Television digest and FM reports (Feb-Dec 1947)

tive if "substantial" number of patrons can see pictures. Not only would tax deter market for high-priced sets, most of which are going into public places like taverns, bars, lounges, etc., but decline in number of multi-viewer locations v/ould adversely affect sponsorship, especially of sports events. Question whether TV sets must pay New York City movie tax is still open; Pennsylvania ruling that TVs in places of business must get State amusement permit, is being fought in courts by Philadelphia restauranteurs , who have asked for restraining order. ~ ■ :■■■■ SIGHT AMD SOUND r-..:-.;: ■. — Capable, popular FCC Chief Engineer George P. Adair has resigned as of April 30 to start own consulting practice, located at 1833 M St. N.W., Washington. The 44-yearold veteran of 16 years of FCC service will be succeeded by 53-year-old George E. Sterling, assistant chief engineer, who entered Federal radio service as Dept, of Commerce inspector back in 1923. NAB’s moribund FM Dept, seems to be perking up, has scheduled these subjects for agenda of March 27 New York meeting of executive committee (Walter Daram, chairman): channel reservation, engineering standards, promotional activities, set distribution, AFM non-duplication rule, coordination with FMA, part in NAB convention. FMA top-kick Everett Dillard, also on NAB committee, says he can’t attend. TBA petition for sliding scale of TV operating hours — based on number of sets in city — went to FCC Friday with good prospects of some scheme along this line being accepted. Suggested schedule calls for 7 hours per station when there are up to 25,000 sets per station; 14 hours, 25,000 to 50,000; 21 hours, 50,000 to 75,000; 28 hours, over 75,000. Stanley Hubbard retains control of KSTP, St. Paul, rival group of bidders is rejected, he gets loan of $850,000 from Avco to purchase other 757c of stock, Avco gets option on 49% after 6 months, not 75% first proposed (Vol. 2, No. 39), in FCC ruling Thursday. Allocations in 30-40 me and 152-162 me bands (nongovernment, fixed and mobile) were finalized by FCC Friday. Copies of official reports (Mimeo 3529 for former, 3544 for latter) will be sent you on request. FCC also assured “hams” it would look out for their interests at International Telecommunications Conference in Atlantic City May 15. FM channel hunt in Peoria by West Central Broadcasting Co. (Supplement No. 14-K) bore frujt this week. Applicant, which with Radio Peoria Inc., was being denied in proposed decision, dug up 2 more channels (Supplement No. 47J herewith) and is in line for grant in an order due next week. Radio Peoria Inc. is presumably still out in the cold, since one of the new channels is reserved. Successful vendor of some 1,500 TV kits before the war, about 500 post-war, Andrea is considering another kit this fall based on its new TV models which are due out in June. Kit would be “so simple that a layman could put it together.” Amphenol, now making de luxe ($30) broad-band receiving antenna for AM, shortwave, FM, for which Scott is one of their good customers, expects to make comparable antenna for TV. Domestic film supply being restricted by Petrillo-movie agreement, TV programmers are leaning heavily on industrial films and own newsreel units. NBC this week tied up another source, got TV rights to newsreels and feature films made in Soviet Union, carried first Wednesday night —on Moscow meeting of Council of Foreign Ministers. DuMont’s Paul Ware, referring to our note on FM receiver drift (Vol. 3, No. 10), assures us good drift control possible without crystals— the Mallory-Ware Inductuner holding within 2 kc per degree Centigrade under home conditions. Galvin, too, has come up with a device giving “complete compensation” for drift effect. Company says permeability tuned transmission line achieves control without sacrificing receiver selectivity. Feature is incorporated in new $350 Motorola console. Emerson’s new TV receiver, a low-boy console, includes AM and FM, will sell for $350 plus $50 installationservicing charge. Already off line are 100 sets for New York market; large-scale production planned by summer. Emerson will shortly announce AM-FM table model to sell for $99.50; its ad agency, Grady & Wagoners, now preparing copy. Town Club Telicen, with largest projection screen yet (23%xl7% inches), has g;one into production at last, and Telicon Corp: President Solomon Sagall reports several have been shipped to bars in New York City. It sells for $1,995, costs $75 more to install. Sagall also says his Intra-Video master antenna has been installed in office of taxi tycoon Dan Arnstein in General Motors Bldg., New York, is giving such good results it may be answer to real estate owners’ objections. Low-cost TV stations, through use of process film shots, should make video available to small cities for about $90,000, DuMont announced Friday. Translucent screen, with 16 mm projector modified to run 30 frames a second in rear, permits live “remotes” to be telecast inside studio. DuMont’s Leonard Cramer also plumped for syndicated “teletranscriptions”— film record of studio presentation made from receiver screen for reshowing throughout country. Fifteen-minute recording on 3%" disc for 10c is boast of Wagner Recorder Mfg. Corn., 67 W. 44th, New York City. Recorder, demonstrated at IRE convention, achieves feat by using pre-grooved (350 lines to inch) plastic disc. Tracking stylus beneath record rides groove and moves recording stylus (on top) across disc. Company plans 8" disc for 100-minute recording. Using brass-plated wire for its recorder. Brush Development Co., Cleveland, claims to have solved serious problem of wear; plain steel wire, it seems, chews up playing head at pretty expensive rate. TV expert Richard W. Kubbell, Crosley production manager, author of several important books on TV, has resigned, opens own TV, radio and movie consulting business April 1, at 630 Fifth Ave., New York City. Sam Cuff, WABD manager, and Lou Sposa, commercial manager, are out in DuMont shakeup that cuts New York staff from 75 to 23, presages tightening up “to put TV on dollars and cents operating basis.” Senate Tuesday confirmed appointment of Commodore Edward M. Webster to FCC (Vol. 3, No. 9); he fills unexpired portion of Porter term, ending June 30, 1949.