Inside facts of stage and screen (September 20, 1930)

PAGE EIGHT INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN SEPT. 20, 1930 REVIEWS COMMENT RADIOLAND CHATTER NEWS Pickups and Viewpoints Isn’t it about time Radio considers the performer? Radio today is one of the most prosperous forms of entertainment. It has been made so by the generosity of artists, who gave freely of their time and talent without personal benefit to themselves. It is only comparatively recent that entertainers have been paid anything for their services on the air. Selling of air time to advertising sponsors has brought wealth to many stations which furnish programs of phono- graph records, so called “electrical transcriptions,” which a benificient law makes them announce as such. “Electrical transcriptions” should be tabooed. All sta- tions could be forced to use human talent. They pay an act a mere pittance to make a record, and then sell that record to innumerable stations throughout the country, who pay the actor nothing. Ten to twenty-five dollars is all that is paid an artist to make a record. Perhaps there is musical accompaniment, whish is also remunerated. In all, let us say the high cost of the average record is $50 for the talent. This record which runs in time about 12 minutes earns in air fee about $15 to $20 each time, and is used in 100 stations or more throughout the country, not to count repeats. Enormous profits for the makers of these records are piling up. Performers should refuse to make records for radio broad- cast unless they receive no-t only a recording fee, but every time the record is played over the air. There is little enough work for actors nowadays. Where work is available, the actor should not permit himself to be exploited for the benefit of radio stations, who would get rich off their talent. All sta- tions should use human talent in person if they traffic in adver- tising for money. Records should be restricted to use as time killers for which no fee is collected, or should be cut out entirely. * * * Announcer Fakes Requests The other night we happened into a second string station during request hour. Here we found the announcer announc- ing requests, and an orchestra and flock of singers joyfully responding to them. Nosing about, we walked over to the telephone desk and noticed all the trunks plugged, and the busy lights on. There were no calls coming through at all. If anybody rang up, they would get the busy signal and give up. This station was making its own requests and faking the requestees. This might be a simple way of handling the “request” hour, but it is not conductive to making friends with the public. * * * San Francisco DX Competition We also dropped in on two friends while making a visiting tour and found the radio going in both homes. It was 10:30 and 11:30 p.m. Each of these radios was tuned on a distant station, one program coming from San Francisco and the other from Oakland. We inquired what was the matter with the home product and each informed us that there wasn’t anything worth while locally. This was Friday night. The programs from our northern stations were very interesting and excep- tionally well broadcast. If there is competition between the north and south for listeners, it is a good thing to know, and will make Los Angeles program builders step out for a bit more quality and class during the hum drum watches of the night. SCHETTLER NAMED KYA MUSIC CHIEF SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 18— Neil Schettler has. been named music director of KYA, Pacific Broadcasting Co. station. He suc- ceeds Fred Heward who left KYA to join the National Broadcasting Co. music department. Prior to his local affiliation, Schettler was in charge of music for Publix in Salt Lake City. At KYA. he will feature the present Orpheus ensemble and will build up the musi- cal offerings as much as possible. BRENEMAN FILLING FOUR RADIO JOBS Tom Breneman, one of KFWB’s stars, has “only” four acts com- manding his attention. “The Radio Periscope,” “The Adventures of Tom and Wash,” “Friday’s Follies” and the rustic character, “Senator Ezra Simp- kins,” are his quadruple assign- ments. SQUIRREL’S CHANCE FOR LISTENING-IN The Walnut Growers’ Associa- tion is inaugurating a series of pro- grams over KHJ Friday, Septem- ber 26. Charles Forsythe, KHJ’s sound effectician, has been com- missioned to produce the effect of both Emerald Brand and Diamond Brand Walnuts falling off a tree. Mr. Forsythe has been in the busi- ness of creating desired noises since the nickelodeon days. News comes from San Fran- cisco that the Microphone Club has opened a local branch there. Los Angeles is my home, but I think the S. F. club will be larger than the L. A. club for it seems San Francisco radio is so far ahead of Los Angeles stations that it will take our home town stations a year to make up for lost time. * * * If Jack Mayo knows what he is talking about, all the S. F. stations pay their talent, and that is more than our local broadcasters can or will do. How about it Los Angeles? Can’t you do something about it? * * * They say that a well known local station manager would like to give “The Taller” a black eye for the things I have said about him and his station. I am in the office each Mon- day at 10 A.M., my friend, and will be glad to hear from you. * * * Glad to hear that local radio is picking up—am I right? TOWNER DIRECTS SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 18- Pi c k w i c k Broadcasting Co. has named Earl Towner program director o f KTAB, following Helen O’Neill, who has left the radio field. Towner has been vo- cal director of the station for the past few months. Prior to that he was with KPO and KFRC. SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION RATES TO RADIO ARTISTS INSIDE FACTS