Broadcasting (Apr - June 1950)

Army Spots (Continued from page 23) agreed to change the Army-Air Force accounting system so that the cost of producing programs for free broadcast and the cost of time purchases would no longer be lumped together in reports of radio expenditures. Among the competing agencies, for the National Guard account, who survived a field of 11 submitting written bids covering advertising services for the Air and Army National Guard, it was learned, are Albert Frank-Guenther Law Inc., Buchanan & Co., Owen & Chappell Inc., and Robert W. Orr & Assoc. The Gardner Advertising already has announced it will not compete forthe account which last fall placed between $45,000 and $50,000 in time over AM-FM-TV station [Broadcasting, May 1]. Present contract expires June 30, end of the current fiscal year. Gardner had held the account since August 1947. The current overall NG budget allots $49,500 for Air and $350,000 for Army, with advertising expenditures divided approximately equal between radio, TV, newspaper and other media. Appropriations for 1950-51 have not been set yet by Congress. Plans have not been completed for a proposed fall recruiting campaign by the guard, but Maj. E. L. Smith, NG information officer, indicated that radio and television will be allotted their shares of the advertising budget once the agency and funds have been determined for the coming fiscal year. Other agencies who reportedly bid for the contract include Bronson West Advertising, Calkins, Holden, Carlock, McClinton & Smith, J. M. Hickerson Inc., Melamed-Hobbs Inc., Kal, Ehrlich & Merrick Inc., Henry J. Kaufman & Assoc. and Schwimmer & Scott. 181)5 aiDin 2nus Belson 1950 Smith Davis Moves SMITH DAVIS, radio and television station brokerage, has moved from the Waldorf-Astoria Towers, New York, to 9 East 62 St. Mr. Davis, Vincent J. Manno and Howard E. Stark compose the firm doing business as individuals in concern under the name Smith Davis. Telephone at the new quarters is Butterfield 8-2941 and 8-5185. ALVIN ENUS NELSON, 56, pioneer radio and advertising man, died of a heart attack last Wednesday. He suffered the fatal stroke in a San Francisco superior court where he was engaged in a civil damage suit. He was believed in good health up to the time of the attack. At the time of his death, Mr. Nelson headed his own advertising agency, the A. E. Nelson Co., at 300 Montgomery St., San Francisco. Mr. Nelson was born in Chicago June 9, 1893, and worked his way through Northwestern U. He acquired his interest in radio while still in school. In 1923 he founded WIBO Chicago and operated the station until 1933 when his wave length was awarded by court order to the State of Indiana. He then became a trouble shooter for NBC, being first sent to Denver as general manager of KOA. He made the station into one of the most successful in the West. In 1937 NBC sent Mr. Nelson to Pittsburgh to take over and do the same job for the Westinghouse-owned KDKA. That job accomplished, in 1938 he was moved to New York and named sales manager of the NBC-Blue network. Transferred to San Fran GOP'S ANSWER ~~ Networks Reserve Time FOUR major radio networks have agreed to give the Republican Party time to answer President Truman's May 15 address climaxing the National Democratic Conference and Jefferson Jubilee in Chicago. The 11:30-12 midnight (EDT) period May 16 has been reserved for an address by Sen. Robert Taft (R-Ohio). Spokesmen for the Republican National Committee said the party had asked for time on behalf of the Senate and Congressional Campaign Committees and the parent Republican committee, who selected Sen. Taft. He will speak over combined facilities of ABC, NBC, CBS and MBS from Washington. cisco in 1939, he became general manager of KGO and KPO (now KNBC). Mr. Nelson promoted and directed the building of NBC's modern Radio City Bldg. in San Francisco and headed the combined operations of the two stations until the Red and Blue networks were separated in 1941, and KGO became an ABC station. He was an assistant vice president of NBC when he resigned to form his own advertising agency in 1942. Mr. Nelson is survived by his wife, Ethel Nelson, and a son, Alvin Jr., both of San Francisco; a daughter, Mrs. Jane Bowes, of Denver; a brother, Earl Nelson, and a sister, Mrs. Mae Thorson, both of Chicago. Mr. Pierce WDOK OPENS Begins 24-Hour Schedule CLEVELAND'S only 24-hour station, WDOK, licensed by the Civic Broadcasters Inc., completed its first week's operation today (Monday). Station made its debut April 30 at 1 p.m. Station's staff, in addition to R. Morris Pierce, president and general manager, and Frederick C. Wolf, assistant to the president, consists