Television digest and FM reports (Feb-Dec 1947)

the Standards of American radio must wait on the rise in the industry, from within or without, of directing personalities willing to take a chance on higher quality — because they get a satisfaction from higher quality, and because they have a conviction that eventually it will pay." That about sums up article, which culls heavily the speeches, writings, etc., of Dr. DeForest, Frederick Wakeman, Variety, John Crosby, H. T. Webster, Robert Ruark, Henry Morgan, Fred Allen, William S. Paley, FCC Blue Book, on one side; Niles Trammell, U of Denver poll, Carroll Carroll (Los Angeles adman) , on the other. S2GHT AND SOUND .. Drift in FM receivers, an annoyance that has cropped up in some sets, has a solution in crystal control. That’s conviction of American Quartz Laboi'atories, Yonkers, N. Y. (also a Class A applicant), whose chief engineer, William Maron, has developed an FM-only set to retail for $200. Set has IS channels, must be tailored for local frequencies. AQL is also making $150 FM converter for AM sets. Maron says set will be expanded for areas where more than 18 signals are available. He feels $200 for FMonlv not prohibitive, claiming, for example, that WGYN, New York, asserts it can distribute 100,000. FM broadcasters who want tall towers and are having CAA trouble might take a leaf from Cowles v.p. T. A. M. Craven’s book. For KRNT-FM, Des Moines (which holds a CP for 158 lew at 745 ft), Comdr. Craven wants a 1,530 ft tower. Before doing anything else, he checked with CAA officials, found unobjectionable site at Mitchellville, northeast of Des Moines. When erected, at estimated $200,000 cost, 1,530-ft tower (believed tallest man-made structure in world) will put KRNT-FM’s 50 uv/m contour out 100 miles, “usable” signal 120 miles. Plans call for Westinghouse 50 lew transmitter. Precious 620 kc channel goes into New York area under FCC’s 5 lew grant to Newark Broadcasting Co. (A. G. Vanderbilt, Essex County counsel, past president American Bar Assn); denied were Donald Flamm (ex-WMCA) and Metropolitan Broadcasting Service (Ohrbach’s dept, store). This week, oft-embattled occupant of 620 kc, Milwaukee Journal’s WTMJ (NBC), applied for permission to purchase 250-watt WSAU, Wausau, TV is. (CBS), where it plans second FM; price is $200,000. Oral arguments on 30 kc AM separation in same area (Vol. 3, No. 9), with FCC sitting en banc Friday, found Attorney Paul Spearman principal proponent for 30 kc now. Most of those present, chiefly engineers, were opposed on basis of “insufficient scientific data,” and their arguments seemed to impress commissioners. Experimentation on high powers, lower frequencies was urged. FMA’s dynamic young prexy, Roy Hofheinz, KTHT and KOPY (FM), Houston, no sooner was done with New Orleans AM hearing last week (he’s seeking 50 kw day, 25 kw night on 1540 kc) than he and his Texas oilman partner, TV. N. Hooper, applied for Dallas (10 kw on 740 kc). That makes fourth AM they seek; the others are 50 kw day on 1530 kc in Harlingen, Tex., and 5 kw on 860 kc in San Antonio. Still hazy subject of FM blanketing is being examined by FCC and FMA. Some complaint has emanated from Syracuse, where flock of transmitters are almost on top of each other. It’s too early to tell, but any one, or combination, of following factors may be involved: Too close proximity of transmitters, too close assignment of frequencies, poor receiver selectivity, ignorance of set tuners. Philco’s touted TV set (Vol. 3, No. 7) has more of its secrecy unveiled in article, with diagram, in March issue of Caldwell-Clements’ Tele-Tech. “Skullduggery,” “armchair geographer,” “legerdemain,” are among the terms, technical and otherwise, tossed around in a revival of the old high-low FM band squabble in February Proceedings of the IRE. FCC’s Edward W. Allen matches microvolts with this powerful pro-low band array: Armstrong, Jansky, deMars, Pollack, Carnahan, Brown. Allen’s paper is said to have had peculiar history. It was presented at IRE meeting Jan. 25, 1945, by Allen and K. A. Norton. Later, authors were reported desiring to withdraw it from discussion; IRE said “No.” Then, along the way, Norton withdrew his byline, paper was revised, discussed, is finally presented with discussion 2 years after original submission. Circular polarization for FM and TV, which hasn’t seemed to have caught on particularly well, largely because of lack of gain, got respectful attention at IRE convention. II. A. Wheeler, consulting physicist, told about a helical antenna which (theoretically, at least) offers not only gain but possibility of suppressing TV ghosts. RCA’s antenna expert George Brown also outlined work of his company in circular field. Some listeners were a little dubious of getting viewers to install adequate receiving antenna to receive circular waves. Up from ranks also is CBS’s newly named operating chief, 44-year-old Joe Ream, elected executive v.p. by board this week; his former duties as secretary are taken over by Julius Brauner, genei’al attorney. Ream is a ’27 law graduate of Yale, joined CBS as an attorney, headed its legal dept, for 8 years. Clyde H. Bend and Russell P. May have dissolved partnership in Washington consulting engineering firm of May & Bond. Bond and George Gautney have become partners in firm of John Barron, Consulting Engineers. May continues at old stand. (Note: Make changes in your Directory of Consulting Engineers; Supplement No. 12-A.) Steinmans’ clear-cut case of FM overlap (Vol. 3, No. 9), seen as test of FCC’s multiple ownership philosophy, is no longer so clear-cut. New application of Wilmington Tri-State Broadcasting Co. Inc. throws competitive issue into the picture since only one channel remains unassigned in Wilmington. Excise taxes totaled $38,087,396 for calendar year 1946 on radio sets, parts, phonographs, as against $5,129,295 in 1945, Treasury Dept, reports; phonograph record makers paid $6,129,456, compax'ed to $2,347,895. Since tax is 10 To of manufacturei’’s selling price, you have index to total production. New RCA manager of TV equipment sales at Camden is Merrill A. Trainer, working under T. A. (Ted) Smith. He succeeds Henry Rhea, resigned to run new WHOW in his home town of Clinton, 111. “Television Primer of Production and Direction” by Louis A. Sposa, WARD director of commercial operations, is due in latter April. Published by McGraw-Hill, book is for novices and is based on lectures at CCNY.