Variety (Sep 1933)

36 VARIETY ADIO Tnesikft lfepieiiil»er 26, 1933 Pliil Baker, itir Showman, Leads Pep Rally for iOM Salesmen By Pan Goldberg -It—took- Chicaepi Sept.. 25. isJiowinalv-^iT build Chicago's Givic ,Opcx' ijousie, one of the fliiest, most magnificent amuiseipent eto- ppriums In tlie Avbrld, and proven a faillire every branch of (show business from grand ,opei:'a to George Whitens 'Scandal^.' It tooit anbther millionaire . non- showman, raclio ; plus the milllpn- ire, packing industry; to put over the theiEitre in a brand new amuse- ment business. And tliat's the ra- dioing of the Armour ■ Packing cornpany's show to a . specia-lly in- vited, audience of .by.er. 4^000 Armour dealers, their • AviveSi; friendis , and .anybody; who was around at the time. . Phil Baker is the star of the . Ar-. mour prdgrahi;. and showed the At- mpur customer-men how their product was being advertised by aiid ■ through. the amusement -chani- riels. It all spells showmanship and the; newer. sale^smanship. Baker was the star ^hoWman and salesmen in the case, and showmanship came If the Armour dealers ' cam6 In doiibt they went aw'fiy conyiriced that Armour company was leaving nothing undone. t6 make the pub^ lie and listeners in Ai:mouf minded. This is the new show busirtess. did guard of -vaudeville and the otdTtime showman mi^ht have his heart broken by this Exhibition . of ttte 'new show busfness. "The split - second ' schedule, the pacing and routining, the radlp-tube direction all would be wrong from the vaude- villian's side.. But this is a. new Jera. New people, moving . In new dlrePtlons. Educated in a-new way. Bernie-Baker Reunion Smack of the show was the re^ Vhlon of the old Phil Baker-Ben Bernie act. That part the^. old- timer In . show business would have enjoyed, it was one part of the show that didn't appear like some- thing: out ^ of a . tin can. Baker did a terrific. Job of. the eyeninig, being on thd.t stage from 8:15 to 11:16 without a break and without wearing them out. Paced the. show throughout, doing the reg- ular broadcast from '8:30 to 9 o'clock and followed with two hours of ad lib tilowning. There were, a couple of other acts dow-n as a fa vor, but through It all was Baker. Running Baker a close second was Roy Shield, who, besides doing the band, leading for the ether broadcast, managed to keep time for a. dozen ad lib 'acts without a rehearsal.. Neil Sisters and the King's Jesters were in and out both ^ oh tl^e air show and for the Ar- mour dealers. Harry McN^vghton did the 'Three Trees' number, now Identified with Joe Penner, but ex- plained by McNaughton as intro- duced by his uncle,-Tom McNaugh- ton, In the musical show some years ago, 'Sylvan Queen.' It" Was all occasioned by the fourth, .anniversary of Arn^our's show on the air and In so doing denionstrated what's the neW ap- peal in show business and the! new direction , of the public taste. What the old-tiihe showman would thiiik of it really doesn't matter ahynttore. H.e would bis; lost., in the crush around the mlcrpphohe. Revolt ..-.^ Sept.. 25;-. -. Radio program director.when asked i why he had' resigned' from, the local NB0 produp- tloh staft cracked* '1 don't Want to hold a .stop, watph in my hand for the-rest of my iife."^ UNION THREAT Organization of the NBC and .Co- lumbia engineers on both the New York^and Chicago ends^ into a union of their. o'wH 'was being rushed .the past week by . agents frpni the In- ternational Brotherhood 6f Elec- trical Workers so as to have some- thing., tangible : to Intercede for Wheii the hearing on the btoad- castlng code .opens befdre Sol Rosenblatt In Washington tpmor- rbW (27). At the. same tirne, the: IBEW has been lining up the studio and- transmitter techiiioians on - the. .payroll of locally- controlled stations in cities where the electrical union has .branches. O. is. Hanson, mgf; of NBC'a '•' gineering department, 'wa's dele- gated by the network higherups last 'week to get on the'Chicago scene quickly and try to stem the move-, iaent. While Hanson' conperned himself In thie midwest sector thie unipn's agitations around the web's New York studios netted a subistan- tial list of new members. ABS WANTS SUSTAINERS Meanwhile Rumors of WMCA Web Are Heard Ed Wynn's Amalgamated Broad- casting