Radio daily (Feb-Mar 1937)

Wednesday, February 24. 1937 RADIO DAILY 7 STATIONS CP AMERICA Highlights in the Development of Outstanding V. S. Radio Stations: No. 4 of a Series. WOW Omaha 5,000 Watts— 590 K.C. Woodmen of the World WILLIAm RUESS, Dir. JOHkl T. GILLin, JR., fllgr. ON April 2, 1923, an empty office was cleaned out on the nineteenth floor of the Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Association Building in Omaha and WOAW went on the air for the first time with a chorus of 75 voices. $25,000 had been spent in construction. The call letters had been taken from a ship which had been shelved. Not until December 15, 1926, were the present call letters, initials of the owners, forthcoming. * * * BUT that one room studio is no longer in existence. WOW immediately proceeded to go places. Under the guidance of the Woodmen, the station effected a tie-up with the NBC-Red network on October 1, 1927. Followed a series of special event, stunt and general broadcasts that soon built up an enviable reputation. Technical progress was not overlooked, and on December 8, 1935, WOW opened their new studios which consisted of the entire second floor and combined the finest in construction, broadcasting facilities and modernization. Theirs is not a staff to rest on past performances. The organization is composed of young men fresh from the leading colleges of the United States. They have made radio history by being able to completely adapt themselves to the ceaseless changes of pace that occur in radio. More than once they have placed their entire facilities at the disposal of their listeners by broadcasting flood warnings and appeals, dispatching trains during blizzards, civic movements and important political highlights. # * r THE station's new transmitter, together with their recent increase in power from 1,000 watts to 5,000 watts has lifted WOW to the top flight of independent stations and given it a dominant position in the Missouri Valley territory. The Woodmen of the World, with cash assets of $124,000,000, want to have the best radio station in the country. SELLING THE STATICNS WITH THE WOMEN * By ADELE ALLERHAND = |^jOST gregarious scribe in radio.... Jane West .... claims she's had more collaborators than any other purveyor of scripts to the ether gentry .... She's "Mrs. Bailey" of "The O'Neills" program authored by her. . . .likes to have her audience crystal-gaze .... then tell her what they think the Famille O'Neill should do next. .. .Super-cargo on the "Showboat" Thursday: Ruth Chatterton, 14-year-old violinist Marjorie Edwards and 16-yearold Mary Small .... Cornelia Otis Skinner, lone wolf of the drah-ma, is knee-deep in "you-alls" again .... having resumed her Southern tour. . . .She's adding to her Mason Dixoniana on account of shell do folk sketches on her soon-to-be series over NBC Seven-year-old Dorothy Warner tells who buys whose lollypops in the youngest set for the Rappahannock Times She'll describe her infant Win chell activities for "We. The People" next Sunday .... Gretta Palmer, f emme Fourth Estater, now Bermudaing, returns in time to say this and that about things to wear March 1 . . . . "Heinz Magazine of the Air". T T May Singhi Breen and Peter De Rose will fete radio's pioneer newspaper critic when, as and if they find him he'll guestar on their program Soon-to-be-sponsored: lark Helen Gleason of "Frederika" . . . .and Virginia Pemberton, versifying vocalist of Nick Kenny's last week's broadcast Adolescent addenda 14 year-old Gloria Perkins and her violin to be aired March 4 via Bamberger Symphony .... 14-year-old pianoforte prodigy Sylvia Dikler to do likewise tomorrow ... .Betty {The Women) Lawford's chat with Larry Gray WOR Thursday a.m. will be frothy she'll discuss the highcompression foam bath she takes in the Max Gordon opera. .. .Kathleen Norris, Lucrezia Bori, Dorothy Thompson and Mrs. Herbert Hoover to help the Girl Scouts airwave their 25th birthday in the "land of the free" jollification, March 12. ▼ T Agnes Davis is the songbird Nordica another gal talks in the "Cavalcade of America" version of the diva's life .... Thursday morning will see arrival of Mary Livingstone aboard the Century for her Eastern vacation Another screen-gal to guest artist is Carole Lombard via "Hit Parade", March 6th. Advocate Copeland Bill Governing Radio on Ships Commissioner Irvin Stewart and E. M. Webster, an engineer, speaking for the Federal