Variety (Oct 1940)

Wedncsdafr October 9. 1940 RADIO 25 GYPPING : ; Badit^'broiadbasting" succfiss> in the United,Statics that it has the happy ability, to cover up flops, make blunders seem unimportant, and, in general, to cushion, absorb and neutralize' lessrthahrSatisfactory ;per^ 'forinanccs;within the, pf thfe; industry's baiic poj^u- larity Avith the; masses^ Hertce any statement that 'this will riVin the busi^iess unless it's pirev doesn't make serise; iic;Yertheies$, lh>a spirit:;©^calm, uflexeittd- but profound 4^spair^ let it be a;ffirmed tha the so-ealled radio repair man has always n indSstiil is one: of the:great^^^^ Almost any gathering bf average prbvide^ ample eyid:6tice. .eft the . petty^ rackets ^ ai^ -^nuisaiices habitually practiced upon the set-buying or set-owning public by meii Avho represent themselves tt) on se^ts; coiU se the average set-oWrier cannot kiiow a good, man froim a bad^6ne:;until after: hie leavesv iT new'aerizils, new tubes,' new gadgets which: ma.y or may not be necessary. They spend hciurs tinkering around. Theii they collect their fees and depart and the set-owner a little later finds that he jjeen liornswoggled—again. Or there is the set that won't because the maid has knocked oiit the connecting, socket^and put it back .upside down. How many: set-owners have been charged $5, for a -repairman' reversing the prongs of the socket ? Big fees and quick, makeshift jobs are typical. The. phony repairman violates most of the codes which city governments enforce oh electricians. Ajid; iio two radio repairmen a set, or how much it will has trv to will cost to m agree on; s wrong ake it Ti The N. A. B.'shows itself well informed on the facts X)f life when it fears that the pending wholesale wavelength shiftmg of 777 American stations will provide a glorious gypping oppoir tuhity which won't help the radio broadcasting industry.^ ; ; : the wholesale gypping will undoubtedly occur next spring and it is doubtful thit anything beyond^such sions as this can be done about it. However the comfor^iiig thing about broadcasting is that it can survive the worst efforts of th« fumbling, faking small fry. .V- . mm irihan of FCC with Na- tipital Defehise Cbor4inat6i^ Role Added Looms as:All- F^bwerf ul: in Brbadcjasting Businciss"' ■' CENSOR FEARS .. (NBC-red has again run ahead of Columbia on gross tim« billings.. CBS last month got $3,108,448, while, the red account- ed for $3,132,005. For Columbia it was a boost of 21.3% over the tally^which prevailed Septeihber, .1939. Mutual grossed $283,463 the past month, an increase of 34.6% over the parallel month of 1939. ^'r^^V'-' On the first months of the year Columbia is up 22.1 % ; NBC, 10.8%, and Mutual, 23a%.) ^ ' -r}] \'V-\: ' v COLUMBIA . Chicago, Oct. 8. With the .current week's broadcaat, tha Fitch Bandwagon broadcast rid«s Hoti: hook-up of ; IM stations on the NBC-Red web. : : Added were 25 outlets at th« In- stigation of the Ramsey agency of Davenport (la.), which handles $he. Fitch shampoo account, Radkey Teadwes Cincinnati, Oct, 8. University of Cincinnati, which in- augurated an elementary course in radio sciript writing; last sea^^^ In its . Evening._ CqlJ?ge, Jias added a class for study of advahceidi "^icripti Instructor for both classes is Arthur Radkey, assistant educational di rector, of WLW, who has written mpr^' than 2,000 programs, ranging from drama to music criticism'; since getting into radio five years ago, Last season's elementary coiirse was taken by persons from 17 to 55 . years old, including teachers, news paper writiers, fashion comnientators ■aihd an agriculturist. - ' i • Career at Five • ■■: Toledo, Oct. 8 Diana Jeanne SehUltz, former Toletlo youhgster.who began her ra- dio debut On a chfildren^s proiraim at WSJ>D, 'Toledo, now has her owii. -minute ;: program . On. WMAN, PUBUSHER'S SON RUNS WCBI, COLUMBUS, MISS. Louisyille, Oct. 8. New station WCBI was opened, in Columbus, Miss., Wednesday (?). Operating with 250 kw. power, on 1370. Station is owned by the Colum- bus Dispatch, with Barney Imo*, Jr., charge. His father ' is editor and publisher of the newspaper. ■ Stiff has been set, and consists of Walter O. Allen, formerly WSGN, Birmingham, commercial manager; Bill Williams, program director, who comes to WCBI via KTAT. KFDM, KORN, and who Avas for a time man^ ager of WORM, Grenada, Miss.; Rob- ert Montgomery, chief; engineer, Jimmy Atendale; assistant; Houston Cox, news editor; Paul Cresap, for- merly WSKB, and Gene .Edwards, recently with WHUB. C.ookesville, Tenn~Misr'^fiiine-:Fbgarty^^ tlonist-secretary. Many programs will oriiginate at the Mississippi State College for Women.