Fred & Ethel: "Carolina in the Morning"

Rare footage.
William Frawley & Vivian Vance (as Fred & Ethel Mertz) sing "Carolina in the Morning" at the Anti-Defamation League 40th Anniversary Dinner held at the Mayflower Hotel, Washington, D.C. 1953.

** INFO UPDATE 04/07/2009 **

(Credit: moriafinnie, at the TCM blog, MovieMorlocks)

"...in a bizarre moment in American cultural history, President Dwight Eisenhower presided at a Dinner With the President on Thanksgiving night, in 1953. Lots of high powered types showed up for the live program, which was broadcast on three networks [ABC, NBC, CBS]. The extravaganza, which was hosted by Rogers and Hammerstein ... commemorated the 40th Anniversary of the Anti-Defamation League of Bnai Brith and tried to promote an air of philosophical tolerance in a time of political darkness that characterized the McCarthy era. Numerous celebrities were anxious to participate, including everyone from media bigwigs such as David Sarnoff, Leonard Goldenson, and William Paley to Lucy and Desi. Helen Hayes even impersonated Harriet Beecher Stowe and Rex Harrison and Lili Palmer lent their sophisticated presence to a very American show while J. Edgar Hoover reportedly ducked his chance for a close-up behind a table lamp." The program opened with Thelma Ritter portraying a weary Statue of Liberty!