Television digest and FM reports (Jan-Dec 1949)

SIGHT AND SOUND MAY 28, 1949 Many and varied and sometimes confusing were published news stories based on FCC’s statement on freezeuhf-color (see analysis on p. 1-2) — some seeing color emerging forthwith. Even the merchandisers’ trade journal Retailing Daily carried streamlined caption; “FCC To Open UHF-TV Bands; Plans For Color Telecasts” and went on to headline that “Apprehension Grips Trade on FCC Move.” Chicago Journal of Commerce headlined: “FCC Puts Color in TV Picture; Offers Licenses If Satisfactory” and lead sentence reads, “The FCC has finally cleared the way for color television.” Even Radio Daily streamlined: “UHF and Color TV Forecast by FCC.” Most newspaper reporters, unschooled in the technical and political nuances, naturally played up the color angle — to the discomfiture of the trade — though newspapers like New York Times, Herald Tribune, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post played the complex subject “safe” by sticking close to letter of FCC’s release. Adding to publicity flurry about color TV are ads and stories about demonstrations of off-the-line system at American Medical Assn, convention week of June 6 in Atlantic City. CBS has sold and loaned equipment (Vol. 6:8) to big Philadelphia pharmaceutical house. Smith, Kline & French Laboratories; receivers were acquired from Zenith and Webster-Chicago. Rumors abounded at weekend that CBS would demonstrate simple converter enabling ordinary receiver to “take” color TV, but network spokesman denied Peter Goldmark development would be shown. Special spreads on medical usage of color TV are scheduled for June 6 week in Life, Newsweek, Business Week, others. Zenith’s Comdr. McDonald in letter to Laboratories cautioned them to make clear demonstrations do not give public erroneous impression color TV is ready for broadcast use. Zenith’s Phonevision was subject of Chicago visit Wednesday by 20th Century-Fox’s Spyros Skouras and other Fox officials who also conferred with Comdr. McDonald. Next day Zenith sales v.p. H. C. Bonfig told Chicago Television Council that Phonevision test would be made with 400-500 set owners in Chicago later this year, in cooperation with 8 major movie producers. MPA sources indicate most of “big 8” producers don’t intend to furnish films for Phonevision, aren’t yet sold. Columbia Pictures has set up TV film production unit, headed by Ralph Cohn and Jules Bricken, to produce films for TV programs and for commercial spots. Cohn and Bricken formerly ran Telespots Inc., commercial TV film producer. TV unit is a department of Columbia Screen Gems, a subsidiary releasing 16mm prints of Columbia pictures. Address is 729 Seventh Ave., New York. Use of ASCAP music on TV seems nearer this week, as network negotiators, who last week had secured extension of present arrangements to June 15 (Vol. 5:21), turned over tentative agreement to NAB music committee for approval. NAB committee meets Tuesday to look over latest plan. Another striking medical use of TV at June 6-10 AMA convention will be the interpretation of questionable shadows in X-Ray films by varying contrast-range. System was developed by Illinois U medics, will be sponsored by Squibb, use RCA equipment at Atlantic City meetings. ‘Kukla, Fran and Ollie” get 3 pages in May 23 Life Magazine, which calls RCA’s NBC-TV show, “a children’s puppet show whose audience is about 60% adult ... its charm lies in the complete credibility with which the show’s creator [Burr Tillstrom] has endowed his handmanipulated characters.” General Instrument Corp., parts maker, in annual report for year ended Feb. 28, 1949, notes reduction in sales and earnings due largely to “transition from radio to television” and promises new TV tuner that will be tooled and ready for production next July. Sales for year were $14,024,316 vs. $16,445,791 for same 1948 period. Net income was $302,535 (62^ per share) vs. $983,015 ($2.02) the preceding year. Proxy statement for June 24 stockholders meeting at Elizabeth, N. J. plant shows salary of president-treasurer Richard E. Laux, $48,000; former president Abraham Blumenkrantz (resigned Aug. 2), $37,500; director and v.p. of subsidiary F. W. Sickles Co., Monte Cohen, $24,799 plus $10,000 bonus. Magnavox sales for fiscal year ended Feb. 28, 1949 were $24,402,206, net profit on 659,898 shares of capital stock amounting to $1,323,598 ($2.01 a share). This compares with sales of $27,434,019 and profit of $2,016,976 ($3.36 a share on 600,000 shares) in 1948, and sales of $24,013,812 and profit of $2,150,998 ($4.30) in 1947. Majestic Radio & Television Corp., Elgin, 111., was ordered liquidated by Federal District Court in Chicago May 27, following trustees’ recommendation against further reorganization attempts. Assets will be sold. Main reasons for liquidation were given as inability to launch TV program, decline in radio sales, price-cutting. In addition to complaint against Federal Television Corp. on use of name (Vol. 5:19), IT&T’s Federal Telephone & Radio Corp., now more deeply involved in TV by reason of parent company’s acquisition of Farnsworth (Vol. 5:19), has also asked restraining order in same U. S. District Court in New York against Federal Video Corp. (Vol. 5:18). Philco has named v.p. Leslie J. Woods as director of research and engineering, assisted by v.p. David B. Smith; he’s an ex-British Army officer, formerly managed company’s Industrial Division which is now managed by James McLean . . . Dr. Irving Wolff, tube research chief of RCA Labs, gets Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award for work on electronics and radar . . . Herb Young, onetime sales mgr. of old Grigsby-Grunow Co. (Majestic) named sales mgr. of Nielsen Television Corp. . . . GE has appointed 3 new Tube Division executives : G. W. DeSousa, mgr. of sales administration; R. V. Bontecou, asst, to division mgr.; L. E. Record, developing-testing supervisor. We hear, but can’t verify: That veteran radioman Louis G. Pacent’s firm has developed something radically different in the way of projection TV . . . That one A. A. Crawford, of Beverly Hills, Cal., has been showing diagrams of a portable projection model about the size of a big Zenith portable radio, which he claims can frame a 19-in. picture from one of RCA’s wartime 1-in. CRs . . . That a Washington consulting firm claims to have worked out plans for a portable TV, battery-operated! Madison Square Garden bought out Tommament of Champions, sports promotion outfit in which CBS had 25% interest, deal being closed Friday. Presumably CBS now gets rights to telecast Garden bouts, heretofore held exclusively by NBC (Vol. 5:20). Inquiry discloses columnist Leonard Lyons was his usual wrong self in reporting {Washington Post, May 26) that playwrights Lindsay and Crouse and songsters Rodgers and Hammerstein were parties to deal involving purchase of an unnamed TV station. Good promotional windfall for TV: Ads being placed by Consolidated Edison System, captioned “For 5^ you get enough electricity to see 19 half-hour television shows.”