THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 27, 1994 TAG: 9411240233
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Frank Roberts
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines
Today I'm offering you a smorgasbord, beginning with a look at the outcome of last week's Franklin Little Theatre plays.
``Night of January 16th'' featured audience members as jury members. They had to decide on the fate of Karen Andre - did she, or did she not kill her lover?
The actors are ready with two endings. Well, she was proclaimed innocent Wednesday and Thursday, guilty Friday and Saturday. The weekend crowd was rougher. Anyway, nice balance.
After the jury returns its verdict, the judge voices her disgust with their decision - guilty or innocent, she doesn't like it. Talk about a tough judiciary.
A salute to some of our young people who are doing more than all right in showbiz.
David D. DeLong, a sixth-grade honor student at John Yeates Middle School, is portraying Michael Darling in the Virginia Stage Company production of ``Peter Pan.''
A six-year veteran of the Hurrah Players of Norfolk, he says that his favorite show was ``The Wizard of Oz.''
David's other interests are drawing, piano playing and rollerblading.
``Peter Pan'' continues Dec. 7-10 at 7 p.m., with a 2 p.m. matinee the last day. The first day is sold out. For information and tickets, call VSC at 627-1234.
Other Suffolk children making the grade include Nicole and Pam Speight, appearing in commercials promoting Virginia tourism.
Joy Miller is in a commercial promoting Virginia Beach tourism. That in-demand 10-year-old is also on a Mattel toy commercial, appears on ads for Marva Maid milk, and does a voice-over for a CBN spot. In addition, she is seen as one of Old Indy's grandchildren in the ``Young Indiana Jones'' TV series.
Thanks to the people who contacted me and A. Lewis Greene about the story I did on that estimable gentleman and his memories of seeing the German concentration camps soon after Allied liberation.
The story was a topic of discussion a short while later at Agudeth Achim, the synagogue serving Suffolk.
Larry Ruden, who once ran The Little Shop downtown - he now works for Hub Furniture - told me about that and his own memories of seeing Dachau while in the Air Force.
He went there on a tour, noting ``the ovens were still there. The Russians wouldn't let the Germans destroy any of the evidence. There are two mass graves there - one with Stars of David, the other with crosses.''
I also want to thank Rosa Lee Felton and her mom, Nina Felton, for their very nice letters - and for Nina's classy artwork; a note of thanks for a note from Kathy Pond, who hosted my recent visit to the Obici Hospital Auxiliary where I had the chance to run my mouth at a meeting.
A nearby newspaper, not one serving this area, last month asked some children what they were planning to be for Halloween.
A 7-year-old boy gave this answer: ``I'm going to be Jason because he kills people.''
That opened the floodgates - letters critical of the newspaper for publishing the response, followed by an editor's note defending freedom of speech.
Should that answer, printed with the boy's picture, have been published? I asked around the office.
Photographer Michael Kestner had this response: ``I don't see anything wrong with publishing it. They ask a kid a question, he gives an answer.''
Police reporter Robert Little would not have published the response, reasoning that ``it makes the kid look bad.''
Don Naden, our editor, thought for a long while before deciding against publication, reasoning that the man-on-the-street item is a light piece.
Then he offered a more important reason against publication: ``Given the increasing violence among children today, that was a stark, frightening answer.''
Mac Daniel, a former police reporter now covering municipal government, agreed. ``I would not have run it, or I would have asked the kid for another reason - why he wanted to be Jason.''
I like Mac's answer. I've done that myself with my kids columns, once even calling a mom to find out if her child's answer should be published. A few times, I just asked the child to think again - give me another response.
Once or twice I have let answers slip by that I regretted later - after hearing from a fuming parent. ILLUSTRATION: David DeLong stars in the Virginia Stage Company's ``Peter
Pan.''
by CNB