Talk:Albert Freedman

Did you know nomination

The following is an archived discussion of the DYK nomination of the article below. Please do not modify this page. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as this nomination's talk page, the article's talk page or Wikipedia talk:Did you know), unless there is consensus to re-open the discussion at this page. No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was: promoted by Theleekycauldron (talk) 10:46, 24 January 2022 (UTC)

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Quiz show - Twenty-one

• ... that Albert Freedman was the first person indicted in the 1950s quiz show scandals? Source: Became the first person to be indicted in the probe
  • ALT1: ... that quiz show producer Albert Freedman became the central figure in the 1950s quiz show scandals? Source: Albert Freedman, Central Figure in the Quiz Show Scandals of the 1950s, Dies at 95
  • Reviewed: Template:Did you know nominations/Late Visitors to Pompeii ‎

Created by Bruxton (talk). Self-nominated at 18:54, 13 January 2022 (UTC).

• Reviewing Mujinga (talk) 21:52, 13 January 2022 (UTC)
• General eligibility:
• New enough:
• Long enough:
• Other problems:

Policy: Article is sourced, neutral, and free of copyright problems
Adequate sourcing: Neutral: Free of copyright violations, plagiarism, and close paraphrasing:

Hook eligibility:

• Cited:
• Interesting:

QPQ:
Overall: the hooks are heading in the right direction but could be catchier. can you reformualte, perhaps adding in that he recanted Grand Jury testimony because that's intriguing. right now ALT1 has repetition of "quiz show" as well. when you offer a new ALT please put the citation(s) backing it on that particular sentence in the article. Mujinga (talk) 21:59, 13 January 2022 (UTC)

• Hi @Mujinga: I like ATL0 for the hook - I also received some positive feedback on that one from another editor. If you have a good idea for a better hook please submit it here and the promoter can pick on. I also received a suggestion for an alternative hook that reads:

ATL2... that after Albert Freedman was blacklisted from show business in the wake of the game show scandals of the 1950s, he went on to found a publishing company? Source Bruxton (talk) 15:32, 15 January 2022 (UTC)

• Cool let's strike ALT1 and move forward with ALT0 then, which is good to go. If you want to include ALT2 as well can you supply the citation(s)?Mujinga (talk) 15:53, 15 January 2022 (UTC)

• @Mujinga: Thanks - added the source - please give it a green tick when ready. Bruxton (talk) 17:46, 15 January 2022 (UTC)

• ALT0 is good to go, but ALT2 is not, you now need to put the information in the hook (which I've verified is in the source) also into the article. Mujinga (talk) 21:30, 15 January 2022 (UTC)

• @Mujinga: Thank you, I moved the citation to support the hook in the body. Bruxton (talk) 02:22, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

• @Bruxton: what i meant was there's information in the hook which isn't in the article, specifically blacklisting (article says "never worked in television again") and founding (article says "worked for") Mujinga (talk) 11:04, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

• @Mujinga: I struck the hook in question. Bruxton (talk) 14:57, 19 January 2022 (UTC)

• that also works, now good to go on ALT0 Mujinga (talk) 15:03, 19 January 2022 (UTC)

ALT0 to T:DYK/P7 without image

GA Review

This review is transcluded from Talk:Albert Freedman/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Reviewer: Unexpectedlydian (talk · contribs) 09:41, 3 June 2022 (UTC)

Hi there, I'll be reviewing this article using the table below. Comments to follow soon! Unexpectedlydian (talk) 09:41, 3 June 2022 (UTC)

• @Bruxton This is a really interesting topic, and I've had a lot of fun both reading the article going through the sources myself. I've made suggestions in the table below. A lot of them to help with clarity. If you have any questions, just give me a ping. I'm going to put the article on hold for now while I wait for your responses. Thank you for your work on this topic! Unexpectedlydian (talk) 12:07, 4 June 2022 (UTC)
  • @Bruxton Hi there, apologies for taking a bit of a break from this review. I have striked-through the changes which have been completed to make the table a bit easier to navigate. I have also boldly made some minor changes to help get this article to GA. I have noted where I have done these below. The remaining un-striked comments till need to be addressed. Please let me know if you have any questions! Unexpectedlydian (talk) 19:28, 24 June 2022 (UTC)

