Leontyne is my queen, but I think that Arlene Francis must be my baroness. She's always so great in this show, so smart, so good at guessing, so great at acting, too. Her excitement at meeting with Queen Leontyne is so cute and cool. I love these ladies! Just seeing a large group of Americans getting excited about opera stars is the best thing.
golden86 Ms.Price,was someone I had not heard of until I heard her sing " Ava Maria" on a Long Playing L P. vinyl album on a special Firestone television recording.Her exquisite operatic voice brought me to tears,and she sang this.Thank You for showing Ms.Price on this WML program.
@@esmeephillips5888 NO Mr. Ustinov was NOT anti-jewish, please do the needed research. He was against the segregation and the conflict between jews and palestinians. It was possibly the zionists he was "against" NOT the jewish people. He worked tirelessly for UNICEF and human rights all his life. He remains a great example as one our great humanitarians of all time. Michael Winner on the other hand could be extremely cruel to his actors, and on "Appointent With Death" the great actress Piper Laurie, who starred alongside Peter Ustinov, revealed that she created a kind of super persona, very different from herself, who would be outrageous and tough, in order to keep Winner at bay. They became friends after her display of confident ruthlessness on the set of that film, filmed in Israel :)
Edward Luis Libby was born March 18, 1876 in Chelsea, Massachusetts to Edward Sr and Emma Libby and lived until September 7, 1969. He died after being struck by an automobile. His father was just a little too young to have served in the Civil War and Edward Jr was too old to serve in WW1. He married Helen Hunter around 1902 and they had 10 children.
Phyllis would not have stood up if she didn't see Arlene do it first. Watch her, she intended to stay seated but realized at the last minute she should follow Arlene's lead.
I haven't watched it yet but I'll judge when it comes along. My theory, when they all stand up, is that it's mostly for practical reasons ie. for an elderly person who can't bend over the panel's table or someone with restricted movement or someone who would look undignified reaching too far over or indeed they do it to save someone doing themselves a mischief. The reason I put those factors above the idea of standing up out of respect is that, if it WAS for respect, it should be happening more often!! EDIT: Yep. Elderly person. I don't agree with the 'respect' thing. They got up because it's common sense to do so!! You don't need to 'respect' someone to get up for them when they're ninety years old.
The two female panelists remained seated for L. Price. I think I personally would have stood to greet her with great admiration. That doesn't mean that I'm better than them. It's just an expression of sincere honor to her and others who graciously share their talent which I appreciate.
+higharch Leontyne Price is still very much alive, although no longer singing publicly. I was fortunate to have seen Miss Price perform twice, first time at the San Francisco Opera and second time in a recital at UCLA. Both were great experiences.
One of my greatest musical experiences was sharing a stage with Miss Price on her last recital tour. OK, I was just turning pages for her piano accompanist, but it was a chance to experience her artistry closer than I ever expected. I had come to usher for the concert at Stanford, where I was a grad student. The music student who was to turn pages showed up way too informally dressed (blazer, purple t-shirt, jeans, white sneakers), and her brother, Col. Price, who was her tour manager, said that no way was he going on stage like that. The concert series director knew me to be a musician, and I had on a brand new navy suit, so I was asked to sub as page turner. All went well, and I was warmly thanked by both Prices afterward. I'll never forget that evening.
Mr. Libby would have been born in 1876, only a little more than a decade after the end of the Civil War. I wonder if his father or other relatives fought in that war. I would love to have been able to ask him about his life!
For the kids....When Woody asked Leontyne Price if she ever made the statement "we will bury you" he was referring to Soviet dictator Nikita Khrushchev who said that a few years earlier (in a not so awful context as it sounds).
Khruschev made just about every effort to liberalize Soviet society and thaw relations with the West and as a result he still gets called a dictator. Only goes to show that you can't win with Westerners.
At last, a musician. I've always wondered why so few musicians were mystery guests. It would have been great to see more Metropolitan stars, perhaps a pianist or two.
Johan Bengtsson She was one of the most highest paid and critically acclaimed singers of her generation. Her talent, influence and public adoration is on par with Caruso, Pavarotti and Callas.
The same goes for Sir Georg Solti. I actually saw her sing the soprano solo in the Verdi Requiem Mass in concert with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by Solti, in late May of 1977 at Orchestra Hall in Chicago. It was a Musicians' Pension Fund benefit concert - and RCA recorded the work in the 3 days following the concert. (Said recording has been released on LP, audiocassette, and CD.)
In 1982, I was working as a waiter at the Big 4 restaurant in the Huntington Hotel in San Francisco. I waited on Miss Price and Simon Estes. She was so polite and wonderful!
What about Franco Corelli? Made her Met debut with him. Amazing tenor voice and famously good looking, a rarity in the tenor department. Though temperamental he was nervous as a cat.
Peter Ustinov was too funny to be a guest. His humor always seemed to give him away. He also wasn't able to disguise his voice well enough. I wish he would have been more able to give the panel more of a run for its money.
Not really suspicious. As soon as it was established that the lady was a singer and not in a popular field, the opening of the new Met at Lincoln Center starring her was a huge story especially in NY but it was also a nationwide broadcast. Only 2 days previously. Woody Allen just put 2 and 2 together and asked if she was in opera.
Last week, the youngest contestant. This week the oldest. Production staff going in for big themes that month. It is interesting that Arlene who is trained in projection, speaks really well to the second contestant, who may or may not be hard of hearing.
I noticed that as well. She always, always makes contestants feel welcome and comfortable just as they are and she's sincere and genuine. She's very astute and observant, respectful, calm. Man, Martin got a winner!
How funny now that they put Metropolitan Opera Star below her name. We know her as Metropolitan Opera LEGEND! And classic the remark about the ‘new’ opera house!
