The Cincinnati Enquirer du lieu suivant : Cincinnati, Ohio • Page 101

Cincinnati In the 19th century was something of an artisf paradise. To prove It, the Cincinnati Art Museum has assembled a major show of work done by 19th century locals. And there's a lot more of It than you think. Page F-8. GGGtiOO Suidty.

Octotxv 1. THE QNONNATt ENQUIRER Gee, Beav, It's Good To See You And Wally Sports Styles Vary Wildly On Local TV 'Jt' BY TOM McELFRESH EnquMr Ttiaatar CrtMc COLUMBUS It's a comtng-of-fall Friday night with fog and a hint of rain. Enough audience to fill two thirds of the red, barn-shsped Country Dinner Playhouse Is gathering. Above the damp, gleaming parking lot. two-thirds of the big.

Illuminated billboard on the "silo" biases out some Information through the fog toward the busy eastbound lanes of 1-70. A third of the bulbs are burned out In the sign, but It's readable: Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers In So Long. Stanley." Dow and Mathers, yes BUT THE customers have come to see Wally and the Beaver. Live! On the tiny arena staged "Before your very eyesiS" Inside, there's a typical dinner theater buffet, a cheery welcome from manager Ed Vaughn and some birthdays and anniversaries to take note of; then, there's a reminder to take no photograph nor use recording devlces-and a blackout The stage floats down out of the celling silently. There's a bit of comic monologue from actor Dick 8olowlcs-and then, there they are -Wallace and Theodore (the Beaver) Cleaver now age 34 and 31.

respectively. There are a few sort, muffled "Ohs," and some muted whispers: "Is that hlmr But, curiously, there Is no entrance applause. Later. Mathers said. "A lot of people come to see bow we've changed.

But when they get there we try to give them a show they'll like maybe as well as 'Beaver: we show them what we can do as actors. "Any place we go we've got to prove ourselves." DOW HAS changed little since "Beaver" stopped filming, after seven seasons. In 1903. He was nearly adult. 18, when he left Mayfleld forever.

Now, he's a little heavier, the cheeks are fuller, his hair Is longer and both on and off the stage there's a "take charge" quality that Wally's character didnt permit. Mathers grew up shorter and chunkier than the Beaver's old photographs would suggest; the now. This time. In "So Long JERRY MATHERS. planes of his face have rounded, and he more than slightly resembles 8teve Lawrence-a kind of cherubic Steve Lawrence.

His voice, obviously, has deepened significantly, it took on a faint rasp and. like Dow, has acquired an adult's authority. The play. "So Long, Stanley," Is pure farce. Written by a team, Bob 8chlller and Bob Welskopf.

who wrote for "All In the Family" and now write for "Archie's Place," It began as a situation comedy live television. Stanley (Mathers) Is the lovable, bumbling nebblsh who cant quite commit suicide and, to end It all. takes a contract on himself with a "Oodfather." Monte (Dow) is his actor friend whose honeymoon Is seriously disturbed by a bumbling hit man's falling attempts on Stanley's life. Obviously, there's a happy ending. Several, In fact Dow and Mathers have already played "Stanley" for three months and are booked solidly In It through December, 1980.

They open at Cincinnati's Beef 'n' Boards Dinner Theater Tuesday for six weeks. Do they, I asked them separately, feel haunted by the long-ago success of "Beaver?" Mathers: "It's a character I created. But, that's what I do all the building construction business, lived on a boat married and had a child. Then he spent some time In the National Ouard. divorced, worked some In television and did some stage roles.

"All of my education was In film, the technical side. So I Just assumed that was where I'd go (after 'Beaver), The theater was the furthest thing from my mind. I'd never been a theater fan," Dow said. Mathers went to college; he kept his "thumb In the business" as an actor on a TV series, "Holmes and Watson." occasionally on "My Three Sons" and In semi-professional appearances In friends' plays and films. He married, went successfully Into banking (as a loan officer) and then even more successfully Into commercial real estate; he recently divorced.

He still sells real estate, even on the road with "Stanley." He says WVXU Splits Its Personality Over And Over -i TONY DOW. he's a "workaholic" and three hours at the theater do not Ml his day. He says his two professions are "very complementary. And they're both very people oriented." THEY'VE REMAINED good friends ever since the series ended. Shortly after that, they started making weekend appearances at colleges: "Hello, I'm Wally.

Hello. I'm the Beaver." But that dldnt satisfy either of them. Along came an offer two years ago to play "Boeing. Boeing" at Tiffany's Attic, a dinner theater in Kansas City. They took It It sold well.

"That proved." Dow said, "that we're a viable, salable product" And from that grew "Stanley." At first. It was to be a regular theater tour, but financing fell through, so they had the play rewritten -slapstick comedy and a new character were added especially for dinner theater. "Stanley" opened In Kansas City. It did well. too.

