Godfrey and LaRosa had a dispute in the fall of 1953 when LaRosa, the most popular of the "Little Godfreys", missed a dance lesson due to a family emergency. He claimed he had advised Godfrey, but was nonetheless barred, via a notice placed on a cast bulletin board, from appearing on the show for a day in retaliation. LaRosa went to Godfrey's hotel and attempted to discuss the incident, but after being rebuffed by Godfrey's assistants, he waited in the lobby. When Godfrey came into the lobby, he reportedly walked past LaRosa as if he wasn't there and refused to talk with him. At that point, LaRosa retained manager Tommy Rockwell to renegotiate his contract with Godfrey or, failing that, to receive an outright release; however, such talks had yet to occur.