To be fair, I don't think Phyllis would have thought of that on her own if Arlene hadn't the class to do this in advance. She definitely looked to be looking for cues.
Phyllis wasn't going to stand. She was sitting and only rose when she saw Arlene do so. Arlene is an entirely classy lady, very elegant and with so much respect.
If John Daly had been responsible about keeping his germage to himself that night, Mark Goodson would have moderated, and [should TTTT be any indication] we would have got a color videotape of this WML episode. It would have been a dazzler, what with the gowns of Mses. Francis, Newman, and Price, the eyeglasses of Woody Allen, and Peter Ustinov's hair.
I can't but wonder... what was the host doing in his intro...? He boldly announces he is sitting there with a nasty cold and then invites Miss Price who is in the midst of the run of Antony and Cleopatra, which opened the then new Met at Lincoln Center, to sit next to him. Price has said in interviews that for the entire leading up to Antony she protected that throat from colds and dust etc like never before in her career. She must have really wanted to be on this show. Glad, of course, that she was.
Allen's play, "Don't Drink the Water", was adapted twice. First in 1969 without his involvement, and with Jackie Gleason. Then again in 1994 for ABC Television, this time WITH Allen's involvement, with Michael J. Fox, Mayim Bialik, Dom DeLuise, and Julie Kavner
I very much doubt that if this show was still on (I wish), that today's audience is sophisticated enough to even recognize a famous opera star. I miss the old days, it was more polite, classier and intelligent.
As I've said before in other posts, it seems as though the ease of life has replaced the quality and grace of life. Other forms of entertainment (more the bread-and-circus reality type) are widely discussed these days; but opera is rarely mentioned, unless it's by either an older or a more widely educated generation...
Did CBS run the color logo before WML? Since everything in primetime was now in color, I would tend to doubt that they would run it for every show. Maybe they traded off?
***** Back in 1966, when a color show was about to air on any of the three TV networks, they always showed their respective color logos, usually with a short musical accompaniment as the logo revolved, unfolded, took on color, or whatever it did, and they even had a voice announcement in many cases such as "This program is brought to you in living color" or something along those lines. The most memorable one was the NBC peacock logo and, as I recall, NBC was the first network to offer color broadcasts. I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that CBS displayed a logo calling viewers' attention to the fact that WML was about to be broadcast in color -- they'd certainly have wanted to play that up since it was the first color broadcast. I think one reason they did that was to let black-and-white television owners know they were missing something, especially when it got to the point (around 1966) that just about every prime-time show was broadcast in color. Ten years prior, not so many color programs were aired, though color televisions existed A large color TV that stood on the floor in a furniture-type cabinet in 1957 cost $1,000 and was way out of our price range. By 1967, my father sprang for one with a 25" screen and he paid $475 for one at a discount store -- they threw in a freebie antenna to put on the roof as part of the special sale. Keeping in mind that the 1967 dollar was worth quite a bit less than the 1957 dollar, it shows how much prices had dropped for color TVs.
Arlene got an extraordinary reception upon her introduction tonight. In my opinion she always deserves an extraordinary reception, but I wonder if there was a reason tonight's hurrahs?
Johan Bengtsson I was expecting something highly cringeworthy after Arlene's introduction to Bennett's introduction, but the Opporknockity joke is one I've heard my father tell many times, and I always thought it was cute. I'll have to ask him if he might have first heard it on this WML episode, though after all these years, I doubt he'd remember! There are actually quite a lot of references to and tellings of this joke on the internet, including one at a folklore site. I also found it on a website that I think you'll appreciate, Johan, on which I've already found one of Bennett's other groaners: wordplay.donhmorris.com/jokes.html. *Warning to Gary:* don't even *dream* of clicking the link, unless you're willing to risk severe pun inundation! :-)
"What's Up Tiger Lilly" was like the original "Mighty Morphing Power Rangers". Just like how that show took footage from the existing Japanese Tokusatsu "Super Sentai" series and made a brand new show, Allen's film took footage from the "International Secret Police" series, and made a brand new film. th-cam.com/video/lLU_-YMPX7I/w-d-xo.html
If John had called in sick at the last minute (he was too responsible, I think, to work if it had possibly been injurious to his health) I guess Bennett could have hosted (though it would have been nice to see Arlene do it, as she would have no doubt been great). But what about the empty space on the panel? Was there a contingency for sickness or lateness, or other happenstance?
As TTTT illustrates, if John had been responsible and called in sick, Mark Goodson would have jumped in to moderate. That means we might have gotten a color videotape of this episode. What a dazzler that would have been what with the gowns of Mses. Francis, Newman, and Price and Mr Ustinov's hair.
+Joe Postove He may have been too responsible to miss work, but some would argue that he was being irresponsible for exposing others around him to his germs and possibly passing along his illness to them.
There is an episode with Tab Hunter from 1957 where John looks and sounds like he's ill, and Dorothy's husband is the panelist who introduces him, saying he hasn't missed a show in 8 years. No mention is made of him not feeling well specifically but he definitely appears to be sick.
The primary reason why I wish the WML episodes were in color would be to see the full effect of the gowns of the female panelists, most of the female Mystery Guests and many of the female challengers.
+Purple Capricorn It shows dedication, but some would argue it shows bad judgement to show up ill and possibly infect those around you. In this case the panelists and his guests. I hope you're well now!
From tv.com: Tidbits: Both John and Peter Ustinov have head colds, or as John put it, "a code in da nose." Next Sunday night at 8:30 at the St. James Theatre, Arlene is going to appear with the American Ballet Theatre in a fashion show and dance to support the American Ballet Theatre. The funny part about this is that John said he didn't want to miss it, and went there tonight! He was off by a week!
I thought this question Phyllis asked Peter was adorable. And by God, he did have a "cute" -- as in, attractive in a uniquely beguiling way -- face. I had such a crush on him, and maybe Phyllis did too 😀.