Delivered to Home or Station One Dollar Three Months Radio Program Reviews CROSS-SECTIONING RADIOLAND THUMB NAIL REVIEWS LOS ANGELES (Reviewed Sept. 11) KNX, 10:32 P.M. Eddie Bush trio singing, “I Wonder How It Feels.” Lead is great, top tenor squawky. Announcer plugging the Ambassador. Orchestra, “H ere Comes Emily Brown.” Good voice on chorus. Bing Crosby singing, “I'm Young,” sounds like the Crosby of old. Excellent sax and trumpet combination. ICFVD, 10:41 P.M. Mystic Hour program. Zandra, answers five questions for $3.00 with a bottle of Indian perfume. This guy has got a great line. Has time out for con- centration, with the listener stand- ing face to east with the organ piping “Song of India.” He ends it with the old timer, “May the Peace of Allah Abide in You” and a badly pronounced “Salam Alacom,” which in our Arabic means “my compli- ments to you.” The reviewer’s comments, on the program, pri- vately to him is “Fiker Jyed.” This program should tie up a lot of women listeners, whether they go for the perfume or questions, that being a question in itself. KFWB, 10:59 P.M. Just man- aged to hear George Olson’s train pulling out after playing “Louisi- ana,” and a plug for the cafe. 11:00 P.M. George Freeman and band at Brandstrattor’s Montmarte Cafe, opened their evening program with “Eleven-thirty Saturday Night.” A special arrangement of “Trees” next. Freeman string trio playing “Sweet Mj^stery of Life,” a highlight of the offering. Nice music. KHJ, 11:05 P.M. Orchestra play- ing “It Seems to Be Spring,” into “I’m Yours,” with an excellent voice singing the chorus. Standard Oil Products announce? lent., brief and adroitly worded, announcer’* voice on the up and up. followed by announcement that Biltmore Trio are next. This was at 11:10. One hears the trio tuning up, then deathly silence. More tuning up to— 11:18 P.M. Evidently one of ’em was missing during the past six minutes, but it was well worth wait- ing for. when the boys offered “All That Is Left is Farewell,” “I’m Doing That Thing, Falling In Love,” to— 11:23 P.M. Another short an- nouncement on Standard Oil fol- lowed bv trio singing “So Beats My Heart For You.” KTM, 11:25 P.M. Plug for Kel- ley Car Company, acknowledging records from Wurlitzer, which, inci- dentally, were pips. We stayed with this one for ten minutes lis- tening to excerpts from “Rio Rita” and “The Pirates of Penzance.” Records on this order will invariably hold the listeners. CROSS-SECTIONING RADIOLAND THUMB NAIL REVIEWS LOS ANGELES (Reviewed September 12th) KMTR, 6:00 P.M. Time signals. Long-winded plug, with every other word the name of the product. Banjo Boys playing “Highway to Heaven.” It must have been good because somebody at the mike said it Was marvelous. So that settles it. They started on “Springtime in the Rockies,” so we switched to— KFI, 6:05 P.M. And listened to the Quaker Girl, a marvelous tenor, quartette and chorus, singing, to- gether with a pip of an orchestra, excerpts from “Bitter Sweet.” A harp and trumpet specialty stood out. “I’ll See You Again,” by the tenor and Quaker girl, disclosed a beautiful blending of voices. Quaker quartette next offered the “Open Road.” Hotsy-totsy stuff. Orches- tra playing “Carry Me Back to Old Virginia,” Quaker Girl and chorus again scoring, with excellent cello, trumpet and harp specialties. Pro- gram sponsored by Armstrong Quaker Rugs, and with this type of program which stands out head and shoulders above trios, duets, jazz bands, etc., undoubtedly has many regular fans. Nicely announced and programmed. KTM, 6:16 P.M. “Pools of oil can be seen from seepage on the surface.” Sounds like someone wants to sell some oil land, as there is “just a little of this land avail- able.” We hear Frank Knoll play- ing some piano pops, another plug, so to— KHJ, 6:20 P.M. Don Ball an- nouncing, and it’s a pleasure to lis- ten to a sponsor’s plug, when this boy’s voice is behind it. “Goodnight Beloved,” and “Song Birds Bring Roses to Me” by a chorus of voices came through the set mighty sweet. Followed by “Flaming Love Call” bv studio orchestra. To— 'KFWB, 6:31 P.M. Flute and drumstick precedes Harry Jackson and his orchestra, followed by real estate plug, into “Exactly Like You” and “Highway of Love.” Went back for the balance of the program on KHJ, then to KFI, the two outstanding best bets of the cross-sectioning. Jean. KGER LONG BEACH Friday, September 12th Everett Hoagland, who was for- merly at Warner Bros., and is now at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa with his orchestra, un- doubtedly ties up the Bay city lis- teners for this station. The aggre- gation has some ace high voice combinations, and every other con- ceivable band combo that’s a wow for harmony and rhythm. Apparently not as yet sponsored, as no announcement is made during the series of numbers, but should be grabbed off, as these boys have that magnetic something in music that keeps one tied to the dial while they are on the ether waves. Released through remote control, coming over clear. Jean. RADIO SHOW QUEST LANDS PROPOSALS June Parker, KHJ’s blue ribbon entry in the annual race for beauty queen at the big New York radio show, is receiving proposals of mar- riage and offers of trips to Europe, from Maine, China, Honolulu, Cuba, Mexico, Yonkers, and Eagle Rock. Miss Parker is giving applicants a thorough investigation before making decision. She will be glad to furnish names and address of discarded suitors at a very low rate —special consideration to women over 38. PREPARES SCRIPT F. Hugh Herbert, writer, has been engaged to prepare “Left-Over- Ladies.” THANKS TO HARRY GOURFAIN GENERAL PRODUCTION MANAGER—PAR AM OUN T-P l; BLIX—WHO Produced It—Staged It—and Concieved "VARIETRIX % ,< 1 fiSvi rztvi ivS?i tvstvi ivsxi rz»vi rrsvi P. S. We Staged the Dances—MOSCONI BROS.