Variety (Dec 1939)

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'W'ediiesdaj, December 6, 1939 RADIO VARIETY 2S FULL HOUR SHOWS WEAKEN Coughlin Lost yy WGBI and WTMJ Contracts (Mostly Recent) Guarantee Priest Little Interference for Year Detroit, Dec. 5. Despite National Assn. of Broad- casters recent code, Father Coughlln is experiencing no difAculty in main- taining number of outlets for - his ' Siinday afternoon broadcasts, it's re- ported here by Aircasters, Inc., which handles prie.st's ether doings. Only non-renewals thus far are WGBI, Scranlon, Pa., and WTMJ, Milwau- kee, Iciving 47 o£ the previous 49- slatioti hookup intact. Airca.sters agency pointed out that thera isn't much likelihood the pres- ent indie network would change nuich during the next 12 months, since most of stations had requested new contracts while NAB was work- in.:; out its code, aimed at Coughlin and otiicrs broadcasting on contro- versial subjects. Also reported that severat .stations have written in re- cently slating that, since they weren't niembbrs of NAB as yet, they'd like to sisn up for a year. Priest's lalliTs recently have been going out over both WJR and WJBK here, setup being necessitated by broadcasts of Detroit Lions pro foot- ball games over WJR on Sunday ai'ternouns. As result, Coughlin's half-hour talks hit WJR just prior to grid conlcsLs, via transcription, while W.IBK carries the regular broadcast. Following is latest list of stations carryiii'.; priest's talks: WABY, Al- biiny, WPG. Atlantic City, WBAL and WCAO. Baltimore, WSNJ, Bridgcton. N. J., WGR, Buffalo, WCKY. Cincinnati, WGAR, Cleve- land, WHO. DCS Moines, WJR, De- troit. V/I.KV, Erie, Pa., WHBY and WTAG. Green Bay, Wis., WJEJ, Ha^erslown. Md., WHIP, Hammond, Ind., WKBO, Harrisburgh, Pa., Wise, Indianapolis, WKZO, Kalama- zoo. Mich., WREN, Lawrence, Kan., WIBA, Madison, Wis., KSTP, Minne- apolis, WGRC, New Albany, Ind., WHBI, Newark, WTEL, Philadelphia, WJAS. Pittsburgh, WRAW, Reading, Pa., WSAY, Rochester, N. Y., KFEG, St. Joseph. Mo., WEW, St Louis, WBAX, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; WWRL, Woodside, Long Island, N.Y. WORC, Worce.<ter, Mass.; Colonial network; WRDO. Augusta, Me., WLBZ, Ban- gor, Me., WAAB, Boston, WICC, Bridgeport, Conn., WSAR, Fall River, Ma.-is.. WHAl, Greenfield, Mass., WTHT. Hartford, Conn., WLNH, La- con ia, N. H.. WCOU, Leiston-Auburn, Me.. WFRA, Manchester. N. H., WNBH. New Bedford, Mass., WNLC, New London, Conn., WBRK, Pitts- fleld. Mass., WEAN, Providence, WATR, Waterbury, Conn. Attention, C.A.B. Atlanta, Dec. S. Atlanta federal penitentiary gels the cream of-the crop of big-time crooks and con men. The prisoners are so intelligent that it is quite a job to select radio programs suitable to their I. Q.'s. As in many prisons, the in- mate.'; are allowed some voice in the programs tuned in by the management. Here the best radio . doesn't appear good enough. Ruthrauff & Ryan Has X On Lifebuoy Niche; Significance Not Clear Under instructions from Sterling Products, Inc., the Ruthrauff Si Ryan agency has had CBS block out the Tuesday 8:30-8:55 p.m. period, which Lifebuoy is vacating. Report in agency circles last week was that R. Sc R. is slated to get an additional piece of Sterling Products business for this spot, but R. & R. Monday (4) stated that it didn't know whether a new account would go into the spot or it would be used for Ironi/.ed Yeast, long on the R. & R. list, which was recently acquired by Sterling Products. It WHS reported in the trade that the new piece of Sterling business would be a sort of reward lor R. & R.'s cooperation in closing the Iron- ized Yeast deal. Sterling has for years been handled exclusively by Blackiett-Sample-Hummert. Ironized Yea.'Jt currently underwrites "The Good Will Hour' on a Mutual hook- up Sunday nights. WABC's News Strip WABC. N. Y., yesterday (Tuesday) sold the 6 to 6:05 period acro.ss the board for newscasling purposes, with Yuban coffee taking Monday, Wednesday and Friday and Rem- Rel getting the plug Tuesday, Thurs- day and Saturday. Paul Parks will do the bulletin reading. Joseph Katz handles the coffee ac- count and Campbell-Ewald the pro- prietary