@@susanrutherford866 He was incredibly famous at the time, and was known to be in plays in the US. He had also recently won an Oscar, so he was at the forefront of their minds at the time.
***** He directed, wrote and starred in the 1994 version. I'd call that being "involved", yes. :) I've still never seen the Gleason version, which is supposedly terrible, but then again, the 1994 version is supposedly terrible, too, and I quite like it.
Jeff Vaughn Yes, but the point here is that other than Woody's playscript (not screenplay) being used as the basis for the film, he had nothing whatsoever to do with its production, nothing. Woody has repeatedly disowned the film entirely-- and presumably, this is what motivated him to do his own version of the script for TV.
Really, it's not like John coughed on anyone or was right in their face. Peter Ustinov touched his nose at least twice and that's much more relevant to the causation of spreading germs. And I really like Peter Ustinov who, BTW, was kissing the ladies' hands!!
As both a black man and a musician, sir, allow me to thank you for your admiration and respect of Misses Price and Anderson. I have enjoyed opera as performed by them, and I am pleased to know someone who appreciates beauty and talent... One of my favorite sopranos is Anna Moffo. Her 1956 'Butterfly' on RCA is a favorite of mine, as is Leontyne's 1963 'Carmen' on the same label...
@@terencedove5047Price made probably the reference recording of Verdi's Ballo in Maschera, I think in that very same year, 1966. In it all of the female principals were black including Shirley Verrett and Reri Grist. I'm not sure things have gotten better since. Singing in general certainly hasn't.
@@bbailey7818 …I’m going to put my neck on a chopping block in suggesting that the 60s to the 90s (roughly a 30-year period) might have been the greatest operatic period for black female principals…beginning with Anderson and Price and ending with Battle and Norman (although the last two were more classical than operatic); with Bumbry, Verrett and Quivar dotted in there. Then along came Graves in the late 90s-2000s. Nowadays it’s Brown and Sutton (whom I play for sometimes). But it’s my humble opinion that those within that thirty-year strat provided some of the best opera that ever existed, vocally speaking…
00:50 -- I'm glad they finally came up with a different way of introducing Phyllis Newman, instead of granting her Arlene's "delightful star" designation!
Did Woody Allen really think that WML would get Nikita Khrushchev to come on their program as a Mystery Guest? In his forced retirement, it is doubtful that he would have been allowed to leave the Soviet Union. And the audience reaction most likely would have been a great deal of shock and surprise with very little applause (and perhaps even some boos). Perhaps it was an attempt at humor by Allen. If so, it fell flat. It might have worked with someone like Ustinov who could have followed it with some repartee, but not with Ms. Price.
I've never understood why Phyllis Newman tilts her head back so far when wearing blindfold glasses. If they were loose and in danger of falling off why didn't she ever have a specific pair for her adjusted?
If you like operatic disasters, you would have loved Franco Zefferelli's 1966 production of "Cleopatra." Talk about landing in the Metropolitan with a huge thud. It was like "The Bandwagon" of opera. I hear Ms. Price got caught in the machinery of the set, notably a hollowed out [Sphinx?} [pyramid?}
+Johan Bengtsson Not too many people from the classical music world appeared on What's My Line, but Thomas Schippers who conducted the premiere of Antony and Cleopatra with Miss Price, was a contestant in a 1958 episode.
Well, off the top of my head, those who did would also include Richard Tucker, Robert Merrill, Lily Pons, Patrice Munsel, Helen Traubel, Ezio Pinza (both as Mystery Guest and as guest panelist), Marian Anderson, and Seiji Ozawa. This was Miss Price's second appearance as Mystery Guest on WML?
She wasn't "caught" in it, but the over-elaborate set piece was meant to open and reveal her. The mechanics though kept it shut, so she kept singing through a wall. But at no point was she in danger. It was just awkward and confusing for those present. For that matter the music wasn't exactly the best.
Leontyne is a distant cousin of Whitney's maternal grandfather (the Drinkard family). The birth name of Whitney's mother (Cissy Houston) was Emily Drinkard.
It's always surprising to me that usually the panel are Jewish with only one, sometimes two, who are Gentiles. On this panel we have Phyllis Newman, Woody and Bennett. Does that mean that Jews are more intelligent and/or more talented?
It only means that Jews were and still are predominantly really good and successful at music and show business in general. Start checking with Irving Berlin, Danny Kaye, Oscar Levant, The Marx brothers, Al Jolson, Jimmy Durante, Jack Benny, Lauren Bacall, Barbara Streisand, George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Mort Saul, plus the movie moguls, ad infinitum. I must have had something to do with their religious culture, which forbade making images, so you find very few Jewish artists, and the restrictions upon them by the governments they lived in. So they invented a lot of things to do that would appease the people who were supposed to hate them for killing Christ, or whatever non truth that came from. The Jews of yesteryear, were an entity in themselves, with special connections whether by religion or other cultural associations. In modern terms, they possess a lot of DNA on the business and entertainment side of natural talents.
Jewish people are not necessarily more intelligent or talented to begin with than other people, but they have a respect for learning and studying and perhaps apply themselves more to achieving. Still, your comment brings to mind a statement Sherman Alexie made about how the funniest people he knew were those who survived holocausts.
I wish they had totally done away, totally and forever, both Phillis Newman and Woody Allen. Ugghhh. With so many wonderful people to choose from, why on earth did they pick these two horrible people? I distinctly believe they think they're funnier and more enjoyable than they actually are. Please no more of them. It takes so much energy to not just skip episodes where they appear. Blech.
