Broadcasting Telecasting (Jan-Mar 1958)

NETWORKS CONTINUED FILM the Pacific Standard Time zone — will be fed programs other than at the local time now recsived. Stations on PST will get their programs an hour earlier, local time. NBC-TV and CBS-TV report they are on schedule with plans to eliminate DST proble Its All three networks will make liberal use of videotape for delay telecasts. ABC Top Ranks Filled In New Appointments American Broadcasting-Paramount Theatres Inc. last week buttoned up the executive alignment of its broadcast operations. James Ci. Riddell, president of AB-PT subsidiary WXYZ-AM-FM-TV Detroit, was elected executive vice president of ABC, a di\ision of AB-PT. and a director of AB-PT. He takes over the new administrative post July I. In that position, the radio (ABN) and the tv (ABC-TV) networks will report to him and he in turn to AB-PT President Leonard 11 Cioldenson. (See Our Respects, page 26.) Simon B. Siegel. financial vice president and treasurer of ABPT, also was elected a director of the theatre-broadcast company. Reports had been current since early winter that AB-PT would create an overall administrator of the company's broadcast operations [Closed Circuit, March 10; Dec. 16, 1957]. The renewed speculation had followed the elevation last month of Oliver E. Treyz from vice president in charge to president of the ABC-TV division. Robert E. Eastman is president of ABN. Both men, according to Mr. Goldenson's announcement Monday, will continue to operate the networks as autonomous units with no change in operating policy. Although Mr. Riddell formally assumes his ABC post July 1. the WXYZ executive already is moving into his new duties on an informal basis. Mr. Riddell said he has set a meeting for today (Monday) and tomorrow in Detroit for general managers of all ABNowned radio stations. Purposes: an orientation in WXYZ functions (the station is regarded as a successful radio operation) with which Mr. Riddell is most familiar and a chance to meet with the station heads. Mr. Goldenson said Mr. Riddell's addition to executive management of ABC was part of "a long-range plan to meet the growing requirements of the company." noting that the broadcaster had compiled "an outstanding record" at the Detroit stations. Mr. Siegel was elected to his current post at AB-PT in 1957 and was treasurer of ABPT upon its formation in 1953 as a result of the merger of ABC and United Paramount Theatres. Previously, he was comptroller of UPT. He joined the comptrollers staff of Paramount Pictures Inc. in 1929. SIEGEL NTA FILM NETWORK PLANS EXPANSION • Landau outlines new shows • Approach sound, he feels National Telefilm Assoc., New York, last week reaffirmed its confidence in the concept of the NTA Film Network by announcing an expanded schedule for the fall, covering six major program series and the establishment of a three-hour segment in prime time in certain markets. Ely A. Landau, board chairman of NTA and president of the NTA Film Network, told a news conference in New York the company is convinced that the film network approach is sound. The expansion move is planned, even though the network's major effort during 1957 — Premiere Performance, a weekly P/2-hour presentation of 2()th Century-Fox feature films — ended a 39week cycle last January. Mr. Landau explained that film network activities were halted temporarily to evaluate accomplishments and plan for next season, although the company never questioned the soundness of the film network concept. The programs to be carried starting next fall. Mr. Landau said, are How to Marry a Millionaire, a half-hour series based on the motion picture of the same name and filmed by TCF-TV; Man Without a Gun, another half-hour TCF-TV series built around the exploits of a newspaper editor in the West; This Is Alice, a half-hour series produced by Desilu Productions and centering around an impish youngster; The Tv Hour of Stars, hour-long dramatic presentations produced for television by Warner Bros.; Premiere Performance, a new group of 39 first-run tv feature films produced by Fox, and Shirley Temple feature films, a series of motion pictures featuring the former child star at the height of her popularity. This new programming. Mr. Landau said, involves a total expenditure of $12 million. He revealed that the network will offer all its fall programming in upward of 100 markets next season. A new programming pattern has been created called the "Big Night." Mr. Landau said that in the 17 markets where there are four or more stations, the independent outlet in each area will be invited to participate in this pattern and he indicated favorable reaction already in 15. The present plans call for the "Big Night" to be telecast 7:3010:30 p.m. on a single night, with programming covering How to Marry a Millionaire, Man Without a Gun, This Is Alice and Premiere Performance. These markets represent 46% of U. S. tv homes, according to Mr. Landau, and include about 19.5 million tv homes. In other markets, NTA hopes to clear Class A time for the half-hour series and place Premiere Performance in late evening time slots. The Tv Hour of Stars programming is earmarked for early evening presentation in the four-or-more-station markets and in other areas. Plans are to slot the dramas during daytime periods, perhaps as a week-day strip. The Shirley Temple films, Mr. Landau said, will be programmed as a Page 80 March 17, 1958 special holiday series, much in the manner of the recent Holiday Specials during the past Christmas season when four films starring Miss Temple were shown. Mr. Landau reviewed the accomplishments of Premiere Performance and the Holiday Specials during 1957 and contended that in terms of ratings and in cost-perthousand the presentations were "excellent buys" for the various participating sponsors. These included Warner-Lambert Pharmaceutical Co.. P. Lorillard Co., Hazel Bishop Inc.. Sunbeam Corp., Ideal Toy Corp., Toni Co., Phillips-Van Heusen Corp., Smith Bros. Inc. and Technical Tape Corp. He said the main obstacle confronting the NTA Film Network is its "pioneering concept, as many people are a bit afraid of anything new, of something that breaks with tradition." Mr. Landau felt, however, that the first year*s efforts had smoothed the way for next year's activities. Outside of the fall programming, the NTA Network, as previously announced, will feed a one-hour program titled The 20th Century-Fox Hour to a lineup of about 63 stations for 13 weeks [Film, Feb. 3]. The program, consisting of re-runs of films shown on CBS-TV several years ago, will be offered to advertisers under a plan called "Double Impact." Each week a one-hour film will be played twice on different days, enabling the advertiser to reach a newaudience for each run. Universale Rackmii Optimistic Despite Loss for First Quarter The "hold the line at '48" motto being adopted by Hollywood producers on release of old films to tv was echoed last week during a routine stockholders meeting at Universal Pictures Corp. President Milton R. Rackmii also told shareholders that Universal is in the motion picture business to stay. His optimistic outlook came in the face of a reported $450,000 net loss during the first quarter of fiscal 1958. (In the comparable first quarter of fiscal 1957, Universal had a net profit of $163,786.) Mr. Rackmii spent most of the hour-long meeting denying various current "reports." Among them he denied (A) that Universal is in the process of selling its Universal City lot to NBC for an estimated $35 million, (B) that Universal is going to liquidate its physical plant and sell its property, (C) that Universal is going to merge with Decca Records which owns 81.4% of the film company's outstanding common, (D) that Universal is thinking of springing some 300 post-1948 films since it now has placed into distribution 600 pre1948 films through Columbia Pictures Corp.'s Screen Gems Inc. at estimated earnings of $30 million. Mr. Rackmii assured the shareholders that Universal is not going to release any post-1948 films at this time to tv in line with the stand of other studios. He apparently did not consider Republic (now-defunct) as a studio. He did not mention Republic by name. Republic, unlike United Artists Corp. which maintains no studio operations of its own, recently released a large number of post1948 feature film to tv. The Universal president declined to dis Broadcasting