Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1954)

8 Telecasting Notes: Spectaculars, extravaganzas and their not-so-spectacular ratings provide plenty of food for thought in this week’s trade press. Under heading, “TV’s Blues in the Night,” Variety TV-radio editor George Rosen reports: “The past 3-4 weeks has been one of the most frantic in TV, if not in all show biz annals. Basically, as far as NBC & CBS are concerned, it adds up to the fact that somewhere along the line [an] apathetic U. S. TV audience has failed to come through with those anticipated handsprings or to shout hosannahs over the ambitious undertakings of the network masterminders” . . . “Practically every day is stock-taking day and the worries that attended the pre-season planning were as nothing compared to the TV post-mortem miseries,” says Rosen, noting that “some sponsors, committed to unprecedented budgets on bankrolling the specs, are already squawking” . . . Lower-than-expected ratings of spectaculars are partly due to lack of proper promotion, says Oct. 9 Billboard, reporting that NBC “expects to pour $350,000 into on-the-air promotion of the spectaculars.” Noting that spectaculars can’t count on building a following through continuous programming as regular weekly shows do. Billboard opines “NBC-TV needs to triple its publicity staff even to begin to mount the audience promotion necessary” . . . High ratings for multiple performances of first-run films were jubilantly proclaimed by General Teleradio’s WOR-TV, New York, and KHJ-TV, Los Angeles, on basis of first week’s experience with newly acquired package of 30 topnotch feature movies (Vol. 10:37). In New York, where Magic Town was shown 16 times in week, it garnered cumulative Telepulse rating of 70.7 (or more than 6,000,000 viewers in 3,110,800 homes). Los Angeles feature. Miracle of the Bells, shown once a night 5 nights a week, got cumulative ARB rating of 62.2 (or nearly 3,000,000 viewers on 1,181,000 sets) . . . KPIX, San Francisco, severs affiliation with DuMont, charging “network’s violation of its affiliation agreement” in offering pro football game to new KOVR, Stockton (Mt. Diablo), which also claims coverage of San Francisco . . . “Free men were heartened by his courage in exposing those who would divide us by exploiting our fears.” So read plaque awarded CBS-TV’s Edward R. Murrow this week when he was presented annual Freedom House Award — obvious reference to his telecast exposes of Sen. McCarthy. New York Herald Tribune this week p)-aised Murrow' as “a man who symbolizes the intelligent observer and the inquiring spiidt — both essential factors in the maintenance of a free press” . . . Movie world is speculating whether MGM has decided to release a number of old scripts (but not films) to TV, after it put OK on TV adaptation of “Edison the Man” for General Electric Theatre . . . Jackpot payoff programs sprouting again, as result of Supreme Court decision that such shows aren’t lotteries (Vol. 10:15) ; many are local, others syndicated— and a large number are patterned after bingo . . . Mental illness will be theme of first telecast in 1954-55 series of widely acclaimed March of Medicine, presented by AMA and Smith, Kline & Fi'ench Labs, Oct. 31, 5:30-6 p.m. on NBC . . . Psychology of human adjustment will be subject of People on New York’s WPIX, in cooperation with Hofstra College, beginning Mon. Oct. 18, 9:30-10 p.m. . . . McGraw-Hill Book Co. to prepare “complete package programs featuring McGraw-Hill films and books, with special concern for more interesting and effective educational TV” under newly named radio & TV programming specialist David M. Clay . . . Chicago Symphony again will be presented in weekly series of hour-long concerts from WGN-TV