Bennett's piano tuning joke has kicked around TH-cam for years. I told it to my piano tuner friend, who told it to his piano tuning colleagues. They loved it. So there, Bennett.
soulierinvestments Actually, I think Bennett would be thrilled to know that piano tuners enjoyed his joke. Perhaps it's Arlene that should get the, "So there." ;) Do you suppose Bennett actually invented that joke? My father's been telling it for as long as I can remember. I wonder if he could have first heard it on WML! Then again, it could have been in one of Bennett's joke/humor books, or Bennett could have just been repeating a joke he'd heard from someone else -- perhaps even that Indiana banker he mentioned!
Bennett's opening pun ranks as one of the worst I ever heard. As an incorrigible punster myself, it was so bad I didn't even give it a groan. I am shocked ... shocked to learn that it has had traction over the years. Perhaps there aren't many piano tuner puns and they have to settle for what they can get. On top of everything else, with the tongue twister name that's involved, it is a difficult pun to both repeat and to follow.
I didn't particularly like her as a panelist, but in another post it was said she wore glasses but didn't on here. Vanity? That's why she held her head like that?
Arlene Francis's voice lights up like an excited fangirl. It's so cute to hear her legitimately star-struck.
Leontyne is my queen, but I think that Arlene Francis must be my baroness. She's always so great in this show, so smart, so good at guessing, so great at acting, too. Her excitement at meeting with Queen Leontyne is so cute and cool. I love these ladies! Just seeing a large group of Americans getting excited about opera stars is the best thing.
Leontyne Price. One of the greatest Sopranos of all time!
golden86 Ms.Price,was someone I had not heard of until I heard her sing " Ava Maria" on a Long Playing L P. vinyl album on a special Firestone television recording.Her exquisite operatic voice brought me to tears,and she sang this.Thank You for showing Ms.Price on this WML program.
She was the number one soprano in the 1960s.
At 21:03 Peter Ustinov; "This country is so free, that I never know what I'm allowed to say." One of the best I've heard for a while. ;)
Made me laugh out loud !
@@TheJMascis666 Yep, me too.
SuperWinterborn Probably the wittiest line in the entire history of WML. That's why he's one of our greatest raconteurs of all time.
Michael Winner directed Ustinov in 'Appointment with Death' and surprisingly wrote in 2011 that he was openly and strongly anti-Jewish in private.
@@esmeephillips5888 NO Mr. Ustinov was NOT anti-jewish, please do the needed research. He was against the segregation and the conflict between jews and palestinians. It was possibly the zionists he was "against" NOT the jewish people. He worked tirelessly for UNICEF and human rights all his life. He remains a great example as one our great humanitarians of all time. Michael Winner on the other hand could be extremely cruel to his actors, and on "Appointent With Death" the great actress Piper Laurie, who starred alongside Peter Ustinov, revealed that she created a kind of super persona, very different from herself, who would be outrageous and tough, in order to keep Winner at bay. They became friends after her display of confident ruthlessness on the set of that film, filmed in Israel :)
Leontyne's Dido's lament is one of the moving moments in musical performance history.
What a monumentally terrific show 😊
Edward Luis Libby was born March 18, 1876 in Chelsea, Massachusetts to Edward Sr and Emma Libby and lived until September 7, 1969. He died after being struck by an automobile. His father was just a little too young to have served in the Civil War and Edward Jr was too old to serve in WW1. He married Helen Hunter around 1902 and they had 10 children.
He was adorable!
Leontyne Price is one of America's living national treasures. 94 and still going strong!
Still gong at 97 too! 2024.
I am obsessed with this show!
That's one of the most vital 90-year-olds I've ever seen. Born in 1876, wow!
I know 60 year olds who doesn't look as good
The golf caddy was born in March 1876! This is incredible, he lived through so much!
Another one of the very rare times when the entire panel stood out of respect while shaking hands with a contestant.
Phyllis would not have stood up if she didn't see Arlene do it first. Watch her, she intended to stay seated but realized at the last minute she should follow Arlene's lead.
0y
I haven't watched it yet but I'll judge when it comes along. My theory, when they all stand up, is that it's mostly for practical reasons ie. for an elderly person who can't bend over the panel's table or someone with restricted movement or someone who would look undignified reaching too far over or indeed they do it to save someone doing themselves a mischief. The reason I put those factors above the idea of standing up out of respect is that, if it WAS for respect, it should be happening more often!!
EDIT: Yep. Elderly person. I don't agree with the 'respect' thing. They got up because it's common sense to do so!! You don't need to 'respect' someone to get up for them when they're ninety years old.
The two female panelists remained seated for L. Price. I think I personally would have stood to greet her with great admiration. That doesn't mean that I'm better than them. It's just an expression of sincere honor to her and others who graciously share their talent which I appreciate.
I like that sweet old man. A golf caddy? Wow, he looks pretty dang good for 90, better than some guys 40 years younger!!
Mr. Libby is perhaps one of my favorite guests at WML, ever.
I just love the shock reverence & admiration with which Arlene asks is it Leontyne Price?
How fortunate we all have been to have seen and heard this great American soprano. How fortunate when have been to live while she was living.
+higharch Leontyne Price is still very much alive, although no longer singing publicly. I was fortunate to have seen Miss Price perform twice, first time at the San Francisco Opera and second time in a recital at UCLA. Both were great experiences.
One of my greatest musical experiences was sharing a stage with Miss Price on her last recital tour. OK, I was just turning pages for her piano accompanist, but it was a chance to experience her artistry closer than I ever expected. I had come to usher for the concert at Stanford, where I was a grad student. The music student who was to turn pages showed up way too informally dressed (blazer, purple t-shirt, jeans, white sneakers), and her brother, Col. Price, who was her tour manager, said that no way was he going on stage like that. The concert series director knew me to be a musician, and I had on a brand new navy suit, so I was asked to sub as page turner. All went well, and I was warmly thanked by both Prices afterward. I'll never forget that evening.
She's still alive!
