Broadcasting Telecasting (Oct - Dec 1952)

<* <* "Lilli Palmer Show," an NBC-TV film property, syndicated to stations for local sponsorship, 15-minute weekly program. Cast: Lilli Palmer and guests. Producer: Alex Leftwich. Director: Charles Kehhe. "» Photography : G. Stoetzel. IF you're interested in learning the less well known angles and anecdotes about the great and neargreat figures of the theatre, art and letters, entertainingly told by an attractive woman with a fascinating foreign accent, then the Lilli Palmer Show is your dish. Produced by NBC's TV Film Div., this quarter-hour program is syndicated for use by various advertisers on various stations. In New York, by one of those curious happenstances that make advertising and television the paradoxical industries they are, Miss Palmer, starting on Jan. 4, will appear on WCBS-TV, key station of the TV network of NBC's bitterest rival, in competition to NBC's own TV key, WNBT (TV). In the two episodes of the series previewed by this reviewer, Lilli Palmer discussed, learnedly but amusingly, such disparate subjects as the colorful, not to say flamboyant, Lillian Russell, and the painfully shy mathematics professor, Charles Dodgson, better known to the world as Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland. Each program opened with the fair Lilli in her drawing room, humming "Auf Wiedersehn" to a guitar accompaniment. Followed her announcement of her topic of the day and her guest. Then time for the opening commercial, and then into her lecture, delivered with all of the feminine gestures and intimate glances of a guest speaker at a women's culture society of the kind so perfectly portrayed by the late Helen Hokinson. The Hokinson dames are not seen, but one is sure that they are in the audience albeit before their TV sets at home instead of in the auditorium of their suburban clubhouse. After her chatty, anecdotal discussion of the Jersey Lily, "favorite American star of her day," Miss Palmer introduced a "favorite star of the American stage of today," who somewhat disconcertingly turned out to be Beatrice Lillie, a conjunction not particularly flattering to either artist. The Lewis Carroll program, to this reviewer a more satisfying quarterhour, made the transition from topic to guest more aptly. Concluding her talk on the author, Miss Palmer began to read her "favorite scene" from Alice and, when one of the wonderland characters spoke, a man's voice was heard reading the role. In a moment the camera dollied back to reveal Miss Palmer's husband, Rex Harrison, who read with her until the scene was ended. Properly spotted in a station's program schedule, the Lilli Palmer show should provide a quietly pleasant interlude for many at home viewers. But, if they have not seen Miss Palmer on stage or screen, these viewers may spend at least some of their viewing time wondering what is wrong with her legs and feet, that the camera should never show them. A few shots are half-length, but most of the two programs shown in the preview were close-up head-andshoulder portrait shots. Even for so fetching a subject as Lilli Palmer, this can be overdone, and, in one man's opinion, it was. KCBS PETITION Claims KBIG Interference KCBS San Francisco, CBS-owned outlet, last week petitioned FCC to designate for hearing the application for license to cover the construction permit of John H. Poole for KBIG A v a 1 o n , Calif., on grounds that KBIG is causing severe interference to KCBS. KCBS is a Class II station en 740 kc, with 50 kw unlimited time, employing directional antenna day and night. KBIG is on 740 kc with 10 kw power daytime only and is utilizing a directional antenna. The latter station now is operating on a program test authority from FCC. KCBS, which also asked for "such other and further relief as may be appropriate," states it seeks to find whether the interference is due to "propagation effects, misadjustment of the KBIG antenna or other failure to comply with the provisions of the construction permit." The CBS station submitted with its petition an exhibit of preliminary field intensity measurements concerning the claimed interference which indicate that the interference area covers 3,540 sq. miles in which 142,700 persons lose KCBS service. KCBS said it initiated the action upon complaints from listeners indicating KBIG's signal was interfering with KCBS within its normally protected contour. THE 'ALL-NIGHT' AUDIENCE Nielsen Reports on New York Area Listeners EVEN in the dead of night, the radio audience is sizable and a valuable market, according to an analysis of the 56-county New York station area made in August by A. C. Nielsen Co. Several stations — WJZ WNBC WNEW— are on all night; others— WMCA WMGM WOV— until 3 a.m. Of the 5,142,000 radio homes in the area, Nielsen reported that 3% or 154,000 were listening from midnight to 12:30 a.m., sloping off gradually as some stations sign off to 51,000 homes, with sets in use from 2 to 2:30 a.m. and 31,000 as late as 4 a.m. Then, at 5 a.m. the early risers start to raise the level until, by 6:30 a.m. there are 165,000 homes with radios turned on. "These totals are based on the average night," the report stated. "Considering turnover, the weekly cumulative audience is substantially higher. While economic and social habits controlling these levels vary from one area to another, the figures are impressive for both national and local advertisers. "Whether it's the swing shift, insomnia or just staying up late that's responsible, the all-night audience can be considered a sizable potential for the buyers of time. "And," the report concluded with a plug for the Audimeter, "only exact, automatic measurement of this potential can keep track of it." THE ALL-NIGHT AUDIENCE NEW YORK STATION AREA HOMES USING RADIO — AVERAGE PER MINUTE BY HALF HOUR 1 1:00 P.M. TO 7:00 A.M. AUGUST, 1952 11:00 30 12:00 30 1:00 30 2:00 30 3:00 30 4:00 30 5:00 30 6:00 30 7:00 TIME Nielsen chart shows audience in New York station area by half hours for August 1952, and covers the listening period from. 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. the f o I lowing BROADCASTING Telecasting FERGUSON HEADS SDX 'Campaign' Study Group APPOINTMENT of a national Sigma Delta Chi committee to consider advisability of surveying 1952 Presidential campaign coverage by four media — radio, television, magazines and newspapers — was announced today by Lee Hills, president of the national journalistic fraternity. J. D. Ferguson, president of the Milwaukee Journal (WTMJ-AMTV), was named chairman by Mr. Hills, who is executive editor of the Detroit Free Press and Miami Herald (WQAM-AM-FM) . The SDX group will determine if a study is needed to investigate charges the various media were biased in coverage of the political campaign. May Call Meeting Chairman Ferguson has indicated he may call a meeting of the committee in New York or Washington after the holidays. At the same time, the SDX Executive Council, through Mr. Hills and Charles Clayton, editorial writer of the St. Louis GlobeDemocrat (KWK) and council chairman, released a statement that SDX itself does not plan to make the survey, but offers only to sponsor and advise whatever group would make the study, "if one can be properly organized and financed." Other members of the committee named by Mr. Hill are: Turner Catledge, managing editor of the New York Times (WQXR-AM-FM) ; Edward R. Murrow, CBS vice president; Benjamin M. McKelway, editor of the Washington Star (WMAL-AM-FMTV) ; Barry Bingham, president of the Louisville Courier-Journal and Times (WHAS-AM-TV) ; Carson F. Lyman, managing editor of U.S. News & World Report; Dr. Earl English, dean of the U. of Missouri School of Journalism and the new president of the Assn. for Education in Journalism. Convention Resolution Suggestion that such a committee be named was made at the SDX convention last month [B*T, Dec. 1, Nov. 24], and adopted unanimously as a resolution. The action was taken, according to the Executive Council statement, because SDX considers itself as "the only association having a crosssection of all media among its 22,000 members" and, thus, "considered itself the logical organization" to back the study. The council statement said SDX has "neither the funds nor the facilities" to conduct the study, and intends only to see if the survey is feasible and can be financed. If so, the statement said, the new committee would advise on setting up a survey "of such unquestioned impartiality and integrity that its findings would have public accept December 22, 1952 • Page 29