1958-09-23 — Page 4

THE CHINA MAIL,

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1958.

Cole Porter: His Solitary Fight Back To The Piano

A

by TERENCE LANCASTER

New York.

SMALL, heavy-lidded man looking like a brooding leprechaun swam up and down a blue-tiled swimming pool in a lush Los Angeles suburb for exactly 20 minutes.

His style was not exactly laboured but the origin of its unusual earnestness was plain to see. The swimmer had only one leg.

C'ule Porter, whose words and musle have big

Always he has been another two grand places which

He belp methocdeal,

Lever have not been played since the could unless he was ur- day he went into hospital. ing perple to fall in love for compose mjole than 30

was rounded with what he regarded yous,

foots: his

dictionaries, fighing back after the biggest, as longer ordeal of his glitering thesaurus, wastepaper

buske carefully sharpened pells, Paper handkerchiefs, and cough Crop,

He

In 1937 he was thrown from a horst. Both legs were crushed, onu particularly badly. For years he lived in a wheelchair. Even when he was released from it to Emp with a sick from success to success he was el a most continuous pain.

Now he is adjusting himself to his new hé a curefully as he used to turn out songs bija deadline (17 numbers for 'Kiss Me Kate" in three months, with one, **Biance," produced In

part of the

30 minutes),

The past Swimming Ex

This spring he accepted the advice of his doctors and had his sight leg amputated. Behind him were 500 songs 27 shows, and 10 tis. Since then he written nothing.

kas

ater' He

lund

Bollars

The Last gohn Eving in the

marqui inherited (about

WH

whitel

mid.cg-

uf

set

Marcell.

years

2

This is where he has pro- many hits with a dvod so Leetmique which is all his own.

Working

1

He once said: "U-vally Birk of the muste at night anch the jyrles in the daytime, Some- timen 3 werk like a brickiøyer; | write the lust line of the lyric first and work backwards, all'og In the rest.

"I have never been insprei. a speelfie I compose only for musical comedy or a movie.“

L. FOCUS. He is in the pool for the same me every day. with been Alted has

fis "raines" "luminium leg. comes regularly to tench him lo walk again. Much of his older time is spent practising with "What The leg.

Often he plays-mosity clasi- cal music-at one of the cment and plances which stand bush back in the mirrorea elegance of his huge living-rojni

So cante "Begin the Beguine,” "Just One of Thore Things."

This Thing called Love?!" "Night and Day" aud. "I Get a Kick out of You

|HANDLE MONEY? IT JUST ISN'T DONE ANY MORE

Here's

New York.

NOR 358. just

FR 5, 6, I have Jest been given

u piece of pasteboard which could take me this week-end to Africa on safari, complete with guides, tents, Jeep, and ammunition; or to Las Vegas to play the gaming tables; or to Hawaii to join the hula-hula girls.

Thirty-Ove_sh|lings and sixpence. That's all, Not another penny should I have to pay out-pet.

The bills would come in eventually, of course. But that would be at the end of the month. Then I should have another three months before I had to hand over any more ensh.

Extenordinary? Of course. Aut true.

For Americans, always battling to keep up with the Joneses, høve found a new way to "live on the slate"--the CREDIT CARD SYSTÈM.

With

A

boss who t#

are an ready to my you horst kind of fellow or a bank manager who will Even if you say that, haven't much cash, you are £1 reasonably Eane nothing spender, there is

to stop anyone gelling credit card in the United States,

cor-

From the moment you

your £51,

curd-usually of within a day or two asking-you have joined the growing legion DI Americans who have made It os big a social gaffe to inoney be seen handling as it would be to turn up in a cloth

cap and duroys for dinner with a bishop at the Athenaeum.

It just Jan's done, Instead

out you simply pull

your credit card which Nölds"good" not only in America but almost every other country-

later about how you can possibly Alford it.

alg the bill and worry 40.00 £1,430,000

With his wife, who died

hal Ite Shared

zebra-skin-13- plat auf decorated Bat palace in in Pais, n duke's

Venice Seville,

In 150 seal. Porter derigns

floating night gafleggunle, or club.

Solitude

In 1050 there has been only solitude. First came the nine

the before werks

operation, while he was being prepared for surgery, when he received In the five alms no valor months since then he has deliber Trus the withdrawn world.

Records

more

ןןןןן

mote

the

These five all mank in the 35 most popular American songs ever written, a feat which has be matched caly by 11ving Berlin and not equalled even by

ur George Ger Jerome Kern shwin.

