Ship satir e
best-selling —
disc in U.S.

NEW YORK

The Reuben Ship-CBC radio play
The Investigator, bootlegged onto
a recording in New York by B & C

Recording Inc., has become the|

best-selling disc in the U.S. and in-
an “all-time best-seller. Stores re-
Port a tremendous sale. :
Stores report a tremendous sale.

The Investigator is a satire on
the McCarthy witchhunt in the
United States. It was performed
on CBC last May and tape record-
ings were sold of it,.so great was
the popular response).

The New York Times was first
to review it; now many other New
York papers and magazines have
Caught up with it, including the
New York Worker. It has created
a great furore and even President
Kisenhower- is reported to have
heard it. °

Dave Platt, movie and theatre
critic of the Worker said last week:

“This is satire in-the great tradi-
tion . . . No synopsis can begin to
Convey the quality of the writing,
the depth of political understand-
ing and the humor that makes the
Play so outstanding. Mr. Ship is
an experienced writer of talent. He
is a Canadian who before being de-
Ported from the United States un-
der the McCarran Act two years
ago, wrote a number of popular
radio shows including Life of Riley
and some stuff for Bob Hope.”

Platt also notes:

“Canadian actor John Drainie
Plays the title role of the investig-
ator and what a flawless perform-
ance it is . He gives the play its
extra added punch with his mastery
of McCarthy’s. technique, manner-
isms and voice which he has down
Pat from the rumbling growl to the
high, thin whine.”

In a front-page piece headed
“The Angel and the Lowbrow,” the

orker’s Joe North writes:

“This best-seller in the disc
Market was written by a man who
Was kicked out of the country; and
now his work is ‘bootlegged,’ no
Toyalties, nothing but the satisfac-
tion that his wonderful work is be-
Ing heard by hundreds of thous-
ands. . . . Americans will thank
Mr. Ship, and some, I hope more
than a few, will reflect on the toll,
In terms of talent, the- current de-
- lirium is taking.”

Heads Marine Workers

_ Sam Jenkins (above) has been
elected president of the Marine
Workers and _ Boilermakers
Union, replacing William White
who resigned the post recently.

U.S. purgers move in

on city Electrical local

Officials of the International: Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (AFL) from Wash-
ington moved into Vancouver last weekend invésted with special powers to conduct what
gation” into the internal affairs of IBEW Local 213 here.

. Two IBEW investigators, Alfred Terry and A, Johnson, both from the U.S., are direct-

they termed a “cleanup investi

ing the “purge” which, as press statements issued b

against progressive leadership in
the big local union carried on
under the pretext of removing
“Communists.” To dramatize their
actions they had a policeman sta-
tioned at local union headquarters.

First move in this drive was
the arbitrary removal of George
Gee, popular elected representa-
tive of the IBEW here since 1947,
from his post of business agent.
According to press reports, a list
of charges specifying “Communist
sympathies” has been lodged
against Geé by the local executive,
acting under Terry’s instructions.

Don Wilson, Local 213 organizer,

Effie Jones proposes
charter amendments

Vancouver City Council this week was presented with five pro-
posals to extend civic democracy and ensure wider participation of

voters in civic elections.

These proposals were contained in a brief

by Effie Jones, president, Civic Reform Association, which will come
before council committees in the next few days.

The brief proposes that the city
seek three charter amendments at
the coming sessions of the legisla-
ture to change voting to Saturdays
from Wednesdays; provide 8 p.m.
closing of polls and four free hours
in which to vote, and change pro-
perty qualifications for candidates
to eliminate present exorbitant
qualifications.

Each of the three amendments
to the city charter is aimed at cor-
recting inequalities now existing
which came to the fore in last
December’s civic election. Under
the CRA plan any person can run

‘for alderman, school board or parks

board who has a $500 equity based
on actual property value, not on
the assessed value. Candidates for
mayor would require $1000 equity
based on actual property, value.
Two additional changes are pro-
posed in the CRA brief which do
not require charter amendments.
These are: that the number of polls
be increased from the present 90
to 135, making it easier for voters
to get to the polls; and that the
city council mail individual notices

to all voters prior to the election

containing place, date and time of
voting, and listing all candidates
for public office. -

[PP meeting in
city convention

Labor-Progressive party clubs in
Greater Vancouver will meet in
convention Saturday and Sun-
day, January 29-30, Charles Caron,

LPP city organizer, announced this

week. ?

Sessions will open at noon Sat-
urday in Pender Auditorium ,and
Maurice Rush, city secretary, will
give his report at 12:30 p.m: Caron
will present the organizational re-
port Sunday at 11:30 a.m.

Theme of the convention will be
“A Greater Vancouver in a Great-
er Canada,” and it will deal with
the local application of the LPP’s
national Put Canada First program,
with special emphasis on the fight
to stop the U.S. grab of this prov-
ince’s natural resources.

a
es

,

SOCIALISM at WORK

Sunday, January 23 -- 8 p.m.

EVERYONE WELCOME

PUBLIC MEETING |

JUST BACK FROM SOVIET UNION

HEAR

Tom McEwen

_ Editor Pacific Tribune

Auspices: Greater Vancouver Committee, Labor-Progressive Party.

y Terry make clear, is actually a drive

also has had his services summarily
terminated on Terry’s orders and
a similar docket of charges has
been preferred against him.