Communications Commission, yesterday advocated approval by Congress of the Copeland bill to extend regulations governing the use of radio on American ships. The two men, addressing the Senate Commerce Committee, advised that the legislation was needed to replace inadequate statutes and meet the government's obligations under the 1929 international convention for safety of life at sea. The Senate passed the measure last year but the House has failed to act thus far. Great Lakes ships operators have voiced objections on the grounds that the bill fails to recognize the increasing use of radio telephone on inland waterways. Rep. Harter, of Ohio, suggested an amendment permitting use of the radio telephone. Brokenshire With Agency Norman Brokenshire, former radio announcer and master-of-ceremonies, has been retained to head the radio department of Jay Lewis Associates it was announced yesterday. Canadian Electrical Meet The Canadian Electrical Association will hold its 47th annual summer convention June 21 to 24 at Banff, Alberta. B. C. Fairchild, Montreal, is secretary. New FCC Headquarters Being Readied in Dallas Dallas — Texas and Oklahoma will offer commodious quarters and greatly improved receiving facilities to their professional and amateur radio enthusiasts when headquarters of the new parcel-post building here are completed. Plans for the new set-up are under the supervision of Frank H. Kratokvil, chief of the Dallas bureau of the FCC. Under Kratokvil's current plans, it will be possible to give examinations to 18 applicants simultaneously in the improved quarters. Kratokvil's district includes all of Oklahoma and Texas, except Gulf Coast counties, which come under the jurisdiction of the Galveston bureau. The Dallas bureau last year gave examinations to 435 commercial radio operators and 500 amateurs and made 190 investigations. Sixth Year for WROL Knoxville — WROL, one of the outstanding low-powered stations of the South, is celebrating its sixth year of rebroadcasting this week. Starting with WLW, Cincinnati, the station has built up rebroadcast connections that now include several leading stations of the country, among them WSM, Nashville; WHAS, Louisville; WLS, Chicago; WJR, Detroit, WFAA, Dallas, and WBAP, Fort Worth, as well as special features from WWNC, Ashville. The station will shortly put into operation shortwave relay rebroadcasting. Prize for Race Selections THE Mutual network for the past five weeks has aired a series of one-hour broadcasts direct from the Hialeah race track in Miami every Saturday, 3:30-4:30 p.m. On each of these broadcasts a special offer was made to the person submitting the most accurate list of winners for the following Monday's races. The prize was to be a trip to Miami with all expenses paid by Mutual and the Miami Jockey Club. The contest closed last Monday night and the judges found a total of 46,639 entries, including 10,434 from women. Replies were noted from 43 states, Canada and the District of Columbia. Winner was announced late yesterday. Announcer Popularity Contest In a recent popularity contest held by Joe Villella, "Pittsburgh's recording expert", J. Herbert Angell, radio veteran of KQV, was voted the most popular with a total of 3.574 votes. Ernest Neff of the same station came in second. A total of 18,000 votes came in. The contest was broadcast daily for a month with listeners requested to send in their votes for their favorites. Announcers from any station in Pittsburgh were eligible. The Neff-Angell race for honors had a different ending last fall when local sponsor held auditions for announcer on network show with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. The finals rested between Neff and Angell, with Neff winning the place on program as announcer. Angell's popularity also realized by local sponsors who have given him largest commercial schedule of any Pittsburgh announcer. Provident Loan on WOR Provident Loan Society, New York (personal loans), will inaugurate its first radio campaign through WOR on March 16. Series will be heard Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, 7:307:45 p.m., and will feature the "Answer Man" who will attempt to answer all questions, other than personal and medical advice, submitted by listeners. McCann-Erickson, Inc., New York, placed the account. "BARON MUNCHAUSEN" JACK PEARL RALEIGH and KOOL CIGARETTES WJZ-930 P. M. E.S.T.— Mondays NBC Network Dir.: A. & S. LYONS, Inc.