- where-special studios-, ha-ve. been installed, v., , . BEN GRAUER DEANINQ Gets Release to Appear With Kyser'i Collere 16- Mansfleld, O. ' Slie; is only starting Oct. 6. five years old. HICHARD MAXWELL'S ALBUM Richard Maxwell, curreint con- ductor of a Mondaly through Friday afternoon program on CBS network called 'A Friend In-De6d' has been Signed by Columbia Records to turn out an album of recorded 'Songs oi Cheer and Comfort'. He's been on air for 13 years, liast four at He was once sl chorus boy in the yreenwich. Village Follies. -: • .. Befi Grauer has bbtaihed a release from, his contract to handle the an- hounciiig chores on. 'Mr. District Atr. torhey' in order to resume his ^>.lay- ing of the 'Dean' on. Kay Kyser's 'College ; 0f : -Musical: Kno.wlediie,* which starts, eirnariatihg from New York again Oct. 23. CpnflictlOnVbe- tween the broadcast times of the two programs "'made 'it -necessary ;ifor Grauer to choose one or the other. 'Attorney' airs 9:30-10 p.m. Thurs- days, and Kyser follows immediately (lOrli p.m ). both on NBC Red. ■ Announcer*s last program" for. At- torneiyr' is Oct. 16.. Kyser's band goejj into the Waldorf hotel, New York, Oct. 24, •/-■■■V - ■' : . Sawyer Prez of WING Dayton, Oct. 8. : Charles Sawyer has replaced Stan- ley :M. Krohn, Jr., as president of WSMK. Inc., which operates WING. ;' Ronald B. Woodyard, the station's general manager', is now also a v.p.y; succeeding S. M. Krohn, Sr., r«- cigned. . ■ .; j'. V > / • Washington, Oct. 8, . Janies L. Fly, chairman of the Federal Communications Commis- sion, has apparently succeeded in eliminating Steve Early as . .a. go- between for the broadcasting indus- try . vvith ■ the White House. Chaiir- man Fly has obtained a pledgie from the networks that any subject which has' to do with radio is to be handled through him and that therfe is .to be no contacting:; ot the White House; secretary. Move hot only usurps the firstr>hand connectiqns which the President's priess secretary formerly exercised, biuit reinforces Fly's admihr istrative control oyef . broadcasting/ His influence is .now. becoming all- powerful. - •■ , . It was xumored last week that Richard C, Patterson, Jr.; now .chair- man of the RKO board and formerly ah executive v.p. at NBC, was being groomed for the post of defense; co- ordinator of broadcasting, but Wash- ington insiders expressed themselves as certain that Fly had b6en firmly escohced in this spot and that there wasn't a chance ot anyone .super- seding-hirn.■ . '■ ,. Patterson also was fornxerly an assistant secretary of commerce in the Roosevelt administration. . Some See Censprship . . Toreckst Of what btoadcaisters-.may be in for is the initial FCC move to tighten control over the programs of the nation's few, already closely, watched, ■ international tifansniitters. Stricter operating rules are in pros- pect, as a. result of the! general hysteria over fifth columns and subversive agitators. Notice of prob- able ' checkffeihlrig i was • given last week in a letter to the handful of licensee^ asking them to ^confer about the. desirability of revising the regulations. Parley took place yes- terdajr (7). Idea is. to compel operators to in- sist 6n having aii iadvance script iand of prohibiting any deviations. Tran- scriptions . also would be required in order to make sure there were no interpolations or- revisions. The action, which more appre- hensive watchers, abhorred as a mlle- "stoTiv-on—the-road- toward-ultimate- censorship, was taken by a group of FCC underlings without knowledge of the Commish. Only authoriza- tion- was - the - taeii-^encpuragement from Chairman James L. Fly, who has been consulted incidentally by the engineers and attorneys dabbling in international service. ' What will .come from the sugges- tion depends to a considerable de- gree .on . the general industry re- action. If the standard station op- erators get alarmed about the im- plications—reihote, though they may be at this stage—and turn on the heat, the, Commish may, back down. But the scheme will go through un-. less: there is unexpected resistance.' Xiittle concern .his been displayed