Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1941)

10 Motion Picture Daily Thursday. September 25, 194 Radio Described as Aid to Newspapers By la. Station Head Washington, Sept. 24. — Luther Hill, vice-president of the Iowa Broadcasting Co., affiliated with the Des Moines Register-Tribune, today told the FCC that radio advertising, if handled intelligently, was as valuable to a newspaper as it was to any other product or commodity on the open market. Hill, under questioning by FCC counsel, said that newspapers and broadcasting companies in Iowa had an advertising trade agreement for promotion of the publications and the stations. Asked if his station was in competition in Des Moines, Hill said that WHO was so far superior as a station that "you could hardly call it competition." FCC counsel continued the introduction into the record of various letters to and from individuals interested in the Des Moines Register Corp. Hill denied that the stations owned and operated by the Register-Tribune had any advantage over others. He said that the determination of policy to be followed by the station was ultimately made by the stockholders of the corporation. KDKA Joins NBC Network on Oct. 1 Pittsburgh, Sept. 24. — Station KQV will drop 51 local programs Oct. 1 when it takes on NBC-Blue shows from KDKA, which begins as the local NBC-Red outlet that day. KDKA will retain Lowell Thomas from its present setup, a few local commercials, and a couple of local sustainers. Otherwise its program lineup will be completely changed. KDKA will be saluted by the Red network in a special program Oct. 5, one month before the station celebrates its 21st birthday as 'America's pioneer broadcaster." Crosley Elects Two New Vice-Presidents Cincinnati, Sept. 24. — James D. Shouse, vice-president of the Crosley Corp., in charge of broadcasting, operating stations WLW, WSAI and short wave Station WLWO, has announced election of two new vicepresidents, namely, Robert E. Dunville, general sales manager of WSAI, and Lewis M. Clement, director of research and engineering. WIBG Plans Studio Philadelphia, Sept. 24. — WIBG, at suburban Glenside, Pa., has leased a three-story building in the center of the city for a new studio site. The new studios are expected to be ready next April, at which time WIBG will step up its power to 10,000 watts and go on a full-time broadcast schedule. Stessin Leaves AAA Lawrence Stessin, director of public relations for the American Arbitration Association, has resigned to join the staff of the Labor Relations Institute here. With the A.A.A. for the past three years, Stessin handled the publicity for the industry's arbitration setup under the consent decree. Off the Antenna WILLIAM KOSTKA, who will leave his post as NBC publicity director tomorrow to join the Institute of Public Relations, will be tendered a party by his staff tonight. No successor has been named and it was reported yesterday that the post will remain vacant for several weeks. Meanwhile, Earl Mullen, who has been second in command, will take over temporarily. • • • Purely Personal: Jack Cozvdcn, zvho resigned from CBS last year to become director of sales promotion for KSFO, San Francisco, has rejoined the network's station service division. . . . Harry Keller yesterday announced his resignation as director of Broadcast Associates and as publicity director for Colgate-Palmolive-Poet. Beyond a brief vacation, Keller said he had no immediate plans. . . . Henry E. Littlchalcs, sports writer, has' joined the KDKA, Pittsburgh, news staff, replacing Lloyd Chapman zvho has been drafted. . . . John C. Schramm, WBYN production manager, has resigned effective tomorrozv. . . . Tom Wallace, executive vice-president of the Russel M. Seeds Agency, zmll relinquish his duties Oct. 15 to concentrate on production of "Uncle Walter's Dog House." George Bayard has joined the agency as vice-president in charge of the New York office, and Jack Richardson, Jr., has been promoted to vice-president with headquarters in Chicago. . . . John W. Hundley has been promoted to assistant director of short wave program at CBS. • • • The last ditch fight new going on in the National League is taking its toll of Dave Driscoll, WOR special events head. The station has been broadcasting the Brooklyn games all season and a number of that borough's civic organizations are planning victory celebrations which WOR is expected to broadcast. Commercial programs have to be cleared to make time for these special broadcasts and a certain amount of notice is necessary. The deadline is drawing near but the winner is still undetermined. • • • A new sustaining series of classical music will be started over CBS Oct. 6. The program, which will consist of five distinct series, will be heard Mondays through Fridays 4-4:30 P.M. On Mondays, "Stars in the Orchestra" will feature concerti and short solo works by members of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Tuesdays, "Milestones in American Music," with historic American composition performed by groups from the Eastman School of Music. Wednesdays, "Songs of the Centuries," with vocal soloists and the orchestra conducted by Howard Barlow. Thursdays, the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music will present orchestral and chamber music. Fridays, "The Lyric