Broadcasting Telecasting (Apr-Jun 1957)

STATIONS WBC'S WAAM (TV) BUY: $4.4 MILLION • Westinghouse reaches vhf limit with Baltimore buy • Roddick pays $250,000 for KUTI; Bartell Buys WBMS OFF LIMITS BROADCASTERS have been cautioned by the Army against use of the words "command performance" in naming or describing programs. Officials noted the words have been copyrighted as the title of the Army's halfhour radio program series, Command Performance, which began during World War II. The title still is used for special military programs, it was added. WESTINGHOUSE Broadcasting Co.'s purchase of ch. 13 WAAM (TV) Baltimore [Closed Circuit, May 6] for $4.4 million was announced last week by Donald H. McGannon, WBC president, and Ben Cohen, WAAM president. Also reported last week were the sales of two daytime radio stations: KUTI Yakima. Wash., to Harrison Roddick, former partner in the nationally known management firm of McKinsey & Co., for $250,000. and WBMS Boston, Mass., to the Bartell Group, for $200,000. The Westinghouse transaction, which has been in progress for the past 60 days, gives that multiple radio-tv owner its fifth and final vhf outlet. FCC regulations prohibit a single entity from owning more than seven tv outlets, of which not more than five may be on vhf channels. Westinghouse has a number of plants in Baltimore and from 1937 to 1940, that city was the the headquarters of what was then known as Westinghouse Radio Stations Inc. The purchase is subject to approval of the Westinghouse Electric Corp. board, MR. McGANNON MR. COHEN scheduled to meet May 29, and the FCC. Majority owners of WAAM already have approved the sale. The Baltimore transaction involves the exchange of Westinghouse stock for WAAM Inc. stock, valued at the time of agreement at the $4.4 million figure. Included in the purchase is the acquisition of liquid quick net assets in excess of $500,000. With the acquisition of WAAM, Westinghouse will own the limit of five vhf stations in that many markets. Westinghouse now owns WBZ-TV Boston, KDKA-TV Pittsburgh, KYW-TV Cleveland, and KPIX (TV) San Francisco. WBC bought all these stations except the outlet in Boston. It bought KDKA-TV m 1955 for $9.75 million; KPIX in 1954 for $7.5 million. It bought what was then ch. 3 WPTZ (TV) Philadelphia in 1953 for $8.5 million, but this was involved in the 1955 exchange of stations with NBC whereby WBC received what are now KYW-AMFM-TV Cleveland and NBC what are now WRCV-AM-TV Philadelphia. WBC also received $3 million in that transaction. Last year Westinghouse bought WIND Chicago and its cp for ch. 20 there for $5.3 million. WBC President Donald H. McGannon made the following comment in announcing the sale: "We are indeed proud to have the future opportunity of serving the market of Baltimore, which has not only had a long historical record, but also a record of growth and development. Our own company has had substantial operations for a long period of time in Baltimore, not only as the site of Westinghouse Electric plants, but also as the headquarters of the Westinghouse Broadcasting Co. in the years 193740. ..." WAAM began operating in 1948. It is owned principally by the Ben and Herman Cohen families of Baltimore; Norman C. Kal, Washington advertising agencyman. 