studios by DuMont network, beginning Wed. Oct. 13, 9-10 p.m. . . . Soundtrack of Charles Laughton’s half-hour TV films will be released on 10 LP discs by Tempo Record Co. . . . Rate increases: WJNO-TV, Palm Beach, raises base rate from $175 to $300, min. $35 to $60; KSTP-TV, St. Paul-Minneapolis, fi’om $1100 to $1200 & $220 to $280; CKCT-TV, Regina, Sask., $160 to $200 . . . New Reps: WMTV, Madison, Wis., to Bolling (from Meeker); WOKY-TV, Milwaukee, to Bolling (from GillPerna); KGBT-TV, Harlingen, Tex., to H-R Television (from Pearson); WTOM-TV (fonnerly WILS-TV), Lansing, Mich, to Everett-McKinney (from Venard, Rintoul & McConnell). Network Accounts: Roto-Broil Corp., which last week bought first half of NBC-TV’s election night coverage Tue. Nov. 2, this week purchased second half on CBS-TV, thru Product Services Inc. Thus it will be on at least 142 stations on NBC-TV from 9:30-11 p.m., then on undisclosed number of CBS-TV outlets from 11 p.m.-l a.m. Latterplans to start coverage at 9 p.m. ABC-TV, with no sponsors yet, plans to start at 11 p.m. DuMont hasn’t disclosed plans yet. All networks will use top-flight newsmen, with regional pickups to areas where hot contests are developing . . . Revlon (cosmetics) buys What Goes On? on ABC-TV starting Nov. 28, Sun. 9:30-10 p.m., thru Wm. Weintraub Co., N. Y. . . . Liggett & Myers (L&M filters) to sponsor Stu Erwin Show on ABC-TV starting Oct. 20, Wed. 8:30-9 p.m., thru Cunningham & Walsh . . . Whitman’s Candy, in first network TV purchase, buys 10 min. of Stork Club on ABC-TV, Sun. 10-10:30 p.m., thru Young & Rubicam . . . Admiral sponsorship of Bishop Sheen’s Life Is Worth Living on DuMont, live and film, will be on 147 stations, starting Nov. 2, Tue. 8-8:30 p.m., thru Erwin, Wasey & Co. . . . Paper-Mate Pens to sponsor 10 min. of Imogene Coca Show on NBC-TV Dec. 4 & 11, Sat. 8-9 p.m., thru Foote, Cone & Belding . . . Malt-o-Meal Co. buys 78 partic. on Dave Carroway’s 7-9 a.m. Today on NBC-TV, thru Campbell-Mithun . . . Frigidaire Products of Canada Ltd. sponsors Frigidaire Entertains on CBC-TV starting Oct. 8, Fri. 9-9:30 p.m. ■ Wyoming’s latest community antenna system is for Kemmerer and Diamondville, proposed by Paul E. Ellis of Kemmerer, who plans to use signals from Salt Lake City. In application for merger with radio KFBI, Wichita (Vol. 10:33), KTVH, Hutchinson, Kan. (Ch. 12), reports profit of $28,200 for last 2 months of year ending July 31, net income after taxes of $15,200 for year. After merger, corporate name would remain Hutchinson TV Inc., but addition of KFBI stockholders would reduce holdings of original stockholders, and following new members would be named to board: Horace L. Lohnes, Washington attorney, who would hold 6.33%; C. Howard Lane, mgr. of Portland’s KOIN-TV, 6.33%; J. Wirth Sai’gent, Wichita attorney .25%. Application to sell WHLD, Niagara Falls (5-kw, 1270 kc) & WHLD-FM was filed with FCC this v/eek by Niagara Falls Gazette which must divest itself of stations in order to exercise option to buy 25% of WGR-TV, Buffalo (Ch. 2) and WGR. Purchaser is Gazette v.p. for radio, Earl C. Hull, who will pay $5000 for stations. Gazette owner Alanson C. Deuel retaining title to land & buildings, leasing them to Hull who is to pay taxes, insurance and maintenance in lieu of rent. Hull is to resign from Gazette. WTRF-TV, Wheeling, W. Va. (Ch. 7) is selling WTRF (1-kw, 1290 kc, MBS) & WTRF-FM to Ohio-W. Va. Bcstg. Co. (John Kluge, 100%) for $90,000 through BlackburnHamilton, making sixth radio station in which Kluge has interest. Future of CP-holder KQXI, San Jose, Cal. (Ch. 11) didn’t seem bright to 36 of the 37 stockholders, so they’re pulling out, filing application to sell holdings for $42,600 to pres. A. T. Gilliland, owner of Sunlite Bakery.