Stage," with Barlow conducting orchestral excerpts from operas. • • • Program News: Grove Laboratories zuill sponsor "Reveille Roundup" over 88 NBC-Red stations Mondays. Wednesdays and Fridays 7:45-8 A.M.. beginning Oct. 6. . . Lever Bros.' "Meet Mr. Meek" will return to CBS with 59 stations after an eight-week vacation Wednesday, Oct. 8, 7:30-8 P.M. . . . Colgate-Palmolive-Peet will bring back Dave Elman's "Hobby Lobby" which has been off the airwaves for some time.. It will be heard over 68 CBS stations' Saturdays, 8:30-8:55 P.M. beginning Oct. 4 and zvill replace "City Desk," nozv being heard for the same sponsor. • • • A new angle in radio contests is being tried by Vick Chemical Co. which will sponsor a new dramatic serial over NBC-Red Sunday afternoons beginning Oct. 5. A $5,000 prize is being offered for the best name for the show and, in an effort to induce the cooperation of the nation's radio editors, the winner will be asked which newspaper he reads. The radio editor of that paper will receive a $100 prize. CBS Transmitter Starts in October The new WABC transmitter which has been under construction on Little Pea Island is scheduled to be put into operation during the week of Oct. 12, it was reported yesterday. CBS, on Tuesday, moved its 10,000-watt short wave transmitter, WCBX, 96 miles from Wayne County^, | N. J., to Brentwood, L. I. CljL V claimed a record in effectirrpLA the complete transfer in 24 hours. Ascap Will Ratify CBS Pact Today Ascap board of directors are scheduled to meet today to ratify the new CBS licensing agreement, which was placed in final form yesterday by Ascap and CBS attorneys. The pact differs only in minor matters of phraseology from the one completed with NBC several weeks ago. The changes were suggested by CBS and consented to by Ascap. They will be available to NBC or any other Ascap licensee upon request, it was said. It is expected that with Ascap's ratification of the contract, formal signing and closing by the networks will occur early next week with the possibility that Ascap music will be back on the major networks on Oct. 1, the beginning of their final quarter. However, any delay in obtaining acceptances of the new contract from network affiliates might defer the starting date for a limited time. New Station Makes Mexican Total 108 Mexico City, Sept. 24. — Morelia, capital of the middle western state of Michoacan, has a new radio station, XELQ, of 5,000 watts. Morelia has three radio stations, one of which is XE1, of 5,000 watts, the oldest in Mexico. Mexico now has 108 active stations. In Queretaro City, capital of Queretaro State, an important mining zone, Gen. Ramon Rodriguez Familiar, ex-governor of the state, is preparing to inaugurate station XEJX, 1,250 kilocycles. New Kansas City FM Station Authorized Washington, Sept. 24.— The FCC has issued a construction permit to the Commercial Radio Equipment Co., Kansas City, Mo., for a new FM station to operate on 44,900 kilocycles with a service area of 4,400 square miles, and authorized Stations WAWZ, Zaraphath, N. J., to increase day power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts, and KRNR, Roseburg, Ore., to increase night power from 100 to 250 watts. Applications were received from Stations WHCU, Ithaca, N. Y., for change of frequency from 870 to 640 kilocycles and increase of power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts, and WJLS, Beckley, W. Ya., for change of frequency from 1.240 to 640 kilocycles and increase of power from 250 to 1,000 watts. Hearings Ordered The commission ordered hearings on the applications of the Yankee Broadcasting Co., Inc., for a new 620-kilocycle, 1,000-watt station at NewYork ; the contesting applications of Nashville Broadcasting Co., Nashville, Tenn. ; Dimple BroadcastingCo., Columbia, Tenn. ; Tennessee Radio Corp., Nashville ; and ImesWeaver Broadcasting Co.. Murphreesboro, Tenn., for a 1,240-kilocycle, 250watt station; ImesWeaver Broadcasting Co., Columbia, Tenn., for a 1,340kilocycle, 250-watt station ; Newark Broadcasting Corp., for a 620-kilocycle, 5,000-watt station at Newark, N. J., and Station WSOY, Decatur, 111., for change of frequency to 1,560 kilocycles and increase of power to 10,000 watts. Six CBS Shows Renewed General Foods has renewed four CBS programs, the "Kate Smith Hour," Fridays 8 to 8 :55 P.M., E.S.T., and three daytime serials, "Joyce Jordan, Girl Interne," "Kate Hopkins" and "Young Dr. Malone." Renewal contracts for two other CBS shows, "Mary Lee Taylor" and "Saturday Night Serenade," have been signed by the sponsor, Pet Milk Sales Corp. Ont. Town Schools Shut by Paralysis Toronto, Sept. 24.— The discovery of several cases of infantile paralysis in Pembroke, Ont., caused the local authorities to close the schools for two weeks and warn the public to remain away from crowded places. There are two theatres in Pembroke, the O'Brien and the Circle, neither of which was closed. The schools at Kincardine, Ont., have been reopened and elsewhere in Canada the epidemic has subsided, with the pupils being permitted to return to classes in Alberta. RKO Employe Dies Des Moines, Sept. 24.— Ollie Reese, cashier at the RKO exchange here for 14 years, died recently of a heart attack at _ Marshalltown, la., where she was visiting. She is survived by three sisters and two brothers.