Variety (October 1961)

Mrs: Newton ‘'N. Minow, wife. of Federal Communications Commission chairman, hag been. cast ‘ina small. rolé.in the motion currently’ ‘being filmed. here. oo picture, “Advise and Consent,” She ‘plays the secretary: of Henry’ Fonda and appéars in: ‘geveral 7 “gcenes in a long sequence being shot in. the famous Caucus Foom of the’old Senate office’ building here. -She is -being .paid, but. said she will turn her. check over as a donation to Radio Free. Europe. Her: previous acting experience. ‘was as a schoolgirl. Lo British Kids Selective h Viewing Habits; Granada-TV Survey Shows __ Wednesday, October 4, 1961 sents’ fo Frau 5 “Advise London, Oct. 3. + Granada-TV. has. published one of the most comprehensive surveys: of child tv audiences to date...Based on interviews with 995 children} the survey. ‘deals with under-16, and. what they | .throughout the U.K., gandered over 1,990. days. It also indicates when ‘they view, thelr program. preferences, the relation‘ship betw. een. ‘children’s and mothers’ viewing habits and a few other aspects of kidviewing, The survey, carried out : ‘during the °60 Easter school térm, relates: to school term -and (mostly). avinter: ‘months ‘wlewing. It draws no’ con clusions ‘but comes | up with. some 4nteresting facts. Says the report: “During the ‘winter months most children wateh | 1a great deal of tv; nearly 20 Hours. in. an average week for those with | sets which can receive both com: ‘mercial tv and BBC programs. and 16 hours per week. for those who can receive BBC only.” _-Where the kids: have a cholce of srograms. thes. come in -heavily for. ‘go |. -the commercial channel—78% for it while only. 22% wateh BBC, says the survey. There’s ers and, naturally dig the action ‘and dramatic’ products, They shun. informative and discussion pro‘clined to: predict the year in. which | gtams although. according. to..the ‘report, . thevwatch: the same-programs .as: their parents. Children. will nearly always find something: else to do if a ty show bores them which accounts: for’ the erractic peak’ times ‘shown in-graphs." _ Another point ‘made. is that. the ‘younger generation stay up -Iong after '.their :normal.bedtimes. to watch certain “special”. programs. And, apparently, there is no clear -“eut off” time for child viewing— ° the actual program. being more. important than the slot. Flender’ S. Two: Parter On Denmark’s Role In Plight of’ Wartime Jews ‘Séripter-novelist Harold Flender, just: back from Denmark writing ..two documentary films for CBS-TV on. the Danish. rescue of the Jews during World War II, :is. calling jit “Aan Act Of Faith.” Two-parter is scheduled for Nov..19 and 26 on CBS’ “Look Up and Live’’ series. A CBS team of ‘five went to Den‘mark,. utilizing. rescuers andTescued in the documentary... Richard Siemanowski, producer. and. John. Desmond, director, ‘used the Laterna Films’ motion picture -gtudio facilities for the. actual. film ‘ing. Denmark saved (97% of ‘its Jew ish population in “one of the-most. remarkable escape stories in his ‘tory,’ ‘says Flender. “Virtually the. entire population of ‘Denmark acted as an. underground move“ment to ferry’.Denmark’s 8,000 .Jews to Sweden. Equally as. inspir‘fng is the welcome home the Danish. Jews: got after the war, when ‘they returned to find’: their valucables, jobs, property, homes ‘Intact. In many éases, :their liomes. were _ newly painted by. friends, and bouquets of roses left on: the table,’ ” he concludes. _ Flender is also writing “Democracy’ and ‘the: American ‘Writer’ for: CBS-TV. ‘Filmed ~ version of -his. hovel, “Paris. Blues,” _isjust due. on Broadway... His original, “8th Avenue,” will be produced in New; York by. Film Projects: Ine, definitely tend. -to considerable” evidence |. that youngsters are selective. view-. by BBC-TVto: start a Welsh na-' tional ‘television. service has been ‘turned down for. the time being. ther developments can be. ‘sanc‘tioned -until the Pilkington .Com ernment. -would. be the local penetration. of. ‘than the national penetration, that ‘ago, in that order, are the current ‘including ‘Washington, Oct. 8. BBC. Rejected