so far, except by a small bloc of in- dustry observers who continuously suspect :the FCC's motives " under- taking aiiy • Irinovation. ' In general, it is felt the Commish subordinates had sincere motives, although they had;, not given much thought to the eventual- consequences the real :implications of their ,aictionv , In behalf of the ihterriattoii'al ,qp-; erators,. it vvas/eniphasized that, xip trtirisgressiori prompted; the move to maintain : closer Supervision;, Pa- triotism of, the DX-ers has not been suspected. MUTUAL January February . March . ... April y . .. i. May ....;..: June " .,... July ...... August .. September Total . January . .. February > , March ;. ..'.■. April May June . .; . .• ..' July, '... IVii August September 1940 $317,729 337,649 390,813 363.468 322,186 299,478 235,182 227,865 283,463 1939 $315,078 276,605 306,976 262,626 234,764 ■■ 228,186 . 216,583 205,410 210,589 1938 $269,894 253,250 232,877 189,545 194.201 202,412 167,108 164.626 200,342 1937 $213,748 231,286 247,421 . 200,134 154,633 117,388 10i,458r 96,629 132,866 .$2,777,833 $2,256,817 $1,872,255 $1;496,573 NBCRED ? 1940 $3,496,393 3,226,983 3,338,440 ■ 3,128,685 3,216,940 . .2,919,405 3;141,902 , 3,072,338 3,132,005 1939 $3,211,161 2,975,258 3,297,992 2,879,571 2,886,517 . 2,759,917 2.713,798 2.737,926 2,750,688 •1938 $2,634,763 2.507.123 2,736,494 2,458,487 ,2.627,721 .. 2,550,040 2.377,085 2,368,161 2,397.333 ♦1937 : $2,374,633 2,273.973 2,531,322 . 2.304,035 2.261,344 2,209,304 2,018,820 2,094,306 2,057,513 Total Jainuary, February March. AprU . May ... June i July - August September Total $28,673,091 $26(212,828, $22,657,187 $20,125,250 NBC-BLUE » ,4 •, • ». • • • • • • >• « 4 1940 $908,819 905,101 965,904 912,833 817,682 722,695 688,536 665,024 747,774 1939 $822,739 773.437 872,860 681.412 815,585 . 622,487 569.757 574,644 564,619 •1938 $1,158,753 990,930 1,070,335 852,018 786,479 650,520 581,649 572,938 581,908 •1937 $1,167,366 1,021,809 1,082,961 973(479 953,475 794,083 .688,630 690,871 78i3,088 $7,335,264 $6,297,540 $7,245,939 ^.165,738 ♦Different system for allocating billings to th« ted and blue networks prevailed these years. ".-"^ RADIO BONERS WORTH IF •;:, - Milwaukee, Oct. 8. ^ ^"Broadcast -boners i heard" " over WTMJ; are paying dividends for lis- teners; 'Edgar; A. Thompson, radio editor of The Milwaukee Journal, is giving .$5 each week for the first submission of oral slip-ups which contain :a cartoon idea. The cartoons are then printed In the radib section of Sunday editions. REMINGTON'S SPOTS Franklin Bruclc Agency Get* : /:, ■ paig:n. ;Vnder; Way Cam- Franklin Bruck agency gets an- other spot campaigii under way next week. Th is ti me. it's the typewriter division of Reminigton-Rand. Agency is ^placing a schediule - of, three five- minute transcriptions for 13 weeks with the basic Idea being mail pull- ing. V- ;,;,. There will he frpni .19 to 20 star tions in the • initial fist. . Amos 'n* Andy will be heard , in Canada on ■ transcriptions over sta- tion CKAC, Montreal, CFRB, To- rohto, and all .outlets used ' for ac- count In the Dominion. • Dey Suffers Broken Neck ' : . Wichita, Kas., Oct. 8: \ Robert Dey, singer formerly with station KFH; and. KFBI here, is in a local ho.spital with a bil'okeh neck. Paralyzed from the heck d'vwri, , Result of auto adcident .in which his car turned over several times in 16o.se gravel few-,.iniles from city. IF , Campbell Soup may take a quarter > hour on the NBC-Red .at 8 p.m. If it can. get a bi.g enough lineup of stations.. , The network : last week polled, the red affiliates on their will- ingness to give up -this particular quarter hour for this account. y - The 6—6:19 period is part of th« tinie that the NBC station contract, reserves ekcluisively for the affiliates' own use. - '^^ :":■ ■[ MacQuarrie In Bridgeport •,.;;.;;'■..:,' 'Bridgeport, Oct. 8. ,;; Hay^n; MacQuarrie and his CBS Mairriage, Club are in Bridgeport for two Saturday nights, first stop on 59-' city tour"; tied; in" with ; Contiheniai; Baking outlets. bealers>- tiqketed. show - at Central; High'; aiiditorium, 2,O0p-S(eater. Program was piped 'to New Vork CBS key, inasmuch as Bridgeport has no Columbia link,. Bill Elliott of WICC, local Shepard. and NBC-Blue station, got call as announcer. . " Ralph Campbell aheid for Benton , & Bowles, Following Saturday's. (12) broadcast MacQuarrie ;tnovc5 to. Columbus, O.