Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1953)

8 Telecasting Notes: Advertising outlays this year will be about 10% above 1952 levels — even if predicted dip in business occurs. That’s forecast of Eldridge Peterson, editor of Printers’ Ink, whose advertising figures are generally accepted by industry. He said 1953 advertising bill, national and local, will come to $7.7 billion, possibly as high as $8 billion . . . Network TV outstripped all other media in advertising gains in August over August 1952, with 28% increase, Printers’ Ink reports. Total ad volume was 11% higher for all media than in same 1952 week, with network radio’s gain 4%, magazines 4%, newspapers 14%, outdoor 3%, business papers 5% . . . TV talent costs are at all-time high, reports Oct. 7 Variety, which says 4 of the 5 top-spending variety shows have had to boost thenweekly budgets $10,000-$15,000 each above last year. These 5 shows — Colgate Comedy Hour, Show of Shores, Milton Bcrle (Buick), Toast of the Town (Lincoln-Mercury) , ■Jackie Gleason — cost total of more than $300,000 weekly for talent and production (excluding time) ; including network time charges they’ll cost $24,000,000 for 39 weeks, reports Variety . . . What to do about TV is one of magazine industry’s major problems, Tide Magazine quotes publishing analyst Martin Roston of New York’s Arnold Bernhard & Co. (investments). “For many publishingcompanies,” he says, “TV poses a threat to survival itself,” adding that in a period of “hard sell” TV will be preferred over magazines as advertising medium because it’s “fast sales-producing medium,” and that color TV will further injure magazines by attracting more cosmetic and fashion advertisers . . . NAM’s weekly TV film series, Industry on Parade, begins fourth year with claim it’s telecast by more stations than any other program — one in each of 125 markets — plus stations in 9 foreign countries through Voice of America; formerly filmed by NBC, since Oct. 1 it has been produced by new Arthur Lodge Productions Inc., 550 Fifth Ave., N. Y. ; Lodge was producer of NAM’s series for NBC . . . TV boosts radio in new NBC campaign; 0-&-0 stations to use announcements plugging new NBC-radio shows and local NBC-AM out Personal Notes: George Burbach, gen. mgr. of St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s KSD-TV & KSD, was honored by stations’ staff this week at party on his 40th anniversary with newspaper . . . Leland Matthews, ex-asst. to SparksWithington pres, and onetime Jackson (Mich.) CitizenPatriot staffer, appointed station mgr. of Sparton Radio’s WWTV, Cadillac, Mich. (Ch. 13), due in Nov. . . . Barton K. Feroe named station mgr., WDEL-TV, Wilmington, Del., succeeding Gorman Walsh . . . Jerry Burns named TV director, Win. Connelly sales director, of upcoming KOOL-TV, Phoenix (Ch. 10) . . . F. .T. Brott named engineering director, S. D. Bennett chief TV engineer, Paul Morris technical coordinator of upcoming KOMO-TV, Seattle (Ch. 4), due in Nov. . . . Shaun Murphy, ex-WTVE, Elmira, N. Y., appointed commercial mgr. of upcoming KCRI-TV. Cedar Rapids (Ch. 9) . . . Lee Kerry resigns as promotion mgr. of KPHO-TV & KPHO, Phoenix, to join Bill Burton, station’s former exec, producer, in Los Angeles talent management venture . . . Dixon Lovvorn. ex-WHAS-TV, Louisville, named production supervisor of upcoming WIS-TV, Columbia, S. C. (Ch. 10), due in late Oct. . . . George Ross, ex-W. S. Grant, appointed national sales mgr. of new KHSL-TV, Chico, Cal. (Ch. 12), with new offices in Central Tow-er Bldg., San Francisco . . . Donald 1*. Wise, ex-WBZ-TV, named chief engineer of upcoming WWOR-TV, Worcester (Ch. 14) . . . Lawrence L. Shenfield, co-founder of Doherty, Clifford, Steers & Shenfield, retires as chairman, will continue to serve as consultant . . . Howard Gordon, ex-Diamond Adv., San