Broadcasting (July - Dec 1937)

The Fair Season Is On — Electric Living — A Day at the Lake — Chips — Stamps — Green — Mail — Pipes WITH the state and county fair season in full swing, radio stations in all sections have been staging promotion campaigns. Even networks have been participating, as in the case of the NBC participation in the California State Fair on Sept. 7 when a large party of artists and officials traveled to the exposition. Central States Broadcasting System carried many programs from the Nebraska State Fair over KFAB, KOIL and KFOR. Shopping bags with station insignia were given away, the bags being filled with samples and literature furnished by advertisers. WOW was at the fair with its mobile equipment and a remote crew, programs being sponsored by Chevrolet. WHIG, Dayton, has included seven Ohio county fairs in a remote schedule. At each a large threepanel exhibit of pictures of radio stars, special events and a graphic layout of how programs are built is displayed. A popular attraction is an oscillograph which shows visitors a picture of their radio voice. Each visitor is given a complete program schedule. * * * GENERAL ELECTRIC Co., New York, announced on Hour of Charm Sept. 13 a contest "to realize the electrical standard of living," prizes for which total $40,000 over a period of ten weeks. For essays on better living, $200 in script will be given each week; the two grand prizes are a $12,000 home and an $8,000 home. The Hour of Charm is broadcast on the NBC-Red network Mondays at 9:30-10 p. m., EDST. Maxon Inc., New York, is the agency. * * ❖ NBC has released a merchandising brochure announcing the affiliation of WHK, Cleveland, with its Blue network Sept. 26. The historical growth of WHK, its market and coverage data are presented succinctly in this attractive blue and white booklet which also points out that WCKY, Cincinnati, and WSPD, Toledo, recent affiliates, are "other big improvements in Blue network service in Ohio". * * * PAT FLANAGAN, announcer of the ball games over WBBM, Chicago, for Socony and General Mills, donated a box of Wheaties to each home run made by boys playing in the Deborah Boys' Club League in Chicago. When Pat discovered that the boys' tournament would last three weeks he had to order enough cases of the breakfast cereal to swamp the WBBM mail room. * * * LAMBDIN KAY, manager of WSB, Atlanta, has sent out his annual 1937 football dopebook accompanied by a letter written on the new stationery of Liberty Broadcasting Co., operating WAGA, operated with WSB by the Atlanta Journal. * * * WIL, St. Louis, has placed a large bulletin board in the window of the Melbourne Hotel, where the studios are located. The news sheets are changed every hour. IT WAS "WDSU Day" at Pontchartrain Beach, New Orleans, on Aug. 26, with more than 60,000 people jamming the resort to be guests of the station and Joe Uhalt, its president. Free rides for the children in the morning; reduced prices the rest of the day; free refreshments served by the station staff; souvenirs given away, including 10,000 paper hats bearing the slogan "I Listen to WDSU"; a "Wheaties Eating Contest" with a bicycle as prize, and huge banners reading "This is WDSU Day"— all served to make it one of the greatest promotional ventures in the history of Southern radio. * * * WMCA, New York, in its program Today's Doings in New York, incorporated mention of local hotels, in return for which the station has been piped into the rooms of those hotels. Formerly New York hotel bedrooms had only three or possibly four stations on their radio dials, all of them major network outlets. On the same program heard Monday through Friday 10:55-11 a. m., the Postal Telefjraph Guide, weekly index to New York activities, was mentioned to sightseers, and WMCA's station advertising occupies the Guide's back cover in reciprocation. * * * WRTD, Richmond, Va., is using a new angle for group programs with its tongue twisters series sponsored by Seven-Up Bottling Co. Programs open with pouring of a bottle of the soft drink, and then studio visitors are called to the microphone to rattle of larynx gnarlers selected from a bowl. Listeners who contribute tongue twisters get a half-dozen bottles of Seven-Ur) and those who read them rapidly and correctly get similar awards. Cash prizes are planned at the end of the 13-week series. FITZPATRICK BROS., Chicago (Kitchen Klenzer) is giving away a daily prize of a $25 Nesco Roastmaster to the woman who best finishes out the slogan, "I Like Kitchen Klenzer because — ." Each entry must be submitted on a Kitchen Klenzer label. The firm's Meet the Missjis show is broadcast daily except Saturday and Sundav over WBBM, WJR, WHK, and WKRC. Neisser-Meyerhoff, Inc., Chicago, is the agency. EVERY department of the new $300,000 Montgomery Ward & Co. branch in Salt Lake City is wired for radio and a daily series of fiveminute remotes is broadcast from the store. Department heads are interviewed and special merchandising angles are given listeners. Other programs are Neighbor Jim, transcription quarter-hours thrice weekly and 30 spot announcements. 