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Show i- - - ! vS. , vIi : I m '- ' h - et President Hoover does sot appear the least bit nervons before "going on the air,' microphone as though In ordinary conversation Great and Near Great Some -- in Very Famed Higher-Up- s American Public Life Quail at Sight of Disc in Broadcasting Station , Afflicted With Most Torturing Type of Stagefright By Nell Ray Clarke brother. His name is Radio a STAGEFRIGHT has younger all the Nations notables have displayed symptoms of the disease at one time or other. But the epidemic is passing. As the microphone becomes a more and more familiar object, it loses its power to frighten and upset, and celebrities become hardened navigators on the radio waves. But (trong men have fainted and women have wept at the Impressive silence of the tittle black disa. It stares them out of countenance, and, like a million eyes. It and bore holes in their their poise. The opera singer finds It hard to sing without the warm response of an appreciative audience. The orator finds it bard to tell his best Jokes when he doesn't even get a smile. The quails and perspires when he can't awing a left In a simple gesture of phasls. - In some.lt has produced all the more familiar outward symptoms of real fright. Recently a Negro quartet was broadcasting from a Washington studio. The first few lines of the song had gone very well, when the second tenor literally began to turn white. The announcer, who always has an eye out for symptoms of nervousness, quickly cut off the current when he faltered and dropped over on the floor In a dead faint. Attendants took the unfortunate tenor out of the room and applied restoratives. In a few moments they, bad him back on his last and before the microphone again, and the "gentlemen and ladies of the radio audience" never knew what had happened. One Incident out of which studio attendants have got many a sly chuckle was the fright before the microphone of n one of the newspaper In the country. He Is a man who hows no respect far the great and the near-grewisecracking In his column at the expense of anybody and everybody. He started out on his radio talk with a normal amount of assurance, but soon ho was seen to hesitate. He swallowed hard three times In succession, and then, pawing the air In front of his face, ha pushed his copy Into the hands cl the announcer and fled. Madame Jeritza exhibited unusual nervousness when she first entered the studio, but when final preparations were completed she stepped up ce and sang as though she really enjoyed prise-fight- er according to revelations of . . .. studio officials wefi-kno- best-know- lst at, a President of the United State talks over the radio, the microphone la, of course, set up wherever he happens to be. Both - President Hoover and former President Coolldge are good radio speakers and are apparently at perfect ease "on the air." Just before taking office President e talk from Hoover made a his 8 street home. Operators bad apparatus Installed In his study, and before going on the air he chatted with them and passed cigars around. He was not the least bit nervous, and talked over the radio as If ha were In ordinary conversation. Former President Coolldge la usually calm and cool enough before a microphone. During his Administration he spoke over the radiq about forty times. He has lways had a reputation tor being on time for broadcasting. If he was scheduled to talk at 8 oclock, according to Vincent Callahan, of the National Broadcasting Company, you could count on his being present at about fifteen seconds before or after the hour. He became so used to seeing a microphone around during the five yean of his Administration that he must have become indifferent to It, judging from one story which to now being told concerning his microphone behavior. On the Is question be was to deliver a speech at the dedication of a tablet which bad been placed In the Washington Monument by the State of South Dakota. The President arrived a little early and ready to begin hit speech before the hook-u- p had been completed. One of the attendants stepped up to him and asked If he would tniTui waiting until WRC was ready, meaning, of oourse, the Washington TT7HEN ' four-minut- ns speech stiffly, but his voice registered well The microphone had a most unhappy effect upon Madame Jeritza, The very atmosphere of the studio made her nervous and she asked that the curtains of 1118 broadcasting room be drawn, so that po One on the SHBIffS 'CdliJdToolMn at Eut no sooner her during her songs the curtains closed than she burst it McCormick, of Illinois, appeared a little nervous, but then she always manifest the temperament of a thoroughbred horse ready to dash Into action. Ruth Bryan from Florida, maintained her Owen, charming dignity ard quite a bit of-- the ar.a charts -tiff 'father. the Great Commoner, The recent Inauguration of Half Hours With the Senate" has furnished many Senators an opportunity which they have not had before to talk to the country as a whole. These talks are sponsored by the Senate Broadcasting Committee and this Innovation Is the first time In the history of any counfry that Its legislative body has voted to talk of their deliberations to the country as a whole via thi radio. Many of these veteran political have behaved before the microphone like schoolboys making their first speeches. They begin lp fear and trepidation and finish in perspiration and relief. It makes you like them a little better to feel that they are so human and easily scared. or war-hors- es Miss Amelia Eirhirt and her companions on her historic flight to England, Wilmer Stults and Lon Gordon, before the radio audienre. Miss Earhart speaks easily and distinctly into the microphone radio station. He was very agreeable about the delay and later, when the attendant approached Mr. Coolldge to tell him that the hook-u- p had been completed, the President anticipated the announcer Is the Womans Relief by Inquiring: Corps ready? Two other men who. are not at all faced by the dignity and unresponsiveness of the microphone are former Vice President Charles Dawes and Senator When "Pat" Harrison, of Mississippi. Dawes talked about the Senate rules he pounded the table so violently that two operators had to rush forward and grab the microphones to keep them from jumping off the table and to protect the lis, tener from getting ail sorts ..of terrible noise. And they had to continue to hold the microphone throughout the remainder of the talk. The lack of a tislble audlenoe didn't bother Senator Harrison, either. He waxed Just as eloquent and Just as vituperative as if he were holding forth on the floor of the Senate. He waved his arms and he pounded the table until the microphone had