“Rag Trade” Man Finds Fame Has Drawbacks

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30688, 2 March 1965, Page 6

“Rag Trade” Man Finds Fame Has Drawbacks

Television fame has its rewards and its drawbacks.

The English actor, Peter Jones, became an established star in the role of the harassed boss in the 8.8. C. comedy series “Rag Trade.” The girls of Fenner Fashions gave Mr Jones a dog's life and millions of viewers lapped it up.

It was all good clean fun. but Mr Jones, who is in New Zealand to start in the stage farce “Boeing, Boeing," had only one complaint. Television viewers, in Mr Jones’ experience, are inclined to forget that they are watching a world of makebelieve.

Mr Jones has not yet been offered employment as a clothing factory manager, but when a popular member of the “Rag Trade” cast, the elderly Lil, wanted a change and left the series the boss got the blame. People approached Mr Jones on the street, addressed him as Mr Fenner and demanded to know why he had fired poor Lil from Fenner Fashions.

Mr Jones tried to explain in vain that he was an actor and not a factory owner. It was no use. The irate viewers laid down an ultimatum. Mr Fenner could rehire Lil or suffer the consequences of aj clothing boycott.

DISGUISE Mr Jones took to wearing thick, horn-rimmed spectacles as a disguise and was not

sorry when the “Rag Trade" Series ended. When Mr Jones insisted he was an actor and not a manufacturer he was not exaggerating. He is also a talented playwright. One of his plays, “The New Man,” produced by commercial television in Britain, is being translated for Moscow viewers.

In Australia during the successful 12 months’ run of “Boeing, Boeing” he wrote another television play called “Up in the Underworld." He has been commissioned to write a play for the Comedy Playhouse series and will tackle this during the coming New Zealand season.

Bach Preludes In Cathedral

The fifth of C. Foster Browne’s festival organ recitals in the Cathedral on Wednesday will be entirely devoted to the first five preludes, with the exception of No. 2, from Bach’s great and final collection of Chorale Preludes, generally known as the 18 Chorale Preludes. Some of the works in the collection are considered possible revisions of earlier works, though there is one very late work which was dictated during the composer’s final years of blindness. The recital begins at 4.45 p.m.