Weekly television digest (Jan-Dec 1960)

VOL. 16: No. 1 9 TV & radio deadline for applications to the radio & TV correspondents’ galleries for arrangements for floor coverage of the Democratic National Convention opening July 11 in Los Angeles is Jan. 22. “Plans are well under way for audio & video pool coverage of convention floor activities inside the Memorial Sports Arena,” convention Chmn. Bill Henry (House Radio-TV gallery, Room G-4 Capitol, Washington) said in a memo to correspondents. But he urged them to advise him quickly on work-space requirements: “Do you want to rent desk, install phone, radio loop or do you want a broadcasting booth (state minimum dimensions) to be constructed at your expense?” Requests for hotel sleeping & studio facilities will be relayed by Henry to the Democratic National Committee. Announcements designed to tell CBS television viewers about program procedures . . . show that the network is trying. . . . CBS has shown leadership in demonstrating its eagerness to do more than go through the motions of reform. But however commendable such steps may be, it should be remembered that the basic evil of television isn’t faked laughter, or pre-recorded shows, or artificial beer suds. The basic evil is poor programs. And the overall impression of mediocrity, tastelessness and infantilism is heightened, rather than dispelled, by the contrast of the occasional worth-while show that comes along. So, if it salves a broadcaster’s conscience by all means let’s have the notices about artificial laughter, pre-filming and the like. But what we’re really waiting for is the announcement that says: ‘Tonight’s program augmented with intelligence, embellished with taste and presented with responsibility.’ ” — Editorial in N.Y. Herald Tribune. Hedda Hopper vs. Ed Sullivan verbal bout got big headlines in Dec. 30 afternoon papers when Miss Hopper called Sullivan “a liar” following his accusations that she had offered favorable column items and token talent fees in return for appearances of top stars on her Jan. 10 NBCTV tape special produced by Talent Associates. Sullivan, who wired AFTRA & SAG to investigate Miss Hopper’s wage scales and methods of payment, contends he has paid & offered the same, or comparable, stars as Miss Hopper’s, as much as $10,000 per appearance. Miss Hopper is paying scale “for much the same reasons Jack Paar pays the minimum,” a Talent Associates representatives told us in N.Y. Her guests will not perform, he said, but will appear briefly and “simply chat.” AFTRA also has no quarrel with Miss Hopper, we were told by a union spokesman. Sullivan’s CBS-TV variety bill is a direct rival of the Hopper Show Jan. 10. On Friday, Charlton Heston withdrew from the Hopper show. KFMB-TV documentary on anti-submarine warfare, produced by the San Diego station for prime-time telecast, proved so effective that the U.S. Navy has requested kinescope prints for use in its own ASW training program, reports vp-gen. mgr. George Whitney. The 60-min. “Target USA” was produced with assistance from the Navy, which furnished service personnel & 5 tons of equipment. A1 Capone’s sister, Mrs. Mafalda Maritote of Chicago, is seeking $1 million damages — $500,000 from Desilu, $250,000 each from CBS and Westinghouse — in a suit alleging that fact & fiction were “intermingled” in The Untouchables story about her brother. The 2-part show was telecast April 20 & 27, repeated Oct. 15 & 23. CBS-TV in the wake of its recent housekeeping memos, is now laying out at least $3,000 weekly to buy prizes for such daytime giveaway shows as Art Linkletter’s House Party, For Better or For Worse and On the Go. Networks NBC’s Station-Swap Moves: The tempo was quickening last week in the station-swap game of musical chairs being played by NBC, although network officials were still denying that the game was being played at all. The network, however, was reportedly close to a working deal for the Boston-for-Philadelphia swap (Vol. 15:51 p7) that’s been discussed with RKO Teleradio — a swap in which NBC-TV will shed its WRCV-TV & WRCV Philadelphia, under a Justice Dept, consent decree, for Teleradio’s WNAC-TV, WNAC and WNAC-FM Boston. As part of the same general swapping process, NBC’s Washington o&o stations, WRC-TV, WRC and WRC-FM would also go to Teleradio for cash. Since this would reduce NBC-TV’s vhf list of o&o’s to 4, the move would free the network to acquire something it has wanted for a long time: ownership of a TV outlet in the San Francisco area. The logical target there, by all indications, is Chronicle Publishing Co.-owned KRON-TV, since KGO-TV is an ABC o&o and KPIX is owned by Westinghouse Bcstg. Co., and neither of the latter owners is likely to sell or swap. NBC, however, may face a stiff price in negotiating for KRON-TV San Francisco. The Ch. 4 outlet reportedly grosses $5.5 million annually for Chronicle Pub. Co. and is said to produce a better profit for the publishing firm than its newspaper. (One possible answer for NBC might be to offer a 50% purchase under an attractive capital gains deal, a station-group executive in N.Y. suggested last week.) In the realm of station grosses, it’s also worth noting that the Teleradio Boston outlets are reportr edly out-grossed by the NBC Philadelphia outlets which NBC must shed. The Boston TV-radio stations ax’e classed by most N.Y. reps in the $9.5-million-annually bracket, while the 3 WRCV stations are said to gross more than $12.5 million. If the Justice Dept., which must approve the NBC moves, gives a green light, the station shifting will create at least one odd situation: There will be no network o&o in Washington, although the webs would probably wind up with 3-way representation via affiliations. Show business & farming are strange partners, but ABC is now concerned with both — following FCC’s approval of its purchase of the Prairie Farmer Publishing Co. (Vol. 15:47 p9). This gives AB-PT full ownership of radio WLS Chicago, of which it had previously held 50%, plus The Prairie Farmer, Wallace’s Farmer & The Wisconsin Agriculturist. Price of the whole package was $6 million plus a percentage of the profits of the publications for 7 years. Price of the station wasn’t segregated. AFTRA will appeal FCC’s renewal of NBC’s WNBQ & WMAQ Chicago (Vol. 15:52 pl6). Raymond A. Jones, exec. secy, of AFTRA’s Chicago local, wired the Commission: “We were astonished this morning to find through the newspapers that a petition filed by us over one year ago concerning the renewal . . . has not only been denied but that it was denied without notice to us.” AFTRA requested exact copies of the FCC order concerning the petition, asked for “sufficient extension of time after receipt of official order” to plan an appeal to the courts. Another low-power CBC o&o outlet has begun operation: CBLAT (Ch. 8) Kenora, Ont. started Dec. 5 as an unattended English-language outlet carrying CBC network programs only at no additional charge.