i in Bid: For Welsh TV Service "London, Oct. 3. _ -An application ‘to the government The web was prepared to build new transmitters and give Welsh viewers their own. programs. . The Postmaster . General, how-. ever, has told the BBC that no fur mittee,. which is inquiring into-the. future of the ‘broadcasting services, | has ‘made: its report to the gov Burns Inmetiate Tint Target: Chi, Chicago, Oct. 3.. ~ RCA prexy John L. Burns’ de CBS and :ABC might ‘get into color: telecasting: .but he opined. that it tint in certain: key: markets, rather would leave them. noaltérnative: | Los Angeles, ‘New York and Chi leaders in tint set sales, he pointed out, and he suggested that when colo: -becomes a rating factor “in those, markets the holdout networks will have to-join up. : That, presumably, would pein Phase 3. inthe history..of color]. video. Burns believes. that color |. entered Phase 2‘Fecently.when all | the major ° manufacturers (save Motorola) ‘began ‘producing tint units. He reported, ‘at a press conference prior to-addressing RCA Chicago dealers : last Wednesday (271, that RCA’s production lines now. ate. operating at .a -higher capacity. ‘than ever -before in. the seven-year history “of color, and he said that after’ the. company’s. new. liné ‘was introduced last June over the previous. year. He called color tv “the only: major new consumer ‘durable ‘on. the market. today.” In 1960, he’ said, the eritire industr y notched a volume. of. $100,000,000: He anticipates, ‘for. 1970, a color tv market. of .$4:3 billion,. -Feceiver'. equipment, sales, .servicé. and. broadcasting. Burns insisted: gn keeping certain eurrent information—such as’ the number of. color ‘tv homes’ -accounted. for and RCA’s third quarter. sales volume—under ‘corporate. wraps. ‘Walter W. Watts, ‘prez: and. board Chairman of RCA. Sales Corp., said. there was little likelihood that tint. set prices. would decrease: substan‘ tially’ in’ any foreseeable period. He said there is’ no. technological breakthrough apparent that. would make the. parts and. ‘assembly chéaper: About the only: thing that .|-might ‘drive prices down, he sub| mitted, would be mass. production | for. greater volume sales. He also pointed out that it: was the more’ expensive models, in the $6-$700. class, rather than ‘the “stripped down” lower-price models (starting at $495), that -are . selling: fastest: now. ‘| decision-makers. may ‘the New Year rolls around, sales. Texecs atthe three television net-. | works. can only be happy at the New York & LA.| dealer | orders ‘virtually doubled | RADIO-TELEVISION RE IN ’62 , ee OLS PACE Minow’ UPWARD CYCLE! Whatever migraines the program. have when prospects for the first quarter of ' ~ ‘lige2. From -this vantage point, ‘it’s shaping into . ‘bonanza: proportions — | for a variety of economic consider. ations that are due to get the webs | back on the road in high gear after” a fourth quarter: slowdown. quarter were badly clipped: by therecession climate: last spring when ' {advertising commitments: were set, a bright business outlook is loosen. tinues as expected, the SRO: sign ; should be up shortly on first quarter availabilities for that reason alone. Additional web. optimism, -how! ‘ever, is. keyed by a new selling «. ‘pattern emerging in ‘the automo| tive industry. Traditionally, Detroit had been breaking announcements of its new models during the fall season with.a-concomitant high | concentration. of tv ‘advertising during the. final quarter. But: now ‘the’ unusually © high number of model offerings in the standard | {and compact. classes is prompting | the auto makers to spread the an ‘nouncement » dates over alonger span with some spillover into the new year. AS: a result, quarter of 1962. is due to: ‘get some of that extra icing off those model kickoffs: 4. trend in the oil industry where Tegional companies have been com brands that now find it more economical to pitch their selling message nationally. via network. television. In-this country are Ameriean Oil Co:, the. Esso-Humble: combine and Mobile Oil, all of ‘which are due to be major. spenders on the network scene next