Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1954)

Record Details:

Title:
Television digest with electronic reports
Date:
Jan-Dec 1954
Publisher:
Washington, D.C. : Radio News Bureau
Volume:
Television digest with electronics reports (Jan-Dec 1954)
Leaf #:
000248
Language:
English
Subjects:
Television broadcasting -- Periodicals, Television -- United States -- Periodicals","Radio broadcasting -- United States -- Periodicals.
Collection:
Broadcasting & Recorded Sound
Format:
Periodicals
Contributor:
University of Maryland, College Park
Sponsor:
LYRASIS Members and Sloan Foundation
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:
A weekly digest of brief reports tracking recent developments in the U.S. television marketplace. Published out of Washington, D.C. with much more focus on the retail of TV sets than the other D.C.-based trade paper, BROADCASTING. -- Eric Hoyt, 2015
Date Added:
March 28, 2024
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12 HIRTY-SIX new stations have gone on the air and 7 have quit since Jan. 1, 1954 — and the list is printed herewith in response to requests by many subscribers. Thvo more can be added in Canada, too. Note that most of the stations here listed (those indicated by asterisks) are given detailed listings in our TV Factbook No. 18 of last Jan. 15, wherein you can find data on their ownership, executives, rates, etc. Details on those not listed in the Factbook will be found in the issue of Television Digest indicated in brackets. These are the 1954 starters to date: KARK-TV, Little Rock. Ark. (Ch. 4) tVol. 10:13] KBID-TV, Fresno, Cal. (Ch. 53)* tKQED, San Francisco, Cal. (Ch. 9) [Vol. 10:15] KSAN-TV, San Francisco, Cal. (Ch. 32) [Vol. 10:10] WINK-TV, Fort Myers, Fla. (Ch. 11)* WEAR-TV, Pensacola, Fla. (Ch. 3)* WALB-TV, Albany, Ga. (Ch. 10) [Vol. 10:15] WRDW-TV, Augusta, Ga. (Ch. 12) [Vol. 10:7] WTOC-TV, Savannah. Ga. (Ch. 11)* WSJV, Elkhart, Ind. (Ch. 52)» WHO-TV, Des Moines, la. (Ch. 13) [Vol. 10:16] ^WMGT, Adams, Mass. (Ch. 74)* WNEM-TV, Bay City, Mich. (Ch. 5)» t tWKAR-TV, East Lansing, Mich. (Ch. 60)* KDAL-TV, Duluth, Mlnn.-Superlor, Wls. (Ch. 3) [Vol. 10:9] WDSM-TV, Duluth, Mlnn.-Superlor, Wls. (Ch. 6) [Vol. 10:9] ’ WSLI-TV, Jackson, Miss. (Ch. 12) [Vol. 10:12] KFBB-TV, Great Falls, Mont. (Ch. 5)* WMUR-TV, Manchester, N. H. (Ch. 9)* WTRI, Schenectady, N. Y. (Ch. 35)* WMFD-TV, Wilmington, N. C. (Ch. 6) [Vol. 10:15] •. KCEB, Tulsa, Okla. (Ch. 23)» KVAL-TV, Eugene, Ore. (Ch. 13) [Vol. 10:13] IWQED, Pittsburgh, Pa. (Ch. 13)* WARM-TV, Scranton, Pa. (Ch. 16)* WNET, Providence, R. I. (Ch. 16)* . WDEF-TV, Chattanooga, Tenn. (Ch. 12) [Vol. 10:16] KBMT-TV, Beaumont, Tex. (Ch. 31) [Vol. 10:15] KRGV-TV, Weslaco, Tex. (Ch. 5)* ' WBTM-TV, DanvUle, Va. (Ch. 24)* ' WJPB-TV, Fairmont, W. Va. (Ch. 35)* tWHA-TV, Madison, Wls. (Ch. 21) [Vol. 10:13] KFBC-TV, Cheyenne, Wyo. (Ch. 5) » KULA-TV, Honolulu, Hawaii (Ch. 4) [Vol. 10:15] WAPA-TV, San Juan, Puerto Rico (Ch. 4) » \<(^KAQ-TV, San Juan, Puerto Rico (Ch. 2) * Canadian Starters CKCO-TV, Kitchener, Ont. (Ch. 13) [Vol. 10:5] CHSJ-TV, St. John, N. B. (Ch. 4) * Stations Going Off Air in 1954 (with suspension dates) KCTY, Kansas City, Mo. (Ch. 25). Feb. 28* KFOR-TV, Lincoln, Neb. (Ch. 10), March 13* WIFE, Dayton. O. (Ch. 22), March 13* WOSH-TV, Oshkosh, Wls. (Ch. 48). March 22* WACH-TV, Newport News-Norfolk, Va. (Ch. 33), March 26* KRTV, Little Rock, Ark. (Ch. 17), March 31* KACY, Festus-St. Louis, Mo. (Ch. 14), April 2* * Asterisk indicates details about station listed In TV Factbook No. 18; for details about others, see Issue of Television Digest Indicated In brackets. 1 Dagger Indicates non-commercial educational station. Foreclosure suit against KETX, Tyler, Tex. (Ch. 19), to recover transmitter and other equipment, has been filed by General Electric in Federal Court in Tyler. Involved is $344,687 promissory note for equipment, and 3 rented klystron tubes. Suit followed filing of involuntary bankruptcy action against KETX and owner Jacob A. Newborn Jr. by Tyler Woodworks, Layton Engineering Co. and John A. McCullars Sheet Metal Works, which claim station owes them $11,000. Newborn has also been named defendant in $1736 civil action by local merchant for alleged unpaid balance on fumiture. Station went off air for 2 days last