@Unexpectedlydian: no worries I made a few more fixes just now. I think in this article we have the most comprehensive accounting anywhere I have seen. Bruxton (talk) 03:16, 25 June 2022 (UTC)

Great job, I think we're almost there! Just a few outstanding points below. Unexpectedlydian (talk) 10:29, 25 June 2022 (UTC)

In the article I put a different page number for his recant.<--page 759-->. Also regarding the production company, our article does not say it was enright's any more. In regard to the heading Early life: I think it fits the format of most other articles. The items there were all prior to his actual career and scandal. Thanks Bruxton (talk) 17:11, 25 June 2022 (UTC)

@Bruxton I have made a couple of minor changes, and now I'm happy for the article to be promoted. Thanks for all your work on this, and for bearing with me! Unexpectedlydian^♯4talk^‽ 18:13, 25 June 2022 (UTC)

Rate	Attribute	Review Comment
1. Well-written:
	1a. the prose is clear, concise, and understandable to an appropriately broad audience; spelling and grammar are correct.	Early life He was born and raised in Taunton, Massachusetts, on March 27, 1922. This sentence implies he was raised in Taunton on March 27, 1922. To make the sentence clearer, and avoid directly copying the source, it could simply be changed to: He was born on March 27, 1922 in Taunton, Massachusetts.  Done He later remarried to Nancy and took on her two children as stepchildren. This sentence comes a bit out of nowhere, as it reads as if Nancy has already been mentioned in the article. It would be clearer if we used Nancy's surname and specified she was his second wife, i.e. He later remarried to his second wife, Nancy Blumberg, and took on her two children as stepchildren. Ref [3] contains Nancy's full name, so I'd include that citation as well.  Done Sorry, doing a bit of digging and I have an additional point to make. This source states that at the time of Freedman's death (2017), Nancy had been his wife for 34 years, so since 1983. Please do feel free to review the source yourself. You can find a preview for the same book on Google Books, but the link wasn't working here. It's on p.131. If you agree, I think the details of Freedman's marriage to Nancy should be moved to the Later life section of the article. Thanks, that works better.  Done Career Quiz shows gained popularity: ... You have already mentioned that TV was gaining popularity, so it might read better as Quiz shows also gained popularity.  Done Dan Enright started a show called Twenty-One to compete. Enright's production company was called Entertainment Productions Inc. I'd suggest combining these into one sentence. I.e., Dan Enright started a show called Twenty-One to compete, produced by his own production company, Entertainment Productions Inc.  Done Freedman took over producing Twenty-One in 1956. The show Twenty-One had a contestant named Herb Stempel who seemed unstoppable. It may be useful to specify that Freedman inherited the problem of Herb Stempel when he took over producing the programme. Perhaps change to: Freedman took over producing Twenty-One in 1956. At the time, the show Twenty-One had a contestant named Herb Stempel who seemed unstoppable.  Done The sponsor of the show was Geritol and they wanted a different contestant. Again, a little expansion here would be beneficial. I think it would be useful to briefly explain why Geritol wanted a different contestant. Perhaps: The continuing success of Stempel caused the show's ratings to fall. In response, Geritol—the show's sonspor—sought a new contestant to rival Stempel.  Done Scandal In 1956 Freedman found a teacher from Columbia University named Charles Van Doren. Although later in the paragraph you go on to mention that Van Doren was the rival, it would be helpful to also specify this upfront, along with the fact that he would cheat. For example: In 1956, Freedman found a teacher from Columbia University named Charles Van Doren who he thought could be a rival to Stempel. He planned to do this by helping Van Doren cheat.  Done Shortly after her appearance on the show, an investigation was begun by Manhattan district attorney, Frank Hogan. Useful to state what the investigation covered, I think. Maybe: Shortly after her appearance on the show, an investigation into quiz shows was begun by Manhattan district attorney, Frank Hogan.  