Television digest with electronics reports (Jan-Dec 1952)

2 12 GRANTS— MF FOR PITTSBURGH & BUFFALO: Chalk up dozen more CPs this week (3 vhf) as FCC hikes total to 165 (46 vhf, 123 uhf). Commission dug further into both Group A & B priority lists — to 139th Group A city, 180th Group B — included 2 uhf to Pittsburgh, one more to Buffalo. As many or more grants are due next week, too. The 5 vhf CPs went to: Boise , Ida. , KIDO, Channel No. 7; Reno , Nev. , KWRN, No. 8; Lawton, Okla. , KSWO, No. 7. The 9 uhf grantees: Bakersfield, Cal., KAFY, No. 29; Lafayette. Ind. , WASK, No. 59; Muskegon, Mich., Versluis Radio & TV Inc., No. 35; Meridian, Miss., WCOC, No. 30; Buffalo, N.Y. , Buf f alo-Niagara TV Corp., No. 59 (city's 3rd uhf, including one educational) ; Watertown, N.Y., WWNY-Times , No. 48; Pittsburgh, Pa., J. Frank Gailaher, Loren Berry & Ronald B. Woodyard, No. 47, and Telecasting Co. of Pittsburgh, No. 16; Neenah, W is., WNAM, No. 42. •{C 'fc 1 n ' T Sidelights on grantees: KSWO, Lawton, has RCA transmitter and antenna on hand, expects to be on air by April 1. Muskegon grantee Leonard Versluis once built WLAV-TV (now WOOD-TV) in nearby Grand Rapids, sold it to Bitner interests about 1V2 years ago for $1,400,000 (Vol. 7:19,38). KWRN, Reno, is owned by Kenyon Brown and Donald W. Reynolds, who individually and jointly have extensive radio, newspaper and theatre holdings in West & Southwest. They control grantee in Little Rock, Ark. and have several other applications pending. Reynolds holds grant for Ft. Smith, Ark. Buffalo grantee, backed by banker Charles R. Diebold and air-conditioner dealer Joseph Davis, is sparked by attorney Vincent M. Gaughan, who was a top campaign manager for Sen. Kefauver. First Pittsburgh group has numerous radio interests, including grantee WONE-TV, Dayton, 0., and several TV applications. Second Pittsburgh grantee is sparked by ex-WDTV staffers Donovan Faust and Larry Israel, backed by steelman Henry Oliver Rea (who owns part of VJFOR, Portland, Me.) and attorney Thomas P. Johnson. WNAM, Neenah, is headed by banker and paper mill owner Samuel N. Pickard (no relation to the ex-Federal Radio Commissioner and ex-CBS v.p.). Note : Pittsburgh grants are particularly noteworthy because that hilly city has always been pointed out as worst possible place for uhf. Yet it now has 2 uhf grants and a third application is pending. [For detailed listings of week's CPs, with references to Addenda containing full data on principals, see TV Addenda 15-X herewith.] FEE-TV HEARING EXPECTED NEXT SPRING: Long simmering pay-as-you-iook TV question, seen by some as a cause celebre, looks as if it will finally emerge from the fog of publicity into bright lights of FCC hearing room — probably next spring. Theatre-TV hearing resumes Jan. 26, may last several months. But after that the only two major rule-making subjects in prospect are pay-as-you-look and color. Which of these will come first — assuming no hotter issue develops meanwhile — is impossible to predict. Color is particularly speculative (see p. 3). But boxoffice TV is gaining priority right along. Petition for hearing has been pending for some time. More and more FCC people feel matter should be thrashed out soon. Novelty seems to intrigue them. Hearing should be a dilly, once it starts. Telecasting and manufacturing branches of industry have concluded subject is worth study — both NARTB and RTMA appointing committees in last two weeks (Vol. 8:50-51). And the various subscription TV proponents have never let up in their drum beating, of course. * # * £ Peculiar thing about upcoming hearing is that it won't necessarily be a struggle for choice of single system among the many techniques advanced. Big question is whether principle should be approved. If answer is yes, it's conceivable all systems can be authorized — as long as they meet certain engineering criteria such as non-interference with other systems. Sports promoters are bound to be among most vigorous proponents. They've said so. Movie producers, big and little, may see it as the best way of joining a medium they can't lick; if this is true, exhibitors will probably provide the most violent opposition — unless they get very substantial cut.