And Mathers said that took away some of the feeling that they were only a "novelty." Maybe 20 minutes after their first entrances that rainy Friday In Columbus, Wally and the Beaver were, I think, gone. Dow and Mathers were on their own. LASLO VESPREMI (V V- i WW Never before has the local TV scene offered luch sharp contrasts In TV sportscaster. Need proof? Some weeknight, during the 11 p.m. news, flip from suuon to station.

YouH get the picture real fast. It was when Zip Rxeppa began his happy-faced reports on Channel In early September that the contrasts between the three became ever so obvious. In fact. Rseppa's debut was so different It shocked a few traditionalists. Tim Melton's debut at Channel 9 In July wasnt nearly so shocking.

Only those who remembered his January marriage to pro golfer Nancy Lopes wagged their tongues. That was probably In envy. Fted Wymore has held the top sports Job at Channel 12 long enough to make him somewhat of an Institution. Although he Is quick with the commentary, Wymore often plays the entertainer role during his banter with Nick Clooney and Company. RZEPPA PROVIDES the sharpest contrast.

His constant ear-to-ear grin and a voice an octave or two higher than Melton or Wymore are his trademarks. He is cut from a bolt of cloth few have seen on the local scene In many years. His predecessor, Tom Kelly, abrupUy left WLWT June 13 over "philosophical differences." Some say It was because his on-alr opinions got In the way of the station's contracts to broadcast Reds and Bengals games. Kelly Is now doing morning sports broadcasts on WSAI-AM. Rseppa's commentaries most often touch only the perimeter of the sports scene.

However, last Sunday, he dared to suggest Bengal management lower ticket prices ti per seat until the team starts winning. Considering It was during his first month here, that was a gutsy statement. Sport news has become a TV game show on Channel 5. Rxeppa loves to spoof, accentuate his voice and even use props he raised a rubber finger for number one when the Reds clinched the Western Division title. Then, nightly, he and anchorman Scott Osborne play their own sports trivia quiz.

PAIRING RZEPPA and Osborne accents Rzeppa's strange style. Osborne Is the scholarly type who in some circles is regarded as the most professional anchorman In town. He and Rzeppa have little In common on camera except for the cordiality Osborne extends Zip. Melton came to town when Channel 9 began Its "7 O'clock Report." Jack Moran, generally acknowledged to be the dean of Cincinnati sportscasters, was moved from the 11 p.m. news to the "Noon Report" to make room for Melton, giving each sportscaster two weekday newscasts.

If there Is an award for most professional sportscaster In town, It would have to go to Melton. Although he doesn't do commentaries It Isn't In Channel 9's book Melton handles sports reporting and interviews with a serious, Intense style. WYMORE GETS the reporting Job done nicely, although he has disavowed the Journalist's role In the past. He Is a hustler, as Channel 12's promotion messages keep reminding us, who Is known to make barbed comments. In the final analysis, Wymore may get credit for expanding sports coverage In town.

It was Channel 12 which first went to a three-man sports staff (Dennis Janson and Walt Maher are his aides). Although Channel expanded Its late Sunday news to 45 minutes to make room for is minutes of sports, TV 12 expands Its reports as needed. Rzeppa has no local counterpart. Even on his own three-man staff, he stands alone. BUI Brown, the Reds' TV voice and weekend sportscaster, Is altogether different.

So Is newcomer Buddy Plttman, whose Southern drawl Is his major trademark. In the coming months and years, It will be Interesting to see how Rzeppa Is accepted by Cincinnati viewers. indcH Entertainment Editor JIM KNIPPENBERG 72 1-2700 ext. 228 ART F-M Jerry Mathers, left, and Tony Dow Stanley." time as an actor. That Just happens to be my most popular one." Dow: "You really cant do anything about all of that.

"When I write a resume I list It; It's Just one of the things I did. I dont like riding on the eoattalls of all that, but I dont think I am. That's people's perceptions." But Dow freely admits that when "Stanley" plays a city where "Beaver" Is re-runnlng on TV, business is more brisk. He laughed. "It's funny, 3000 people will turn out to get autographs at a department store, but you cant get a Job In a 30-second commercial.

"It's an Interesting business; It's Impossible to make any sense out of It" BOTH MEN moved Into other professions after "Beaver" ended, but only sort of. Dow went to college, painted, sculpted, started a ttons Commission (FCC) said the station could use, hardly anyone could hear It anyway. In fact, the signal didn't even make It back to the XU campus from the transmitter site. SO KING wasn't surprised to find that no businesses were underwriting any of the station's programs and the amount of listener-support money could have fit Into a moderately sized piggy bank. The university administration had set up the radio station as a' teaching aid for students; the administrators picked up the bills.

But the FCC eventually allowed the power to Jump to 6400 watts, making the signal reach about 50 miles from the station's transmitter, With increased power, the listeners (and financial support) picked up. Now the university picks up only a third of the annual budget; listeners pick up another third Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 6 a.m. 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. SOLID GOLD ROCK PROGRESSIVE ROCK 9o.m.to IQo.m.

runic service mmr IQo.m.to classical music service II H. Ull )0, 1 1 -Nu, Noon Noon to 4 p.m. SOLID GOLD ROCK 7p.m. 2 BIG BAND MUSIC 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

JAZZ I. 7 )0 til I ohmho 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. JAZZ UJ 1 1 1 pm. to 6 am.

