Variety (Jul 1946)

40 RADIO Wednesday, Juljr 24, 1946 Der Singles Wired Wax lights Way For Talent Takeover on Platters Hollywood, July 23. Like some televisionaircs — tran- scription companies are looking at their promised new world through rose-colored crystals. And' in the glass globule they see a beaming Bing Crosby haloed with a battery biscuit, and the platter's label spells out Halcyon—for the days visualized when the Groaner serves his air fare on a platter. Where the Groaner goes, so goes the industry, it's figured. So, when Crosby returns to the air—as he will; and on a platter, as he definitely will, according to intimates—an un- precedented boom is anticipated by wax works. They see the flock fol- lowingbellweather Bing. The pitch for the Crosby account will be heavy. Though it's likely that NBC's recording division will, for reason of filial feeling and ex- cellence, get the deal, many will be in there trying to cut the mustard of cutting the prime prastige ac- count. Then, of course, there's the lucrative and certain weekly income it presents. Tried and true pressing' of RCA will be the logical windup. Crosby has revealed his positive intention to wax his words and music. He wants time off, long stretches of it, to indulge personal desires. Therefore, his show — no matter for whom—will be largely transcribed in bunches to permit freedom. He may do a couple of live shows just for variety or on special occasions, but the disc is the main thing, says Bing. Desmond Groomed For Junior Miss MBS Show Horowitz and Duberman, manu- facturers of the "Judy 'h' Jill" jun- ior miss dress line,, are auditioning, their first network show, for. Satur- day mornings starting in the fall. Show, highlighting Johnny Des- mond, and featuring top-name bands, will be heard on Mutual network. Desmond was formerly heard on two shows, NBC's "Teentimers" and the Philip Morris show, but is off both now. Believed his "Teentim- ers" draw will aid his appeal on new show. TIME BROKERAGE STILL ANATHEMA TO THE FCC Washington,. July 23. The FCC last week gave warning it is still on the lookout for "time brokerage" contracts which . may prevent radio licensees from exercis- ing full control over their program formats. The commission refused to renew the license of WJOL, Joliet, III., because the. licensee had signed away, to a'former owner of the sta- tion, the right to a daily 45-minute broadcast period. Under the con- tract, M. A.' Felman, former owner, is given the time free to use himself or to sell .to other sponsors. The contract also provides that any fu- ture owner of WJOL will continue th- same arrangement. The FCC said it was extending the license of WJOL for a three-month period, providing that within 30 days the station files a statement showing that the contract is no longer in effect. Philadelphia—Erva Giles, one of radio's real pioneers, will retire next month from her job as WFIL music librarian, ending 22 active years in radio. She started her ether career, as a singer on WJZ, New York, on the old "Royal Typewriter Hour." After 10 years on WJZ she came to Philadelphia as staff singer, on WFIL. Set Production at Peak, Over 1,100,000 in Jane Washington, July 23. Radio receiver production during June may have hit an all-time high for a single month. On the basis of figures announced Sunday (21) by the Radio Manufacturers Assn., the month's output bettered the average monthly record of 1,100,000 sets turned out during 1941, the peak year. Despite this, however, the indus- trys' production is still far short of the war-swollen capacity. RMA said that its member compa- ni s produced a total of 1,052,597 sets of all types in June, but pointed out that there are a number of new- comers in the industry which are not members, whose-production fig- ures were not available. . FM production, still low, never- theless hit a.total of 17,273 sets in June, with the shortage of wooden cabinets for consoles blamed for holding back production of combo AM-FM models. RMA estimates that approximately 5.500,000 sets of all types were pro- duced during the first six months of the year. nd*a tore. And - Easy Owyro». MidwMfke, grow* <or* thai twrtw to aofd at W* lavchf till* many of the oibtt nam* personality* at foe new WOl, fo*y Cwynn ii new to W«»W"g. Ko» by o **7% matajo. 