By Wednesday this week, charges
of “Communist activity” had been
lodged against a score of union
members all of whom, including
Wilson, will face trial before the
same local executive which has
preferred charges against them
under direction of the U.S. purge
team.

Bert Marcuse, a war veteran who
has earned a reputation in pro-
vincial labor circles as an able
research worker, has peen dismiss-
ed without charge from the post
of research director for which he
was only recently engaged. Art

been dismissed without charge.

At a-capacity local union meet-
ing held Monday this week, rank-
and-file members voiced vigorous
opposition to ‘the purge, which
they regard as violating local: union
rights and jeopardising trade
union democracy in this country
by placing the membership of Local
213 under virtual U.S: dictatorship.

Following the meeting, a union
spokesman declared:

“We must hold the right we
have always had in Vancouver un-
til now to run our affairs in our
own way. Our membership, and
not Terry and Johnson, must have
the sole say in the conduct of our
union affairs.

“McCarthyism is a much greater
danger to our local union, the con-
ditions we have won, and our
jobs, than communism, /

“We have to remind these
brothers of ours from across the
line that we are Canadians.”
During the meeting, despite the

almost unanimous demands of the
membership, the executive not
only ruled against informing the
membership of the charges levell-
ed against Gee, Wilson and others,
but ignored all motions from the
floor challenging that arbitrary
ruling.

In one of his many tirades
against “communism” in the course
of the meeting, Terry attempted
to link the Pacific Tribune with
the charges he has had laid against
union members.

Significantly, in early daily
press reports on Gee’s removal
from office, B.C. Electric vice-
president H. L. Purdy was quot-
ed in support of Terry's allega-
tions as charging Gee “with tac-
tics that closely follow the Com-
munist line.” In this members
of the IBEW and other unions
see a close tieup between the
B.C. Electric and the attempts
to remove the leadership of a
hitherto progressive union.
Terry’s summary demand that

Mill and Smelter Workers vacate
its offices, rented on lease from
Electrical Estates, and his FBI-
RCMP. méthod of interrogating
Mine-Mill Western regional direc-
tor Harvey Murphy, are seen as yet

Goy, a business agent, has also|.

the International Union of Mine, |

another part of a campaign which

has as its aim the big business ob-
jective of disrupting and weaken-
ing progressive-led unions, using
the McCarthyite tactic of denounc-
ing all those attacked as “Com-
munists.”

LABOR

BRIEFS

Strike of 94 members of Elec-
trical Trades Union Local No. 1
at Burrard Dry Dock, North Van-
couver, enters its second week
with no sign of an early settlement.

Because they refuse to cross
Electrical picket lines, hundreds of
members of two larger groups in
the shipyard, Marine Workers and
Boilermakers (CCL) and AFL Ma-
chinnists, have been idled by the
strike.

* x Xe

Vancouver Trades and Labor
Council (AFL-TLC) has returned
president~Tom Alsbury for a fifth
term, and secretary R. K. Gervin
for a 13th term.

George Johnston was elected
vice-president; Reg Lenfesty, ward-
en; Norman Uphill, statistician.
= Committee chairmen: George
Bengough, organization; Jack Hen-
derson, legislative; Bill Weaver,
press; Ed King, grievance; Dave
Wade, education.

x * *

Conciliation committee of Van-
couver City Council has called in
representatives of all civic unions
for a “general discussion” Friday
this week in .an apparent effort. to
get them to drop 1955 wage de-
mands Indications are that. all
union spokesmen will say, “Noth-
ing doing.”

About 3,500 civic workers are go-
ing after wage increases this year.
Electricians want a three percent
hike; Outside Workers are asking
for a ll-cent- hourly boost; City
Hall Employees seek a 4.6 percent
increase; police a five percent in-
crease; registered nurses an addi-
tional pay grade. Firemen have
not yet filed demands.

City council, on the other hand,
Passed a resolution January 17
calling for a general five percent
reduction in wages.

Scandinavians plan
midwinter festival

Scandinavian Central Commit-
tee’s annual Midwinter Festival
will be held January 28 at Sunset
Memorial Centre, 404 East 5ist
Avenue, and will bring together
Scandinavians and their friends
from all over the lower mainland.

As in past. years, proceds will
be used to send children to the
Jubilee Summer Camp for a two-
week free vacation next summer.
Admission is only 75 cents, and’ an
enjoyable program has been plan-
ned, starting at 8 p.m.

UE eg a |

-- DANCING

ST a ed

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LU UConn Sn a0 a0 0 On YT 0 0 TY

ete Et ee Th

BURNS’

CONCERT PROGRAM

Saturdoy, January 22 - 8 p.m.
PENDER AUDITORIUM

Admission - 50¢
* ~

-
BLUM LT Ste EE 0 dnt a 00) tnt dt 9a 0 EOROROEUEE

=}

UU Bet a

NIGHT

REFRESHMENTS

SOULE ECE ET

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — JANUARY 21, 1955 — PAGE 7