Hired Wife

From Hollywood, the NBC Theater presents The Universal Design Production, Hired Wife, Director William Siter, Star Rosalind Russell This is the Screen Director's Guild presentation of life as it is lived by a private secretary The comedy, Hired Wife, starring Rosalind Russell and introducing the director of the film, William Siter Tonight it is the privilege of the NBC Theater

to introduce a man whose profession is the relentless pursuit of that titillating will of the wisp known as motion picture comedy. The hunt has been a remarkably successful one, for as a screen director he has employed his unusual abilities to create some hundred and seventy-five films, most of them designed for laughter. You've seen his director's credit

on such pictures as Roberta, up in Central Park, the affairs of Susan, one touch of Venus, tonight's story, Hired Wife. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. William Citer. Thank you, thank you. About 25 years ago, when I was working as an actor in a motion picture comedy, my director became ill.

Somehow the word got around. Let's try to finish the film. That's where they made their first big mistake. They'd never gotten me out of the director's chair since. Why? It's simple. I like making comedies.

I like making people laugh. What are they laugh at? Well, maybe after another 25 years of directing, I'll know for sure. But for now all I can do is guess. For instance, I took a guess on a story, hired wife, and a character named Kendall Browning, a private secretary where Rosalind Russell seemed to be a natural for the pot.

Kendall Browning was employed in New York by Stephen Dexter, of the Stephen Dexter cement company. With her horn-drammed glasses and poise pencil, she was efficiency personified. Her boss was sublimely unaware that his perfect secretary was also a beautiful woman.