month when most of staff left, is now being managed by owner Newborn (Vol. 10:14-15). Regular TV ownership audit (Vol. 10:4), one of industry’s crying needs, looks no closer though NARTB this week appointed 2 subcommittees to “finalize and recommend specific plans” for circulation study. Date for start of study still hasn’t been set. Paul Raibourn, KTLA, Los Angeles, heads committee on organization-implementation; Hugh Beville, NBC, is chairman of organization & finance. Biggest radio station sale deal in history was approved by FCC and completed this week — new owners being scheduled to take over New York’s independent and fabulously successful WNEW (50-kw on 1130 kc) as of April 27 with Richard D. Buckley, ex-Blair pres., as pres., gen. mgr. & 25% stockholder. Total purchase price was $2,100,000, which included about $500,000 in net quick assets, so that the $1,600,000 net price exceeded by far the $1,000,000 net paid last winter for Cleveland’s WGAR (50kw on 1220 kc, CBS) out of a total purchase price of $1,750,000 that included about $750,000 net quick (Vol. 9:50). Purchasers, along with Buckley, are Horace Lohnes, Washington attorney, secy.-treas. of new WNEW Broadcasting Co. Inc., also 25% (50,000 out of 200,000 authorized shares) ; Harry R. Playford, St. Petersburg banker, v.p., 33,334 shares; H. W. Holland, St. Petersburg attorney, director, 33,333; Ed C. Wright, financier, director, 33,333. Sellei-s are Wm. S. Cherry Jr. of Providence’s big Cherry & Webb dept, store (WPRO), who owned 48%, and who with local associates controlled 95%; Bernice Judis, gen. mgr., and her husband Ira Herbert, sales mgr., whose stockholdings and options brought them $250,000 of the total sale price. This group bought WNEW in 1950 for $2,000,000, which included $500,000 net quick. Miss Judis and Mr. Herbert will return to the stations in consulting capacities after vacation. Profitability of WNEW is indicated by fact, as shovm in FCC papers, that it had net profit after taxes of $109,204 during 3 months ended Jan. 31, 1954 (on gross sales of about $750,000). During 1953, it had record sales of $2,800,000, and as of Oct. 31, 1953 it had an earned surplus of $783,765. It’s expected the new WNEW owners will drop application for New York City’s uhf Ch. 31. Overwhelming approval of NCAA football TV control plan (Vol. 10:14) was voted by member colleges in mail referendum. Although Big Ten had proposed alternative program of regional telecasting (Vol. 10:10), only 26 schools opposed NCAA plan, while 184 voted in favor. TV networks, ad agencies and prospective sponsors will meet with NCAA TV committee in New York April 21-23 to submit proposals for telecasting and sponsorship. NCAA member votes on TV controls to date: 1951 convention, 161-7; 1952 convention, 163-8; 1952 mail referendum, 18515; 1953 convention, 172-13; 1953 referendum, 157-12; 1954 convention, 172-9; 1954 referendum, 184-26. Channel shifts and power increases: NBC’s WNBK, Cleveland April 25 switches from Ch. 4 to Ch. 3, increases power to 100-kw ERP, using non-directional antenna for first time. New transmitting plant is in Parma, antenna atop Cleveland’s Terminal Tower Bldg. NBC flagship WNBT, New York (Ch. 4) April 11 raised ERP to 30-kw, highest permitted for its Empire State Bldg, antenna. WOOD-TV, Grand Rapids, Mich. (Ch. 8) this week boosted to 316-kw ERP. Sen. Dwight Griswold (R-Neb.), who died in Bethesda, Md. Naval Hospital May 12 after heart attack, was member of Senate Interstate & Foreign Commerce Committee since he came to Senate in Jan. 1953 to fill out unexpired term of late Sen. Wherry (R-Neb.). He was also member of recently appointed communications subcommittee under Sen. Potter (R-Mich.). At week’s end no replacement on Committee or subcommittee had been announced. Interconnected to network facilities this week: KARKTV, Little Rock, Ark.; KWWL-TV, Waterloo, la. Scheduled for AT&T hookup Apx-il 17 was KVAL-TV, Eugene, Ore.: April 19 WNET, Providence, R. I.; April 25 WHOTV, Des Moines; WDEF-TV, Chattanooga; WSEE, Erie, and WDBO-TV, Orlando, Fla. FCC chairmanship was still unsettled at press time, with Rosel Hyde’s one-year tenure expiring April 18. If President says nothing by then, commissioners will select own temporary chairman — undoubtedly picking Hyde.