Porler had strived to over- Recently he has been listen-

corne the handicap of inhottled ing

11

wealth and to become the must the gramophone --- 2 com- pleated affair with an exles on professional of them all. in every whole house can be saturated with

ile muvie.

his from choosing turis Broadway hits, That mean; he I studying his trade again.

Len current

to

That magic

He has kept going through 21 years of pala and more than 40 operations with a toughness that surprised his friends and impressed N's docteRS,

Now he has another deadline to meet. He is determined Le back in Now York by

Once he wroke of "A Trip to November back to the brigh green carpel, the red-and-wh'te the Moon on' Gossamer Wings" floral draperie of his worny There was nothing the bat for apartment on the 41st floor of Him today. Waldorf Towers, and bark lu

HARRY ODELL

announces

THE FIRST THREE RECITALS

UNDER THE FIRST SERIES OF * SUBSCRIPTION CONCERTS

*

CHARLES LILAMAND (Pianist)

MONDAY, 3rd NOVEMBER, 9 P.M.

*

*

*

CARLO ZECCHI (Pianist)

AND

ENRICO MAINARDI (Cellist)

WEDNESDAY, 5th NOVEMBER, 9 P.M.

* *

*

BLAISE CALAME (Violinist)

MONDAY, 10th NOVEMBER, 9 P.M.

*

ALL AT THE

*

LOKE YEW HALL

*

*k

*

BOOKINGS NOW OPEN AT

INTERNATIONAL FILMS, LTD. Room 107, No. 9, Ice House Street Telephone 21832 & 31488 and

HARRY ODELL'S SHOWBOX

Gloucester Arcade

Telephones 22151 & 22152 Regular Price for ONE Concert $12.80, $10.20, $7.60, $4.20

Subscription Price for $IX Concerts. $58.20, $45.60, $33.00, $18.90:

But it seemed a good bet that he would be walking unaided, with one sount log and one aluminium one, from bls finxi to the Waldorf lift by November, and writing with all the ald Porter mugle again run.

ROUND

UP

11

These is nothing that money cnnot buy with the right eredit card in your wallet.

AND TIPS

the way to live like a

millionaire

WITHOUT SPENDING A THING

rapidly as their members

fail

to meet the bills they run up.

... the waiter understands; he, too, has a credit card

by ARTHUR

BRITTENDEN

to - blazes-with-the-cost spree that your credit card is useful.

Take a drive into the country

Without 4 penny in your pocket you can go to the nearest with your family for the after- If you are running low telephone booth and quote the novII.

petrol you can pull into crcali number given to you by en the lelephone company and ask almost any Bling station and the operator to puî you through with a wave of your credit card, to a car-hire Brim.

Fel your tank topped up without

evin changing hands.

mention

You have only to that you hold a edit card and they will have chauffeur driven saloon sent along to take you to the airport where, show

card, you will be Ing a credit

anywhere in given a lekel to the world.

A car will meet you at the other end and your credit card will get you a room at the best hotel in towIL.

A sutte of rooms, the restaurant and bars are at your disposal. What about ilpa? Just wrlie: "Plus 15 per

Cext" as you penell name across bills.

And look at some of the other things you can have without a

tha! sordid whisper of

word "canh."

They are on a list which one of the credit card clubs sends

cach month out

to its

members:-

"The ultimate in fine authen- ilc Italian coffee-making machines.**

"Cinema tickets, taxi fares,

temporary office telegrams, help, typewriters, hair brushes, Bue lobsters, shirts and ties, ♫ - slimming machines, sweets, handbags, shavers... and on,

ALL YOU DO

More certain

than

anything clse about a credit card is that it leads i holder to spend more money than if he was without

it

EVIDENCE

When the system started the klea was that it would appeal

to bushes men. At the end of the month they would be sent a clip of their entertainment bills-handy evidence to pass on with exp5C9 etaims to the incune lax office.

But the system has spread for beyond that. Today many cards too, For women hold

made credit clubs

une ct their most skilful moves when they announced that, while a mas must pay five or six dollars a year for his card, his wo

half could have one for

tho price.

of s

This, of course, is the chief risk a credit card concern must Now the story is told fuce. That is why the survivors husband who called his credit heavy card club to say they must appear to be those with

capital backing to meet your cancel h's wife's membership bills for you quickly while you because she was taking all her ponder on how you cre going friends out to lunch DB though to reciprocate.