@@golden-63and still alive two years later 😃 God bless her.
Mr. Libby would have been born in 1876, only a little more than a decade after the end of the Civil War. I wonder if his father or other relatives fought in that war. I would love to have been able to ask him about his life!
Nobody could outshine Arlene most nights, but especially tonight with that dress.
Imagine a night of drinks with Mr. Ustinov...
Omg yes. To me, Ustinov was always mesmerizingly attractive...if he had kissed my hand, I'd have fainted. Lucky Arlene Francis and Phyllis Newman!
My favorite part of the show, is when John goes on a long winded explanation, without revealing anything.
I admire the golf caddy, straight back, full head of hair no hearing aid and happy happy happy fellow!
Love your facebook page . Watching the old WML bring back fond memories and calm mind set after a busy day
“This country is so free I never know what to say…” 🤣
In today’s atmosphere it is nice to see RESPCT for seniors
It's actually thrilling to see respect for anybody.
I thought that I had seen all of the episodes of this show several years ago. I somehow missed this one with the great Leontyne Price!
And today Leontyne Price and Woody Allen are still passengers on Spaceship Earth.
Leontyne Price: Prima Donna Assouluta!
Even for those who are not fans of opera, I urge you to listen to some of Ms. Price's 1960's recordings. Start with Vissi d'arte from Tosca.
I still love Ustinov, now and forever.xx
Me too -- what a beautiful man.
For the kids....When Woody asked Leontyne Price if she ever made the statement "we will bury you" he was referring to Soviet dictator Nikita Khrushchev who said that a few years earlier (in a not so awful context as it sounds).
Khruschev made just about every effort to liberalize Soviet society and thaw relations with the West and as a result he still gets called a dictator. Only goes to show that you can't win with Westerners.
At last, a musician. I've always wondered why so few musicians were mystery guests. It would have been great to see more Metropolitan stars, perhaps a pianist or two.
Leontyne Price is an operatic icon.
Leontyne Price was a big favourite with the conductor Herbert von Karajan. He often used her in his concerts and opera performances.
Johan Bengtsson She was one of the most highest paid and critically acclaimed singers of her generation. Her talent, influence and public adoration is on par with Caruso, Pavarotti and Callas.
The same goes for Sir Georg Solti. I actually saw her sing the soprano solo in the Verdi Requiem Mass in concert with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by Solti, in late May of 1977 at Orchestra Hall in Chicago. It was a Musicians' Pension Fund benefit concert - and RCA recorded the work in the 3 days following the concert. (Said recording has been released on LP, audiocassette, and CD.)
Another example of John's skills in the post mystery game interview and another example of how funny Peter Ustinov could be without really trying.
Ustinov and Charles Laughton together in Spartacus were the best thing in the movie.
Today 2/10/2015 is Miss Leontyne Price's 88th birthday. She was born February 10, 1927. AND is still with us!
Joe Postove
What a nice coincidence that this video posted on her birthday! :)
TOTAL coincidence!
What's My Line? It had to be someone's birthday, huh?
Still alive...Dec.20th 2015!
Still here on 1/13/16!
The ladies were so respectful with seniors in that era.
For a 90-year old, that guy is sharp!
I don't recall ever seeing such a "young" 90-year-old. That guy was born in 1876.
i agree. i'm 82 . if i get to 90, i hope i'm as aware as he is, or was???
I'm just turning 89 and wake up each morning thinking "What the hell am I still doing here?" He is indeed special.
In 1982, I was working as a waiter at the Big 4 restaurant in the Huntington Hotel in San Francisco. I waited on Miss Price and Simon Estes. She was so polite and wonderful!
Miss Leontyne Price is STILL ALIVE (9/30/20) and is 93 years old!
Leontyne Price is alive (5-1-23) at the age of 96!
the respect shown here . for the caddy. so good!
Peter was excellent as captain vere in the film version of billybudd
I met Ms. Price once. She was very nice.
wowwwwwwwwwww
Price was a great Leonora in Verdi's Trovatore alongside the best singer and "barihunk" of all time - Ettore Bastianini.
What about Franco Corelli? Made her Met debut with him. Amazing tenor voice and famously good looking, a rarity in the tenor department. Though temperamental he was nervous as a cat.
@@bbailey7818 Corelli was ridiculously good looking.
Peter Ustinov was too funny to be a guest. His humor always seemed to give him away. He also wasn't able to disguise his voice well enough. I wish he would have been more able to give the panel more of a run for its money.
Wow Leontyne Price still living at 94!
She's 97 now!
Delightful to see the young Leontyne Price having such fun. The panel narrowed it down suspiciously quick, though.
Not really suspicious. As soon as it was established that the lady was a singer and not in a popular field, the opening of the new Met at Lincoln Center starring her was a huge story especially in NY but it was also a nationwide broadcast. Only 2 days previously. Woody Allen just put 2 and 2 together and asked if she was in opera.
@7:25: Miss Francis' reaction is what I needed after last night's Oscar telecast.
Peter ustinov has a rich voice
Another awesome video
Watch what the girls do when they discover leontyne price. It’s pure class.
Last week, the youngest contestant. This week the oldest. Production staff going in for big themes that month. It is interesting that Arlene who is trained in projection, speaks really well to the second contestant, who may or may not be hard of hearing.
Mr. Libby was the most robust, energetic-looking 90-year-old I've ever seen! He was a joy to watch -- loved his smile!
I noticed that as well. She always, always makes contestants feel welcome and comfortable just as they are and she's sincere and genuine. She's very astute and observant, respectful, calm. Man, Martin got a winner!
At 90 years and 6 months is the second contestant the oldest ever on WML?
How funny now that they put Metropolitan Opera Star below her name. We know her as Metropolitan Opera LEGEND! And classic the remark about the ‘new’ opera house!