to be held by the What few radio speakers realize K TIM" GOOD, Secretary of War and po- lltical campaigner extraordinaire for more than twenty years, wss called away from a banquet given In his honor by the officials of the army to speak for a few minutes over the radio. Before one of the greatest assemblages of generals he was at perfect ease, but before the little black disc be was humble, and when he had finished his talk he mopped the perspiration from his brow with a 'iiWhewP of relief. And like moat dignitaries after a first radio speech, he naively announcer and aSketir-DI- tr toned to-tI do all right?" " high-ranki- o to that there to an operator in a control booth In the studio from which they are speaking sitting at a board with a key In his hand. He listens attentively to the speaker In an attempt to regulate the Intensity of the voice of the speaker When a speaker waxes warm and begins yelling, the operator softens the tones, and when he drops his voice to a whisper It qpst be Increased to volume to get over to the radio listener. first two speeches of the Hall Hours W.th the Senate were made by Senator Metcalf, of Rhbde Island, and Senator Sackett, of Kentucky, and for their convenience the microphone had been set up in Senator Metcalfs apartment. The young announcer who introduced the Senators had never spoken over ' the rad o before and he made his Introductions la much trepidation, although Coolidge, here shown pinning a medai on ha controlled his voice, nd turned to Colonel Lindbergh, has always been perfectly at home find the two veteran orators looking Just before the microphone. The "Flying Coloner speaks as scared as' he had felt. The first of apparent nervousness forcefully and hurriedly, with-nthose Senators is a veteran of many a battle, and the" second a business Into tears and began pacing up and down political executive with an impressive list of the room. achle.e'ments to his cred-t- , but he trem-b.e- d The announcer- - went ahead with his before the 'mike." was before he and Just ready preparations, One man in the Senate has perhaps to called and a he she attempted warning been a participant In more political war pull herself together. She caught up a than any other solon, but Senator Dunwrap and put It about her shoulders, and, can U. Fletcher, of Florida, had a tremor , som&nhke. took out a lipstick and her In his voice over the radio. Perhsp the powder to give her poise before her mere fact that he was obviously nervous . visible audience. Then she cast one ap- , , made hto speech more effective. from the nroaaea l look at the announcer and stepped Speaking over the radio Is turning the up like a soldier and sang as if she were reputations for oratory of certain Senreallv enjoying ft upside-dowMany of those men made a determined attack ators carry well. During hto broadcasting It been adjudged poor or mediocre who hae to always necessary to request him to get on radio fright by showing up at the speakers on the floor of the Senate have closer to the microphone. He appears studio for five rehearsal before she was proved among the best speakers over the on the air. Site gleaned all the into go talk his reads nervous and slightly radio. One case in point to Senator John formation she could obtain by InnumerThomas, of Idaho, a very reserved, qrnet Colonel Lindbergh to a very forceful able questions, and when she practiced man who chooses hto words and Homer husband carefully, and her had standaccompanist, usually speaks from whose enunciation and Qjfjer. He and" are good, leans over with his hands Samuels, listen from, the control booth, to but who speaks without phrasing ing position gestures and conpartially spread apart. He says the little be sure that her voice effect were not sequently, with little dramatic effect. He he has to ssy hurriedly but dlstlnctiy, and being Impaired in slng.ng over the radio. makes an excellent Impression over the he had a tendency to raise hto vo'ce. His ITTOMEN in official life who have spoken radio. and are short unusually always speeches The psychology of Senator who are on the radio from Washington have he choose just one central point and hammers at lti He does not seem nerv- been for the most part more composed than going to speak for the first time on the the men; at least they haven't tnar.ifested radio seems to be this, "I am to talk as ous, but merely anxious to finish. Commander Richard E. Byrd had his their nervousness as plainly. Mrs. Herbert slowly as po&s.ble," although the best to to talk in the normal tone of voice. Hoover to the first wife of President to speech prepared and was fully when he appeared at the studio, talk over the radio. It to said, however, As a consequence, many of them speak but his soft Southern drawl put the studio that she was not aware of the fact that deliberately and, therefore, clearly and attendants through a peculiar s peeves of her talk was being broadcast when she forcibly. Only one man In the whole torture, for they had visions of having to spoke at the recent convention of the group, who, incidentally, is an impressive cut him off before he had finished what Daughters of the American Revolution. speaker from the floor of the Senate, he had to say. He told hto story simply, Like her husband, she showed no signs of dropped hto voice much below even a normal speaking voice, so low. in fact. however, and managed to finish within hi nervousness. to ber heard Congress- -- that Itihad prescribed time. GenqJTunney tooked.aa If he wished he' were somewhere else than woman from Massachusetts, was her gra- - Senator David Reed, of Pennsylvania, the studio. He stood up and read hto clou self at the studio. Ruth Hanna cosyneht t rsuo Lnetr n. The man who to remarkable for being most st ease before a microphone Is the new Secretary of the Interior, Ray Lyman Wilbur. He appeared at the studio without a prepared speech, carrying only a few notes in his hand. He sat down before the microphone and talked along with perfect ease in a conversational tone, and from time to time when the announcer indicated to him how much longer he had to talk he smiled and nodded in recognition that he understood and proceeded with his talk. Such a proceeding wtith the average speaker would cover him with confusion. The profound and dignified Attorney General Wiliam Mitchell manifested the symptoms of only a slight attack of studio seasickness. It to -- uldom obvious In the voice of the speaker,, as it reaches the radio audience, but shows up by his actions when he enters the studio and afterward when the ordeal to over. Secretary- - Mellon to a difficult speaker for radio people He doe not get close SndUga tiTQie mlcrophone. 'COnsejuenflyT' hto voice, which to very weak, doe' not GalU-Cur- cl ad-vi- ce |