7%; Henry G. Fischer, Washington attorney, 7%; Dr. Harry Goldmann, 4.5% and the estate of Herbert Levy, 3.5%. The station is affiliated with ABC and is represented by Harrington. Righter & Parsons. Its balance sheet for Sept. 30, 1956, showed total assets of $1,033,293, of which $635,736 were current assets. Total current liabilities were listed at $175,886; and capital and surplus at $857,407. Net income for the years 1954 and 1955 was over $200,000 for each year, it was reported. KUTI, operating with 1 kw on 980 kc daytime, was sold by Walter N. Nelskog, D. Gene Williams and Delbert Bertholf to Mr. Roddick. Allen Kander & Co. acted as broker in the transaction. WBMS broadcasts with 1 kw on 1090 kc daytime. It was sold by lack N. Berkman and associates to the Bartell organization and gives that group its fifth radio station. Bartell owns WOKY Milwaukee, Wis.; WAKE Atlanta, Ga.; KXBQ San Diego. Calif., and KRUX Phoenix, Ariz. It also owns WMTV (TV) Madison, Wis. Two weeks ago it filed an application with the FCC to sell WAPL Appleton, Wis., for $100,000 to Connie Forster (40%), present manager of the station, and Karl P. Baldwin, L. H. Chudacoff and R. P. Beelen, 20% each [B»T, May 6]. It is also seeking to increase the power of KCBQ to 50 kw day and 5 kw night (on 1170 kc). Manager of WBMS is Norman B. Furman, who will remain in charge of the Boston outlet, it was indicated. No personnel changes are contemplated, it was reported. The Berkman interests, under the name of The Friendly Stations, operate WSTVAM-TV Steubenville, Ohio; KODE-AM-TV Joplin, Mo.; WPIT Pittsburgh, Pa.; WPAR Parkersburg and WBLK and a permit for ch. 12 Clarksburg, all in Clarksburg, W. Va. The Boston sale was handled by Jack L. Stoll Associates, station broker. Both the Yakima and Boston sales are also subject to FCC approval. L.A. Religious Ratings Low, Says Churchman RESIDENTS of the Los Angeles metropolitan area are exposed to an ample supply of religious broadcasts — 353 per week on radio, 29 on tv — according to a survey made in April of this year by the Rev. Clifton Moore, director-coordinator of the RadioTelevision-Film Commission of the Los Angeles Church Federation. But the ratings reported by Dr. Moore indicate that all this exposure produces very little penetration. Of the 123 religious radio programs broadcast on Sunday, only four have ratings of 1.0 or more (according to Pulse, which provides ratings for only nine of the city's radio stations, omitting 17 others). Top audience-puller, with a 2.3 rating, is the Salt Lake Tabernacle, broadcast on KNX at 8:30 a.m. Others in the 1.0or-better category are: Good News (Methodist), 2.0, KHJ, 9:15 p.m.; Hour of Decision, 1.3, KFI. 10:30 p.m.. and Your Bible, 1.0, KABC, 8:15 p.m. Weekday religious radio programming — 43 programs broadcast once to six days for a total of 207 air periods — fares no better, ratingwise. KHJ's Bible Institute, MondayWednesday-Friday, 8:30 a.m., gets top weekday rating of 1.7. KFWB's Rosary Hour, Monday-Saturday. 7:45 p.m., is second with 1.5, and KABCs Dr. S. Bailes, Monday-Friday, 10:15 p.m., third with 1.3. Of the 23 Saturday religious radio programs, only the Rosary Hour, 1.3. tops the 1.0 mark. Largest audience of any religious program on television in greater Los Angeles is that of Crossroads on KABC-TV. Friday, 8:30 p.m., which Dr. Moore's report shows to have a Telepulse rating of 6.8. an ARB of 7.9 and an NSI of 17.5. Second is Bishop Sheen's Life Is Worth Living, also KABCTV, Monday, 9 p.m., not rated by Telepulse but with an ARB of 5.9 and a NSI of 7.3. Top Sunday religious tv program, rated at 3.0 by Telepulse and 6.7 by NSI. is Great Churches of the Golden West, KTTV (TV) at 11 a.m. (ARB rates this 1.0. tied for fourth place among Sunday tv programs of this type, but this and other differences may be due to the use of an ARB March rating, an NCS February rating and a Telepulse rating for Feb. 1.) The religious radio broadcasts divide into 307 that are sponsored and 46 sustaining. The tv ratio is even more: 16 commercial to 13 sustaining programs. Audience informa Page 112 • May 13, 1957 Broadcasting • Telecasting