Radio daily (Oct-Dec 1949)

RADIO DAILY: Monday. December 19, 1949 Newscasts Rate High In Local WOR Survey (Continued from Page 1) years and the average rating for all 15-minute newscasts currently tops the average for comparable months in all the war years, according to the survey. The survey made in the twomonth period included only 15-minute newscasts aired by the four major New York stations and omitted commentators. Average ratings for quarter-hour newscasts were 19 per cent higher in 1949 than in 1942, the survey showed. Because of the increase in radio families, the research department said, ratings of 1946 were even lower when compared to those of 1949. The survey showed WOR as "New York's most listened-to station for news" attracting 44 per cent of the total audience listening to majorstation newscasts in New York. Alexander Comm. Head For Tele 'Town Meetings' (Continued from Page 1) ings" of television dealers. At a meeting in Chicago last week. Chairman George M. Gardner, of the RMA's set division, appointed representatives from nine leading companies to constitute a new planning committee for the proposed "town meetings" of television dealers. A. T. Alexander, of Motorola, chairman of the RMA's service committee, was named chairman of the new committee. Companies to be represented on the committee by executives of the sales, advertising, accounting and service departments include the following: Admiral, DuMont, Emerson, General Electric, Motorola, Philco, RCA, Stromberg Carlson and Zenith. Chairman Stanley H. Manson of the RMA's advertising committee, also will be a member. Original plans for the television dealers' meetings, prepared by the RMA "town meetings" committee with the aid of Howard Browning, committee consultant, proposed TV distributor-dealer meetings in 60 principal cities for presentation of four 20-minute films on major subjects to assist dealers. The new industry committee will further study these plans toward development of a more definite program underwritten by set manufacturers in cooperation with distributors. A meeting of the new planning committee within the next few weeks is planned. Texas Snow Storm A flurry of Texas "snow" scattered in a publicity release from "San Antonio's Santa Claus Station." KITE, temporarily blocks traffic on agency desks. The item gives the reader a view of Santa's activities on his way to San Antonio as covered by KITE, in addition to the simulated snow. Man About Manhattan. . . • • • WEEK-END CUFF NOTES: Watch lor a new commercial switch next spring when radio stations begin plugging their programs via TV. . . . FCC is already receiving squawks about New York having so many top-powered stations. (Complaints from station ops in N. J„ and Conn.) . . . Kay Roberts no longer with Mildred Fenton and operating on her own now. (Aside from handling top personalities, Kay is also working with the Finnish government on a series of radio and IV shows depicting the life and times of the people of Finland). . . . Radio Mirror's "What's New From Coast to Coast" col'm now being penned by Marie Haller. . . . Dick Linke left Sammy Kaye to go into the publicity biz on his own. . . . Aside to Cathy Mastice: Didja know that the Shiek Abdullah. Prime Minister of Kashmir, made the Music Hall one of his first stops here just to catch your warbling? . . . Ditto to Henry Morgan and Don Ameche: The Morgan the Merrier sounds like a natural for television. . . . According to Hert Stein, a virus is simply a common cold handled by MCA. ft ft ft ft • • • Nat Abramson, pioneer in booking cruise entertainment for 25 years or more, has fallen for his own ballyhoo, it seems, about those wonderful 17-day West Indies cruises handled the Holland Line. Nat hopped aboard the Nieuw Amsterdam Sat. nite with a fistful of top radio personalities, among them Georgie Price and Sid Gary, for a holiday jaunt down among those romantc moonlit isles, as the travel folders put it. it ft it it • • • THE MORNING MAIL: "Dear Sid," writes "A Regular Reader." "Just want to get something off my chest that's been there for a long time. Nothing serious, mind you. lust that it gripes me when a good show turns a little bad when it latches onto a sponsor. I'm thinking specifically of 'Life With Luigi.' Used to be just about perfect from every angle, but with a sponsor just around the corner, what happens? In a word, the whole thing is jazzed up. Everybody tries to please more than ever — especially the audience. Poor Luigi can't so much as open his mouth, but the over-obliging audience is rolling in the aisles. Sounds phoney to me and detracts from the essential humor of the sketch. Another example is 'Duffy's Tavern.' As a sustainer, it was terrific because it was unpretentious. Came the sponsor, and all of a sudden we heard the 'Tavern' ushered in with a full-size orchestra. Again, everybody tried too hard. I'm not blaming the sponsor. If the show proved itself to be good enough to buy, I should think the sponsor would be content to see it continue along the same lines. Maybe the producer is to blame. With the extra dough, he thinks it's necessary to glamorize the show with more brass, more oomph, more audienceresponse. In a word, it seems to me that when a program is in the sustainer stage, emphasis is on originality and workman-like showmanship. Sponsored, it becomes forced into the conventional glittery showcase, which is too bad. Thanks for listening." ft ft ft ft • • • The U. S. Coast Guard will present an all-star variety Christmas show on CBS (10:30 p.m.) tomorrow nite, with Robert Q. Lewis as emcee. Other stars who will appear are Peggy Ann Garner, Earl Wrightson and Francey Lane. The 29-piece Coast Guard Academy band and the Cadet Glee Club will be featured under the direction of Warrant Officer George H. Jenks. Program also marks the 20th ann'y of the founding of the present site of the Coast Guard Academy located in New London, Conn. Show will be produced by Geo. F. Foley, Jr., and directed by James Lister. Defends Radio Role In Harvard Speech (Continued from Page 1) material emphasis, too little time to do things well, too much concern with easy popularity and quick results" as examples of the defects. However, Kaltenborn said there are many more good things on the air than people realize. "The war did a lot to help radio grow up," he continued. "It was faced with serious responsib i 1 i t i e s and measured up to them. Radio did a patriotic job, a conscientious job, and sometimes a distinguished job." "Much of the current criticism of radio programs is ineffective because it lacks discrimination or is totally unfair," he pointed out. Kaltenborn asked why people shouldn't be more discriminating in choosing what they wanted to hear rather than turning their set on at any time. As for FCC regulation of stations, Kaltenborn said "I would always rather have a regulatory body do too little than too much." He added that under radio law "radio stations have a definite obligation to the public." Television has taken the place of radio as the "whipping boy" and people are less critical of radio now, Kaltenborn said. As for the future of radio, he commented that "radio is considered by many as a dying or an obsolescent medium. Personally, I don't agree." Kaltenborn spent two days at his alma mater and in addition to the discussion, addressed The Free Enterprise Society at Harvard on Thursday evening. KALTENBORN Derr Gets New Post In CBS Sports Dept. John Derr has been named associate director of sports for CBS effective Jan. 1., Davidson Taylor CBS vee-pee, announced on Wednesday. Derr has been assistant to CBS sports director Red Barber since April, 1947. Derr's newly created position calls for his giving up broadcast camera direction for which he was previously responsible but he will continue supervisory work with all kinds of radio and TV sports programs. Taylor said that Derr's appointment "is another result of the recent integration of CBS radio and TV public affairs" and pointed out that the web's activities in these fields called for a full time administrator to handle the increased operational duties.