The Film Daily (1941)

Tuesday, July 1, 1941 Few Films on Commercial Tele's First Programs CBS Clings to All-Flesh; NBC to Delete Ascap Tunes —Re-Dub With New Music (Continued from Page 1) "Death from a Distance," made in 1935 by Invincible with Lola Lane and Russell Hopton, and some shorts on its first week's lineup. NBC Re-dubbing Film Music NBC, it was said, plans to meet the Ascap music situation insofar as films are concerned by eliminating the Ascap tunes and re-dubbing. Should it be found that this ruins the pictures, they will be replaced on the tele programs, it was added. Two local tele stations begin operating today under the new rules, NBC as a regular commercial station, and CBS, operating on a 30 day experimental license, at the end of which the station will go on a commercial basis. NBC's station, WNBT, will operate 15 hours weekly for the immediate future, while the CBS schedule for the week includes 12 and one-half hours of programs, slightly below the minimum, but by far more than the usual experiment schedule. Don Lee Broadcasting System, W6XAO, Los Angeles; Zenith Radio Corp., W9XZV, Chicago; and the Philco Radio and Television Corp., W3XE, Philadelphia, will continue to transmit scheduled programs over their respective stations pending the formality of shifting from experimental to commercial operation at the earliest date possible. DuMont Starting Before Aug. 1 Allen B. DuMont Laboratories will begin commercial operations at is New York station, W2XWV, as soon as possible, within the next month and prior to Aug. 1, and is also rushing work on its Washington station, as is NBC, which expects to have its Washington station operating by Nov. 1, and its Philly outlet on the air by July 1, 1942, at which time the three-way television web is expected to begin operations. Thirteen additional television sta Oh, Yes, There Were Pix Also on Program Fond du Lac, Wis. — Fox's Retlaw staged a Carnival Surprise Nite on a Saturday night, with newspaper coupon and 15 cents serving as admission. Lobby display included a fourlegged woman, headless man, invisible woman and invisible fish. Customers also were treated to free lunch and given an opportunity to play skill games and have their fortunes told. Oh, yes, there was also a screen show — "The Great McGinty," "Cookie Carnival," cartoon and "Flash Gordon" serial. Nationalization Plans for British Trade Officially Denied hy Information Ministry London (By Cable) — Reports circulating in the U. S. that nationalization of the British film industry impends are without foundation, according to an official denial issued by the Ministry of Information. The nationalization reports, heard from time to time, recently found their way into print here, with Eugene Lyons, New York Post columnist, asserting that the step would take place "Shortly." Lyons stated flatly, "All movie operations will come under the supervision of the Ministry of Information." Spyros Skouras Aids Bundles for Britain An artists auxiliary of Bundles for Britain has been formed here. Ethel Barrymore heads the group which includes among its members Spyros Skouras, Adrienne Ames, Boris Karloff, Frank Buck, Helen Jepson, Patricia Ellis, Ireene Wicker, and Igor Gorin. Hal Wallis to Ottawa Hollywood— Hal B. Wallis, Warners' executive producer, leaves late this week for Ottawa, to complete final arrangements for filming "Captains of the Clouds" on location there. Film, to be directed by Michael Curtiz, is based on the Royal Canadian Air Force. Curtiz also is going to Canada to pick locations. "Lydia" for Labor Day and "Jungle Book" for Xmas Alexander Korda will start production of his Technicolor special, "The Jungle Book," on July 7 with picture scheduled for a Christmas release. Korda will have "Lydia" ready for a Labor Day release, it was said. Powell Wins Lone Ranger Suit Spartanburg, S. C. — In a decision handed down here by Federal Judge C. C. Wyche, Lee Powell, actor, was granted full right to advertise himself as "The Lone Ranger" of talking pictures. Powell was sued by The Lone Ranger, Inc., and Wallace Brothers Circus for damages and alleged infringment of The Lone Ranger rights. tions are now n the process of readying commercial telecasts, and are expected to shift to a commercial basis in the ensuing months. Stations and their locations are as follows: General Electric, Albany, W2XB; Balaban & Katz, Chicago, W9XBK; CBS, Chicago, W9XCB; Crosley Corp., Cincinnati, W8XCT; Earl C. Anthony, Los Angeles, W6XEA; Hughes Productions, Los Angeles, W6XHH; Television Productions, Inc., Los Angeles, W6XYZ; The Journal Co., Milwaukee, W9XM J; Bamberger Broadcasting Service, New York, W2XBB; Metropolitan Television, New York, W2XMT; WCAU Broadcasting Co., Philadelphia, W3XAU; Don Lee Broadcasting Corp., San Francisco, W6XDL; and Hughes Productions, San Francisco, W6XHT. Four-Sponsor Parley Highlighting the inauguration of commercial television will be a foursponsor parley at NBC today, with Lever Bros., for Spry; Procter & Gamble, for Ivory Soap; Sun Oil Co.; and Bulova Watch Co. sharing honors as the first tele sponsors. Initial blurb will be heard at the start of the baseball game when Bulova will sponsor a time signal, the opening show of the first commercial schedule, and the first fulllength commercial broadcast and telecast will be aired at 6:45-7 p.m. when Sun Oil presents Lowell Thomas simultaneously over NBC and WNBT. Presenting a new problem to ad vertisers, television as an advertising medium is now confronted with the necessity of developing methods of presentation that can take full advantage of the video medium. At the present time there is an audience estimated at more than 2,000 families in the New York metropolitan area. There are approximately 10,000 sets which will be made available to the public within the near future — and production of new sets, employing all the standards recently approved by the FCC, will shortly get under way at DuMont, RCA and several other plants. These new sets are expected to retail at about 10 per cent more than those sets already built as a result of the national defense program. First actual firm to enter the advertising field in television is the Lawrence Levey outfit of New York City. The system employs 36 principal elements of stage, motion picture and tele production, plus the application of mobility to selected materials in combination with other mobile effects, the sum total showing on the screen as television's newly-acquired own technique. Network Tele Lagging At the present time network television has been given very little consideration by the telecasters. Aside from NBC's plan to establish connecting link between New York, Washington and Philadelphia, little talk has been forthcoming on the possibilities of tele in network operation. Para. Buys Sparks' Stock in Fla. Houses (Continued from Page 1) f ida in which Sparks had herefty^re owned stock. Sparks is resigning from the presidency of those corporations but will continue in an advisory and consultative capacity. It was stated that Messrs. Frank Rogers, B. B. Garner, M. C. Talley and Fred H. Kent, all of whom had previously been executive assistants to Sparks, will continue in the active management of the corporations and will further retain their present stock interests therein. Frank Rogers has assumed the presidency of the various corporations. Declare Power Emergency In 7 Southeastern States (Continued from Page 1) a basis for invoking emergency powers provided by the Federal Power Act. Initial order, calling for immediate curtailment of street and ornamental lighting is expected to affect theater attendance in the area. The emergency has been declared for Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida. Nashville Adopting Daylight Time as Defense Power Move Nashville, Tenn. — As a defense power saving move, Nashville goes on daylight saving time next Monday, the first time since the first World War. Local theaters have already made a better than 75 per cent blackout of front lights and wherever possible to do so and maintain the comfort of patrons, are operating cooling systems at a slower speed. Chi. Piccadilly Goes Single Chicago — The Schoenstadt circuit announces that the Piccadilly Theater is going on a single feature basis starting at once. N. J. Allied Outing July 10 New Jersey Allied will hold an outing and golf tournament at the Hollywood Hotel, West End, N. J., on July 10. Proving It's Public That Makes >Em Stars Detroit— The public is taking an interest in star billings, United Detroit management found out, when a group of leaders of the local Finnish community waited on them. They demanded headline billing for the young Finnish violinist. Heimo Haitto, who plays in "There's Magic in Music," current at the Michigan — and they got it.