Once again, Arlene stood to shake hands with Mr. Libby, in deference to his advanced age. Phyllis Newman did, too. Two very classy ladies.
To be fair, I don't think Phyllis would have thought of that on her own if Arlene hadn't the class to do this in advance. She definitely looked to be looking for cues.
Phyllis wasn't going to stand. She was sitting and only rose when she saw Arlene do so. Arlene is an entirely classy lady, very elegant and with so much respect.
If John Daly had been responsible about keeping his germage to himself that night, Mark Goodson would have moderated, and [should TTTT be any indication] we would have got a color videotape of this WML episode. It would have been a dazzler, what with the gowns of Mses. Francis, Newman, and Price, the eyeglasses of Woody Allen, and Peter Ustinov's hair.
Leontyne Price is 96 years old, born Feb. 10, 1927.
She is now over 97, as of 6/11/24.
I can't but wonder...
what was the host doing in his intro...?
He boldly announces he is sitting there with a nasty cold and then invites Miss Price who is in the midst of the run of Antony and Cleopatra, which opened the then new Met at Lincoln Center, to sit next to him.
Price has said in interviews that for the entire leading up to Antony she protected that throat from colds and dust etc like never before in her career.
She must have really wanted to be on this show.
Glad, of course, that she was.
All guests sat next to John - that's how the game was played. She knew she would be sitting there.
They did NOT kiss.
Allen's play, "Don't Drink the Water", was adapted twice. First in 1969 without his involvement, and with Jackie Gleason.
Then again in 1994 for ABC Television, this time WITH Allen's involvement, with Michael J. Fox, Mayim Bialik, Dom DeLuise, and Julie Kavner
I very much doubt that if this show was still on (I wish), that today's audience is sophisticated enough to even recognize a famous opera star. I miss the old days, it was more polite, classier and intelligent.
AMEN!!!
They might get Renee Fleming just from sheer omnipresence, but probably nobody else...
As I've said before in other posts, it seems as though the ease of life has replaced the quality and grace of life. Other forms of entertainment (more the bread-and-circus reality type) are widely discussed these days; but opera is rarely mentioned, unless it's by either an older or a more widely educated generation...
How long did Peter think was going to last by not faking his voice and with that heavy accent
Did CBS run the color logo before WML? Since everything in primetime was now in color, I would tend to doubt that they would run it for every show. Maybe they traded off?
Joe Postove This cannot be confirmed, as no color versions exist, but I'd be shocked if they didn't.
*****
Back in 1966, when a color show was about to air on any of the three TV networks, they always showed their respective color logos, usually with a short musical accompaniment as the logo revolved, unfolded, took on color, or whatever it did, and they even had a voice announcement in many cases such as "This program is brought to you in living color" or something along those lines. The most memorable one was the NBC peacock logo and, as I recall, NBC was the first network to offer color broadcasts. I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that CBS displayed a logo calling viewers' attention to the fact that WML was about to be broadcast in color -- they'd certainly have wanted to play that up since it was the first color broadcast. I think one reason they did that was to let black-and-white television owners know they were missing something, especially when it got to the point (around 1966) that just about every prime-time show was broadcast in color. Ten years prior, not so many color programs were aired, though color televisions existed A large color TV that stood on the floor in a furniture-type cabinet in 1957 cost $1,000 and was way out of our price range. By 1967, my father sprang for one with a 25" screen and he paid $475 for one at a discount store -- they threw in a freebie antenna to put on the roof as part of the special sale. Keeping in mind that the 1967 dollar was worth quite a bit less than the 1957 dollar, it shows how much prices had dropped for color TVs.
Arlene got an extraordinary reception upon her introduction tonight. In my opinion she always deserves an extraordinary reception, but I wonder if there was a reason tonight's hurrahs?
Joe Postove I guess it had something to do with her new play opening a week later.
Joe Postove *****
It could have been that sparkly dress -- I'll bet it was even more stunning in color -- and in person!
That dress!
*Mr. Edward Libby was a wonder. I'd like to like him when I'm 90 years and six months old!*
Peter was a trip!
@adamthewoo how did you go back in time and get on What's My Line?
Once again, no mention of Allen's directorial debut, "What's Up, Tiger Lilly".
Yougoslavia....On the Channel:))))))?
But I love them thou!!! Great program
Bentnett's Weekly Pun: "Oppornokity only tunes once" instad of "Opportunity only knocks once" :( 2:32
Johan Bengtsson I was expecting something highly cringeworthy after Arlene's introduction to Bennett's introduction, but the Opporknockity joke is one I've heard my father tell many times, and I always thought it was cute. I'll have to ask him if he might have first heard it on this WML episode, though after all these years, I doubt he'd remember! There are actually quite a lot of references to and tellings of this joke on the internet, including one at a folklore site. I also found it on a website that I think you'll appreciate, Johan, on which I've already found one of Bennett's other groaners: wordplay.donhmorris.com/jokes.html. *Warning to Gary:* don't even *dream* of clicking the link, unless you're willing to risk severe pun inundation! :-)
SaveThe TPC Thanks for the warning. Pass. ;)
+Johan Bengtsson I'd say it's more like his "weakly" pun. ;)
+Jeff Vaughn Ouch!! :)
+Johan Bengtsson I can appreciate a good pun, but it seems to me that a pun that depends on a made-up word or name is cheating.
"What's Up Tiger Lilly" was like the original "Mighty Morphing Power Rangers". Just like how that show took footage from the existing Japanese Tokusatsu "Super Sentai" series and made a brand new show, Allen's film took footage from the "International Secret Police" series, and made a brand new film.
th-cam.com/video/lLU_-YMPX7I/w-d-xo.html
If John had called in sick at the last minute (he was too responsible, I think, to work if it had possibly been injurious to his health) I guess Bennett could have hosted (though it would have been nice to see Arlene do it, as she would have no doubt been great). But what about the empty space on the panel? Was there a contingency for sickness or lateness, or other happenstance?