drug combination. s. Seeks Copyright Delinitioii That Will Protect Radio Merchandizing Plans Chase & Sanborn and Max- well House Both Cut Pro- grams in Half as New Thinking. Challenges the Costly Full Hour Program Field Man's Crack CLOSE POINTS Decision of Chase & Sanborn Cof- fee and Maxwell House Coffee to re- duce the running time of their shows on NBC to a half hour is regarded in ad agency circles as the precursor to a wholesale abandonment of the full hour show. Both C & S's Sun- day evening stanza and Maxwell's Thursday night 'Good News' are slated to go 30-minutes with their first broadcasts for 1940. C & S has been in the same spot since Septem- ber, 1929,. going to a full hour in May 1931 with Eddie'Cantor. Max- well went into the hour classifica-! tion in October, 1932. | As the agency men, see it, the economic justification for the full hour show, unless more than one product is plugged on it, has been considerably on the wane for the past two years. The primary pur- pose for going in for such expendi- tures is to- get maximum audiences,' and the underlying theory which stimulate the parade of hour shows in the early 30's was that audiences would be more inclined to settle down with a show that lasted 60 minutes than play'around with the dial at each 15-minute or half-hour mark. Recent study of the C.A.B. ratings, say these agency men, has disclosed that the theory has become pretty much outmoded. For instance Chase Si Sanborn kept sticking to the full hour routine, but the Jack Benny show, consuming half that time, kept staying within a few points of the other programs, and now even gives indication of catching up with it. Of the leading IS network shows eight of them are of the half-hour class. Third and fourth ratings are held by Fibber Mc.Gee and Molly which is fifth and a half-hour program is but two and three points behind them. The Fitch Band Wagon, another half-hour stanza, is about a point be- hind Major Bowes in seventh slot, and ahead of Kate Smith, while 'One Man's Family' (30 minutes) is tied ' District sales manager for a major soap manufacturer com- plained to the home office about the poor coverage that one of the company's programs was getting in his area. When the h.o. an- swered that it thought the facili- ties were adequate, the district manager wisecracked back: 'You may think you're putting on an advertising campaign out here, but to me it has all th- ear- marks of a whispering cam- paign.' with Fred Allen for ninth place. 'Good'News' seems doomed to yield its No. 12 rating to Bob Hope, who has but a half hour to himself. There are 14 one-hour shows on NBC and Columbia, with but six of these rated among the first 10 in the C.A.B. rej' ports. - < Network officials declare that the trend away from the hour show is to be regretted, even though the replace- ments will mean somewhat added lime income. They had considered the hour show as the backbone of the night-time schedule, around which ' everything else was built. Rise of radio as a major entertain- ment medium, they point out, dates from the time that Standard Brands, Maxwell House Coffee and Kraft Cheese first became linked together through three continuous hours on the red network, Thursday nights. Don Amcche and Dorothy Lamour wind up on the Chase & Sanborn show with the Dec. 31 broadcast. After that the cast will consist of Edgar Bergen, Donald Dixon, 'Vera Vague, Robert Ambruster and a guest name from films. Fleischmann Yeast, which is part of "the same combine, folds the Rev. William L. Stidger series Dec. 29. This one is on the blue link morn- ings five times a week. Montreal, Dec. 6. Paul Ouellet, whose French-lan- guage radio merchandizing ideas have received widespread attention here for many years, has engaged patent attorneys to make application to the Federal authorities at Ottawa for a decision as to whether formulas for radio merchandizing plans may be copyrighted. Attorneys are of opinion that radio merchandizing plans may be designed, blue-printed and patented in the same way as mechanical or other devices. Should verdict from the patent bureau at Ottawa be favorab1« Ouellet intends to lease radio pro- gram