It was free.

The Diners Club says that only

cent three per

of its members let it down.

Then he added: "But sort this cut between you, Don't get me in the middle."

He might have felt better if The chances of being accepted he had known of the man who flopers,

electric are not necessarily greater if took his wife out on his credit The list goes on you have a lot of money. "We card to an expensive Chicago

would rather have a steady restaurant.

character with 300 dollars la "Alter the pheasant and the bunk than someone will pommes souffle, I will have a 150,000 dollars who pils 5,000 bilet mignon," she said. Then on a horst," an official told me. turning to her husband she But only one in six applications asked!" "What do you suggest is turned down.

I drink with it, darling?"

Its reply: "What about Yaku If you lose your card or Michigan?" have 1 stolen, a detectiva tracking agency is put on to it down for fear that the Ander will skip off on a giddy whirl to that inland in the KEEN he had always dreamed about.

All you have to do, clutching your credit card, ly to pick up a telephone or walk into any one of hundreds of alores across the United States and say: "I will have six of those.”

The leader among the credit card sponsors is the Diners Club.

Its card would get you almost any of the things or to most

"Masterpiece chess set of the placce- have mentioned. magnificent set destined to be the goal of every chess player in your America."

The waiter will understand. He, inst certainly, has a credit card 100.

ULTIMATE....

With an alr-travel cord an

Way Children See It Americon can fly to Britam;

"Luxury food hamper-only drawback with this is that it is so handsome you won't want lo take the package apart,”

"Frozen foods they will pro- vide you with an elegant and delightful evening's dining."

"Presenting the world's most once there he can place orders rera and Ballering of fine Im HOW do chlidren see things?on credit at some of London's Ported perfumes."

cigarettes, "Ilavana cigars, address to e must expensive shopp, can stay

cne of 12 West End lighters, delivered to you any Psychology Section ગ the any

hotels, and can dine En where," British Association meetings in

to from Corawal Edinburgh Professor

restaurants John Cohen, of the Manchester Uni- versity, quoted the following

111

on

pencil

"Exclusive Perthshire.

pen and But don't imagine it is only combination"— for signing your anawers of children asked to when you go off on a spectacular bills interpret well-known vayings. 1....Necessity is the mother of, invention' means the mother of someone in, the family who invented something." 2.... Fond of blowing his own trumpet' means he hnd Q trumpet which he had kept a kog time and it was his very own and he was fond of blowing it." 3...." "There is a ide in the affairs of men' means mon grow Alronger es the lide comes In and become weaker as the de out." 4.... "A wolf in sheep's clothing" means he is bad- teagiered but wears wool cloth- Ing. 5....."Proof of the pudding is in the eating means a woman meets a man, falls in love, then marries him straight- awny and he turn out to be a criminal. She should have lumt more about him before she married him." The results sold the Professor, suggested that at the age of ten, ruly about half of the children could venture beyond 1eral interpretation.

Jobs For Ex-Regulars

ONDON borough

councils

4 who are finding it hard to ill town hall vacancico are being Jurgod to give jobs to men being released by the Services. A circular asks them to give "favourable considérallen to the jolaims of middle-aged retiring officers and other ranks.” The scheme is backed by the National

Joint Council for Local Authorities who say if possible a definite number of vacancies ach year. should be put aside for ex-Regulary who "posscas many lyktüable qualities,”

Today it is heading towards 800,000 members. They pay five dollars (359, Ed.) a year.

Hotels, restaurants, shops, and other firms with whom you deal on your credit card Elve the club seven per cent of what you spend.

This way the club's profit last year was nearly £500,000. It is listed on the American Stock Exchange.

POSSIBLE

So readily do business houses accept the credit cards that this well happen. For what might

am le going to turn away busi ness such as the credit carda have brought?

There might be another Cali- farmian like the one who did ro on a safari on his credit card. The cost: £20,000. Or that film company might decide to throw another £8,000 patty

number on the bill.

It is shortly to be challengerund again write its credit card by the American Express travel concorn, which on October I will cand also go into the credit business.

Striving to match these giants are analler organisations, come of which rocket and die as

Or another

Door little rich girl might devids to clope Nka the one who went off with a tifi operator and spent nearly £2.000 on their credit card honeyranon.

ZANIES

Kai-shek ain't a little bear that escaped twice recently

ala't a 'gendful with a little island in the Pacific."

"Let me educate you, honey,

Chi

Chi

at the London Zoo and