1958-07-12 — Page 14

HERE COMES

A CHOPPER

A Dongles Rutherford crimar

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, JULY 12, 1958.

I TRY TO CATCH

A

THIEF!

By JOCASTA INNES

TO anyone who finds selling fish, umbrellas or toothpaste a strain, my advice is, switch

SIIRIER OF TYRES, by

Club, 10 d.) is all about molor-racing. Silverstone, Le Mann, Monaco the Mille Migila, they're all there. Mr Ruther-books. ford describes cars and races with skill, and you're up to 100 mph in në tkme with a Forrari sitting on your tail and only 09 lops to go. Cars have been held io nymbolize everything from a death-wish to plain old-fashion-Foyle's

takes

by

us

-

to

Selling books, even in the There is blonde 19-year-old world's largest book store, le a Marian Horlunt from Copen

hagen, Klaus Gehring from relatively soothing avocation.

My day 26

books. The charm of book- selling. 1 discover, in that Instead of chasing the customers you wall all they chase you. This is not loztries but good psychology: Book buyers "dly- ilke salesmanship.

I sold 12 books in an hour

without budging from my port

in the O-Q action peelion,

An experienced salesgirl con toll at a glance which customers hre going to buy, and what type of books they will choos

Model girl

An elderly, ascelle-looking clergyman walked in. Theology? "Delective storics," sald

a salesgiri in Stuttgart and breezy Moryjke de Fiction Department Wilde from The Hague. ed sex, so there's never adult worked out like thin.

They all speak good English moment, The trouble in, there

At ninc a.m, I am glvon 1 and are familiar with the fittes isn't much crime, either,

yellow badge to wear and a and authors of every novel Morton. He bought olx who-

The next two published in the last six months, dunia.. MURDER

teatherduster. ASSURED,

hours I spend flicking imagin- But this is nothing. Bustling The majority of book-buyers, Michael Halliday (fodder and Stoughton, 124, d.)

ary dust off bookjackets and Daphne Canham, doyen of the 1 found, are men. They choo

of technical words. Into the world of insurance getting to know my colleagues. Department, can place any book Action broking.

An international lot these more which appeared in the last six Women, Americans in particular, Jock Marlow,

too than 40 per cent of Foyle's sales years.

so for Culture. Like the model. broker struggling young

In between frequent breaks girl, hat-box in hand, who asked cor to afford a secretary, finde staff are foreign students, learn-

for tea I learn about selling me for Eliot'a Four Quaricis. ilmselt hiring

beautiful Ing English as they cart, A Canadian girl with a very war- ried manner. In no time at alt Marlow finds a body in his bed, # great deal of evidence against

in and a strong suspicion that

the girl has lured him on. Mr. Halliday bustles you along from thrill to thril.

DEATH IS WAITING, by (John Long, Frank Usher Ifa, d.) is all about an attrue- tive young portrait-painter (female) called DayeSmith, a girl who can, umask a gang of International crooks before you can say burnt umber. She had her suspicions of those people on the yacht from the moment her friend Stevie Philips (an- other girl-walch It), disappear ed, and sure enough, they were after Mussolini's treasure.

She Asked Hitler:

'Come To Lunch'

an

(1)

THE FIRST ELEVEN

· “WIIO'S. BOERY_NOW." Connie Francia. M-G-M

2. "TOM HARK.” Ellas and his Zig Zag Jivo Flutes. Columbla, (2)

"STAIRWAY OF LOVE,"

Michael Wolliday. Columbia. (B)

4 "ON THE STREET WHERE YOU LIVE.” Vio Damone, Philips. (3)

5 "WITCH DOCTOR." Don

LADE. IT.M.V. (0)

6

"TULIPS

FIO M AMSTERDAM" / "YOU NEED HANDS." Max Bygraves. Decen (7).

"A WONDERFUL TIME UP THERE." Pat Boone, London, (4)

8 "LOLLIPOP," Mudlarks.

Columbia. (5)

9 "ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM" / "CLAUD- ETTE Everly Brothers,

And the most popular authors? Eect-sellers

Londoh, (12) eome and go but some writers go on for over- Dickens. Hardy, Maugham, Nevile Shute. Jane Austen, Aldous Huxley,

Customers likewise como and Ro-although Foyle's boasts a high proportion of "steadies." But one customer who never fades from the scene and for whom every salesman keeps a wary eye open is the bookthiel,

THE book trade has never been conspicuous for in Daphne had briefed me on

reason for this, perhaps, is that there just is not room for more than one Christina Foyle,

Miss Foyle began her career in the "tride" nt the nge of eight when she used to turn up al auctions to bid for rarities

