Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1964)

see the statement, by implication, serving as an endorsement. Rejoinder to this from the acceptance departments of all three networks: tv, as a rule, doesn't allow any claims that can't be substantiated. Harris men quizzing N.Y. agencies Orrin Harris must be taking a look into tv network practices. Making the rounds of New York agencies and asking questions are people from his special subcommittee on investigations of the House Interstate and Foreign Committee. The queries, in the main, have to do with the leeway advertisers have for bringing in their own shows to the networks and the difficulties, if any, encountered in having foreign-produced programs accepted. Some sponsors' batting averages A bemusing exercise at this time of the year: put some of the leading users of nighttime network tv through the NTI Top 40 ringer and see how they average out as program "hit" pickers. The Top 40 is regarded in the trade as a fairly equitable yardstick in determining the "hits" from the "misses." Sponsor Scope used the October II NTI as the winnowing agent in evolving the following chart of "hits," "misses" and "batting averages": TOTAL BATTING ADVERTISER PROGRAMS HITS MISSES AVERAGE P&G 18 9 9 ,500 Lever Bros. 10 6 3 .625 Colgate 6 1 5 .166 General Foods 7 4 3 .570 Bristol-Myers 13 4 9 .308 Whitehall 9 5 4 .555 Alberto-Culver 5 I 4 .200 Block blocked out of 'CBS Reports' Block Drug took with grace the treatment its commercial got on the Nov. 18 CBS Reports. The network's news chief, Fred Friendly, ruled that the Block commercial was not in keeping with that night's episode, "The Burden and the Glory of JFK." The commercial wound up after the program's credits, something that most likely had never before happened in network tv. The juxtaposition gave the Block commercial, piggybacking Omega Oil on Correga denture adhesive, the aspect of a chainbreak. Block paid $28,800 for the participation in Reports. Why Block, Sponsor Scope learned, raised no fuss over being relegated to the "back porch": (1) the program was the last of three scattered minutes bought on the series, (2) since Beverly Hillbillies came next. Block figured it got a bigger audience in the "station break" than it would have garnered in the body of the documentary. Lestoil makes short buy LaRoche has made its first spot tv buy for Lestoil. The schedule runs through December. The list covers 25 major markets in the east. Three stations per market are being used in Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Cleveland. The decision on schedules and markets for early 1965 will be made in mid-December. Bates media draws from DCS&S Conspicuous about the personnel changes that'vc been going on in Ted Bates' media department: Sam Vitt, the department's new administrative boss, is helping himself to people from his previous shop, DCS&S. So far his enticements from DCS&S media have been Ken Castelli, David Garvin and Joe Cacciabaudo. Incidentally, Bates is one of those shops where they draw a blueprint of future progress for an inductee. He's told what promotions he can look forward to over so many years. Bates media is also quite sensitive about a key man getting restless and looking elsewhere. It points out to such that he may not find the opportunities of advancement, within reasonable periods, as exist at Bates. — Agency-group spenders in spot tv Indications are that the 1964 national-regional spot tv billings will come to around $850 million, with agency and rep commissions included. If you use this figure as a base, you can work out some interesting agency-source sidelights from the tabulation of the top 50 tv-radio agencies which CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE iovember 30, 1964 27