Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1953)

12 Telecasting Notes: Of the 20 top advertisers — in magazines, newspaper sections, network radio, network TV — PIB lists only one (Miles Laboratories) as not using network TV during first 6 months of this year; all used network radio. [Note: Miles Labs uses lots of TV spots, however] ... Of the 100 top, only 19 were not network TV users, 25 were not network radio users during same period . . . Top 10 and their total and network TV expenditures (TV figure in parentheses) : Procter & Gamble, $19,461,840 ($7,606,096) ; General Motors, $15,016,396 ($2,807,980) ; Colgate-Palmolive-Peet, $13,300,790 ($5,247, 655); General Foods, $12,088,016 ($3,238,088); Lever Bros., $9,111,352 ($2,773,632); R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., $8,192,411 ($4,366,647) ; American Tobacco Co., $7,912,946 ($3,450,162); General Mills, $7,378,787 ($2,610,616); General Electric, $7,105,774 ($2,080,406); Ford Motor Co., $6,677,641 ($2,107,256) . . . Procter & Gamble expenditures on network radio ($7,416,638) make it biggest sponsor in that medium, as it is in TV, with General Foods No. 2 ($3,713,504), Miles Labs No. 3 ($3,590,989), Sterling Drug No. 4 ($3,245,464) . . . TV blackout in Kansas City, when its WDAF-TV was struck for 4 weeks in May-June (Vol. 9:22-24), boomed drive-in movies and stimulated family life — but when it was all over, people were mighty glad to welcome TV back into their homes, writes Kansas City Star’s Bill Vaughan in Aug. 28 TV Guide . . . School of Journalism of U of Houston, operating own educational KUHT (Ch. 8) offering course in TV film reporting, taught by KPRC-TV’s Bob Gray . . . George Jessel elected v.p. in charge of product promotion for B.B. Pen Co., Los Angeles, sponsor of his new ABC-TV show . . . P. G. Wodehouse’s Jeeves stories to be adapted to TV, Rockhill Productions having obtained exclusive rights . . . WABD, DuMont N. Y. key, on Sept. 14 opens program day at 11 a.m. instead of 12:15 p.m., and from Oct. 5 will start at 10 a.m. . . . New rate of $4800 an hour for Class A time, up from $4500, goes into effect on WCBSTV, N. Y. as of Sept. 15; Class A 1-min. film or 20-sec. sound spots are $1075, with 10-sec. shared IDs $550 & $425 . . . WPTZ, Philadelphia, has published new Class AA rate of $2000 an hour, effective Oct. 1, and on Sept. 14 moves up start of program day to 6:45 a.m. for Mon.-thruFri. 15-min. Home, Garden & Farm show . . . KTBC-TV, Austin, Tex., which began last Nov., owned by wife of Sen. Johnson (D-Tex.), publishes first rate increasebase rate going up Oct. 1 from $250 to $300 . . . WABT are new call letters of Birmingham Neivs’ WAFM-TV. They like to eat, too: Prominent TV-radio attorney Horace L. Lohnes elected pres, of Madrillon Co. Inc., operator of big Madrillon restaurant in downtown Washington Bldg. Consulting engineer E. C. Page and partner Joe Waldschmitt buy control of La Salle du Bois, a favorite restaurant in Connecticut Ave. area. And publisher Sol Taishoff, Broadcasting, is now landlord — and reportedly part owner — of exclusive Colony Restaurant in building on DeSales St., opposite Mayflower Hotel, into which his operation will soon move. BBC went in the red $2,126,900 last year, and will be bankrupt by 1955 at the rate it’s going, board of governors of Britain’s govt.-owned broadcasting monopoly warned Sept. 8. Supported by license fees paid by set owners, BBC said additional income from increase in licenses was more than offset by Govt.’s decision last year to withhold 15% of license fees. Previously, Govt, kept 5%. The 1951-52 income from licenses totaled $34,348,683, but shrank in 1952-53 to $32,745,532 because of bigger treasury bite. Annual stag outing and barbecue of Federal Communications Bar Assn, will be held on Horace Lohnes’ farm near Vienna, Va., Sat., Oct. 17. VIEWING HABITS have matured into stabilized pattern in New Brunswick, N. J. — the “Videotown” of Cunningham & Walsh’s continuing survey — and presumably in other multiple-station markets. Agency’s sixth annual survey (Vol. 5:28, 6:26, 7:35, 8:30) of sample TV community 40 mi. from New York shows evening viewing has leveled off at what is probably its peak, but daytime viewing is still in development stage. More than 90% of sets are used every weekday evening — as compared with 86% last year — but sets are now tuned in average of 414 hours as against 4% hours last year. Morning viewing increased from 1% of TV homes in 1952 to 8% this year, while afternoon viewing is unchanged at 14%. Movie-going and magazine reading by TV families remains same as last year. Newspaper reading, which never was affected by TV, is higher than year ago. Morning radio listening increased this year as it did in 1952. On average weekday morning, 42% of women listen to radio — boost of 27 % over last year. Afternoon listening showed slight decline and evening listening remained same. During year, set ownership increased from 62% to 71% of families. Set sales continued to drop off, following 2-year dowmvard pattern, with 20% decline anticipated for 1953. Sales this year should be equally divided between new sets and replacements, survey predicts, compared with 2 new sets to 1 replacement in 1952 and 5 to 1 in 1951. While replacement sales doubled last year, they still amounted to only 21% of total sets sold. “Second set” market appears negligible so far. When people do buy second set, the purchase is actually replacement for smaller screen set; the owner generally just “hangs on” to old set. Only 4%% of TV homes have 2 sets. High-cost-of-maintenance myth appears to be exploded by latest survey. Some 19% of owners have never had their sets repaired; of sets purchased before 1951, there are still 4% which have never been repaired. Average annual TV repair bill is $11, except for those few who have had to replace picture tube. Alarmed by complaints of “excessive commercialism” on TV, NARTB’s code review board Sept. 10 ordered concentrated 3-month study of programming, hinted special session may be necessary to cope with problem. In most strongly warded announcement since code went into effect 18 months ago, board headed by John Fetzer (WKZO-TV, Kalamazoo) said probe would pay particular attention to evidence of “excessive interruption of programs for advertising announcements; excessive length of commercial messages, ‘bait’ advertising, excessive ‘billboarding’ or ‘background’ display advertising on TV, and multiple spotting between programs.” Edward H. Bronson, director of TV code affairs, was directed to conduct 3-month review and report at Jan. board meeting — unless special session is held before then. Fetzer explained board “believes that greater attention should be given to commercial practices, and it is supported in this viewpoint by various complaints it has received not only from the general public but from some broadcasters themselves, and from other interested parties.” At next meeting, he added, board will “determine whether or not it should take formal action toward eliminating [excessive commercial] practices in specific areas.” He said he didn’t believe any charges would have to be filed, since telecasters have already demonstrated their determination to conform voluntarily to “acceptable ethical practices.” Practical guide to technical operation of TV station is newly published Principles & Practices of Telecasting Operations by Harold E. Ennis, staff engineer, WIRE, Indianapolis, and TV-radio instructor, Butler U (Howard W. Sams & Co., Indianapolis, 596 pp., $7.95).