Francisco, appointed production mgr. of upcoming WPFA-TV, Pensacola, Fla. (Ch. 15) . . . S. J. Frolick named director lets, keyed to out-of-home listening: “Wherever, whenever you listen to radio, listen to NBC radio” . . . Mayoralty candidates in hot New York race using TV in big way; 4 major contenders said to have some $250,000 earmarked for TV-radio, with about 75% of that going for TV Hour-long telecast marking 40th anniversary of B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation League to be carried by all networks Nov. 23 7-8 p.m. from Washington, staged by Rogers & Hammerstein and with President Eisenhower. Bernard Baruch, Eleanor Roosevelt among guests Truce in bitterness between NBC and Norfolk’s WTARTV, which switched from NBC to CBS: NBC okaved World Series for WTAR-TV as well as area’s NBC affiliate uhf WVEC-TV, and WTAR-TV thanked RCA-NBC chairman David Sarnoff in full-page ads . . . ABC film syndication div. under v.p. George T. Shupert, acquires distribution rights to Racket Squad (96 episodes) and Playhouse, formerly Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (26) . . . O. Henry stories go on TV film in next few -weeks for national sponsorship in series of 39 half-hour films, Gross-Krasne productions having acquired TV rights to the 240 O. Henry stories from Doubleday & Co. . . . New twist in open-end TV films: Charles Michelson Inc., radio transcription firm, enters TV field in Jan. with Capsule Myslei ics, series of 5-min. films for local sponsorship, with series star John Ridgely to appear in commercials tailormade for local sponsors who order series before filming is completed . . . Peabody awards entry blanks and descriptive material available this month from Dean John E. Drewry, School of Journalism, U of Georgia, Atlanta; closing date for 1953 entries is Jan. 9, 1954 . . . WJAR-TV, Piovidence, releases Rate Card No. 6, effective Oct. 1 raising Class A hourly rate from $850 to $1000. 1 min. or 20 sec. spots from $50 to $160 . . . WROW-TV, Albany (Ch. 41), due on air shortly, publishes Rate Card No. 1, effective Oct. 1, establishing Class A hourly rate of $250 Upcoming KANG-TV, Waco (Ch. 34) sets Class A hourly late of $150 in Rate Card No. 1, effective Sept. 1. of TV-radio commercial dept., Fletcher D. Richards Inc. . . . Carl Cooper, international v.p. of International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes (IATSE), elected pres, of Hollywood AFL Film Council; Ralph Clare reelected v.p., Edwin T. Hill, treas. . . . Fred M. Farha will be commercial mgr., Douglas Carruth program director of upcoming KMPT, Oklahoma City (Ch. 19) . . . O. K. Garland named chief engineer, Wm. B. Shell program director of upcoming WJHL-TV, Johnson City, Tenn. (Ch. 11) David E. Partridge, ex-gen. sales mgr. for Crosley TV stations, named adv. & sales promotion mgr., Westinghouse Radio Stations, succeeding late W. B. McGill. Oswald F. Schuetfe, 71, ex-newspaperman who successfully directed attack on setup of RCA as originally organized by GE. AT&T, Westinghouse and General Motors, died Oct. 8 of heart attack at Washington’s National Press Club. Acting for group of radio manufacturers, he led fight that resulted in anti-trust consent decree of 1932 which left RCA an independent corporation. Schuette had been an extremely active newsman, was last reporter to leave Berlin after war was declared in 1917, served as president of National Press Club in 1913. Newly elected officers of SMPTE announced at New York convention: Axel G. Jensen, Bell Telephone Labs, engineering v.p.; Barton Kreuzer, RCA, financial v.p.;’ George W. Colburn, George W. Colburn Lab Inc., treas! New members of board of governors: F. N. Gillette & G. C. Misener, eastern district; R. O. Painter & R. H. Ray, central district; L. D. Grignon & R. E. Lovell, western district. Herbert Barnett is president.