System, slated to get going this week Is after fill-in material for sustaining features. Brooklyn Paramount has been approached to run a wire ;In for pick-up stuff. QtliSir Jndle.:joper.at.ed. theatres are simiiarly ajjiproached, Pahchon & Marco Is being Inter- ested for talent. Bob Collier^ rep- resenting P&M, has been huddling with Ota Gygi of ABS but with lit- tle developments. Federal Broadpasting Systerh, new outfit now oper3,tinff WMCA (Don- ald Flamm continues In an advisory capacity, but Jack Nelson is the new president), is said to hiave its pwh Ideas for another network,, of powerful wattage proportions. ABS' key. station Is 260 watts ,a,nd labeled /yvBNXi an. amalgamation of three smalUes In New York, WCDA, WMSG and WBNX (heretofore a Bronx, N: Y. station). The other ABS ainiiates ire WTNJ, .Trenton, iJOO wats; WPEN, Philadelphia, 260 watts daytime: and 100 'watts ?it night; WDEIj, 'Wilmington, BOO by day. and 260 watts at liight; WCBM, Baltimore. 250 by day and 100 watts at night: and WOL, Washington, lOO-watter. Anti-Gab Stance by W(XY CrediU Minimuin, Plugs to 100 Words for Program Zip Orchids jprom Mint? At the J. Walter Thompson ofllcea the symbol pf .congrats for a Job well dpiie now Is an orchid. . One of these was jseht around Monday (yesterday) to Herscell Williams for his . Work on the 'Roses and Drums' show, broadcast from darnegle Ilali the night before. 'Previpu'sly it. used to,be or- chids for the woriien oh the staff and car nations for the Jess gentle sex. Brewery Sponsor N.G. For U. of Minn. Games Minneapolis, Sept. 26. University of Minnesota ^athletic department has refused to dispose of radio rights to biroadcast its foot- ball games thid Reason to a, St. Paul brewery. It will permit any station, or ad vertiser in another approved line of. business to sponsor such broad- casts, it says, but it feels that the 3.2 beverage-and its athletics can't mix. Doesn't want to encourage beer drinking among students. Whiteinan*s Pitts er . Pittsburgh, Sept. 26, Here for a day on his barnstorm- ing tour,.. .Paul Whiteman made good. use. of his tinrie by picking Selda Gastlej of Happy Felton's band, to succeed Peg6:y Healy as his personality singer. Miss Healy is leaving the Outfit to; go pictures and Miss Castle Will join up linihe- .diately.. . . ., Jazz king, got a load of Miss Cas- tle at the William Penn Hotel's Ur- ban. Roomi, ' where Fclton Is cur- ■ >-rently apijearihg. H6r' likely suc- cessor in the Pelton outfit Is Do- lores Reed; forihierly with jack Pet- * tis' erew, and a fa,v here. Chicago, Sept. 25. Order has gone through the NBC office here that programs out of Chicago must have that fact men- tioned at the. finish, of .the Sessipn It marks . another . attempt of the local NBC ofllce to identify this ter- rltory In the minds . of the public, Lookis like the credit line will click ■this . time. Other trial of the Chi cago announcement was killed by .a couple of sponsors who had the New York complex. ETHEL WATERS SET : American oil Co. has closed .'witli Ethel Waters for. a series oh. CBS with the. starting date of the prp- gram,now depending on the" selec- tion of an orchestra. For the latter phase of , the show the commercial Is flgnring on a, symphonic unit; Hugo Rlesenfeld Was tagged for the baton assignment> but previous ttlpttire scoring contracts prevented acceptance. Coast Oil Digs Deep As Football Proves Costly at $135,000 San Francisco, Sejit. 25;" Associated Oil's season of football broadcasting . on the Don tee and NBC networks has finally gotten tinder way, but It's cpstlng the oiler nearer to $136,000 than the $110,000 originaliy Intended. Associated .first..planned .. $60,000 for the colleges of the Pacific Coast Conference and around. $50,000 for the time on both networks. Then local CJatholic schools put up a squawk land wanted broadcasts with a piece of change tossed in. So it cost Associated reported $5,000 for St. Mary's, $3,000 for Santa Clara and $2,000 for University of San Francisco,. in addition to the extria, chunk of dpiugh for those games pn NBC's KPO. Just when It looked, like every thing was settjied along came G. Norris. fHiW, who . handles all the cpllegiate ad'vertlsing on the GOast. His was ,a regular' agency fee, amounting to: about $i9i,000 