Radio daily (Oct-Dec 1949)

Section of RADIO DAILY. Tuesday. November 29. 1949 — TELEVISION DAILY is fully protected by register and copyright "MONOPOLY" SAYS W. U. OF AT&T TELE TOPICS A CREDO for TV programming which, ** we hope, will be given serious consideration by the powers that be, was voiced by Jack Gould, radio editor of the N. Y. Times, last week in a talk over KFMV (FM), Hollywood. Some excerpts follow: "It must reflect the entire contemporary scene and every facet of human endeavor, and it must provide for minority preferences if it is not to degenerate into repetition and sameness, more vaudeville and more mysteries. . . . Entertainment is a gamble, and creativeness is the most illusive thing in the world. We can never be sure of what or who will catch the public's fancy. Therefore it is common practice for sponsors and broadcasters to look .for the sure thing — boxoffice stars and programs which have already met public acceptance. They want to reduce show business to known certainties. But television, which burns up talent at a prodigious rate, must show a willingness to replenish our culture, to try new ideas and new talent. Diversity is absolutely essential." IN VIEW of these statements it should ' be pointed out that public investment in TV, according to the TBA quarterly report, is estimated at $700,000,000, and should reach one billion by the beginning of 1950. Station investment is estimated at $36,000,000. . . . Results of a justcompleted nationwide poll on "Television In America" will be reported by Elmo Roper on his CBS AM series Dec. 4. Included in the survey are set ownership in various income groups, viewing habits and impact on family life. . . . Mark Goodson and Bill Todman, of giveaway fame, have closed a deal with Billy Rose for a series of hour-long shows to be titled "By Billy Rose." Four short stories would be dramatized on each installment. . . . ABC will scan the Pillsbury Grand National Recipe Luncheon at the Waldorf Dec. 13. Art Linkletter will emcee and Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt will present the awards. CITY AT MIDNIGHT," sponsored on WNBT by Bedford Stores, will be dropped after tonite's stanza. We still think the location show has great dramatic possibilities and we'd like to see it return. . . . Comic Billy Vine will take over the emcee chores on CBS-TV's "54th Street Revue," beginning Dec. 9, replacing Al Bernie. . . . Mike Hunnicutt has been signed by WMAL-TV, Washington, for two shows a week. One is a 15-minute stanza with his wife, Polly, and the other a musical with Charlie Keaton. . . . Luigi Pirandello's "Henry IV," adapted by Maurice Valency and starring Richard Purdy and Mary Sinclair, will be done by "Studio One" next week. Speidel Cancels Wynn After Format Dispute Disagreement between CBS and Cecil & Presbrey agency over the format of the Ed Wynn show has brought about cancellation of the recorded airer by Speidel, Inc., at the end of next month. The program had been slated to go on a bi-weekly basis at the beginning of its second cycle in January. Speidel and the agency insisted that the show be extended to a full hour, with dual sponsorship, with Wynn augmented by the use of additional guests. CBS, which owns the package, turned thumbs down on this, holding out for the present half-hour format. CBS sources said that a new bankroller for the show, on a weekly half-hour basis, is expected to be signed shortly. Jane Rydstrom Promoted Baltimore — • Jane Rydstrom, asistant producer at WAAM, has been promoted to producer-director. Her first assignment is a daily woman's show, "Kitty Dierken Shops For You." WOR-TV Hoop Sked Schedule of 21 college basketball games has been lined up by WORTV beginning Dec. 2 and running through Mar. 8. Home teams teams will be Columbia, St. Francis and the New York Athletic Club. Miles Signs "Queen" For 39-Wk.KTSL Test Hollywood — Miles Laboratories, for Alka-Seltzer, will test Jack Bailey's "Queen For a Day" for video via a 39-week run on Don Lee's KTSL beginning soon after the first of the year. Contract was signed over the weekend through Wade agency. TV version will follow the AM format established on Mutual during the past five years, but will not be done simultaneously. It will be done in a nighttime half-hour, once a week. Program was seen locally on Don Lee's experimental station for almost two years, 1946-1948, but the Miles contract marks its commercial debut. Sundial Buys 'Lucky Pup' Sundial Shoe Division of International Shoe Co. has signed with CBS for sponsorship of the Friday night installment of "Lucky Pup" beginning Jan. 20. Hoag & Provandie, Boston, is the agency. Program is sponsored on Thursdays by BristolMyers for Ipana. WFIL-TV Sells Wrestling Philadelphia — Jacob Hornung Brewing Co., through Clements agency, has signed with WFIL-TV for sponsorship of a weekly wrestling program, effective Nov. 28, originated by the Du Mont web. Cost Of Canadian Video Web Estimated At $25,000,000 Montreal — The first estimate ever made of what it would cost Canada to set up a TV network was given at the Royal Commission on National Advancement of Arts, Letters and Sciences today by Stuart Finlayson, general manager of Canadian Marconi Co. His minimum estimate: $25,000,000. Rt. Hon. Vincent Massey, Commission chairman, asked Finlayson for the estimate, saying that to date everyone had replied with the words "stupendous, colossal." "Put the estimate in dollars, not superlatives." Massey requested. Finlayson warned that his figures were not definitive but added that each station would cost a minimum of half a million dollars. As at least 50 such stations would bo needed in a Canadian net this would mean an outlay of $25,000,000. In addition, he said, several hundred relay stations costing around $80,000 each would be needed. That would account for another nearly $20,000,000. On top of this, he added, would be the interval expense — that is, the money that would have to be spent between the time construction started on the stations and when the stations actually began transmission. Closing this estimate. Finlayson emphasized again that these figures were not definite. "Anyone," he said, "is liable to come along and say 'Mr. Finlayson, you have overlooked this little item will cost another $10,000."' Hits FCC Edict On interconnection Of Relays (Continued from Page 1) links for segments of the overall relay distance — a requirement the Bell System has bitterly fought. The FCC, however, appears to look upon inter-connection as only a temporary measure, having made it plain that it feels TV relay will eventually be a common carrier operation and having warned it would be unwise to make any longterm investment in private TV relay facilities. Private companies, on the other hand were urged to try to amortize present investments as early as possible. Western Union feels that the Commission is unfairly discriminating against it if it fails to order interconnection on the same basis between Western Union and teleohone comoany facilities as between private and telephone company facilities. WU argued for continued competition in the TV relay field as the best assurance of constantly improving service. It was argued that the Bell System has more eauipment in the New York-Philadelphia link than in all the rest of the country — because that is where the heavv competition is. Sookesmen for DuMont, TBA and Philco were also heard in protest gainst a Bell System monopoly, while counsel for the telephone company said the company is not pointing toward monopoly. Race Results Aired Via New Projector Miami — The Resultas^ope. a new device developed by Max J. Weisfeldt, vice-president of the Charles Anthonv Gross agency, will be used by WTVJ beginning tomorrow to air results of lo^al horse races under sponsorship of Blatz Brewing Co. Using special gauge motion picture film, the Resultascope shows winning horses passing a picture of the grandstand of the park in which they are racing. The pictured horses, not the ones in the actual race, wear the numbers of the actual winners. Prices paid arc shown on a close-up of a tote-board. Each result together with opening and closing commercial runs about a minute. After demonstration before Blatz officials in Milwaukee last week, the brewery contracted with Weisfeldt and WTVJ to sponsor the entire results of Tropical. Hialeah and Gulfstream.