Done When Freedman was previously before the grand jury he had denied that he supplied contestants with answers ... I assume this means that Freedman lied to the grand jury which was convened in November 1958? If so, to aid clarity, I'd suggest moving this sentence, as in: A grand jury was convened in November 1958. Freedman denied to the grand jury that he supplied contestants with answers, and when he was led out of court after his testimony he stated, "Everything I told the grand jury is the truth." On November 7, 1958, Freedman became the first person indicted and arrested in the quiz show scandal, on charges that he lied about the show not being rigged. Does this sequence of events make sense to you? I am not familiar with the case, so I could be incorrect.  Done Clearer now when the jury was convened, thank you. Van Doren pleaded guilty to perjury. In 1962, von Nardroff pleaded guilty to second-degree perjury. I'd combine these sentences because, as far as I can tell, they both pleaded guilty in 1962. For example: In 1962, Van Doren pleaded guilty to perjury and von Nardroff pleaded guilty to second-degree perjury. This sentences still need combining—I think it would read better that way. I have boldly made this change, please revert if you do not agree.  Done
	1b. it complies with the Manual of Style guidelines for lead sections, layout, words to watch, fiction, and list incorporation.	Lead The lead is relatively short but covers the main aspects of the subject. The article itself is also relatively short, so I'm content that this isn't a problem. However, you may wish to add a very short explanation of what the 1950s quiz show scandals involved (i.e. cheating, as opposed to another type of scandal), and what what Freedman did after he recanted (i.e., take some info from the Later life section). Thanks for adding more info in the lead. The line and he never worked in television again is not backed up by anything in the article. Do you have a source for that? If not, I'd suggest removing that bit.  Done Layout Early life I don't think this section is appropriately titled. Birth, WWII, education, and both marriages probably didn't all occur in his early life. I'm struggling to think of an alternate title. Maybe something like "Life before television career"? That feels quite long. Do feel free to suggest an alternative. In the meantime I'll do some digging and see what other articles have in similar situations. I think "Early life and education" would work here. I suggest changing the heading to that. Happy with your reasoning, thanks.  Done Career In the interests on limiting the use of one-line paragraphs, I'd combine the first two paragraphs of this section into one. Also, you might want to reorder the sentences so it makes more sense after this merge. For example, In the early 1950s, television was just becoming popular. Freedman moved to New York and got a job with a Groucho Marx show called You Bet Your Life before becoming a television producer. Just a suggestion, let me know if you agree. The first paragraph now mentions twice that Freedman was a television producer, and only the second instance is Wiki-linked. You can probably lose the second sentence, and change the first sentence to: In the early 1950s, television was just becoming popular, and Freedman moved to New York where got a job with a Groucho Marx show called You Bet Your Life before becoming a television producer. I have boldly made this change. Please do revert if you disagree.  Done Popular culture This section is too short to warrant its own heading. It is also not the best use of 'List incorporation'. I suggest expanding this section out into at least a paragraph, which shouldn't be too difficult. It could read something like In 1994, the film Quiz Show was released which depicted the events of the 1950s quiz show scandal. It was directed and produced by Robert Redford and starred ... You could also include Freedman's reaction to the film, which is included in this source. Thanks for expanding the section, it's much better now. My only suggestion would be to change the Freedman produced show to "Twenty-One".  Done External links As per MOS:LAYOUTEL, I'd suggest adding information regarding the provider of the interview (Archive of American Television) and the platform (YouTube).  Done Images At the moment all the images are right-justified. I'd suggest that the first non-infobox image (Twenty-One Barry Van Doren 1957) is left-justified to avoid the images getting cluttered on the right-hand side.  Done Words to watch It was discovered that Twenty-One had been paying some contestants to lose. "It was discovered" seems to be a bit passive. Presumably it was the Manhattan district attorney who discovered it?  Done There were also accusations that Freedman tried to extort $5000 from Van Doren, a charge which Freedman denied. This is also written passively, but the source states that it was Van Doren who accused Freedman of extortion, so it is worth adding that information.  Done
2. Verifiable with no original research:
