Motion Picture Daily (Oct-Dec 1955)

Monday, November 14, 1955 Jele vision Today Britain's "Television Public" SPOTLIGHT Researched at 13,000,000 LOS' DO X: The average size of the adult "television public" in the U.K. (population 37,600,000) is approximately 13,000,000 and the average level of regular viewing is 11.2 per cent of the total adult population. These are the findings of the B.B.C.'s audience research unit for July to September, 1955. The report also reveals that the size of the sound radio public dropped from 20,000,000 in 1954 to 23,500,000 in 1955. It is pointed out that commercial TV had "virtually no effect on these figures" since it did not start until September 22. Speaking at the Publicity Club meeting in Leeds, Robert Barr, TV director of Charles F. Higham, Ltd., disclosed that in the first three weeks of commercial TV, advertisers spent £400,000 on 700 spots. If investments continue at this rate advertisers will spend £7 million over the London station alone during the first year. Sir Robert Fraser, director-general of I.T.A., has also gone on record with the following facts and figures. There are now between 450,000 and 500,000 homes in the London region where I.T.A. programmes can be received; peak period programmes have been holding an audience of between 900,000 and 1,000,000; the I.T.A. audience is growing at a rate of 100,000 a month; a figure of 750,000 I.T.A. homes is expected by the end of the year. Undoubtedly, commercial TV has come to stay in Britain. FORMAL complaints that too much American material is being shown on commercial TV is to be made to the Independent Television Authority by the British Screen and Television Writers' Association. Approaches also are to be made to the programme contractors for a greater proportion of programme budgets for writers. SIDNEY L. BERNSTEIN, head of Granada (TV), who will run the weekday programmes from the PREVIEW YOUR PICTURE in modern luxury! ★ STEREOPHONIC SOUND ★ WIDE SCREEN ★ CONTINUOUS INTERLOCK PROJECTION ★ 16 and 35 mm MAGNETIC TAPE ★ CUTTING and EDITING ROOMS SERVICE OAT AND NIGHT PREVIEW THEATRE. INC. 1600 Btood-oy, N«w Yo«><, N. Y • CI 6-0865 Manchester transmitter, has said the Granada TV Center in Manchester will be ready by December 31. "It will be 15 stories high with studios costing more than £500,000. Another £600,000 is being spent on the secondary studios," he said. He indicated Granada hoped to serve a northern audience of 13,500,000 people. Although TV had been started in the North only in October, 1951, it was a fact that the area had only 370.000 sets less than in London and most of them were later models. On January 15 the Granada training school will open in London where men from the north will be trained. A. Anson has been anpointed sales and advertising director of the Granada TV Network. He recently was marketing manager of Quaker Oats here. BRITAIN'S Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company has secured the contract to supply most of the equipment for Australia's first television stations at Sydney and Melbourne under the terms of a recently signed contract worth more than £250,000. The contract was worked out through Marconi's Australian associates, Amalgamated Wireless (Australasia) . The main television transmitters will be of the same type now in process of installation at the BBC's new Crystal Palace station on a hill in a South London suburb. They are designed to handle colour as well as black and white. Cinema-Television Ltd., a company within the Rank Organisation, has supplied Flving-Spot Telecine equipment, for televising normal 35mm films, to ITA. The equipment has already been installed at the ITA's new transmitter at Beulah Hill, South London. The installation comprises a remotely controlled twin channel system capable of providing continuous programmes for specific occasions, or for quality tests. BRITAIN has banned televised discussions of topics scheduled for debate in Parliament for 14 days before the debate occurs. Sir Robert Boothby, however, himself a Member of Parliament and a most provocative contributor to BBC programmes, has said he will ignore the ban. The question arises what would happen if an M.P. flouts the rule? The question poses awkward problems for ITA in particular. The Act of Parliament, under which the Authority will operate, prescribes fines up to £500 on a programme contractor who breaches any of the regulations, with increased fines for