year. ABC Loses Out As i Canada Nixes US. Web Station Deals| Ottawa, Oct. :3. United States networks are banned from:buying stock in Cana-. dian teleyesion. stations under ‘a. policy set in-Ottawa by the’ Board. ‘of Broadcast Governors: Policy re‘tulted from BBG’s. denial of the American Broadcasting Co.’s offer: to ‘buy stock in Toronto tv indie -CFTO-TV. Canada's Broadcasting Ae t, non-Canadian. participation in Canadian stations .and networks. ABC’s purchase, if it had gone through, would have given it 25% of CFTO-TV’s ‘stock and a voting. interest of 18.9%. The station is ‘controlled by the Toronto Telegram, daily. The transaction, if completed, would have had no ef fect. on that. control. . Decision was a switch. from BBG's original statement on the ABC bid. The board sald, ast month, that it would okay the deal unless experi {enced Canadian broadcast interests produced an offer ‘substantially as. favorable” as ABC's. The new Ottawa statement said BBG had re considered and “is not prapared to. recommend any transaction involy ing financial participation of American “networks. in Canadian | television | stations.” “M&A’s Africa Sale. Hollywood, Oct. 3. “By-Line Steve Wilson,” orig inally telecast under the title of “Big: Town,” has been. sold for! ‘theatrical | exhibition throughout the Union of South Africa by M & Sia Alexander Productions. PP Re, Where ‘sales for this year’s final . the: first. Another. factor | ‘igs ithe merger: ‘bined ‘into nationwide corporate. passed in 1958, okays-up to 25% ‘calibre where fees cost between $70,000 and $150,006; |reat ABC Vv Sales Pattern For Ernie’s Daytimer ABC-TV's daytime sales, under early 1930s. Vp: Ed Bleier, is setting the net. Work sales pattern. this week for the upcoming Tennessee Ernie ‘Ford's daytime .strip. Kickoff date programming for youngsters drawing a sharp parallel to the Children’s Hour’ Had Its Paral In Radio Back in the ’30s + The current FCC challenge to the television networks to meet their responsibilities in the area of is. days of network radio back in the The broadcasters’ problem now and then of appeasing various pressure groups by public service efforts is identical and it’s the opinion of one veteran :for the Ford show, which is due to radio producer in the educational go very early in 1962, will also be‘ "Set this week.. Bleier assembled his national ' field that the solution for the tv industry may be similar, if not pre: cisely the same, to that hit upon by staff Monday (2) in New York for one of the major radio webs three powwows on future plans. The: sales ‘staffers -also celebrated ABC j Daytime’s .95°G sellout for the! ing up. the flow of. coin to. the webs "fourth quarter, a. record for the ! from next year's industrial ad-network in this area. Sales per-! cps d budgets. If the upward -eycle con-:.sonnel at the. meeting included ! work : Sherman. Adler and Marshall Karp, } assistant daytime sales managers; Jack Reilly and Douglass Steeff, ! Chicago: salesmen ; Vincent Fran-: cis, western division’ regional network sales ales’ manager, and others, Nat (King) Cole’s. CBC Special Seen Incepting Pattern _ Toronto, Oct. 3. Here pioneering a 50-50 -partnership show with the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., Nat (King) Cole will appear in a Nov. 7 special—ovér the CBC network— which, he predicts, will see an immediate influx of American names into Canadian tv with their’ ¢ = own companies .of talent. ‘Cole explained in Toronto that -the ‘CBC and his organization— ‘Kell-Cole-—-has a 50-50 arrangement, -based on his Capitol album, “Wild as Love.” which will be an innovation and the biggest thing of its type that the CBC has ever done, this concurred in by Stan Harris, CBC producer of the Cole special. If the package proves a winner, it will be sold to U.S. networks, ! ,. ‘with latter knowing what it is picking up through the. reaction from: American webs watching and | -hearing over-the-border CBC tele casts. With the CBC as a partner, Canadian cross-country web has avoided the high feethat Cole would otherwise-have commanded. Said Cole; “In America, it would cost ‘some $250,000 