Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1964)

SPONSOR WEEK RAB's David Sees Radio Creativity Explosion Tells Midwest ad execs creativity advantages account for one-third of radio business; criticizes tv trend Kansas City, Mo. — Underscoring what he called a "creativity explosion" in the past 18 months, Miles David, administrative vice president of Radio Advertising Bureau, last week declared, "As much as $100 million of radio billings nationally and regionally result from the ability of radio advertising to say it better than any other medium." The RAB executive's remarks were in a speech before the annual Ideas Today convention for 500 Midwestern ad executives. The convention is sponsored by the ABC-TV Plans Original Hour Dramas Next Season New York — In what could be construed as an answer to critics of television who have bemoaned the virtual disappearance of anthology drama (i.e. Studio One and Playhouse 90), ABC-TV is planning a series of hour-long original dramas for the 1965-66 season. Dubbed Crisis!, the series will feature on-location production via videotape and will have Hubbell Robinson, programing chief for CBS during the heyday of anthology drama, as executive producer. Producer of the series will be Robert Alan Arthur, another tv drama veteran. Commenting on the new series, Edgar J. Scherick, ABC programing vice president, said, "It [Crisis!] will mark a renaissance of television drama, and its potential for dramatic excitement has already rekindled the enthusiasm of many of the writers, directors and performers who were important to tv in its early days and who have gone to other fields." Scherick said that among those who have expressed enthusiasm for the new series are John Frankenheimer, Sidney Lumet, Reginald Rose. Gore Vidal, Merle Miller and Jason Robards, Jr. 20 Kansas City Advertising & Sales Executives Club. Declared David: "The creative advantages of radio account for as much as one-third of radio's national-regional business today, because there has been an unprecedented increase in use of imaginative techniques in radio's commercials — a creativity explosion." Arguing that the best comedy writing in America today is being done for radio commercials, David pointed out that the creativity resolution was not confined to any one type message — that in addition to mastering humor, radio copywriters have learned to make more imaginative use of sound effects and have learned to "put sell into the music to accompany the sell in the words of musical commercials." David added that the only commercials revolution comparable to the one taking place in radio is now occurring in tv. "The trend toward fantasy," he said, "is now sweeping through television with about the same speed that the rise in creativity hit radio." Expanding his thesis, David was critical of the trend in tv commercials. "Radio's creative revolution was balanced," he declared. "Imagination took effect in a variety of ways. Television's trend is toward fantasy — with magical things happening to housewives in the kitchen — and is usually clumsy by comparison. And like everything else in television it is, unfortunately, a copycat revolution." Looking into his crystal ball, David predicted that in 1965 many agency copywriters will actually ask to be assigned to radio, "reversing the trend in which a radio assignment was almost like being sent out to the branch office." David also predicted that in the future "more and more of the best television commercials will be scenic wallpaper used as eye-resters to accompany the sound-track of a radio commercial. As it is now, many of the best tv commercials are radio tracks accompanied by visuals. ' Their sell is in the sound." RAB: Picture Absence Added Dimension in Radio Toronto — Also beating the drums for radio creativity last week was Robert H. Alter, RAB vice president and director of national sales (see story above). Declared Alter before the Radio and Television Executives Club of Canada: "The absence of a picture is an added dimension in radio advertising. Often a picture interferes with the selling message because people may not visualize your product exactly as the picture shows it." The RAB vice president added that it "has been said many times but never often enough that radio allows the consumer to create his or her own visuali zation of the advertised product." In the course of demonstrating examples of creativity in radio spots. Alter had a word about the use of music. "There is a growing skill, almost a technology, in the effective use of music," he said. "Years ago, a commercial was considered successful if the music didn't drown out the words. Today every second of music as well as the spoken words are planned minutely for maximum effort." Alter, by way of summary, declared, "Radio sells well not only because of the audience it delivers but because of the way it is being used." ^^ SPONSOR