Broadcasting (Oct 1931-Dec 1932)

Unique Psychology of "The March of Time (Continued from page 13) reenactment. News was never sacrificed for a good "radio act." The success of the radio plan was instantaneous. Variety, the organ of the entertainment world, said of it: "Represents the apex in radio showmanship." Time forsook what was the generally acknowledged radio technique and went back to the method of the theatre. The directors used impressionism in sound as compared to the graphic and definitive style used in many other radio dramatizations. Jack Foster, radio editor of the New York World-Telegram, key paper of the Scripps-Howard chain, wrote: "still lingers in my mind that new Columbia program, 'The March of Time,' which shouldered its way through the air last Friday. It was a kind of talkie news reel creating vividly in words the tales which have stood beneath the headlines." Broadway's most acute observer and fact-finder, Walter Winchell, piped: "The mag Time's broadcast is a thrill." Radio's news broadcaster and internationally known journalist, Frederic William Wile, congratulated the editors by letter: "In my judgment 'The March of Time' has become the foremost feature of the air. The Belasco who is staging it, the actors who are dramatizing it, and the Ted Husing who is announcing it are between them all doing a superfine job." Publisher John Farrar wrote: "Congratulations on the best radio program I have ever heard on the air in — = well, as a matter of fact, the best I have ever heard . . . ." So much for the comments of experts, but what of the reaction on the part of the general public, to which Time was hitherto relatively unknown? But two stories are necessary to illustrate the mass popularity of "The March of Time." Howard Barlow was seeking to make arrangements to play over a certain Long Island golf course. The clerk at the desk of the club house asked him for some \ sort of identification. Barlow said that he was in radio, with Columbia. "Do you have anything to do with 'The March of Time?'" queried the clerk. "Yes," Barlow responded modestly, "I direct the musical activities." "Enough said, here's the first tee," replied the clerk, "You don't need any references." Another incident occurred when a member of the Time staff stepped into an elevator to go up to the office. He was the only passenger on the elevator, and the boy said: "Say, 'The March of Time' radio program is connected with this magazine Time up on the fourteenth floor, isn't it?" "It sure is — Time sponsors it/' "Well, I'll tell you— it's a great show! It's dramatic! Understand what I mean? Dramatic!" An equally great success has been enjoyed with reaching the dealers in products for nation-wide distribution— the primary purpose of Time's entry into the radio field. Recently become TiME-conscious to the degree of running advertisements in the newsmagazine's pages are the following leading national food producers: Maxwell House Coffee, Heinz's Tomato Juice, Ovaltine, Ralston's Whole Wheat, Anheuser-Busch, White Rock, Welch's Grape Juice, Fleischmann's Yeast, all with coast-to-coast dealer outlets, which must appreciate the immense value to themselves of the advertising these companies are doing. "The March of Time" makes no direct effort to sell the magazine. The commercial announcements are brief — at the beginning and at the end only. They are much more informative, attempting to define Time as an efficient and readable news organ, than commercial. Is the radio program fulfilling the hopes of its sponsors? They answered by returning to the air after the end of the summer with an even greater network, reaching from the Canadian border to the gulf, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Even more success can be hoped for if the welcome extended by critics all over the country to "The March of Time" on the occasion of its return to the air this fall can be regarded as a yardstick. With an increased and evergrowing audience, the editors of Time feel they are completely justified in resorting to the ether waves. Their return should be even greater than before. Radio Sales Power (Continued from page 11) programs in different cities. Undoubtedly this is due in large part to differences in station popularity. However, in a few cases there was rather distinct evidence that audience tastes vary in different parts of the country. Quantitatively, the survey disclosed that one company, which has maintained an outstandingly popular program over a considerable period, has more than doubled the number of users of its product in the cities investigated. In one city, one product showed a difference of 200 users per 1,000 telephone homes between radio homes and non-radio homes. This, of course, was exceptional; but gains of 25 to 50 users in 1,000 telephone families were rather common. Taking a single product in one city as an individual case, in 88 per cent of the cases studied radio advertised brands showed greater use in All About Babies PETER DIXON, who writes and acts in "Raising Junior," heard nightly over an NBCWJZ network, is getting a new kind of fan mail. Having two youngsters of his own, his skit for the Wheatena Corp., Rahway, N. J., tells mothers about babies and their care, a subject on which he has studied extensively. In one week Dixon got 15 letters asking about babies, but he was quite unprepared when one young wife wrote and asked him would he please submit an estimate on the cost of having a baby. radio homes than in homes without radios. The results in the other 12 per cent of cases can without exception be ascribed to the smallness of the number of users of the particular brands involved. Significant as are the results in demonstrating the value of radio advertising, even more significant is the opportunity presented to compare the results of different types of programs. By a study of this nature, a manufacturer using radio can determine exactly what he is getting in the way of new users from his investment in this medium. Tax on Receiving Sets Considered by Treasury THE Treasury Department is considering a Federal tax on radio receivers, along with a number of other commodities in the so-called semi-luxury class. With the Treasury facing an even greater deficit than the $903,000,000 unfavorable balance of the past fiscal year, it was said officially that the administration has reached the conclusion that new sources of income must be employed. Radio was held to offer a rather lucrative source of revenue, and it was said that a sales tax would have no effect on the cost of living. The tax need not be large, it was indicated, since the annual sale of several million sets would yield considerable revenue with only a nominal levy, and would not adversely affect the industry. Before such a tax can become effective legislation is necessary, and it is the plan of the administration to include radio among such other items as automobiles, amusements, jewelry, confections and the like in recommendations for a broader tax base predicated upon a selective sales tax to be forwarded to Congress at the forthcoming session. A 24-Hour Station ON THE AIR 24 hours a day continuously for the last few years, KGFJ, Los Angeles, reports that it is carrying 109% hours of commercial programs divided among 25 sponsors. FULL TIME Four stations previously operating part time are now on a full time basis, as the result of the application of modern engineering principles. Brilliant allocation analysis by Mr. T. A. M. Craven, Consulting Radio Engineer, opened the way. Precise frequency control by Radio Research Company methods provided the economical solution of the problem. Radio Research Co. Inc. 1204 Irving Street N.E. Washington, D. C. Page 32 BROADCASTING • November I, 1931