to put on the ‘Wild as Lave’ program and the CBC. just couldn't afford it with its. population. Here we-are doing it’ at a third.of the cost. If the U.S. networks see it in advance, they wil Ihave a distinct advantage to work on. I am glad I was the first artist that the CBC decided to go with.” Stan Harris, the CBC producer of the Nat (King) Cole special, ‘said the CBC is hoping to get a world market and that they “hoped to be doing more shows of the same type.” He claimed that. “we in Canada cannot afford to. pay for performers of Cole’s alone would and don’t forget that, while Cole is the star of the show, there are about 75 performers and 100 tech-. nicilans—all Canadians—who are getting employment out of it.” Part of the special was Cole’s singing of. “It's a Beautiful Evening” while paddling a canoe in a Jagoon of Toronto Island, plus filming on Yonge Street, the elty’s main drag, early yesterday (2) morning. . GRANDMAISON’S POST ’ + Ottawa, Oct. 3. Aime Grandmaison of Montnamed _ assistant. research director, programs, and Hugh Batchelor,. also’ of (Montreal, as assistant research director, economics, for the Board of Broadcast Governors. Grandmaison is w.k. acfor-scripter who has also served as verbatim reporter. : decades ago. Leon Levine, producer of tke jlongrunning highly regarded “American School of the Air” on uring the golden era of netradio, defines the contempo |rary task of the broadcasters as | follows: “How is television to adapt jits techniques for a meaningful ! and sustained effort to satisfy the educhtional needs of children in the crucial six-to-12 age bracket?” Accordirig to Levine, attempts to create juvenile-slanted news segments or kiddie shows with a highminded, but random point of view, are essentially short of the mark. They may make Newton Minow’'s or Robert Kennedy’s children happy, but they are not utilizing the powerful tool of television at its most effective angle. For Levine, thes “American School of the Air” concept still serves as the key to commercial television’s entry into the educational picture. It fulfilled three basic requirements for an educational series, whether on radio or tv. These are (1) an integrated approach over a programming cycle; (2) an element of showmanship which permits each stanza to stand ‘on its own feet in making an edu cational point in an entertaining way; and (3) suitability for both home and classroom use. The broad categories which television must cover in its programe ming for youngsters were, accordIng to Levine, already clearly defined in the format of fhe “American School” series. An across-theboard half-hour late afternoon eries, ‘American School’ pioneered documentary techniques in exploring history, literature, science and music with an approach that supplemented formal school ‘studies. Levine pointed out, moreover, that the “American Schooi’ was supervised by a nationai board of eonsultants, comprising educators and parents, which served as an excellent public service shield for the broadcasters, aformula which (Continued on page 57) British Relay Wireless, Like Com’! Contractors, Makes Nothing But $ London, Oct. 3. Television in Britain continues to make money. And not just for the commercial contractors, either. At a meeting in October, Sir Robert Renwick, chairman of the British. Relay Wireless and Television group will tell his board of an increase from $6,928,897 to $9,847,558 in trading profits. This increase, which was recorded for the period May 1, 1960-April 30,1961, bears out the forecast that the company would record a similar increase in the ’60-61 year as it did in the '59-60 year. The final dividend of 7% on capital increased by a _ one-for eight rights issue, makes the year’s total 17% again, also as forecast. After all charges, including a heavy depreciation provision of $7,168,000 ($4,704,000 last year) the net profit of $1,485,982 compares with $1,894,953. Recommendations of the Pilkington: Committee, currently examing tv and radio over here, and the changes in receiver design have led the directors to set aside $560,000 as a special allocation against contingencies.