part
and never really seemed to
relax.
My pick of the best of the
bunch was Dana Jones as
Corie's mother. She was a
smash whether whim
pering or shouting, in
toxicated or sober. Every
line was a gem and she
treated them all with a
flair. Even if the rest of the
cast wasn't good, her
become conditioned to
think that the most com
plex problems can be
solved in thirty minutes or
an hour. Worst of all, the
game shows, inane
situation comedies, and
soap, horse, and detective
operas do not require them
to think but merely to sit
passively in a semi
hypnotic trance. It keeps
them from knowing Scott,
Dickens, Twain and scores
of writers who capture the
imagination and stimulate
the intellect.
Heaven forbid that
Johnny hang up his foot
ball jersey and grow
hunched and emaciated
over volumes of Keats. But
a return to a reasonable
interest in books would be
of inestimable benefit.
Through reading, the
student absorbs painlessly,
as by osmosis, a large
vocabulary and a
knowledge of spelling and
punctuation. His ear
becomes attuned to correct
grammer, sound sentence
structure and good style.
These lessons impress
more thoroughly than
countless hours of dull
classroom drill.
As an infant learns his
Georgia drawl by
imitating the voices
around him, so the writer
learns to write by
imitating the models he
reads. The English
language is rich in a
variety of excellent
literature, but there is so
much trash competing for
Johnny's attention that he
needs the guidance of
knowledgeable adults.
The greatest treasure of
our tongue, the master
work to which the best
writers have unanimously
acknowledged their debt,
is the King James Bible.
The habit of reading the
Bible lends to the reader's
speech and composition its
Anglo Saxon vigor and
directness, its simplicity,
precision and brevity.
They will echo subtly the
stately cadence of
Elizabethan English. We
have noted a general
decline in familiarity with
the Bible among high
school students, except
those belonging to fun
damentalist sects.
There is a bright side to
Johnny's dilemma. If he
never learns to write
clearly and his thoughts
on paper remain a mud
dled tangle, there Is a
career he can qualify for.
He can work for the In
fernal Revenue Service
writing instructions on
income tax forms. Since
every year the number of
forms Increase, the
Government is always
looking for new talent.
performance alone would
have given the evening
zest.
Compliments for this
performance would not be
complete without a nod to
the director. As all of the
fun was unfolding you
could see the steady talent
of Ralph Pace permeating
-4;-,
No matteryou're shopping^ for, can be sure '
1077 2-SLICE QBB Spray, Steam 1J 88
U. « Holds 24 cartridges in vel- OUTING KIT IV I TOASTER 7 Drv mm u |4 WU
vet flocked compartments. D . . , . " " *
Lid design resists water Bring your own! Zipper bag. Toasts even frozen bread Instant spray on all set-
damage Locks TAII4 -two 1 qt. Thermos bottles, perfectly. Select-Romc tings. 25 vents in soleplate.
sandwich box. 209/10 color control. T644/8H Harvest gold trim. F73HR
01 ®/4»
Black s Becker I
Variable-Speed am/fm/-€l_ J power V / IJ®)
3/8" DRILL I) J ™ 34 88 M,XER
Reversible! Forward to Hear TV programs (VHF lj| | SS9!? ER 7^
*' " ( I dr , ,ve t screws; re T ver ‘ O iloS • channels 2-13) or FM/AM Hf ■# HEAD /
ger loc^sat any'speecL Dou #£E radio. Built-in AFC on FM. Five speeds plus burst of Clean machine! Set 3 ways
ble reduction gears 7190 ■ Huns on AC or batt. (not power to get thru extra- -double spray regular, pul
incl.) 7-2915 heavy batter. 3-72/3 sator, combination. 155 C
— —j
Rockwell / \ IN I
JIG SAW ■> < tensor ffk, Hi.
JIU OHVV \ HIGH-INTENSITY ■; s . flP*>4jHl
A”
■Mm MW SUPER-CURL 14)88 MAKE-UP |* ti
Anti splinter base insert re 1“ COMPACT IA MIRROR U °
duces chipping. Base tilts c lw
45°either way for bevel and | quiva ent to luU con- Cordless, with telescoping Four settings to make up
mitre cuts. Double insula- I ventional amp. Swivel rod-slips into purse. Heats for any occasion. Regular
tedforsafety. 4300 reflector, folding arm. 7100 ■■ j n a b ou t 2 minutes. 9330 and magnified mirrors. IM4 .
fx iTmipc -■ ~ Texas Instruments /SSSSSBIki
f JOSI IA)MEMORY 19" /SSI
Wth % f Shk yJHSBj calculator IL r —- L
I batt ’ ° r
I n Jr -S High speed steel bits in 15 /LSL/| «> MI6IT 099 /W|
vue dispenser. 9 V L ~- - 1 :ar All features as above except no [**"****^**w
A j|% Christmas
iYWk TREES
SCOTCH rjw
And All The Trimming.!
yme Value mon.sccondst. BSTRY*
a COCHRAN. OA. nrnnw
I 7tij/01/noj/O\ Hardware Mart KjMj
Vw HARDWARE STORES BSS- , .. 'ptfW.OA'
fBBPSS| u jpQp{ PHONKW7-«ni *
every scene. Ralph is one
of the rare people in
theater who is lust as ef
fective directing as acting.
Usually you get one or the
other.
The play continues
tonight through Saturday
night. It starts each night
at 8:15. Make your
reservation by calling 745-
7232 in Macon. But call
early, a lot of their per
formances have been sold
out.
Also coming up in Macon
is the Macon Little
Theater's production of
"The Lion Who Wouldn't".
This is their annual
HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL THURS., DEC. *, 1*74,
children's play and it
should be great tun tor
children and adults alike.
Appearing in the play will
be Paul Harvard whose
parents are Mr. and Mrs.
Howard Street and whose
grandparents are Mr. and
Mrs. Paul Hardy. You can
PAGE 5-A
see Paul and the rest of the
cast December 10, 11 and
12. ;
If you have never seen
one of the plays by either of
these groups, you are
missing out on a lot of
entertainment. Try It, :
you'll like It.