Ever since NBC made Nat "King" Cole the first Negro to host his own network show (TIME, July 15), potential sponsors have kept a sharp eye trained on both the show and its popularity polls. But even top nationwide ratings and a glittering line-up of guest stars (Harry Belafonte, Ella Fitzgerald, and in a rare upcoming live appearance, Bing Crosby) have failed to get him a national-sponsor nibble. Last week the makers of Rheingold Beer persuaded NBC to let them sponsor Cole in the East only—where Rheingold is marketed. "The fact that Cole is a Negro is of no importance to...
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