	2a. it contains a list of all references (sources of information), presented in accordance with the layout style guideline.	All sources are properly cited and formatted.  Done
	2b. reliable sources are cited inline. All content that could reasonably be challenged, except for plot summaries and that which summarizes cited content elsewhere in the article, must be cited no later than the end of the paragraph (or line if the content is not in prose).	Career Enright's production company was called Entertainment Productions Inc. I can't clearly see from the source whether the production company mentioned was Enright's, or if the "show" referred to throughout that section of the source is Twenty-One. Ref [10], on the other hand, states that the owner of Twenty One - and Dan Enright's production company - was called 'Production Services Inc.'. Are they different? Article no longer says it's Dan Enight's production company,  Done Scandal There are a few points in the first paragraph which don't seem to be covered by the citation (Ref [2]): The direct quotation from Van Doren; and the date of Van Doren's debut (the source on states November, not November 28). They are, however, covered by Ref [1] instead, so I'd also cite that source at the end of the paragraph. I have boldly made this change, please revert if you don't agree.  Done A standby contestant who had hoped to be on the television show Dotto complained to the New York District Attorney's office about irregularities. The source states that this complaint about Dotto was the cause of the investigation, so maybe add The investigation was prompted by at the start of the sentence. The paragraph was changed to imply that the contestant was called Dotto, so I have boldly made the correction. Please revert if you do not agree.  Done A grand jury was convened in November 1958. I can only access p.119, which states that Elfrida Von Nardroff testified on November 12, 1958, not that the jury was convened in November. I can't see p.120 - is the information on that page instead?  Done After Freedman admitted he had lied to the grand jury he was indicted for perjury. Ref [10] cites p.759 of the source, but the information on p.766 more clearly backs up the information, in my opinion: "Moreover, the two producer, Freedman and Felsher, both of whom testified falsely before the first grand jury ... were indicted for perjury ..."  Done
	2c. it contains no original research.	Content at the moment that there is no original research, but I will do a final check at the end of the review. Still content :)  Done
	2d. it contains no copyright violations or plagiarism.	Copyvio detector brings up nothing of concern. Also content with spot-checks. I'll do a final check at the end of the review. Content with final check.  Done
3. Broad in its coverage:
	3a. it addresses the main aspects of the topic.	As the main interest of Freedman's life is centred around the TV show scandals, I'm content that this article addresses the main aspects of the topic. Below are a few suggestions for small expansions to the article: Scandal After Freedman admitted he had lied to the grand jury he was indicted for perjury. When was this? Thanks for adding the date. Could you help me out? I can't find a mention of September 1959 on p.766 of the source. Changed to p.759.  Done Popular culture This section can be expanded to include more about Quiz Show and Freedman's reaction to it (see suggestion in criteria 1b above).  Done
	3b. it stays focused on the topic without going into unnecessary detail (see summary style).	I'm content that the article is focussed on the topic.  Done
	4. Neutral: it represents viewpoints fairly and without editorial bias, giving due weight to each.	* Article is written in a neutral manner. No undue weight given to any section.  Done
	5. Stable: it does not change significantly from day to day because of an ongoing edit war or content dispute.	* Majority of recent contributions have been constructive edits by nominator. No evidence of edit wars.  Done
6. Illustrated, if possible, by media such as images, video, or audio:
	6a. media are tagged with their copyright statuses, and valid non-free use rationales are provided for non-free content.	* Non-free image has valid fair use rationale. Other images are tagged with their copyright status.  Done
	6b. media are relevant to the topic, and have suitable captions.	Image currently captioned Twenty-One Barry Van Doren 1957 should be changed to something clearer. Perhaps Twenty-One host Jack Barry (left) and Charles Van Doren (right) on an episode of Twenty-One in 1957.  Done To tidy things up slightly to the other non-infobox image, I'd add that Steven B. Derounian is on the (right)  Done All images need alternative captions. Have boldly added alt captions.
	7. Overall assessment.