Sponsor (Nov 1947-Oct 1948)

into a dream world, a dream world that is their very own — for a weekend, a week, or in some cases just for a glorious day. Like the kitchen drudge of the fairy tale, a great deal of the glamor of the moment disappears after the broadcast and Cinderella experience but everyone touched by radio fate never forgets her moment in a dreamworld. Unlike the Cinderellas of childhood days, each listener who has her dream world come to life is permitted to keep the physical things that are part of her magic existence. The escape programs are something apart in broadcasting. Ciyxderella Weekend, a syndicated script program heard in different forms over WTIC (Hartford, Conn.), WHAM (Rochester, N. Y.), WEBR (Buffalo), WCAU (Philadelphia), and WBBC (Flint, Michigan), competes with the daytime hearts and flowers serials. It offers the housewife dreams instead of tears — if she desires an existence apart from her own. Cinderella Weekend joins with the Mutual network programs. Queen for a Day and Heart's Desire, in opening the doors to fulfillmi instead of frustration. Even thqi a comparatively small percenta; who listen to these progj;di mothers can become Cindea E or realize their hearts' deaj{ ^| others enjoy the eia woman who achieves^!) Many of the houis^lyfyi coveted distinction ,'(k|||jScoptii or Cinderella repoVt' ibihat]||' come "new" wonri^iijij ti^e " Som^ 'h^ "* six sponsors per station. Only on WBBC is Cinderella's commercial godparent a single advertiser — Hamady Brothers, owners of 10 large independent supermarkets in the City of Flint. Prior to their sponsorship of Cinderella Weekend Hamady Brothers had spent comparatively little for radio advertising. When they were asked last October to sponsor the 13-week town of a week plus prizes ball , they agreed to a 'deal sponsors in a ican afford the $1,000 he leaves f^lmt ! , . , . rferdrojb'e.} ^ W$_ not an ec^m> S||i}|jWnlthefbllor^ J'hearp on the, air rel^fit fe inf^lpe meti;Qfi>lis isterj arrt^ iMifcifor hori Sij;|.oi|^a'.,irecfj(f;o|«|j| eresjtteg'''i3ifferem: que lors asleacjh IG ik [ ,(t|feB^)i . throUghj-pBif \ re aMiCm)Sen'f''0^'the add participate, however, keep their eyes on the trip. That's why they compete. WBBC, the Michigan Cinderella Weekend station, was the fifth station to open in the Flint market. It felt that its Mutual network affiliation was not alone enough to make it successful. The management (Booth Radio Stations, Inc.) came to the conclusion that only heavy local programing could win an audience. It decided that a big audience participation program would do the job. That's why Cinderella Weekend came into being in Flint. Today the station reports that "the success of the station with its 31 weekly remote broadcasts is unquestionably a reflection of Cinderella." Like all outstandingly successful programs, Cinderella Weekerid does not carry the burden alone. Hamady Brothers use heavy space in The Flint Journal, movie trailers in every one of Flint's theaters, and promotion in each of their stores. (They're building six more supermarkets.) Studio visitors must first come to a Hamady store to obtain an admission I 'tftfc^ for the broadcast. The home audi|;ence participates by being asked to sugfest. 'four questions for the Tuesday too, must obtain .Hamady stores in question-hurdles for i lU^ ' ,, [rh,ey jSiso win awards that W end|.?wii!iheW',!ip^ ajsjp^irl tfej ! jlt^adti^st; , They, "' 'ff^-.i^Wi'^ , |ttiehMM|^hMB'|fi^y prince. py ; '.is. ■ deiioy-|(i4fjer 60% fresh life. Some; hqj|fl^\v©rfjlixeresjtteig'['j3lffer e^f jobs (if they hat»»^PBlj/ • ti j] m i w^fkifg i^'mq^t quejjtiorfs' tie "ii girls). Still others f^p^t, tjf ap;l:hej»([ j^4*'f ; • 'sponsor. . iA.typical biM of the ii^^ in Flint. They ISSlifcii ! h>''»€|f-'*,groceryl and Vi^il ^ 5ering/d.;|Mid 51% before ijnpy i^popso'rb'd the pro Wherr trr^r. new l^ations are estaicf^'lias: becoWi^''a(feaiiitsi!i,|iife|ii!Hi'stt|M;;^n^^ the pumpkin coadtt'F'A rrtech^rt-; \Vorld a finite thifj^. For ITO^ 'i^p^or'TO ! jGal clock set at''|^idnight is'ijehirKf eachf.: offers a new form bf ijiytarne pommercial ^ A series of quesc|()ns are then asked eacb program. Queen fqr a,\Dav wpri'.t be thr^ij contestant, and with e;ach correct answer intit April of this veal"'. ' Heart's n years old untilApri s^ear Desire' will have been spohsjjred for il weeks on April 21. The hlH^st j(^inderella Weekend (WTIC) won't be aj year old until August 1948. The most suGce'ssfu't Weekeyid, commercially (WBBC's), won't be a year old until October 1948. The baby of them all went on the air this February 13 over WCAU. Because the local programs are expensive for one-station broadcasts, most Cinderella Weekend daily shows are participation presentations with as many as her clpck is m:?ved forward a number of minutes. Each day's ' Cinderella is the yojing lady who -has stayed out latest (according to her clock). The daily winners are brought back to the program on the following Monday to compete for ■ the dream world prize, the weekend in New York. It's all very simple. The daily Cinderellas are presented with North Star Blanket Wardrobes, Westinghouse automatic appliances, Farberware, Lisner jewelry, and a number of other gifts. All who l|i;,;FIinUJ^am. ■jth ljkte.|jteg)eneci, th^y, feel that there 'rrfa'y^ be no ■'^-"" ■•: ceiling. -fcut ro6%'to{the Idmount of busi Ij.iTfess^th^Yl^a" *^o I • a"*^ they feel that jl the ;4jjnder£lla appeal wilLedge them to "" •■ y;};|K;'-.Iiic., is thelor^anization ih-New flfpfk '^l|f|^5f^mii^?s'tihe prizejsi tnipS'>.And tjrdductfgiye-dw^}}^ /or the prdgra^. Unlik^ some othetfj groups in New Vork, Chicago, and Hollywood thatj arrange for product prizes, V.t.P. claims that tlte>' do not collect two ways. In other word^, the manufacturer does not pay for placing his prodiict as a broadcast prize. V.I.P. buys for cash many of the prizes for the Cinderella programs. Tickets for hit plays like Harvey, Happy Birthday, and Medea are not obtainable free on a regular basis. It's also one thing to obtain gifts for coast-to-coast network programs and another to obtain them for local stations, no matter how big the stations are. Queen for a Day is radio's daily network MARCH 1948 27