for Swinging the broadcasting deal for the schools. Don Thompson for NBC and Ernie Smith for CBS a.re announcing the games, and at an added commercial fee, too.. CHICAGO'S BY-LINE Announcer'6 to State Birthplace of ther Sbov/ Spft-Shoeing Talent, •The radio talent agents are set ting the Hblly.woPd haijiti Their deals for auditions are more mysterious In their shtish- shushing than any film studio deal over, a; screen test. Like the studios, the ad agencies encourage this Kush stu^f: 'BliACK CROOK' ON RADIO Rochester, Sept. 26. Courtland Manning, old-.time ac .torr..ls^broadcasting=a^erAcs=o£-^plarys of the '80s over .station WHAM Fridays at 8 p. m. Program in eludes music, history of the play and dialogue; Written by Maimihg in cdnjunctloh. with David J. .Kess ler.jof the Journal-America;^ stiait. Fii'St jjlay given Was 'Old Home- stead' and 'I31ack Crook' the.second Startfl as sustaining feature, -with expectation advertiser will take it over. Kansas City, Sep.t. 25 By a unanimous.'vote of the con^ ference directors of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic As sociation broadcasting of the foot- ball games of the Big Six colleges will be discontinued this year.. By this decision no game played on any of the Big Six gridirons, whether conference or. non-conference, will be put on the air. It is hoped that the discOntinu ance of broadcasting will increase ticicet sales to the games Irectors.realize that.their action win bring- protests .from alumni at a, diistance, who have enjoyed the broadcasts of .the games, but think the step is necessary m order to obtain more financial support. <:;. L; Brewer, secretary of the directors association, stated that the decision will not only remove the anhounc ers from the radio booths and press boxes pf' conference schools, but will placie restrictions upon the- use of play-by-play telegraph reports of gam^s dispatched fforii Bix Six fields; Telegraph companies and news- paper correspondents will be pro- vided facilities fpr co'vering the gahieis, only with the understanding that their play-by-play reports wUl not be used for broadciistlng. AUTO TRANSPORT NEWS ,Ghicagp., Sept..25.- 45limTES Comedians are of the opinion that the ideal rliinning time fpi* ah .eve- ning varlety shOw would be 4ft min- utes. Heretofore, .the broken time has not been used, a .fuU hour or'a half hour being, typical.. Comics think 30 minutes too little \yhien a dance band, two of. thtee commercial plugs, maybe a singer or quartet, have to be slipped In aipng witit the humorous interliides. Con- tr-ariwise, a full hour; Is a job to keep going ^nd a certain amount of pad- ding with the possibility pf ennui setting in, is a danger-. Some radio men like the ide^i as the added 1.5 minutes in each hour's program that . Would be opened up for booking would be. very cbnyenl- ent in the peak hours. This is par- ■ticularly.true In the caise of 15-mirt- ute script .programs that have prac-> tically been driven oft the evening lists tot lack -of ther networks' ability to cleat" time, ;due to the big, pre- tentious shows' growing trend to- 'ward the full, hour performance. ' Sept. 2B. * Continuity tor . sustaining prp-. grams at "WCKY, .Covington, Ky... must be cut.^to the. bOnp' by order of ■ Ly B. Wilsohi presid€)ht of the across-the-rlver statloii, which styles Itself 'the yolcevof Cincinnati.' Verbal xjhlscllng Job has bieen placed in charge of . Elmer Dressman, former leg and deisk hound for Cincy dallies, now directing publicity and script .for the 5,000 Waiter. Wilson holds, it unnecessary announce the artist's name and tune, title before every 'vocal pr instru- mental .number. His studio, liro- grams now open and continue with- out artnOhncemGnts, ' except where abi3olutely neCefesary. At ihO: close the announcer tells in a few words whose entertainmeht been heard. : NeW i"ulirig,. Wilson reckpns, will enhance, the value of, commercial; announcements, which also will be held down, to 75 .or 100. Words to iypid boring listeners. WCKY Is on the recently formed 'Center of Population" net, Includ'^ ing WHAS, Lbuisville, Ky.; . WSM, Ni^hville, Tenn., and .W,SB, Aflanta* Ga,' This web's third confimevcial starts Oct. 2 for Crazy Water Crys- tals, the: program featuring Happy Jack Turner and aired 15 minutes on weekday mornings. Net's other biz accounts thus far are Karly & Daniel Co., feed dealers, presenting; Smiling^ Ed'McGorihell, and Ballard & Ballard, millers of Obellslc fipur, offering a Jug band. McConhell faces miice in. WCKY studios and the Turner and jug band programs originate at WHAS.. Continental Automobile Co, goes on the NBC Blue chain for a scries of 16-minute sessions starting isept. 25, and once weiekly. Placed through the Grace ilolli- day agency of Detroit the Continent tal series will be based on hews flashes, pf the "latest developments and newest feats In transportation. Program -svill be called the. 'March of Transportation.' Winnipeg Station with Actor at Helm Perks Winnipeg, Sept, 26, Under the leaderahli) of Frank Wade, an ez-stock actoir, the. Westr- ern Broadcasting Bureau here has made progress against thie local telephone company controlled radio monopoly and have advanced .Into bigger quarters In the Grain Ex- change building. WBB is classed as the local Broadway — the professionals '-^ struggling to get a recognition. Daylight seems to be dawninff. for the Radio Commission of the Do- minion has selected for chain-wide brpadcasting a large number of shows from WBB. Doc Guy, the singing salesman. Art Strauss* band, Leon Zuckert's Argentinians, •We Three,V singers, and Frank Wade's mystery drama productions, have all . on the air via this source. WBB is owned by Dawson Rich- firdspn, grain trade news ■fiublisher. Sponsor Insures Comic To protect the investment/ It's made in exploitation stunts con- nected -with the Sunday night pro* grani which starts. Oct. 8/ leischr mann Yeast has taken put a $50,000 insurance policy on JToe Penner. Responsibility covers the first 13 weeks pf the comc's contract. Most of the preliminary expenditiires have had to do with wlndW cards, throwa\yays and novelties with each piece, of merchandising giving the spotlight to Penner. =-Hbike=the"same=^comTTrercial's=Ruay Vallee affair, the Sunday night stanza will originate from ■ NBC's Times Square stUdios. FrOm the sales angle the difference between the Vallee Thursday night show and tlie newComer program is that the former confines Itself to plugr ging the two-penny yeast cakes, while the latter is put on as a good will builder for the neighborhood baker, NBC Production Changes; Some Are Promotionis Chicago, Sept. 26. . NBC proceeding, to build up .Us local .production, staff- following the resignation of Jim Whipple and Dave Lindley. Joe Ainley coiries' over to NBC from. CBS this week. Ainley had been with the local CBS staff for. almost four years. Basil Liough'ran came Into NBC last Week from WTAM! In Cle.ve- landt Also It becomes, apparent that the 'tentative' employment of Lloyd Harris with the NBC pirOductlon staff ivlli become a .permanent post. Noble Kane Is back following a long layoff with a broken leg, but now managing with cane and crutch. Another promotion In the Chicago NBC office sends Maurice Wetzel up a couple of rungs as the assistant to Clarence Menser, chief of the production department. Wetzel rates as the^ace and vet- eran of the productlpn staff of NBC having handled the top Job of the department when Menser Was on his vacation. Irene Rich on Radio Chicago, Sept, 25i Welch Grape JUice starts NBt!: on Oct. 4 with Irene Rich, ex of pictures,, as the attractioni. Will' run for 15-minute /stretches out of Chicagd on Wednesday and Ffidiay evenings oyer the . Blue networks Placed thi:ough the Kastor agency the program ■will bp a . combo of dramatic and miisic bits with most of the drama parts being taken from the life experiences of Miss Rich. Quibbles, Quits Los Angeles, Sept, 25. Leo. B. Tyson, manager of KHJ. resigned following differences of opinion oyer management With C. Ellsworth Wylle» general manager fOr the Don Lee coast CBS chain. Wylie is now. filling both berths, FRANK STEEL SETS UP SHOJ ^ ^ glilTO^g7-Septr25r^ Frank xSteel has set up his. O'wn ofllCe loapilly as radio counsellor for agencies and advertisers.. Steel is now handling radio accounts for two ad. agencies.. Critchfield and RuthTauff & Ryan. Steel originally w exclusively' With Critchfield but Is now branch- ing put on his own to handle ether probie,rns for agencies Without reg- ular radio oxecs;