Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1954)

12 Topics & Trends of TV Trade: Sales of radios, which lagged badly behind 1953 pace at midyear, have spurted nicely in last 3 months — and trade leaders now are predicting a 10,000,000 sales year, compared to about 13,000,000 last year. Radios have enjoyed excellent Xmas season, with low-priced clock radios in particularly high demand. Radio sales in 3-month Sept.-Nov. period totaled about 3,100,000. That’s an especially good record when compared to the 2,700,000 sold in first 4 months of this year. Another encouraging sign is the steady decline in radio inventories to current 3,000,000, down from 3,200,000 in Sept. Clock radios, as usual, pace the upswing in gift season. It’s estimated that clock radios will claim larger share of total radio mai-ket — about 30%^ — this year than in any previous year. About 45% of all clock radio sales are made in fourth quarter. RC.\ souped up its TV line this week with addition of a 21-in. open-face mahogany console at $260, blonde $270. Called “Highlander,” it’s lowest-priced 21-in. console ever offered by RCA. Rest of line will be carried over into the first half of 1955, said TV gen. sales mgr. Raymond W. Saxon at semi-annual meeting of field reps in Atlantic City. Additional features of current models include installation of a built-in antenna in all receivers and extension of 90-degree aluminized tube to all 21-in. models. No price changes are contemplated, said Saxon. RCA also introduced a unique 45rpm record player attachment, in which record slides into slot to reach concealed turntable. Called “Victrola 45 Slide-O-Matic,” it retails for $13. Also added were AM-FM de luxe table radios at $70 & $100. A 3-speed record player was reduced from $70 to $60. Elimination of summer markets for TV-radio-appliances was urged this week by NARDA managing director A. W. Bernsohn in his organization’s newsletter. He said: “The summer market has no place in the appliance industry, and it seems time for someone to suggest that we disregard it. We’re on safe ground in doing this, since not one of the manufacturers asked about it has indicated anything other than complete agreement.” He said virtually no new merchandise is shown at summer markets. Tung-Sol’s rise to one of lax'gest electron tube and light bulb manufacturers, with net assets of more than $28,000,000, is described in financial section of Dec. 5 New York Times. It traces 50-year friendship of founderchairman Harvey W. Harper and pres. Louis Rieben, says Tung-Sol sales this year are expected to approximate last year’s $38,000,000, with earnings about $2,000,000 — or $200,000 more than year ago. Settlement of Chapter XI plan of Gotham Television Corp., 123 W. 64th St., N. Y., was confirmed this week by Referee Irwin Kurtz. Plan provides 30% payment, 5% immediately and 2 ¥2% in quarterly installments, with TV set production to continue under supervision of creditors committee. Richard A. (Dick) Graver, 58, Hallicrafters v.p. & director of marketing, one of the most popular and best known figures in the industry, died of a heart attack Dec. 8 in New York City. Onetime RCA district sales mgr., Chicago, he was Admiral v.p. from 1944-52, then v.p. of Capehart-Farnsworth for a short interval before joining Hallicrafters in Dec. 1952. Surviving are his wife, daughter and one grandchild. Leo R. Mead, 51, technical asst, to chief engineer, Hallicrafters Co., <lied suddenly Dec. 3. Formerly with Sentinel & Wells-Gardner, he had been an engineer with Hallicrafters since 1950, serving as chief of research until last Feb. Trade Personals: Frank M. Folsom, RCA pres., awarded 1954 Catholic Action Medal bestowed annually by St. Bonaventure U, Olean, N. Y., to an outstanding Roman Catholic layman . . . Robert C. Tait, pres., Stromberg-Carlson, elected to board of Ritter Co., Rochester, medical equipment manufacturer . . . Robert W. Galvin, Motorola exec, v.p., named co-chairman of business div. of Chicago’s 1955 Red Cross campaign . . . Aaron F. Bowser, Sylvania N. Y. State district sales mgr., named national radio sales mgr., succeeding Robert Shaw, now on special assignment in N. Y. headquarters . . . Lloyd E. Starkweather honored at testimonial dinner on retirement as v.p. & gen. mgr. of RCA Victor Distributing Corp., Los Angeles . . . Edward D. Crosby honored at dinner in Buffalo’s Sheraton Hotel on retirement as national TV-radio sales mgr., GE Supply Co. . . . Ricardo Muniz named Canadian Westinghouse TVradio mgr., reporting to J. D. Campbell, gen. mgr. of consumer products . . . Kimball A. Reyher promoted to Westinghouse radio merchandise mgr., replacing Frank A. Sullivan, who resigned after serving only one month as radio sales mgr. . . . Stanton Ruby named Emerson district sales mgr. for Carolinas & 68 Va. counties . . . Leland G. Stone, ex-Magnavox & Capehart-Farnsworth, named chief cabinet designer, CBS-Columbia . . . Douglas Wallace, Pittsburgh district mgr., named Graybar asst, v.p.; J. E. Carroll, from Cincinnati branch, succeeds Wallace at Pittsburgh . . . Fred W. Timmons, ex-National Union Electric & DuMont, named Chicago sales mgr., Automatic Mfg. Corp., Newark . . . Michael Craffey Jr., ex-Stewart-Wamer, Sylvania & Crosley, named Detroit district mgr., Manitowoc Equipment Works . . . Carl E. Mosley, pres. & treas. of Mosley Electronics Inc., 8622 St. Charles Rock Rd., St. Louis (antennas), assumes duties of gen. mgr.; George E. Mobus promoted to sales mgr. . . . E. MacDonald Nyhen, ex-National Co. and former official of old NPA Electronics Div., joins Electronics Div. of Commerce Dept.’s Business & Defense Services Agency as asst, to acting director Donald S. Parris. * * * ♦ DISTRIBUTOR NOTES; CBS-Columbia appoints Ludwig Hommel & Co., currently Raytheon Pittsburgh outlet, replacing Allied Electric Co. . . . DuMont: American Distributing Corp., New Haven (Francis T. Barmore Jr., pres.) . . . H. Leff Electric Co., Cleveland, discontinues CBS-Columbia franchise . . . Higgins Distributing Co., 405 W. Redwood St., Baltimore (Raytheon) going out of business Jan. 1, says pres. Wm. T. Higgins . . . WarrenConnolly Co., N. Y. (Motorola) appoints Dan Jacobs as mgr. of electronics div.; he’s ex-sales mgr. of Admiral N. Y. distributing branch . . . Motorola-New York announces resignation of TV-radio sales mgr. Lou Raskin . . . Raymond Rosen & Co., Philadelphia (RCA) names Larry Crevey asst, sales mgr. . . . Radio Distributing Co., Detroit (Zenith) starts construction of new headquartei's at 15401 Woodrow Wilson Ave., for occupancy by spring. NARDA convention Jan. 9-11 at Chicago’s Conrad Hilton Hotel will feature luncheon address on final day by Philco pres. James H. Carmine on “Let’s All Think Bigger.” Other speakers include George H. Meilinger, Westinghouse; David Hopkins, CBS-Columbia; A. E. Cascino, Crosley-Bendix. Westinghouse to use closed-circuit telecast Dec. 29 to introduce its new TV-radio merchandise. Originating in CBS’s Studio 58 in N. Y., program will be seen by distributors in 28 cities. No comment from company on details of new models. Sir Louis Sterling, ex-head of big British Electrical & Musical Industries Ltd., who was born in N. Y. of Russian immigrant parents, went to England by cattle boat in 1903, was knighted in 1937, marked his 75th birthday Nov. 29 by donating £200,000 ($560,000) to charity.