1« fadwnopolis. Wi :; " {Mdi~~with<Mit ajveaway* or special aff«» ^tV,~ ■moJkw noises like o <lwc from ofOO to 9:00 "i to 5<00 tMowfoy Gyirynn maimer. 5*. -3 4 ,">, v .......... vv .,.. 1 .,S*as ihtfSwyOwyw'* tow* «» AtMCwaofcryouta the 1«h W«nf««.to* mar- ket, «fc fcntt ot WOt—WwWn9»Q«'* foftett- B.. Mi ' ;! ' OWLES STATION WOL VOICE OF WASHINGTON" Old Hand Hired For A-Bomb Show In a move to provide radio list- eners with more than just a bunch Of static .for the second atom bomb test, scheduled for today (Wednes- day )i the Navy has borrowed Mar- vin F. Royston, former chief Naval radio engineer in the Pacific dur- ing the war, to supervise broadcast facilities. Royston was discharged from the Navy about 10 months ago, and is presently 'working as a research engineer with Frederick Hart St Co. Navy officers first approached the networks in an attempt to borrow some of the individual engineers who had worked for the Navy dur- ing the wa>°. Nets nixed the Idea, declaring, they couldn't spare their own men, and' suggested others. Navy, however, turned thumbs down, on the latter in the belief that, even though they were competent tech- nicians, they would have been green hands in the Pacific. Adm. H. B. Miller, -hlef of public information' for •• Operation Cross- roads, .then remembered Royston and flew immediately to the Hart plant in Poughkeepsie to negotiate for the engineer's lend-lease. Roy- ston was put on a plane for the Coast Friday (19) afternoon and left for Bikini atoll and the A-bomD tests the following morning. Cancelled Continued from page 35 from under the small-market areas, KBS has come up with these figures: In 37 KBS. markets', every one of them having a single - radio station affiliated with KBS, the population totalled 797,881 before the war and has risen now to a total of 996,406. In the same 37 communities, the number of non-retail establishments (industrial plants, wholesalers, job- bers, etc.) have increased by 14%, from 316 pre-war to 360 currently. These figures, among others, are Inducements to money spending by manufacturers who've spent money in radio previously and know the value of radio advertising. > - ■ Some advertising people feel, in fact, that all of the $10,000,000 can- celled off the air will find its way back into various branches of the industry. They point out that al- ready the major nets are showing no signs of being hard up for pay for vacated time'. Ad agencies will be handling the smalltown radio busi- ness, whether it's placed through sta- tion reps or on regional nets or on KBS—and the agency, business willf, still stack up to the same commis- sions. Actually, the small stations, which previously got only the leav- ings from the major network sales, will get more money directly than they got before the so-called slump. And transcription companies, who will be doing the platters for the small markets, will bring the old totals back to the "lost" $10,000,000. Radio Reviews Continued from pace Jt; is so bad that most of the laughs die a-boring. Sample is the running gag on show caught, in which Boyce Smith kept warning that he was going-to "steal the show," fulfilling his threat by running away with the script shortly before signbff, supposedly leaving the rest of the cast to adlib the rest of it. It was a good idea but was choked off by amateurish read- ing, and of course, by the afore- mentioned weak timing, What an Allen or Benny could have done with it is something that won't be gone into here. Studio audience seemed to be en- joying it, however/ what with Pack- ham's cornfed chatter with Elmira Rocssler, who does comedy dames well, and announcer Fred Kasper; the Harry Kogcn and Rex Maupin orchs, who alternate every other day; short comedy sketches detailing the joys of getting back to civilian life and how conditions have changed on trains since the war ended; parodies on mystery dramas; Lola Amech's chirping of "Cement Mixer" and kindred items, and Smith's tenorings. Highlight of the stanza under review, however, was "I Don't Know Enough About You," as sung by the Vagabonds, a fine sepia quartet. Mike. Cincinnati — On from Chicago's nitery- belt, the Lucky Penny Trio has Joined WLW's talent staff and is being featured on the station's Midwestern Hayride Saturday night series.