The Coral Gables Times

Suburbia Today

THE MAGAZINE OF PLEASANT PLACES Published Monthly

In This Issue ...

In This Issue . . . Mr. King and Mr. Kilian . . . page 6 Alexander King, best-selling author of May This House Be Safe From Tigers and Mine Enemy Grows Older, this month shares a hilarious episode that concerned him and the "telephone man," one time when he owed the telephone company just a few thousand dollars. The story will be included in Mr. King's book of memoirs, I Should Have Kissed Her More, which will be published in October. Off The Deep End . . . page 10 Here's one tropic paradise whose climate in July is just as glorious as it is in January—only the prices are better. At the Virgin Islands National Park, for instance, the entire family can camp, swim, snorkel, skin dive, explore old Danish ruins, and soak up a whole summer of sun in a couple of fun-filled weeks, in a priceless fragment of America. Now Hear This . . . page 16 Noted actor Walter Slezak believes that children should be introduced to the world's great operas first as exciting bedtime or mealtime stories. Then, when the work is finally heard on a record or seen "live," the child will find old familiar friends instead of a stodgy cultural exercise. He's been "telling operas" to his children for years and now Ingrid, Erica, and Leo prefer "La Boheme" to a double feature any day. Atrium Near Atlanta . . . page 18 This spectacular "Unusual Suburban Home" was designed by the owner, Mr. Cecil Alexander. He built it around the court, which is always filled with light and plants and people meeting each other as they move from room to room. From an impromptu picnic on a hot summer's day to big formal parties, the atrium is the focus of the Alexanders' family life.

Don Higgins

So what if you've been sweltering on the train or driving to the supermarket or doing the laundry or seeing the client, if you can look forward to an evening filled with cool water, cool glasses, and the lively company of good friends. Our cover artist shows the patio-poolside at its best after a hard, hot August day.

LEONARD S. DAVIDOW Publisher ERNEST V. HEYN Editor-In-Chief MARION LOWNDES Editor DELMAR LIPP Managing Editor CHRISTINA PAPPAS Associate Editor PHILLIP DYKSTRA Art Director JOHN BAILEY Humor Editor SUBURBIA TODAY is distributed nationally with newspapers in selected suburban communities. Editorial offices at 60 East 56th St., New York 22, N. Y. Advertising offices at 575 Lexington Ave., New York 22, N. Y. Business offices at 153 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago 1, Ill. Walter C. Dreyfus, Vice President. Patrick O'Rourke, Advertising Director. Ford King, Advertising Manager. Morton Frank, Director of Publisher Relations. © 1961, Suburbia Publishing Corporation, 153 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago 1, Ill. All rights reserved.

GETTING AROUND . . . to Our Pleasant Places and People

"Mrs. Cole, would you kindly hand me that steak?" UNDER THE HEADING "Men Whose Jobs We Don't Want Under Any Circumstances" put the name Claude Souder, Jr. Mr. Souder is in charge of making a periodic "bite count" for the Broward County, Florida, Anti-Mosquito District. It's not a strenuous job, really. All that he (or one of the other hardies in his crew) has to do is stand in a given place for two minutes, and wait—for mosquitoes to land on him. You see, the number of mosquitoes that land on an inspector within a two-minute interval, in an area away from the sun and wind, gives him a fairly accurate gauge of the mosquito invasion. If the count is high, the district's spray plane is ordered out to cover the area with insecticide, and the inspector can limp away, sure of another job well done. • • Our Reading, Massachusetts, correspondent just called up with the news that the "History of New England From 1630 To 1649" was finally returned to the New Bedford library this summer. The book was 129 years overdue. Mr. and Mrs. John M. Bullard found it while cleaning out their own book collection. It had come down to them through Mrs. Bullard's great-grandfather, Henry Crapo, who had originally borrowed the book from the library. Librarian James S. Healy graciously waived the $750 fine because, he said, "It's a very dull book; it could take 129 years to read." Val Winston, an overworked husband of San Fernando, California, was heard to mutter, "I'm not off Saturdays—just under new management." • • Thanks for the tip, Mr. Sol Troup. Mr. Troup, who lives near Suffern, New York, and who has rarely ever been seen without a cigar in his mouth, recommends the icebox as a humidor. It keeps cigars fresh forever, Mrs. Troup agrees, and adds she doesn't grudge the space they take up, since Sol, when he sneaks down for a midnight snack, is only after a good smoke. • • Workers for the Cancer Foundation in Wyandotte, Dearborn, Mt. Clemens, Berkley, and Pontiac, Michigan, want to remind neighbors who take advantage of local white sales, this time of the year, to think twice about their old sheets and pillowcases before relegating them to the scrap bag to be used as dustcloths. Old linen can be put to use by the Foundation to hold dressings for the relief of patients. In fact, we think it's a good idea for everybody to send along torn, discarded sheets and pillowcases where they will bring comfort to a suffering human being. The information operator in your community can supply you with the number to call, or consult the yellow pages. Continued on page 4