PROGRESSIVE ROCK 6 a.m. 7 a.m. 8 o.m. 9 a.m. 1 0 a.m.

1 1 a.m. 12 a.m. 1 p.m. 2 p.m. 3 p.m.

4 p.m. 5 p.m. 6 p.m. 7 p.m. 8 p.m.

9 p.m. 10 pm. 1 1 p.m. 12 p.m. 1 a.m.

2 a.m. 3 a.m. 4 a.m. 5 a.m. 6 a.m.

BY TOM BR1NKMOELLER Enquirer Eflttrtatnmtnt tportr Mr. Wizard brushed off his lab coat, put on his glasses, looked Into the lens of the TV amen and spoke: "All you need tor this one, kids, Is an FM radio. Any one will work, but the kind you nave In the car with push buttons on It works best. want you to set one of your car radio buttons for 91.7 MHsor take a grease pencil and mark that spot on the dial on your home radio. "Now I want you to push the button or tune In that spot at different times during the day and night for the next week or so.

I think you 11 be amased to find out that almost every time you tune In that fre-quencyyoull be picking up a different radio station. You might find the first time you turn It In you've got a Jass station. Another time you'll pick up one that plays big-band music. Maybe the next two times youll hear rock-and-roll and think you've gotten the same one twice, but closer listening will show you're wrong and they're separate ones: The first plays stuff like The Rolling 8 tones and Led Zeppelin and the other plays Chubby Checker and Herman 's Hermits. "You'll find almost endless variations In the number of stations you'll pick up.

Now, scientists aren't absolutely sure what accounts for this phenomenon, but most of them think It has something to do with the angle of the Sun's rays and climatic conditions. HOLD IT right there, Mr. Wizard. That was no mystery, that was WVXU. It's the Xavler University FM radio station.

Your mistake came when you got caught In the old trap of thinking that a radio station sticks itself with one format, and only one format and nothing can make It wander outside Its self-Imposed musical borders-except consistently bad ratings. But WVXU Is non-commercial. The station is run almost entirely by volunteering students, Is supported In part by the university but mostly by donations and, though it definitely cares about them, Isn't a slave to ratings. So what would seem like a multitude of radio stations sharing one frequency anywhere else on the dial Isn't that at the 91.7 spot. WVXU Is programming something for almost everybody and Is making It work.

Take a look at the Illustration that accompanies this story to get a better Idea of the variety of programs. With the exception of Sunday, which is progressive rock all day, the day Is filled with variety. Like old-time top-40 songs? How does seven hours a day, Monday through Friday, sound to you? OR MAYBE you like Jazz: Six-and-a-half hours a day each weekday. And there Is half-hour radio drama twice a day, music on Saturdays, classics In the morning and the OCL high-school Enquirer art by the station Its old top-40 records when the station changed formats, and WLQA FM donated Its collection of blg-band records. Another cost Is the one of buying rights to the old-time radio dramas, one that was assumed this year by commercial underwriters who can claim the expense as a tax write-off.

The current shows Include original episodes of "Life of Rlley," "Duffy's Tavern," "The Hall of Fantasy," "Nightbeat," "The Oreat Ollder-sleeve" and "NBC Short Story." The morning episode Is repeated each evening. King has lots of plans for the future, Ideas that can be Implemented as community financial support Increases, but the real story Is WVXU's present state: growth from a 60-watt triviality to a unique station that successfully programs something for almost everyone. And that, boys and girls, even Mr. Wizard couldn't do at home. li il through donations and almost 20 local businesses now underwrite the balance of the programs.

Under King's leadership and the FCC's prodding, the station also moved out of the part-time radio business. A federal rule which said a station must make adequate use of a frequency or it might have to either share It or give It up helped move WVXU to a 24-hour-a-day, year-round station. YET THE operating costs have remained low for this kind of station, about $20 an hour. King Is the only paid person on the staff and he's also a licensed engineer who can maintain and Install equipment. The record library has grown through limited purchases and a lot of hustle, King said, on the part of students who have convinced a lot of record companies to Include WVXU on their lists of stations which receive free copies of new releases.

WSAI helped out by giving ball game of the week throughout the season. Such a mishmash shouldn't work. Broadcast theorists claim a station mortally fragments Its audience when It fillets Its formats into such diverse portions. In fact, early In Its history WEBN tried something very much like that and, sure enough, proved the theorists were right But WVXU keeps growing in popularity, according to Dr. James King, the station's general manager.

He can back up the statement. About four years ago, when King left commercial broadcasting and took the Job of managing the station part time and teaching radio and television courses the rest of the time, WVXU was a part-time station that signed off every summer for vacation. The programming wasn't anything to brag about, but then with 60 watts of power being the limit the Federal Communlca- BOOKS fjf CALENDAR F-10 FILMS F-5 TELEVISION 7 THEATER Fj4 MUSIC.