William BOMEONE

THE her father, FROM PAST, by Margol Bennett Foyle, had marked In

the catalogue. (Eyre Spotliardoode) Is the story of Nancy Graham, who would go and tidy up friend Sarah's at after Sarah hind gone and got herself murder. ed. Then of course the police came fuld asked questions and poor Nancy told the most dread- to shlekt her friends. ful les

her

AL 18, A fully- fledged bookseller, she planned and organiser. the first Foyle's Liter- ary Lunchron. At 23

she travelled utonc

Into Bolshevik Russia dent to negotiate a

You remember. But well-trod-between Foyle's and

den though the path may be, Miss Bennett writes brightly and with wit,

10s

ΤΟ NOT SAFE

DE FREE. James Hudley by

Chase

bg.. (Robert Haly Ltd., takes us to Caunes just in time for the Film Festival. Among those tresent --and

I quote from the blurb“A young de-

Russian The

book

trade. Shortly after

that she founded the

Arst Foyle's Book Club.

Christina Foyle

Is

briefcases, ancaking book-Jackets back into the shelves and walk- ing off with the books.

spent the whole day keeping and so are the lending libraries. tabs on people with briefcases, Foyle's foreign trade-which moes and hunted expressions. I she was one of the first to en-made sure there were no empty courage—lakes Jump farther book-Jackets in the O-Q section,

round the world every

I sold a gratifying number of books. But the hendiest thrill of book-selling eluded me. I didn't catch a thief.

Miss Foule,

now 47, and a power in the trade as well as a pillar of Foyle's-where she holds very active directorship.

day.

Her own favourite idea, the once-monthly Literary Luncheons, have achieved the status of an institu- Hon.

She has always niin-

ed high in her shotce

of speakers. The only she somehow guests

succeeded in her

never

cornering with

formidabic charm were Hitler, Mussolini and Goering,

charming They wrote such a refusals-but they were always

too busy," she recalls.

But she can lay claim to least one notorious villain, Haigh

of ucid bath fame..

Without the trace of a wrin- generale with a lust to kill." Mrkle, her forget-me-not eyes as Chave doesn't specialise in nice candid as ever, her feminine ap- people, but he's hot-stuff on peal is undiminished.

nastles and this account of gut- ter-wealth and gutter-poverty

So are the bright ideas the ofteu outrageous notions that have made her the most controversin! Agure in the Trade.

conspirlag to shield psycho-inspired, pathic killer really grips. It may be absurd, I sincerely hope it is, bui i cuuldn't put it down.

J. M.

The Book Clubs-there are now 10 of them are flourishing,

nt

"He used to come to a lot of bringing his our luncheons, wealthy widows. He was an intellectual snow, you see. Such a nice-looking man,” says Miss Foyle,

VIGNETTES OF LIFE

YOU SHOULD BE ON THE

ROAD BY DAWA EVERY DAY AND BROTHER YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SOME SUNSETS THAT'LL OPEN YOUR

EYES!

TAKE LOTS OF WATER

IT'S GOING TO BE HOT

AS BLAZES AND

IF YOU DON'T

DRINK ALL THE

TIME YOU WILL BE

DEHYDRATED – DRIED UP

LIKE A

PRUNE!!*

Claire Trail!

-(London Express Servlet

"YOU CAN'T EAT ·

SCENERY-THE

IMPORTANT. THING ON A TRIP LIKE THIS

ARE THE

OMMODATIONS

BOOKENDS

HERE are some facts about the

bookshop which is generally recognised of the world's greatest:

The biggest percentage of thefts is from the Theological Department,

→ About

17,000

secondhand

books, from bulk purchases, ore sent weekly for pulping.

6 Foyles make £100 week so}). ing the stamps on letters from overseas.

A Third Folle Shakespeare, foter sold for £2000, was found in a sack of books about to be pulped.

Most consistant best, sailare are the Bible, the Concise Oxford Dictionary, and Hull and Knight's Algebra

A copy of Humat in Hindu coats 3d in Japanese the price is 23

10 "GRAND COOLIE 'DAM” Londe DuresaM. Pyc-Nixa. (0)

11 "KEWPIE

DOLL."

Frankie Vaughan. Philips. (10)

THE TWELFTH MAN

"ATURY GAME Bernard

Breslaw, Michal Medwin, Alfe 14, Lealle Fyson, HM.V. (17)

*

*

Whistle Stop Special

Here comes

Bygraves

showing how

HE

By Cyril Stapleton

【ERE is your columnist surveying the vagaries

of the pop world from a hospital bed. I've been lying here wondering how a British song, sung by a British singer, can ever make the grade in the British Hit Parade,

TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT ON THE DISCS

Fast quarter of 1957 compared with 1958

STANDARD 78 r.p.m.