further offences. — WILLIAM PAY (Continued from page 11) fights of 1955, a review which last year was sponsored by Gillette on NBC-TV but which this year is being offered on a spot basis. United Press Movietown will have available for December 24 release two such half-hour films, "The Cavalcade of 1955," dealing with the top news stories, and "The Sports Review of 1955," recounting the top sport stories. Network ► TelePrompTer Corporation plans a nationwide telegraphic network interconnecting television stations, networks, station representatives and advertising agencies, it was announced this week by Irving B. Kahn, company president. The FCC has cleared the way, Western Union and Underwood Corporation are cooperating, original cost to be $5,000,000. It will be called the TelePrompTer Program Communications Network, and will be operative in six months, said Mr. Kahn. A grandiose plan, indeed. And in Pocatel!©? ► The "first closed-circuit television link between a college and all public schools in a community" is being installed in Pocatello, Idaho. It will enable one teacher standing before a TV camera in the Idaho State College television studio to instruct over 300 students in 11 public schools at the same time. Jerrold Electronics of Philadelphia and Bannock Cable TV of Pocatello are handling the physical business and Dr. Carl Mcintosh, president of Idaho State, the culture. Overseas Combine ► An indication of how European firms will be working in cooperation to get a reasonable share of TV business is seen in the formation of International Screen Publicity Association. Spark plug for the organization was Charles Ruedi, Switzerland. Founder members are Belgique Cine Publicite, Belgium; J. Arthur Rank Screen Services, Canada; Publicite Jean Mineur, France; J. Arthur Rank Screen Service, Great Britain; Cefima Film, Holland and CentralFilm, Switzerland. J. Henry Piperno of the Rank company will have much to do with administering the association whose headquarters are in London. 1956 House by "Home" ► That "House That Home Built" feature of NBC-TV's "Home" has been so successful that it will be repeated in 1956, Dick Linkroum, executive producer of "Home," has announced. An unprecedented project for a television program, the feature is conducted by "Home" in cooperation with the National Association of Home Builders, aimed at "showing that Motion Picture Dati it is possible to construct attra tive, up-to-date houses embodyin the principles of good design i moderate costs." The 1956 houi will be designed by Eldridge Sn der, whose plans are to be corj pleted by December 1. Not a Luxury ► The Government of Australi has taken a firm stand on tY meaning of television. When que tioned by a member of the opposi tion party on whether now was suitable time to bring "a luxujj industry" into the country, Pos] master General Anthony replia simply that the Government do« not regard television as a luxurj Operation of television service i due to get under way early nea year. STATION TO STATION The second coast-to-coast "Opr; Spectacular" went out Saturdal over the ABC-TV network, wit! the show being WSM's (Nashville Grand Opry. Margaret Whitinj was in the cast. Fritz Kleibacker i producer of the series and Noe Digby the writer. WABD in New York has ex panded its program department, i has been announced by Bill Adler program director. Paulette Ame: has been named assistant producei on the Johnny Olsen Show, an< Larry Best will be assistant pro ducer on Featurama. The Antonini Ballet Melange, i group of 10 child dancers, appearec in the first of four monthly WonJ derama shows on WABD, Nevi York, yesterday. Sandy Becker host. A week-long radio and television Freedom Festival will begin No vember 24, Thanksgiving Day, over WRCA and WRCA-TV, New York it is announced by Hamilton Shea NBC vice-president in charge oi the stations. The show will be in cooperation with Freedom House. WLW in Cincinnati launched its ambitious World Now program Sunday, November 6, with a gala premiere, with top talent on the one-hour show. Directors and co ordinators of the program are James Allen and John Babcock Johnny Most, sportscaster, has begun a daily sports program over WAAT (Channel 13), Newark, N. J. Titled "The Most in Sports,' the show will be 15 minutes at 7:45 P.M., EST, and will feature inter views and tape-recorded highlights of sports events. ON EVERY CHANNEL TV BROOKS COSTUMES 3 Wesl 6lsl St., N.Y.C.-Tol. PL. 7-5800 14