Hit

Radiomen, who vie viciously with one another to decorate their Christmas programs with boughs of Hollywood, admit that they have all been outvied this season by a boyish Roman Catholic priest. The Rev. Patrick Peyton had under his Christmas tree two of radio's choicest sugarplums: his popular, weekly Family Theater (Thurs. 10 p.m., Mutual), with a performance of Anatole France's Our Lady's Juggler, and a special, Peyton-inspired, star-studded dramatization of the Nativity, The Joyful Hour, aired last week.

Father Peyton attributes his sudden success in radio to a simple faith. Some think his Irish stubbornness helped, too. A big, bulky, bashful man of 38, Father Peyton came to the U.S. 20 years ago from a poverty-ridden County Mayo home, already smitten with "the passion of my life": the power of prayer. "I remember what it did for our Catholic family in Ireland," he recalls, "and how it united the eleven of us completely. I knew it would make happy families the world over."

For four years, in his crusade for family prayer, Father Peyton nagged the networks without letup--and without success. When he suggested reading the rosary coast-to-coast, vice presidents by the score yawned in his face. Last February, Mutual promised to let him do a weekly dramatic show, with nonsectarian opening and closing plugs for prayer. There was one catch: Father Peyton would have to rope in at least one film star a week.

Family Theater has rarely had less than three big stars. Last week's Joyful Hour had 18. Actors, musicians, writers and technicians--Catholics, Protestants and Jews--have rushed to offer their services. And Father Peyton has somehow managed to scrounge the $2,000 a week for production costs (radio peanuts for a big star hit show).

One astonished cinemagnate asked how in the world he had managed to assemble such a glamor show, when the Government had often tried it and sometimes failed. "Our Lady," the priest replied, "can do a lot better than the Government."

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