ideas to sponsors in futura, retaining full ownership should ad- vertisers switch accounts and pre- venting others from using his ma- terial. Nick Kenny Selected An £x-Yaude Strong Man For Waldorf Workout Wander Set Through 1940 Chicago, Dec. 5. Blackett-Sample-Hummert agency here has set contracts for renewal of NBC red time through 1940 for the Wander company's two shows, 'Little Orphan Annie' and 'Carters of Elm Street.' Both for Ovaltine product and contracts are effective as of Jan. 1. NATL. BISCUIT EYES BENNY GOODMAN National Biscuit Co. is reported on the ver^e of contracting to take over sponsorship of. Benny Goodman or- chestra when the latter exits from its Camel spot Dec. 30. Goodman's first air sponsor was the cracker makers, who used him on a three- hour dance program called 1<et's Dance' seven or eight years ago. At that time Goodman was just getting started and was working at Rose's Music Hall in the Haramer- stein theatre building. New York. Latter is now a CBS playhouse. WHO'S Xmas Bonus Des Moines,. Dec. 5. WHO, Des Moines, will bonus em- | ployees again for the third consecu- tive Xmas. Ten per cent goes to those with the station five years or more. Nine per cent for four years,, eight for three years, seven for two years and five for one year. WOR. N. Y., slipped Xmax bonuses Into pay envelopes this week. One week it over $50, two weeks If under. Denlra Defau first conductor of NBC syinph while Toscahini takes his hiatus. Resume and Forecast . . . . Public Service Record . Commercial Upbeat in forthcoming 34th ANNIVERSARY NUMBER of "P^RiETY To he Published Late in December USUAL ADVERTISING RATES PREVAIL ADVERTISING COPY MAY BE SENT TO ANY VARIETY OFFICE NEW YORK HOLLYWOOD CHICAGO LONDON 154 West 46th St. 1708 No. Vine St 54 W. Randojph St. 8 St. MarHns PL Alan Corelli, of the Theatre Au- thority, and Nick Kenny, radio col- umnist of the N. Y. Daily Mirror, got themselves tangled up Sunday night (3) at a benefit dinner and show for the Israel Zion Hospital at the Waldorf Astoria hotel. When the knots were untied by neutral parties, Kenny ordered a lot of beefsteak, which was.applied to his eye. Argument stemmed from Corelli's refusal to permit Mary Small, singer, to appear in the show gratis "with Kenny's radio 'Gang' (amateurs), the TA rep pointing out that all the other professionals present were be- ing paid to appear. Corelli says he told Kenny that he and his ama- teurs could play gratis, but not Miss Small, whereupon, the TA rep claims. Kenny took a punch at him. It missed, but a followup kick didn't. Corelli says the kick was tha thing that sent his blood pressure up.. Anyhow, his retaliatory mea- sures were very effective and Kenny's beefsteak o-der was no gag. Israel Zion show and dinner was played to an audience of 2,000 at $100 per plate. Chairman was Dave Katz, who operates Totem Lodge, one of the topflight borscht circuit spots booked by the William Mor- ris office, and the latter lined up most nf the talent for the post- banquet performance at the Wal- dorf. Acts included Harry Hersh- Aeld, Willie and Eugene Howard, Molly Picon, Jack Durant,' Mary Burton, Stump and Stumpy, Gary Leon and Tut Mace. Kenny claims he was solicited by Kat/ to make an appearance with his Gang iind that he was unaware I of the fact that the show was a paid affair, otherwise he wouldn't have prevailed upon Mi.ss Small to come along. Monday (4) Kenny I sent a letter of apology to Corelli— ! but didn't apologize for failing to j know that Gorelli once did a strong- arm act in vaude. Yesterday (3> ^ Kenny also did an open-letter apol- ogy to Corelli. 'ABIE'S IRISH ROSF NEAR RADIO DEAL First 13 programs of 'Abie's Irish Rose' prepared by Anne Nichols have been completed and sale of the radio rights which she did not here- tofore consider is reported virtually set. Because of the classic comedy's tolerance anijle 'Abie' is regarded as opportune for ethcrizin>< at this time. Herb Ro.senth.il, general manager of Columt)ia Artists bureau, is han- dling the deal. Authoress is set as producer with Ted Sills directing. 'The Voice of Labor,' Akron CIO radii) pro:iram formerly heard over WJW, is now on WADC.