Television digest with AM-FM reports (Jan-Dec 1951)

14 Trade Personals: Marvin Hobbs named electronics ad visor to chairman John Small, Munitions Board, succeeded as chief of Office of Electronics Programs by Col. C. A. Poutre, Signal Corps . . . Edward M. Tuft, RCA Victor v.p. and director of personnel, appointed to newly created post of v.p. in charge of organization development, coordinating company’s manpower for expansion and development; Albert F. Watters promoted to director of personnel . . . K. R. Patrick, gen. mgr., engineering products dept., RCA Victor Ltd., Montreal, new president of Canadian Aviation Electronics Ltd. . . . Joseph Thwaites appointed mgr. of electronic research, Canadian Westinghouse Ltd. . . . Robert H. Bishop, Sylvania sales v.p., resigns as of Sept. 1 to join Drew Chemical Co., N. Y. . . . M. D. Schuster, exHoffman Sales Corp. gen. mgr., recently with Magnavox as district mgr., has returned to Hoffman Radio as national sales mgr. under R. J. McNeely, director of sales . . . William J. Halligan Jr., 25, eldest son of founder-president of Hallicrafters, Notre Dame graduate. Navy radio veteran, appointed chief of Hallicrafters communications equipment sales . . . Robert D. Dunn, ex-asst. treasurer, Phillips Export Corp., promoted to v.p. . . . Henry R. Geyelin, DuMont receiver sales div. adv. mgr., appointed to coordinate advertising of various DuMont activities . . . Muriel Young, exRaymond Loewy Associates, appointed head of Emerson industrial design dept. ■ Time Magazine’s July 23 cover story on RCA chairman David Sarnoff discloses that he has “plans to expand RCA into new territory.” It states: “He is already itching to put RCA into the electric-appliance business, NBC into the movie business (to make films for TV), and is planning a ‘pay-as-you-hear’ TV system which would not depend on telephones as does Zenith Radio Corp.’s system.” Trade gossip has long had RCA entering appliance fields, and it’s known to have looked into several properties. This week, there was unconfirmed report that IT&T, which last year purchased Farnsworth, was negotiating for control of Coolerator Corp. Trade Miscellany: Crosley distributor meetings to be held in Chicago, July 26-27 . . . Philco holding no summer convention but has called distributors (no dealers) for informal sessions in New York’s Waldorf-Astoria, Aug. 3-4, and in Chicago, Aug. 6-7 . . . Westinghouse’s new TVradio line to be showed to distributors in New York Aug. 6, Chicago Aug. 13, San Francisco Aug. 20 . . . Admiral calling in some 200 executives of own and distributor branches for Aug. 10-11 meetings in Drake Hotel, Chicago — won’t show new models but will conduct “clinic” on selling, on uhf & color, other merchandising problems. Merchandising Notes: “Price is now the deciding factor in moving goods,” said William Tobey, v.p. of big Abraham & Straus dept, store, Brooklyn, in reporting July 20 on “more than satisfactory” volume achieved this week in selling Wilcox-Gay 17-in. table model at $129 (regular list $290), 17-in. console $159 (regular $359), 19-in. console with doors $249 (regular $475) . . . Kaye-Halbert Distributors Inc., Los Angeles, offering customers 5 days with room and board at 3 southern California and Mexican resorts with purchase of each model priced from $369; salesman gets clothing certificates for each set sold, same type paid vacation if he sells 24 sets . . . Big Hudson Ross chain opens branch in Chicago’s Merchandise Mart soon, to be managed by Frederick Dumont . . . DuMont new policy warrants its TV tubes sold as replacements for 6 months from date of installation in user’s set; formerly it was 6 months after shipment from factory. Move is designed to stimulate replacement-conversion business among the 1,000,000 TVs 3 years old or more and the 3,000,000 sets 12V^-in. or smaller. Mobilization Notes: Top 50 defense contractors include 8 firms which are heavy producers of electronic equipment. This was revealed July 18 when Senate Small Business Committee niade public list of companies receiving “heaviest concentration” of military orders from July 1, 1950, to June 1, 1951. Committee’s complaint was that 10 big firms got 40% of defense contracts during that period. Most of the “electronic” fiz'ms listed make many nonelectronic military items. Two electronic firms made the “big 10.” They were GE, seventh with $500,000,000 in military contracts, and Bendix, tenth with $475,000,000. Other companies in electronics field which appeared on list: Western Electric, 13th, $343,000,000; Westinghouse, 15th, $245,000,000; Sperry Corp., 21st, $198,000,000; Avco, 32nd, $122,000,000; RCA, 36th, $108,560,000; Raytheon, 39th, $103,500,000. Heading whole list was General Motors with $3.5 billion, Ford with $1 billion. Among the first 10 were 6 aircraft companies in addition to Bendix — all of which are known to be deeply in production of aero electronic equipment (radios, radar, guided missiles, etc.). They are Boeing, Curtiss-Wright, Lockheed, Republic, United Aircraft, North American Aviation. * 4: :f: 4: Twelve electronic equipment firms received DPA certificates of necessity for tax aid in expansion of production facilities during 2 weeks ended July 13. Largest went to General Radio Co. for expansion of facilities for production of electronic test equipment at Cambridge, Mass., estimated cost $725,000, of which 75% is to be amortized over 5-year period. Other certificates were granted to: American Lava Corp., Chattanooga, Tenn., titania dielectrics, $362,000 at 75%; Amperex Electronic Corp., Wyandanch, L. I., communication and industrial electron tubes, $83,750 at 75%; Sylvania (Radio & TV Div.), Buffalo, N. Y., ordnance, $67,524 at 75%; Tung-Sol, Bloomfield, N. J., electron tubes, $65,951 at 75%; Gorham Mfg. Co., Providence, R. I., electronic mixer assemblies, $63,419 at 85%; Reeves-Hoffman Corp., Carlisle, Pa., oscillators, $50,765 at 75%; Clarostat Mfg. Co., Dover, N. H,. resistors, $40,740 at 75%; General Instrument Corp., electronic equipment, $30,612 at 85%; Polorad Electronics Corp., Brooklyn, N. Y., receiving equipment, $18,260 at 85%; Raytheon, Waltham, Mass., transformers, $14,079 at 85%; DuMont, cathode ray tubes, $6,038 at 85%. Plant expansions have been authorized by NPA under construction control regulations (Order M-4) for 3 manufacturers of electronic equipment during 2 weeks ended June 30. General Electric was given approval to construct addition to laboratory at Syracuse, estimated cost $2,133,000. Magnavox got OK for new factory at Ft. Wayne, to cost $329,000. Sylvania was authorized to build industrial building at Buffalo, $315,000. Ray S. Erlandson, president of San Antonio Music Co., was reelected president of National Assn, of Music Merchants by NAMM board at Chicago convention. Harry E. Callaway, Thearle Music Co., San Diego, was renamed v.p. Other officers elected: Thomas J. Holland, Glenn Bros., Salt Lake City, secy.; Ben F. Duval, W. W. Kimball Co., Chicago, treas. Wm. R. Gard was reelected executive secy. Assn, of Electronic Parts & Equipment Manufacturers, at Chicago meeting this week, elected John H. Cashman, Radio Craftsmen Inc., as chairman; Francis F. Florsheim, Columbia Wire & Supply, vice chairman; Helen S. Quam, Quam-Nichols, treas.; Kenneth C. Prince, executive secy. RTMA’s inning on excess profits tax bill comes Aug. 2 when spokesmen (probably chairman Sprague and/or president McDaniel) will testify before Senate Banking Committee.