Joe Postove Bennett did try hosting once in 1957. He really felt he did not do that great.
But yes, Arlene would have been a terrific substitute host.
As TTTT illustrates, if John had been responsible and called in sick, Mark Goodson would have jumped in to moderate. That means we might have gotten a color videotape of this episode. What a dazzler that would have been what with the gowns of Mses. Francis, Newman, and Price and Mr Ustinov's hair.
+Joe Postove He may have been too responsible to miss work, but some would argue that he was being irresponsible for exposing others around him to his germs and possibly passing along his illness to them.
There is an episode with Tab Hunter from 1957 where John looks and sounds like he's ill, and Dorothy's husband is the panelist who introduces him, saying he hasn't missed a show in 8 years. No mention is made of him not feeling well specifically but he definitely appears to be sick.
The primary reason why I wish the WML episodes were in color would be to see the full effect of the gowns of the female panelists, most of the female Mystery Guests and many of the female challengers.
Ustinov gave himself away when he changed his voice. His second 'disguised' voice is too similar to his real one.
John sounds terrible here. Kinda like how I am right now. So him going to work while being sick shows dedication.
+Purple Capricorn It shows dedication, but some would argue it shows bad judgement to show up ill and possibly infect those around you. In this case the panelists and his guests. I hope you're well now!
*_METROPOLITAN OPERA STAR LEONTYNE PRICE_*
*_GOLF CADDY_*
About Leontyne Price:
www.biography.com/musician/leontyne-price
From tv.com:
Tidbits: Both John and Peter Ustinov have head colds, or as John put it, "a code in da nose." Next Sunday night at 8:30 at the St. James Theatre, Arlene is going to appear with the American Ballet Theatre in a fashion show and dance to support the American Ballet Theatre. The funny part about this is that John said he didn't want to miss it, and went there tonight! He was off by a week!
Anyone in the know about what sort of jacket Woody Allen was wearing? Would it look good in color.
Do you have a cute face and a BEARD?!? That was the best I've ever heard.
I thought this question Phyllis asked Peter was adorable. And by God, he did have a "cute" -- as in, attractive in a uniquely beguiling way -- face. I had such a crush on him, and maybe Phyllis did too 😀.
@@christinepaige2575 I know I did and still do have a crush on him! He's adorable!!!
But how in hell did she guess him ?
@@susanrutherford866 He was incredibly famous at the time, and was known to be in plays in the US. He had also recently won an Oscar, so he was at the forefront of their minds at the time.
@@kugelweg Dont you think its still a little sus how she guessed so quickly ?
A time when ladies were ladies & Gentlemen new it😉
Did you possibly mean "knew it?" Otherwise, I need to have the joke explained to me.
Jackie Gleason starred in the movie of "Don't Drink The Water" in 1969. I don't know about Woody's participation in that, however.
Joe Postove I already mentioned this. Allen had nothing to do with the 1969 film.
He was involved with the 1994 ABC TV film, though.
***** He directed, wrote and starred in the 1994 version. I'd call that being "involved", yes. :) I've still never seen the Gleason version, which is supposedly terrible, but then again, the 1994 version is supposedly terrible, too, and I quite like it.
+Vahan Nisanian Allen did have something to do with the 1969 film. He is credited as a writer as it was based on his screenplay.
Jeff Vaughn Yes, but the point here is that other than Woody's playscript (not screenplay) being used as the basis for the film, he had nothing whatsoever to do with its production, nothing. Woody has repeatedly disowned the film entirely-- and presumably, this is what motivated him to do his own version of the script for TV.
What's My Line?
I took his comment literally when he said "nothing". I guess I missed the back story.
Woody is very quiet. Not like his movie personas.
I hope no one else caught John Daly’s cold, especially the oldest guest.
Really, it's not like John coughed on anyone or was right in their face. Peter Ustinov touched his nose at least twice and that's much more relevant to the causation of spreading germs. And I really like Peter Ustinov who, BTW, was kissing the ladies' hands!!
The one and only Miz Price.
Miss price was starring in giulio cesare? By handel?
It was Barber's Antony & Cleopatra.
Beverly Sills was starring in Gulio Cesare at The New York City Opera...
Leontyne Price and Marian Anderson (a Mystery Guest last year) were both equally-beautiful black women.
And I say this as a white man myself.
As both a black man and a musician, sir, allow me to thank you for your admiration and respect of Misses Price and Anderson. I have enjoyed opera as performed by them, and I am pleased to know someone who appreciates beauty and talent...
One of my favorite sopranos is Anna Moffo. Her 1956 'Butterfly' on RCA is a favorite of mine, as is Leontyne's 1963 'Carmen' on the same label...
@@terencedove5047Price made probably the reference recording of Verdi's Ballo in Maschera, I think in that very same year, 1966. In it all of the female principals were black including Shirley Verrett and Reri Grist. I'm not sure things have gotten better since. Singing in general certainly hasn't.
@@bbailey7818 …I’m going to put my neck on a chopping block in suggesting that the 60s to the 90s (roughly a 30-year period) might have been the greatest operatic period for black female principals…beginning with Anderson and Price and ending with Battle and Norman (although the last two were more classical than operatic); with Bumbry, Verrett and Quivar dotted in there. Then along came Graves in the late 90s-2000s. Nowadays it’s Brown and Sutton (whom I play for sometimes). But it’s my humble opinion that those within that thirty-year strat provided some of the best opera that ever existed, vocally speaking…
00:50 -- I'm glad they finally came up with a different way of introducing Phyllis Newman, instead of granting her Arlene's "delightful star" designation!
