Broadcasting (Jan - Jun 1944)

21 years of continuous leadership. Programs, public service, alertness . . . and of course . . . advertiser's preference. All surveys agree WRC leads morning, afternoon and night. Washington will have the first NBC television station to be constructed after the war. MARTHA MILLER, new to radio, is now women's commentator for WBT Charlotte, N. C. HENRY ORBACH, formerly of KFEL Denver, WKY Oklahoma City and KARK Little Rock, Ark., has been appointed news editor of KGO San Francisco. JOHN K. CHAPEL, news editor of KROW Oakland, Cal., is the father of a boy. BOB SWEENEY, announcer of KYA San Francisco, has been appointed chief announcer. IKE CLINTON, new to radio, has been added to the announcing staff of WHBQ Memphis. R. J. RAWLEY, WSYR Syracuse newscaster, has been appointed news editor of the station. HARRISON EAGLES, former WTHT Hartford and WAGA Atlanta announcer, has joined WPAT Paterson, N. J. RICHARD BLAKE, formerly with the promotion department of the Saturday Evening Post, has joined the advertising and promotion staff of NBC. DAVE PAGE, former announcer of KWNO Winona, Minn, and now in the Army, is completing a training course with Armed Forces Radio Service, Los Angeles. LOWELL THOMAS, NBC commentator, received the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Dr. Dixon Ryan Fox, president of Union College, Schenectady, at a special convocation held May 7 to mark the 200th Empire State Town Meeting broadcast of WGY Schenectady and the college. JAMES HINES, formerly of WFCI Pawtucket, R. I., has joined the announcing staff of WEEI Boston. BOB GREENE, neweaster of KNX Hollywood, has been inducted into the Army. LUCIEN DUMONT, new addition to the WCOP Boston announcing staff, replaces Leon Lipson, who has accepted a position with the Foreign Economic Administration in Washington. LEONARD REEG, Blue Hollywood producer in Los Angeles, is the father of a girl. BILL HAWORTH, newscaster of KHJ Hollywood, has shifted to KNX Hollywood. He succeeds Bob Greene, now in the Army. NORMAN BAUMAN has shifted from the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. studios, Montreal, to CJBC Toronto to produce public service features. McCray to NBC THOMAS C. McCRAY, formerly with the broadcasting division of the New York Office of Censorship, has been appointed eastern program manager of NBC and program manager of WEAF NewYork. Before joining the Office of Censorship, Mr. McCray was assistant general manager of WTIC Hartford. He replaces Wynn Wright who recently was made national production manager of NBC. Centennial Observance CENTENNARY of three organizations— the YMCA, the N. Y. Philharmonic Symphony, and its sponsor on CBS, the U. S. Rubber Co.— will be highlighted June 4 with the premier performance of a composition by Morton Gould. Conductor on C'resia Blanca Carnival on CBS, Mr. Gould was commissioned by the YMCA to write the symphony. WCKY Cincinnati is prepared to go on a 24-hour schedule the minute Allied troops begin the long-awaited invasion of Europe. Station has arranged a special service whereby persons living in the greater Cincinnati area will be notified by phone in the event the invasion begins during the night. In addition, lines have been installed in five RKO theatres in downtown Cincinnati over which WCKY will flash the news as soon as it breaks. A WEEKLY feature of WELI New Haven, Connecticut Forum of the Air, has been expanded to the Connecticut State Network. Featuring Connecticut residents who are nationally known figures, the Forum is heard Thursday, 8 :30 p.m., replacing America's Town Meeting of the Air on CSN stations which are also affiliates of the Blue. TYING in with Hearst Newspapers' plan to signal the European invasion by sounding the Liberty Bell, NBC has installed lines into Independence Hall in Philadelphia, to carry the sounds to NBC listeners and possibly abroad. KFEL Denver has announced upon closing its service letter slogan contest that a total of 250 awards have been made to listeners who have sent in winning slogans for use on KFEL newscasts to promote letter writing to servicemen. PERSONNEL of the Crosley Corporation (WLW WSAI WLWO Cincinnati) broadcasting division attended a second series of conferences May 11-16 to learn about FM, television and BBC operations in connection with broadcast material for WLW. CFRN Edmonton in covering ceremony of the United States Army dedicating the oil refinery at Whitehorse, Yukon, used a wartime built telephone line 1,400 miles long direct from Whitehorse to Edmonton. CKCV Quebec has subscribed to Press News service. WPDQ Jacksonville, Fla., to inform a large group of listeners when the invasion breaks, has arranged to telephone 500 pre-determined listeners who in turn will contact five of their neighbors. Within 12 minutes station plans to begin broadcasting of continuous news coverage as information arrives. WKNY Kingston, N.Y., on May 10 presented serveral remote and special broadcasts of the Kingston celebration activities honoring Maj. Gen. Frederick L. Anderson Jr. of Kingston, now overseas, who was selected by the local Lions Club as the city's outstanding citizen for 1943. ST. PAUL Dispatch and Pioneer Press on May 9 staged the seventh annual Fishermen's Party over WTCN before more than 1,000 persons in the St. Paul municipal auditorium for the benefit of underprivileged children. Bob DeHaven, WTCN program director, was m.c. for the seventh consecutive time. STARS of the NBC-WSM Nashville, Tenn. program Grand Ole Opry were flown by the Army May 12 to Memphis to do shows for WAC recruiting drive. WMPS Memphis, Tenn., is presenting direct three-minute newscasts in the downtown Warner Bros, theatre between all features. WKRC Cincinnati originates ihe forum series Problems of Peace and not WSAI Cincinnati as incorrectly stated in this column May 8. TO PRESENT successful applicants for KFI-Hollywood Bowl Auditions, KFI Los Angeles has started a series of weekly broadcasts featuring non-professional singers selected by a preliminary jury. Limited to 24 contestants, winner or winners will receive a professional engagement with Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra on a Hollywood Bowl program at fee of $100. ORIGINATING AT WOWO Fort Wayne, Ind., for the last year, Hoosier Hop started on the Blue Network May 6. Featuring rural rhythm and barn dance entertainment, the program has become so popular it was necessary to move from WOWO studios to larger quarters in the Fort Wayne Shrine Theatre in October 1943. WQXR New York is putting out a news letter for station employes now in the service and their families. Title is Your High Fidelity Reporter. CHILDREN'S television party for the sons and daughters of television set owners was held May 14 at WRGB Schenectady. Members of the staff who appear on the television screen were present to meet the children and their parents. WRRF Washington, N. C, now publishes a monthly Air Fax house organ dealing with news and features of the station. Paper is edited by N. L. Royster, program manager. READER'S DIGEST story, "Four Pillars of Income" was aired on WLAC Nashville using the central character in his own part. The man is C. W. (Bill) Bailey, bank president whose income plan fpr farmers forms the basis of the story. A transcription was flown to one of Mr. Bailey's sons stationed in North Africa. WNEW New York has proposed to the Radio Directors Guild, New York, a plan designed to enable young talent to get started in radio. Station seeks the cooperation of the Guild in furnishing volunteer program directors to direct young and talented members of AFRA in a series of weekly broadcasts making use of program material suggested by the War Writer's Board. Talent would receive regular AFRA fees. THE 100,000th student in the Chicago area to attend and participate in WGN Chicago's Citizens of Tomorrow broadcasts was to be heard on the May 21 broadcast. Program began in 1940 to salute youth's scholastic achievements and war exort contribution. WCOP Boston, in cooperation with Boston U. Radio Institute and the Institute for Democratic Education, is presenting a weekly series titled Lest We Forget — One Nation Indivisible. II n I T G D PRESS Page 44 • May 22, 1944 BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising