Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1937)

MOTION PICTURE DAILY Wednesday, February 17, 1937 RADIO F. C. C. Orders Hearings For 10 Air Pleas Washington, Feb. 16.— Hearings on 10 applications for permits for the construction of broadcasting stations today were ordered by the broadcast division of the F.C.C., as follows : Press-Union Publishing Co., daytime station at Atlantic City, N. J., to operate on 1,200 kilocycles with 100 watts power. Frank M. Stearns, daytime station at Salisbury, Md., to operate on 1,200 kilocycles with 250 watts power. G. Kenneth Miller, full-time station at Tulsa, Okla., to operate on 1,310 kilocycles with 100 watts power. Summit Radio Corp., full-time station at Akron, Ohio, to operate on 1,530 kilocycles with 1,000 watts power. Arlington Radio Service, Inc., daytime station at Arlington, Va., to operate on 850 kilocycles with 250 watts power. Clark Standiford and L. S. Coburn, full-time station at Fremont, Nebr., to operate on 1,420 kilocycles with 100 watts power. George W. Young, full-time station at St. Paul, Minn., to operate on 920 kilocycles with power of 1,000 watts at night and 5,000 watts during the day. John D. Hughes, daytime station at Phoenix City, Ala., to operate on 1,310 kilocycles with 100 watts power. Full Time Asked Philadelphia Radio Broadcasting Co., full-time station at Philadelphia to operate on 1,570 kilocycles with 1,000 watts power. Archie E. Everage, full-time station at Andalusia, Ala., to operate on 1,310 kilocycles with 100 watts power at night and 250 watts during the day. Hearings also were ordered on the applications of KTEM, Temple, Tex., for authority to change power to 100 watts at night and 250 watts during the day; KFXM, San Bernardino, Cal., to increase its day power from 100 tb 250 watts ; KGFJ, Los Angeles, to change its frequency from 1,200 to 1,170 kilocycles and to increase its power from 100 watts to 250 watts at night and 500 watts for daytime operation, and WHK, Cleveland, to increase its day power from 2,500 to 5,00 watts. The F.C.C. today refused to reconsider the application, previously denied, of KGB, San Diego, Cal., for an increase in day power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts. Award Confirmed The commission reaffirmed its order of July 2, 1936, which had been protested, awarding a construction permit to O. Lee Stone for a new station at Florence, S. C, to operate daytime only on 1,200 kilocycles with a power of 100 watts and also granted to Albert Lea Broadcasting Corp., a permit for a new station to operate at Albert Lea, Minn., on 1,200 kilocycles with 100 watts power, daytime only. KHSL, Chico, Cal., was granted permission to change its frequency from 950 to 1,260 kilocycles and increase the time of its operation from daytime only to full-time. Construc Crampton, Colwell Switch at Thompson J. Savington Crampton, assistant account executive handling Lux at the J. Walter Thompson Co., and Robert Colwell, general idea man at the agency's New York office as well as one of its chief executives on radio, have switched posts. Crampton will continue his activities in Lux copy and the Lux Radio Theatre, in the development of which he has played a considerable part, but will gradually concentrate more of his time on radio. Colwell moves over to the copy department and will write under the rearrangement. WENR Asks a Permit On New Type Antenna Application for permission to erect a new type of vertical radiator antenna has been filed with the F. C. C. by WENR, Chicago outlet of the basic Blue NBC network. Meanwhile, construction of vertical antennas is now under way at two other NBC stations— WDAF, Kansas City, and WXYZ, Detroit. Additionally, contracts for the erection of a fourth antenna at KOIL, Omaha, are to be let within a few days. Frank Dahm Sells Script Frank Dahm, former scripter for Blackett-Sample-Hummert, has sold a new script series entitled "Pretty Kitty Kelly" to Benton and Bowles, and it is understood the agency will use the script to replace "Renfrew of the Mounted," serial now heard three times weekly on the CBS network. The latter, sponsored by the Continental Baking Co., is understood to be fading from the air shortly. Whether Continental or a different sponsor will back "Kitty Kelly" is not known at the present moment. CBS-Knox Gelatine Review While the Federal Advertising Agency is withholding confirmation until Thursday, it has been learned on good authority that the CBS Knox Gelatine program, heard Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11 :15 A. M., E.S.T., has been renewed for an additional period. The series stars East and Dumpke. Johnson Renews Series "Tom Powers Life Studies," broadcast Sundays at 5:30 P. M., E.S.T. over WOR, has been renewed for 13 weeks beginning March 21. Series is sponsored by Johnson's Floor Wax and is placed through Needham, Louis and Brorby. tion of a new station was authorized to Winona Radio Service, Winona, Minn., daytime only, to operate on 1,200 kilocycles with 100 watts power. Other orders by the commission included construction permits to WBRC, Birmingham, Ala., to increase day power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts; KRRV, Sherman, Tex., to increase day power from 100 to 250 watts ; KGKB, Tyler, Tex., to increase day power from 100 to 250 watts and to WTAG, Worcester, Mass., to