of Wayne Mack, program director; George R. Plagnez, promotion manager and news editor; Stanley Barron, sports editor; and announcers, Sid Garris, formerly with WONE Dayton; Dick Mabry, formerly with WIBG Philadelphia, and Charles Hoover, formerly with WHKK Akron. Mr. Mack, associated with radio in Cleveland for the past 15 years, previously worked at WGAR Cleveland. Mr. Plagnez wrote sports for the Cleveland Press, and Mr. Barron was associated with KFSB Joplin, Mo. Mr. Pierce is former vice president of WGAR Cleveland. WDOK operates on 1260 kc with 5 kw. Mr. Pierce reported favorable news notices following the station's bow. FIRST 15 HOOPERATINGS NEW YORK — APRS I COURT REVIEW House Reports Out Hobbs Bill HOUSE JUDICIARY Committee last Thursday voted to report out — with limitations — legislation to provide that applicants seeking court review of certain FCC actions could file appeals in a threejudge district court in their home jurisdictions. Authorities felt, however, that the measure (HR 5487), introduced last year by Rep. Sam Hobbs (D-Ala.), would have little practical significance to the FCC or applicants, since the committee specified it should not apply to Sec. 402 (b) of the Communications Act covering: (1) Any applicant for a station CP, license or renewal, or for modification of an existing license whose application had been refused by the Commission. (2) "Any other person aggrieved or whose interests are adversely affected by any decision of the Commission granting or refusing any such application." (3) Any radio operator whose license has been suspended by the Commission. Thus, final FCC actions on revocations, transfers, and rules and regulations having an immediate and final effect could be appealed to the special "home" court. Under present procedure they are appealable to statutory three-judge courts, which would be abolished under the Hobbs bill. The rest of the measure would remain substantially the same as proposed by Rep. Hobbs. The judicial courts and the U. S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia would have "exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in part) , or to determine the validity of, all final orders" of the Commission. Rep. Hobbs' bill supersedes a similar one he had sponsored earlier last year [Broadcasting, Feb. 28, 1949]. ALL HOMES RADIO-ONLY HOMES TV HOMES Sponsored Network Programs Sponsored Network Programs Sponsored Network Programs 1. Texaco-Mil»on Berle 26.2 TV 1. Jack Benny 21.6 1. Texaco-Milton Berle 65.5 2. Godfrey's Talent Scouts 21.6 TV 2. Radio Theatre 21.0 2. Godfrey's Talent Scouts 53.9 3. The Goldbergs 20.1 TV 3. Godfrey's Talent Scouts 20.6 3. The Goldbergs 50.2 4. Toast Of The Town 18.7 TV 4. Bing Crosby 18.1 4. Toast Of The Town 46.7 5. Lights Out 16.1 TV 5. Mr. Keen 16.8 5. Lights Out 40.2 6. Godfrey & His Friends 15.3 TV 6. Groucho Marx 16.4 6. Godfrey & His Friends 38.3 7. Studio One 15.2 TV 7. Crime Photographer 16.1 7. Studio One 38.0 8. Jack Benny 14.7 Radio 8. This Is Your F.B.I. 15.2 8. Suspense 31.4 9. Radio Theatre 13.0 Radio 9. Suspense 15.1 9. Cavalcade of Sports 30.6 10. Godfrey's Talent Scouts 12.7 Radio 10. Bob Hope 14.7 10. Saturday Night Revue 30.5 11. Suspense 12.6 TV 11. Burns & Allen 14.3 11. Philco TV Playhouse 29.8 12. Cavalcade-Sports 12.2 TV 12. Walter Winchell 13.8 12. Silver Theatre 27.4 13. Saturday Night Revue 12.2 TV 13. Ganqbusters 13.5 13. Lone Ranger 26.8 14. Bing Crosby 12.1 Radio 14. My Friend Irma 13.4 14. Break the Bank 25.9 15. Philco TV Playhouse 11.9 TV 15. F.B.I. In Peace & War 13.1 15. Man Against Crime 25.9 Up eomim The average evening broadcast audience this report is 38.6, down 0.7 from last report and up 3.3 from year ago. Page 40 May 8, 1950 May 22-23: North Carolina Assn. of Broadcasters annual convention. Chapel Hill, N. C. May 25-26: Virginia Assn. of Broadcasters annual meeting, Tides Inn, Irvington, Va. May 31 -June 2: Forty-sixth annual convention, Advertising Federation of America, Statler Hotel, Detroit. June 1-3: Assn. of Women Broadcasters seventh annual convention, Hotel Cleveland, Cleveland. June 5: Pennsylvania Assn. of Broadcasters annual membership meeting, Bedford Springs, Bedford, Pa. June 5-8: Radio Mfrs. Assn. convention, Stevens Hotel, Chicago. June 17: Second annual Radio News Editor's conference, Kent State U., Kent, Ohio. June 19: NAB Board indoctrination. NAB Hdqrs., Washington. June 20-22: NAB Board of Directors, NAB Hdqrs., Washington. June 22: Eighth annual Stanford-NBCRadio Television Institute opens, Stanford U., Palo Alto, Calif. June 25-29: Advertising Assn. of the West convention, Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles. BROADCASTING • Telecasting