Edward L Libby
BIRTH 18 Mar 1876
DEATH 7 Sep 1969 (aged 93)
BURIAL
Mount Calvary Cemetery
Pleasantville, Atlantic County, New Jersey, USA
And Miss Leontyne Price is now 95.
Did Woody Allen really think that WML would get Nikita Khrushchev to come on their program as a Mystery Guest? In his forced retirement, it is doubtful that he would have been allowed to leave the Soviet Union. And the audience reaction most likely would have been a great deal of shock and surprise with very little applause (and perhaps even some boos).
Perhaps it was an attempt at humor by Allen. If so, it fell flat. It might have worked with someone like Ustinov who could have followed it with some repartee, but not with Ms. Price.
The second guest is 90? Why he doesn't look 60.
To be in entertainment industry = excellent schoomzer
I've never understood why Phyllis Newman tilts her head back so far when wearing blindfold glasses. If they were loose and in danger of falling off why didn't she ever have a specific pair for her adjusted?
To see who the mystery guest is. How do you think she guessed Peter ?
Albania and China.Seems like ancient history now.
If you like operatic disasters, you would have loved Franco Zefferelli's 1966 production of "Cleopatra." Talk about landing in the Metropolitan with a huge thud. It was like "The Bandwagon" of opera. I hear Ms. Price got caught in the machinery of the set, notably a hollowed out [Sphinx?} [pyramid?}
Actually "Antony and Cleopatra" by Samuel Barber.
+Johan Bengtsson Not too many people from the classical music world appeared on What's My Line, but
Thomas Schippers who conducted the premiere of Antony and Cleopatra with Miss Price, was a contestant in a 1958 episode.
Well, off the top of my head, those who did would also include Richard Tucker, Robert Merrill, Lily Pons, Patrice Munsel, Helen Traubel, Ezio Pinza (both as Mystery Guest and as guest panelist), Marian Anderson, and Seiji Ozawa. This was Miss Price's second appearance as Mystery Guest on WML?
She wasn't "caught" in it, but the over-elaborate set piece was meant to open and reveal her. The mechanics though kept it shut, so she kept singing through a wall. But at no point was she in danger. It was just awkward and confusing for those present. For that matter the music wasn't exactly the best.
"Antony and Cleopatra" was not a successful opera, but it didn't do Ms. Price's career any harm.
I believe Leontyne is related to the the late great Whitney Houston..
Leontyne is a distant cousin of Whitney's maternal grandfather (the Drinkard family). The birth name of Whitney's mother (Cissy Houston) was Emily Drinkard.
It's always surprising to me that usually the panel are Jewish with only one, sometimes two, who are Gentiles. On this panel we have Phyllis Newman, Woody and Bennett. Does that mean that Jews are more intelligent and/or more talented?
It only means that Jews were and still are predominantly really good and successful at music and show business in general. Start checking with Irving Berlin, Danny Kaye, Oscar Levant, The Marx brothers, Al Jolson, Jimmy Durante, Jack Benny, Lauren Bacall, Barbara Streisand, George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Mort Saul, plus the movie moguls, ad infinitum. I must have had something to do with their religious culture, which forbade making images, so you find very few Jewish artists, and the restrictions upon them by the governments they lived in. So they invented a lot of things to do that would appease the people who were supposed to hate them for killing Christ, or whatever non truth that came from. The Jews of yesteryear, were an entity in themselves, with special connections whether by religion or other cultural associations. In modern terms, they possess a lot of DNA on the business and entertainment side of natural talents.
Jewish people are not necessarily more intelligent or talented to begin with than other people, but they have a respect for learning and studying and perhaps apply themselves more to achieving.
Still, your comment brings to mind a statement Sherman Alexie made about how the funniest people he knew were those who survived holocausts.
@@slaytonp Making cultural generalizations is very hazardous. In any case, Jimmy Durante was a Roman Catholic of Italian heritage.
@@slaytonp There's nothing in Judaism that forbids making images. In fact, there have been many famous Jewish artists.
You are a screaming racist idiot, do you belong to the KLU KLUX KLAN
I wish they had totally done away, totally and forever, both Phillis Newman and Woody Allen. Ugghhh. With so many wonderful people to choose from, why on earth did they pick these two horrible people? I distinctly believe they think they're funnier and more enjoyable than they actually are. Please no more of them. It takes so much energy to not just skip episodes where they appear. Blech.
"We will bury you?" Did Khrushchev sing, Woody?
Bennett's piano tuning joke has kicked around TH-cam for years. I told it to my piano tuner friend, who told it to his piano tuning colleagues. They loved it. So there, Bennett.
soulierinvestments
Actually, I think Bennett would be thrilled to know that piano tuners enjoyed his joke. Perhaps it's Arlene that should get the, "So there." ;)
Do you suppose Bennett actually invented that joke? My father's been telling it for as long as I can remember. I wonder if he could have first heard it on WML! Then again, it could have been in one of Bennett's joke/humor books, or Bennett could have just been repeating a joke he'd heard from someone else -- perhaps even that Indiana banker he mentioned!
Bennett's opening pun ranks as one of the worst I ever heard. As an incorrigible punster myself, it was so bad I didn't even give it a groan. I am shocked ... shocked to learn that it has had traction over the years. Perhaps there aren't many piano tuner puns and they have to settle for what they can get.
On top of everything else, with the tongue twister name that's involved, it is a difficult pun to both repeat and to follow.
He took the opportunity to try.
Phyllis Newman always looks like she’s trying to cheat by holding her head up high, trying to see out of the bottom of her mask!
She probably was cheating....never liked her!!!
I didn't particularly like her as a panelist, but in another post it was said she wore glasses but didn't on here. Vanity? That's why she held her head like that?
Libby - at 90 - is more sound, than aimlessBiden 😅
You are a MAGA traitor