Broadcasting Telecasting (Jan-Mar 1956)

ADVERTISERS & AGENCIES ployes in Chicago, N. Y. and L. A., belong to trust, which has reported total assets of $3 million. Sidney J. Wain, N. Y., public relations firm, retained by The Biow Co., N. Y. Colgate-Palmolive Co., Jersey City, N. J., now in new offices in Colgate-Palmolive BIdg., 300 Park Ave., N. Y. 22. FILM 6. f%, $ rf^fc 40 £k Advance Schedule Of Network Color Shows (All times EST) CBS-TV Mar. 6 (9:30-10 p.m.) Red Skelton Show, S. C. Johnson & Son, through Needham, Louis & Brorby, and Pet Milk Co. through Gardner Adv. on alternate weeks (also March 20, 27). Mar. 10 (7:-7:30 p.m.) Gene Autry Show, William Wrigley Jr. Co. through Ruthrauff & Ryan (also March 17, 24, 31). Mar. 15 (8:30-9:30 p.m.) Shower of Stars, "The Flattering Word," Chrysler Corp, through McCann-Erickson. NBC-TV Mar. 5-9(3-4 p.m.) Matinee, participating sponsors (also March 1516, 19-23, 26-30). Mar. 5-9(5:30-6 p.m.) Howdy Doody, participating sponsors (also March 12-16, 19-23, 26-30). Mar. 5 (8-9:30 p.m.) Producers Showcase, "Caesar and Cleopatra," Ford Motor Co. through Kenyon & Eckhardt and RCA through Kenyon & Eckhardt, Al Paul Lefton and Grey. Mar. 6 (7:30-7:45 p.m.) Dinah Shore Show, Chevrolet Motor Div. of General Motors Corp. through Campbell-Ewald (also March 8, 20, 22). Mar. 11 (2:30-5:30 p.m. EST and PST) "Richard the Third" — General Motors divisions as participating sponsors. Mar. 12 (11 a.m. -12 noon) Home, insert at approximately 11:45-12, participating sponsors Mar. 13 (8-9 p.m.) Milton Derle Show, Sunbeam Corp. through PerrinPaus, and RCA and Whirlpool Corp. through Kenyon & Eckhardt. Mar. 14 (10-10:30 p.m.) This Is Your Life, Hazel Bishop through Raymond Spector and Procter & Gamble Co. through Benton & Bowles on alternate weeks (also March 21 ). Mar. 18 (3:30-4 p.m.) Zoo Parade, Mutual of Omaha through Bozell & Jacobs and American Chicle through Ted Bates, on alternate weeks (also March 25). Mar. 18 (4-5:30 p.m.) Hallmark Hall of Fame, "Taming of the Shrew," Hallmark Cards Inc. through Foote, Cone & Belding. [Note: This schedule will be corrected to press time of each issue of B-T] WARNER FILMS BOUGHT FOR $21 MILLION; LARGEST LIBRARY YET FOR TELEVISION PRM, Canadian-American investment company, completes deal for 2,350 sound and silent features and cartoons. Approximately 50% will be released initially to video medium with others slated for varied uses. All were made prior to 1948 season. Warner Bros, will be the distributor of the IN THE largest sale of a motion picture library to television, Warner Bros. Pictures Inc. last Thursday signed a contract with PRM Inc., Canadian-American investment company, under which PRM will pay $21 million for the motion picture company's library of 750 sound feature films, 100 silent features and 1,500 assorted cartoons and short subjects produced before 1948. The joint announcement of the transaction was made from Wilmington, Del., where the contract was signed by Louis Chessler, board chairman of PRM Inc., and lack L. Warner, vice president of Warner Bros. Associated with Mr. Chessler as an investor is Eliot Hyman, president of Associated Artist Productions, New York. The transaction follows protracted negotiations conducted by Mr. Hyman for PRM and Ben Kalmenson, executive vice president of Warner Bros. Mr. Hyman reported that PRM acquires "complete rights" to the films, including "copyrights and literary rights, re-make rights, 16 mm, film-tv and live tv rights." It was reported that PRM would absorb the sales division of Associated Artists and install Mr. Hyman as managing director of the company. PRM, according to Mr. Hyman, intends to create sales divisions for each of the rights covered by the contract and will seek personnel for these units. He said the company was negotiating for the purchase of other film libraries and intended to participate in "all facets of the movie and tv industries." Initially about 50% of the films will be allocated to tv, Mr. Hyman said, with the remainder slated for theatre re-issue, re-make and adaptation for film and live tv programs. He noted that under the terms of the agreement. PLUNGING deeper into tv with opening of commercial production department, veteran Hollywood movie producer Edward Nassour (r) of Nassour Studios looks over current product with Sam Lewis, named to manage the new division. Mr. Lewis formerly headed his own San Francisco advertising agency. Although continuing feature movie production, Nassour Studios expanded into tv last fall with Sheena, Queen of f he Jungle for ABC Film Syndication Inc. [B»T, Nov. 21, 1955]. library in foreign markets. The control of PRM, it was reported, recently was acquired by a group headed by Mr. Chessler and George Gardiner, PRM president. The films, dating back to 1912, include "Main Street," "Babbit," "The Jazz Singer," "Disraeli," "The Story of Louis Pasteur," "Life of Emile Zola," "High Sierra," "Watch on the Rhine," "The Man Who Came to Dinner," "Arsenic and Old Lace," "Of Human Bondage," "Yankee Doodle Dandy," "Public Enemy," "The Corn Is Green," "Little Caesar," "The Petrified Forest," "The Maltese Falcon," "Casablanca," "Oil for the Lamps of China," "Five Star Final" and "Anthony Adverse." Mr. Hyman said that preliminary negotiations were for "tv rights only," but later were enlarged to cover other rights. He reported there will be no "block selling" of the films for television. The $21 million transaction dwarfs the acquisition by C&C Super Corp. of the RKO Radio Pictures backlog of 650 feature films plus cartoons and short subjects for $15.2 million [B«T, Jan. 6]. Several weeks ago, Columbia Pictures released through its tv subsidiary, Screen Gems Inc., 104 feature films to television [At Deadline, Feb. 14]. RKO Teleradio Asks Agencies To Wholesale Film Display WHAT was believed to be a new sales technique by a tv film distributor was implemented last week when RKO Teleradio Pictures showed 52 feature films to top agency executives in a series of closed circuit sessions. The films, part of the 150 picture package that RKO Teleradio retained for a two-year period when it sold the RKO Radio library to C&C Super Corp., are available for network or national spot sale for a one-time showing only. Some 20 agencies attended the closed-circuit sessions at the St. Regis Hotel in New York, viewing 20-minute clips of many of the films on eight television receivers located in several rooms. Agency executives were invited to breakfast, lunch or late afternoon cocktail sessions. Among the agencies represented at the closed-circuit meetings were BBDO, J. Walter Thompson, Young & Rubicam, Benton & Bowles, McCann-Erickson, Foote, Cone & Belding, Kudner Adv., Grant Adv., Kenyon & Eckhardt, D'Arcy Adv., Wm. Esty Co. and Cunningham & Walsh. WCBS-TV Buys Film Features SCREEN GEMS Inc., New York, has sold 104 feature films from Columbia Pictures' library to WCBS-TV New York for showing on the station, starting July 1. The sale is believed to be the largest number of films sold to a single station. Negotiations were handled by Robert Salk, director of sales for Screen Gems: Haw Hough, program director of WCBS-TV, and William C. Lacey, manager of the station's film department. Package includes such films as "Pennies from Heaven," with Bing Crosby; "Sahara," with Page 42 • March 5, 1956 Broadcasting • Telecasting