LONG PLAY

MEDIUM &

EXTENDED PLAY

DOWN

25%

UP

24%

UP

93%

Michael Rand's graph today Illustrates the new trends in public taste which are bringing big changes in the pattern" of record sales

Mapping The Trip

ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY IS "HERE IS OUR ROUTE MARKED IN RED" —THEN THE ADVICE STARTS IN A' STEADY-FLOOD AND THEY BEGIN TO SCRIBBLE ALL OVER YOUR AICE NEW MAP.

"I HAD A CUSTOMER WHO TOOK THAT ROAD

AND SHE HAD NOTHING BUT. TROUBLE 'TILL THE AUTO CLUB CAME AND GOT HER!"

COPR. HIS BY GENERAL PLATU 6-22 CORP. THE WORLD RIGHTS KEZENYan.

By Harry Weinert

PERSONALLY I DON'T LIKE

·THE LONG LONELY STRETCHES AND I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHY THOSE BUZZARDS ARE ALWAYS FLYING AROUND ——*

TAKE MY ADVICE -- DOAY STOP AND ASK FOR DIRECTIONS — THEY'LL ONLY TALK YOUR EAR OFF AND YOU'LL WIND UP IN A-FOG ANYWAY { "

"DRIVE AT NIGHT,

AVOID HEAVY TRAFFIC- UNLESS YOU ARE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO LIKE TO SLEEP AT NIGHT Į”

Τα call our best-sellers list "British" is really a wry joke- 09 per cent of the records in at Ara of American songs or American singers.

It wouldn't be so bad if your own songs and singers wero But the given a fair chance.

Odds are lacked against them.

The record companies are

convinced that you, the public, dise jockeys give preference to

prefer American dises. TUM

the American songs because they feel that you have been condi tioned over the years to want them.

And record dealers place fat urders for American records, knowing that they will get the full explollallon treatment from both the disc jockeys and record companies,

His own

Amazingly, Max Bygroves has pulled off the near-impossible, His recording of "You Need Hands"sixth in our HIL Parade this week-is his OWA composition. It's enjoying thu same, fabulous. success in the States,

So impressed are the smart American operators that they

ate already offering a 5,000- dollar advance on the next Bygraves composition.

Max has done more than make a best-selling record. Ho nas proved an important point,

That a British artist can hit the jackpot both here and in the States, given the chance to record British material.

record That Bygraves welling not because of high- pressure boosting-but simply because you, the public, liked it.

And the morni?, · The back- room boys of the recording industry. should never take public laste for granted.

"You Need Hands," is BL simple, homely song-the type thal Brilish composers, by Tin Pan Alley tradition, *xcri Mt.

So why, in the name of reason, don't the record com- panies take a chance on British --- material more often?'

A snag

Biggest draw on Broadway currently is a musical, Music

The

Mon," written by

Meredith Wilaca.

Wilson was in Britain in May to plam Londra prediks- tion for the show, Мах Bygraves was to be the star- but there is a emag..

Val Parnell has offered 10 headline Max in a West End revue-m eight-month engage- ment. And Max also has four flims to make by next Spring. So it looks as though."Thu Music Man" will be deferred.

Prediction

A coming event conddently predicted is that "A Very Precis ous Love" will be Doris Day's first big tit in two years. Song is the theme from the film "Mar- jorie Morning-star,"

But another coming event has

more significance in the Day calendar. She is expecting a baby in November. Her only other child is 13-year-old son, Terry.

After the baby arrives, Doru will probably be started in the Hollywood version of the Brilian gtago success, "Roor Lake a Dove,"

Enterprise

Congratulations to the boys of steam radio for enterprise. Pro- ducer Donold Maclean hit on the idea of re-creating the famous Bob Crashy Bobcats.

Bob agreed to front a British group Ronnte Aldrich's Squadronaires and the 15- minute session wis recorded. It will take the air at in the Light Programme.

The old Bobcats. Tecords are still remembered with affection and respect by jazz fans. Bomo of them night question the ability of a British band to recapture the old spirit. Not o Bob Crosby.

"Great," he enthused. "You know, Benny Goodman once Hatened

to trumpeter Yank Lawson and cracked; "How can

he play the New Orleans rylof. He was born over 30 miles from the town,**

Bo you can guess how amazed I felt when I heard these British boys play the genuine stuff over 3,000 miles away."

FOOTNOTE: The Musicians Union forbade Bob Crosby to conduct the somlon:ut says Bob, "I just bolbed up and down in tempo. Do you think "I broke any rules 200