increase its power from 500 to 1,000 watts. Construction permits for relay broadcast stations to operate on low power were granted for Southeastern Broadcasting Co., Stromberg Carlson Telephone Mfg. Co., WSMB, Inc. and Allen T. Simmons. Report Benny Deal A well-founded report has it that one of radio's most elaborate long term contracts involving several million dollars is now being set up for Jack Benny and Mary Livingstone. The contract is now being whipped up, according to the report, by Lyons and Lyons, agents for Benny; General Foods, for which Benny is now broadcasting; and Young and Rubicam, agents handling the account. The details are expected to be made public in several weeks. Pearl Time Change Effective March 19 The time change in the Jack Pearl broadcasts, already reported in these columns, goes into effect Friday, March 19, and weekly thereafter on the NBC-Blue from 10 to 10 :30 P. M., E.S.T. The series, sponsored by the Brown Williamson Tobacco Corp., is now heard Mondays from 9 :30 to 10 P. M., E.S.T. on the Blue. The present time period concludes with the broadcast of March 8, and will be absent from the air from that date until March 19. Unofficial reason for the change in time is that there will be a more natural division of the radio audience in the new period, with the Pearl show bucking the "First Nighter" on NBCRed and the Philadelphia Orchestra on CBS. In its present niche it opposes the highly popular Lux Radio Theatre for the last half-hour. Extend "Nesbitt Parade" Hookup "John Nesbitt's Passing Parade," a popular NBC west coast feature, which recently gained for itself a network hookup as far east as Chicago, will be heard on the complete NBCRed network under the sponsorship of the Duart Art Sales Co., Ltd., beginning March 1. The series will be heard Mondays and Tuesdays at 7 :45 E.S.T. The Monday show will be known as the "Passing Parade of Yesterday," and will concern itself with highlight events and characters of the previous week. The Tuesday broadcast will b( labeled as the "Passing Parade of Today" and will offer current topics. To Air Bout Signing NBC will broadcast a description of the signing of the contract for the Joe LouisJim Braddock fight from the Hotel LaSalle, Chicago, this Friday at 1:30 P. M., E.S.T. on the Blue network. Louis and Braddock will talk on the air after the document has been signed. McCarthy for Louis-Brown Fight The Joe Louis-Nat Brown prizefight in Kansas City tonight will be broadcast exclusively over the NBCBlue beginning at 11 :10 P. M., E.S.T. Clem McCarthy will handle the mike assignment. McCann Back from Coast H. K. McCann, president of McCann-Erickson, is back in his New York office after spending several months in California. Several important radio deals are expected to materialize out of his west coast survey. To Increase Weekly Time In Dominion Ottawa, Ont., Feb. 16. — An early jump in the time on the air by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. has been promised by Major Gladstone Murray, general manager, under a new policy of operation. The present schedule in each of the five time zones across the Dominion is 70 hours per week, but this is to be raised to 84 hours weekly. Speaking on the policy of the CBC, Murray offered a disturbing note, however, when he declared that the corporation "is entirely against the use of advertising in radio but present conditions force it to take a certain amount of it." He added the Government network was looking forward to the day when there would be no advertising programs over Canadian stations under the corporation's auspices. There would be no increase in commercial time in the enlarged schedule to become effective in the near future. One hindrance to be overcome in the expansion program was the cost of line charges which now amounted to $500,000 annually. It was hoped to get a reduction in these tolls. Canadian Pioneer Dies Vancouver, Feb. 16. — J. G. McMurtrie, 57, radio pioneer of the Dominion, died here after a short illness. He installed the first radio station of the Canadian National Railways and had established studios in both the east and west since 1924, becoming general manager of the technical department at the head office when the Canadian Radio Commission was created by the Federal Government to supervise all broadcasting. Flamm Must Submit To Probing by Hoy Justice Lloyd Church in N. Y. Supreme Court yesterday granted T. Benson Hoy permission to examine Donald Flamm, president of the Knickerbocker Broadcasting Co., Inc., before trial of Hoy's $50,000 damage suit against Knickerbocker. The plaintiff, a former ensign in the U. S. Navy Reserve Corps and now a commercial aviator, charges that on Aug. 18, 1935 the defendant broadcasted over WMCA a sketch which allegedly depicted an event in the plaintiff's life and was so presented as to hold Hoy up to public ridicule and contempt. The broadcast, the plaintiff said, was given without his permission. To Change Name Later The firm name of Cecil, Warwick and Cecil will not be changed to Cecil, Warwick and Legler for at least another two months, a spokesman at the agency said yesterday. Henry Legler recently resigned his position at J. Walter Thompson to become vice-president of the first mentioned agency. He has been actively identified at his new post for the past 10 days. More Radio — Page 11