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BETWEEN RACES By Oscar Otis HOLLYWOOD PARK, Inglewood, Calif./ I May 28. — Hollywood Parks biggest week end of the season is on tap, with the run- ning ning of of the the 5,000 5,000 ning ning of of the the 5,000 5,000 added Ramona Handicap for fillies and mares carded for Saturday afternoon, and then, on the Monday holiday, the 5,000 Argonaut Handicap at a flat mile. If tradition and experience means anything, the largest crowd of the season will be on hand Monday, Monday, it it being being a a Monday, Monday, it it being being a a more attractive holiday, wicket-wise, than the Fourth of July. In this respect, there is an interesting story connected with Memorial Day when it falls on-a Sunday. Memorial Day, in Southern California, sees hundreds of thousands of people visit the cemeteries. And when this day is Sunday, Monday remains free time. The last time the calendar fell this way, more than 72,000 people stformed Hollywood Park on a Monday, and there was a consequent jam which had management on edge. AAA The gates to the parking lot had to be closed, while more than 72,000 paid their way in. Some folks, after getting in and seeing the crowd, asked for and received their admission money back. However, this year, the Hollywood Park facilities are far more spacious than prevailed then, and we dare say that 70,000 or so could be accommodated on Monday — if that many decide to go a racing. The Memorial Day also has vividly demonstrated to Hollywood the power of advertising, f of v a few seasons ago, fearing another big crowd, Hollywood actually advertised to come early — if you were coming at all — to avoid the crush, and people took the track at its word and stayed away by the thousands. AAA Some of the stakes decided this week have been disappointing, quality-wise, but this has not disheartened the management. Racing secretary Johnny Maluvius comments: "Sure, some of these races have not been as good as we might have hoped or reasonably expected. But at the same time, there will be years in the future when they will have the kind of fields warranted by the added money and the prestige which they confer upon their respective winners. In other words we have a responsibility to the breeding industry of California in particular and the nation in general to card * Biggest Hollypark Week End Here 4 Ramona, Argonaut oh Tap for Fans Noors Brother Impresses in Debut some stakes for certain type horses regardless of the given calibre of a class in a given season. It will all work out over the long run. In the meantime, Hollywood Park is no worse off than any other track which operates at this time of year. The handicap division is well scattered, and everything" considered, I think we have our share. Many of the big names will start appearing in the entry line-ups in the immediate weeks ahead. And I think the two-year-olds that are showing prospects have more than made up for any lack of quality in a few of our .stakes insofar as public interest is concerned." AAA As far as this writer is concerned, the most interesting development of the week did not transpire in a stake race, but rather in a six-furlong allowance event and which saw General Cariappa, a four-year-old son of Nasrullah — Queen of Bagdad, and thus a full brother of Noor making his racing debut. It might sound foolish to say that a horse who trailed his field throughout, " and racing wide, showed little or nothing, to have impressed us tremendously, but that is just what happened. General Cariappa was imported to this country by Rex Ellsworth and was acquired primarily for stud duty. But, as in the case with Khaled, Ellsworth decided to race The General a bit and see what happened. Khaled never did much in America, but he has established himself as one of the great sires of our times. The Generals careel easily could parallel that of Khaled, for in his appearance in the theatre-type paddock, and even in his race, General Cariappa struck us as being a "horse of tremendous power; He is more the American type than Noor, being thicker through the loins, and, we believe, not nearly as leggy. General Cariappa did a lot of running in that sprint, but a lot of his motion was up and down rather than forwards, a peculiarity that American observers have noted on more than one occasion when foreign horses endeavor the American dirt tracks. It is not a guide to their ability, but rather an indication that they have failed to master American type racing. Perhaps the nadir of dullness on the part of a foreign importation was displayed many, many years ago by Challenger U., who raced at ►old Caliente. He could not, as the saying goes, trot, pace, or gallop. But a stable-mate, Sun God H., raced sensationally. Challenger H. became a worth-while stud, If only for the reason that he sired Challe-don, while Sun. God U. failed to make more than a passing dent in American bloodlines. AAA Incidentally, Ellsworth started the week off by introducing a clever juvenile in Bequeath, a son of Khaled, and who won the Cabrillo Stakes in a manner indicating authority, Ellsworth tells us that he is going to make full use of juvenile stakes opportunities here at Hollywood before deciding whether or not to make another midseason invasion to Arlington-Washington Parks, but if he has the horses and we believe he has, he will send a formidable string to the Middle West after the Starlet running. AAA Horses and People: It was unfortunate that the American debut of The Pie King had to be postponed — again . . . There is no question about his being a top horse, and California fans are quite anxious to see him . . . Trainer and partner-owner Ray Bell has been bringing The Pie King along steadily and slowly and surely, to the end that when the Gimcrack Stakes winner does appear before Yankee audiences, he will show to good advantage . . . Bell has the somewhat unique background of being able to train both in England, France, and America, understands both systems of conditioning, and if anyone can adapt a horse from one to the other, he can . . . W. J. "Buddy" Hirsch is proving a master at having horses fit at first outing. He is introducing, from time to time, juveniles who received their preliminary training in Texas. AAA Anticipate the appointment of a secretary to the California Horse Racing Board not later than June 30 . . . It, in all probability, will be a non-civil service appointment, for, as one commissioner remarks, "By making the post non-civil service, any possibility- of a Fiske situation arising again will be an impossibility . . . The. board, under the law", is entitled to one confidential post, and we can say there are at the moment 12 applications, either formal or by the verbal intercession of responsible people, on file for the post and which are under consideration . . . And speaking of policy, we wouldnt be too surprised if the major California tracks worked out their date differences among themselves prior to the next meeting of the racing commission.
