Broadcasting Telecasting (Apr-Jun 1957)

FILM U-l to End Holdout, Release Films to Tv UNIVERSAL-INTERNATIONAL, one of the last two Hollywood studios that had refused to make its feature film backlog available to tv, has changed its mind. Within the next month, it was learned last week, U-I is expected to announce the leasing of 500 of its pre1948 films at a price of over $20 million. The prospective lessee was not identified by U-I officials in New York, but the studio assuredly will assign the $20 million lease to a film distributor. Mentioned most frequently in trade circles last week was Seymour Weintraub's Flamingo Films Inc. It also is reported that station owner Mr. Weintraub (KMGM [TV] Minneapolis) may be negotiating on behalf of Westinghouse Broadcasting Co. and Storer Broadcasting Co. stations. U-I will "definitely not sell outright" but lease to tv, the film company officials said. Privately, some of these officials have "viewed with alarm" the actions of Warner Bros, in "cleaning out its closet" for tv. They feel that in the long run, tv will profit as Hollywood loses its hold on revenues. Milton Rackmill, U-I president, told stockholders April 9 that the company would not sell its product, but would rent it to the company making the best offer. In the past 90 days, there have been 10 such offers, all of which have been listened to by U-I in "dead earnest," according to one of its officers who requested anonymity. Unlike other Hollywood "majors," namely 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. and United Artists, which have released their libraries in blocks of 39 films, U-I will lease the entire library to one lessee or party of lessees for a period of not less than 7 years. MR. HULT Hult Named Sales Consultant For RKO Television Division ADOLF N. HULT, veteran network radio and television sales executive, has been retained by RKO Teleradio Pictures Inc. as a special consultant on national sales for RKO Television Div. [Closed Circuit, April 29], Robert M a n b y, RKO vice presid e n t, announced Tuesday. Mr. Hult, who has resigned as director of sales development for Screen Gems, division of Columbia Pictures Corp., immediately will begin servicing RKO. He formerly was vice president for sales and a member of the board of MBS, with which he was associated from its founding in 1934. Mr. Hult will concentrate on special film and live programming now being developed by RKO for national advertisers. AAGM-TV Reports Business Good; $300,000 Sold, $175,000 Coming BUSINESS at MGM-TV's film commercial division is good; reportedly $300,000 worth since its formation in February, with approximately $175,000 in the works. The latter figure represents about 1 1 bids now in by MGM-TV to advertisers and/or their agencies. MGM-TV currently is in the process of completing films for the following advertisers (agencies in parentheses): Lux Soap (J. Walter Thompson Co.); Maybelline Co. (Gordon Best); Pure Oil (Leo Burnett); Langendorf Bread (Compton Adv.) and an industrial film for the Idaho Potato Industry (McCarty Co.). Completed within the 90 days since MGM set up a shop for filmed commercials, were commercials for these advertisers: Jacob Ruppert Brewery's Knickerbocker beer (Warwick & Legler) [B»T, April 15]; Helene Curtis Shampoo (Gordon Best); Standard Oil of Indiana (DArcy); Formfit Co. (foundation garments and brassieres) (MacFarland, Aveyard & Co.), and Alemite Div. of Stewart-Warner Corp. (lubricating systems, lubricants, motor oil) (also MacFarland, Aveyard). Loew's Nets $2.7 Million For 28 Weeks Ended March 14 LOEWs Inc. and subsidiaries last week reported a $2,729,248 net profit after taxes for the 28 weeks ended March 14. This compared to $1,889,843 for the comparable period a year ago. Profit was equal to 51 cents per share as against 36 cents a share for the previous year's period. Gross sales and operative revenues hit more than $87.2 million, compared to more than $87.4 million for the year previous. For the 16 weeks ended March 14, Loew's had a net profit of $983,923 compared to $1,641,682 for that period last year. Joseph R. Vogel, president of Loew's, which has motion picture facilities and theatres, said the lower earnings for the 16 weeks was caused by disappointing box office returns for motion pictures it distributed. Loew's Inc. owns MGM-TV, a division that is active in the leasing of the MGM feature backlog, in the making of tv film commercials, has part ownership in several tv stations and is producing films for tv. Gross-Krasne Takes More Space GROSS-KRASNE Inc., Hollywood, has started a $100,000 expansion program with purchase of additional buildings for studios and offices. The film firm has bought the MelVan Theatre Bldg. of Melrose Blvd. to convert into a 10th sound stage and buildings at Melrose and Irving Blvd., near the home lot, to be remodeled as offices. NETWORKS 'Courage' Did the Job, Says CBS Radio's Hayes "COURAGE" is the key word to explain the recovery of CBS Radio daytime sales from last June, when network time (103:30) was only 40% sold, to today, when it is more than 90% sold, CBS Radio President Arthur Hull Hayes said Thursday in an interview during a flying visit to the network's Hollywood offices. "It took courage to go ahead with programming the most expensive kind of daytime programming like serials, Godfrey and Linkletter at a time when many people were willing to write network radio off as finished." Mr. Hayes said. "It took courage to embark on new sales concepts — split sponsorship in the daytime, segmentation a: night. It took courage to expand our sales force. But we did those things and doing them has paid off handsomely." It paid off first, Mr. Hayes noted, in bringing back to radio what he described as "deliberate advertisers," companies like Colgate-Palmolive and Lever Bros., who don't buy on impulse but because they have studied the situation and asked questions and got satisfactory answers and are convinced before they sign a contract that what they are buying is good advertising that will sell their products. "Such advertisers are bellwethers," he said. "They were the first to get into television and, as tv costs rose and rose, they began to curtail their radio appropriations. This made it necessary for us to do some revamping on bur own until we are now offering the best buy that was ever obtainable from radio, even during its so-called heyday. Now the deliberate advertisers are coming back to radio, and the others are following them back just as they followed them away." What has happened in daytime radio at CBS is going to be duplicated in the evening hours, Mr. Hayes believes, he said that it is too early to be positive about the effects of the new impact plan and the "new and more realistic rates," but he called the $1! million order from Kent cigarettes and the new Postum business "extremely encouraging signs." Feeney Promoted at CBS-TV HARRY J. FEENEY, currently trade news editor, has been promoted to the newlycreated post of manager of trade and business news. CBS Television press information effective last week The announcement was made by Charles J. Oppenheim, director of information services, CBS-TV. Mr Feeney joined CBSTV press information in his former position in April 1956. Page 84 • May 6, 1957 Broadcasting • Telecasting