5^ * * WRC-WMAL, NBC Washington stations, have isued promotion pamnhlets with real poker chips on the cover beneath the cantion "Bet either chip — Blue or Red — to win!" The chips represent the NBC Basic Blue and Basic Red. LAKESIDE BAKING Co., Cleveland (butter cookies), recently was host to 112 youngsters who had collected 50 box tops of the firm's butter cookies. The youngsters were treated to lunch, sat with Tom Manning, famed sports announcer, at the Cleveland major league baseball game, and received autographed baseballs from the players. The Lakeside firm is sponsoring a Man-in-the-Street broadcast daily except Sunday over WTAM. Neisser-Meyerhoff Inc., Chicago, is the agency. ^ ^ ij: CANCELLATION stamps on the publicity releases sent out by Benton & Bowles Inc., New York, carry a brief legend of the program being publicized. For example the stamps may read, "Thursday Night is Show Boat Night," "Tell Floyd Gibbons Your True Adventures," or "Join the Crusade Against Chime on Gang Busters Columbia Network," Miss Helen Strauss, publicity director of the agency, devised the promotion method. * * * KGNC, Amarillo, Texas, is sending out a handsomely bound booklet to advertising agencies throughout the country. Included in the book are coverage maps, radio homes by counties, spending income, programs and facilities population, listener habits, standard of living, success stories, and accounts currently using the station. The book was compiled under the direction of Ted Taylor, manager. * * * WATL, Atlanta, has adopted green as its letterhead color since a rival station has been heavily promoting itself as "Atlanta's Blue Ribbon Station." A new promotion piece has been published by WATL, showing its listening area and offering market data. * * * THE fourth annual Minnesota Business Map has been published by WCCO, KSTP and WTCN, Minneapolis-St. Paul, in cooperation with six publications. Data are compiled from Government figures and recognized statistical agencies. * * * KTOK, Oklahoma City, has published a promotion brochure describing that market and describing the station as "your Mutual friend in Oklahoma City." Illustrations of the studio are presented. DIRECT-MAIL campaigns of NBC WOR and CBS were listed amons the first 50 selected as outstanding by the Direct Mail Advertising Af^ sociation for 1936-37. Entries art judged on a basis of 50 points foi results, 25 points for continuity and plan, and 25 points for copy The winning campaign material; will first be displayed at tht DMAA convention in Cleveland Oct. 13-15, later at regional conventions, and then will make th( rounds of advertising clubs an' classrooms. ^ * * WSAR, in Fall River, Mass., re cently conducted a broadcast oi the speeches of the Sons of Itah, Silver Convention in Massachusetts, during which it provide promotional material in the forrr of Yankee Network book-matches Some 500 book-matches were distributed at the banquet. Inside the cover, there was printed the name; and locations of the 15 stations oi the Yankee Network, and in addi , tion WSAR had had printed oi stamped its own call letters on the top of the inside cover. GENERAL MILLS' three -houi snorts parade for Wheaties hearc daily on WMCA, New York, con ducted a 10-day contest runninj from Sept. 2 to Sept. 12, witl prizes totaling $10,000. Unofficially titled Grand Stand & Band Stand the program will be renamed aftei the contest and a $500 first priz< as well as 261 other major prize; will be given. The agency is Knox Reeves Adv. Inc., Minneapolis. * * * TO ANNOUNCE the opening o; KSFO's new 5,000-watt transmit ter in San Francisco, Genera Manager Phil Lasky sent out 30( personal telegrams to all loca offices of both national and loca advertising agencies the eveninj before the formal dedication. * * + CORN-COB pipes, stamped witl KSO, KRNT and WMT on th< bowl, have been distributed b; Iowa Broadcasting System througl trade channels. The accompanying letter states that the pipe repre sents Iowa's $600,000,000 corn crop * * * WIP, Philadelphia, has startet 100 line advertisements in th> Philadelphia Inquirer with thi heading "Today's Highlights". Th. outstanding programs of the weel are publicized. TALL CORN— Following a parade Sept. 1, WHO awarded $150 and th governor's trophy to George Osborn, of Siloam Springs, Ark., whos stalk measured 18 feet, 9% inches and won the Tall Corn Sweepstake? In photo are (left to right) Col. B. J. Palmer, president of WHO; Go\ Nelson G. Kraschel, of Iowa; Mr. Osborne; Harold Fair, WHO prograi director; Herbert Plambeck, WHO farm news editor. The event wa staged at the recent Iowa State Fair, where WHO was active. Page 82 • September 15, 1937 BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising