Variety (Jan 1948)

S4 WciMMlarr, JiMmary 21, 1941 Bowes Ans; (ttber TdeReneiR , GanttDueil bom. pa^e tt ; seaii-professioMils) t^tesesAeA any- thing but Jiit-and-mlss preparation. It showed, too, an appreoatuHi of the wider scope teJe can. aSoro. m talent development programs, pat- ticularly as revealed In the expert closeup camera shots of hoofing, mimicry^ etc. SSaxm bas sufficient noveltr to heighten audience interest, such as the on-the-spot vote lor £avorite contestants (via audience tdepljonic. participation in tlie foor-cities), pins on-the-«|H>t conmritments for H"*"" tional engagements (Kennit Bloom- garden, the legit producer, for ex- «mple, calling up within 10 nunutes Bitfer a trio'a turn to wrap up a- dsal). . If 'ifaexv are ctitieisBis of the ini- tial show they're in a minor key, and oddly euougb, stemmins chiefly ttttm ibm "lOxieOy pw»" participants, eucli «» Warren Sweeney, the an- nouncer, and Ted Mock, the emcee. There seemed little excuse for Swee- ney doing the commercials feom • script, while Mack, altiioagh not ^xreidoing the gab and always at easie^ nieverthdess leemed to lack distinct perwmality. ^. . ^ ^1 on« &istaince 'a participam. a Sihger' icom » IPbiladelphia, was sought on, and after a few bars ytas so 'noticeably bad that he was yanked and told to come l>ack later. Vniether it was an unblushing error on the part of the auditicming boys, or tber buildup toe a running gag vtiXb the guy repiiung the routine for weekly laugfaa wasn't made quite •clear to the viewer Commercials were aiiything but Amateurish, cued to the current se- ries ofKrF cash prize-coitfests (with Boss Mait Eraser himself making the initial car award - before the tele cameras), and a phig neatly integrat- ed, iata.a (Hwtestant-emcec routing ;• Rose. tVith KiDiu Bcaa tewSjt, Herb Pa- lest*. B«i(:^|li#':^i«tt''|MritiA;;,' tea,- JTAny rwrten Staler, Pr«d»cer-illrecl»r: Bewry AlcKander U Mimbj.IlmnMby, t:3» pjw. WABD-DuMont, N. T. Televisiot^ broadcasters have long been flirting with'^irariiHis.iEethods oC using the common, living-room style of charades on video. "Charade Quia," packaged by Telamuse Corp., new indie outfit, may well, be- the tuiswer. . Bs combining . an aflable «ncee, a stock company of actors, a panel of experts and an audience participation gimmifk, Telamuse has Qome up with a heat little show ttiat shstild eBcit plenty of viewer Interest. Casb.giireawa.y, of course, is. • prime factor in the idtrt-stnUng mail pull the show is gettidg. Format is a simple one. Home t^ewers send in their ideas for cha- jftdes and any that, are accepted for the show pay $10. Skits pre then acted out by the stock company.. K the panel of three experts Can't come up with the 'right answer in, 00 sec- onds, the sender gets an additional $15. About $150 was handed out on the show the night caught <15>, which probably makes "Charade* the most generous giveaway program BOW on tele. Under tihe skillful direction of - Telamuse's' Henry AlexandBrj the stock company of five tyiti thesps handled their assignments in good style, lending. a note of ebullience to the show. Emcee BUI Slater, who's tried his hand at various video productions in the last several months, ,made out better in this one than aiagr of the others, with his sometimes coniy puns not so*ir- < ritating as usual, Panel, comprising i Rfinna Bess Lewis, Herb, PolesSie' and Bob Shepardy seemed complete- .^y at ease before, the Cameras and evidenced, enough erudition to pro- vide right answers to' the majority ttf the charades. , ' Alexander's caftpera durection, with till assist tetm' teehnical. director Frank Bttheiitta. was gtifiUy of the most comAio^ video erpor—failure to cover the person speaking with the lens. This might have been due. however, to the fia'ct that he had three separate areas of action to «over with only two cameras.- . Stal. though Itigh enough it was. among the crowd and excited youngsters dont stay in their seats. Result was that not only the 'lens but also the announcer was barred from some of the. flnishes. S-witch to the second camera was ea^ enough, tout this still Icit the announcer on a Umb. A couple of points tbi.: meet brought out was that announcers win he)p generate audience interest if tliey mention the pool record for each evcait as it comes along. Also when they get to the diving they let the pool p;a. system announce the contestant and dire. Otherwise there's to much confusing iaOc. Plenty of time for the station man to embroider the meet announcer's bare facti^ anyway. In a duel meet each man performs three compul- sory and five optional divesL For this occaaioitt tlteze-Were three con- testants with thesE gymnastics neat if not always -^briUiant. Trouble with battling Yale in a pool is to dig up some real opposi- tion. The New Baven school hung Up the amazing record of 180 suc- cessive duel meet victories and al- though that string is no more Yale's navy xemains a tough one to sink. Penn only won two firsts in absorl>- ing a 55-20 defeat but they were two good ones, the lOO and the 40Q- yard relay. BeForest, of Penn, went into the final, turn of -Qnr 109 trailing but hanked himself off the wall with such a solid posh as to win hy a bare touch in 63.3.' That's good time ■bet far from nnusoat in a day when tl^OBe who can't-breaik 52 are asked to swiov ahmg tike edge of the pool. Penn's xegidation 'iowo-lane tazik (73x25) iun room £i>r aiiout 1,000 spectators and was announced to he around tliree quarters filled. Such swim meets should-fit into televi- sion's sports schedules successfittly with those in charge learning how best to handle them a* they go ■^iong. WPTZ did a nice job on this one. Vieweia^ can help their «ijoy- ment of the event if thcgr bave a stop watch ^tb which to act:» tbdbr owntSmer.. ■ And if -they ever hold ilieVinter'^ collegiate or AA.U. championdiqps- inJUadison Skiuare Garden yonH see something. Ksaster m fifc* Chicago, Jan. 20. Important itrst in spot' coverage of a disaster was chalked up by Chi tele last Thursday (15) when WBKB cameras focused on flxemen clearing debris at the scene ot 'a gas explosion. The explosiiMi snuffed out five lives, shearing awagr cmc wall of a fouTxstory building occu- pied by a furniture company. At 4:30 pjn., about three and a half hours after the Mast, a mobile unit was ready to send pid^ureiy hut WBKB dlKCtcn- Sm Bddy decided not to intetropf a children's pro- gram in progress. The kid show was cut short at 4:50.- "nransmission of disaster shots followed for five hoiurs. Two image ortbicons -cere used, one on the roof ol • fining statian opposite the -wi-ecked building and the other on top ot the mobile nnit truck. Telephoto I«is picked up firemen -btHikine a peephole in waU itk their seanih for survivals. Another shot caught the removskl of a sur- vivor^ Three announcers interviewed civic officials and relatives' of vic- tims, in addition to news coverage. !?<w five hours of viewing,. pan shots of power shovels digging into splintered wreckage failed to hold iiderest. Studio interludes and back? to-thC'Sceoe twH^ses -would havC' broken the monatoby. The quality of reporting was gei^erally below that provided by radio. Such defects, however, are inherent in pioneering of any kind. The-fact that WBKB provided 300 minotes of spot disais-^ ter coverage cau be set down as an important milestame in the progress of Chi tele., . Baxt, m VTiiett StafiMS sas Continued frotai page 2T Vilfeo liteMts Coatbnwd tram pace iSX last week, most of them for spec- trum-scarce markets -where hear- ings appear necessary to weed out the competitiait. last available video slot (channel 8) in Atlanta, Was sought by Euritb DidEinsott Rivers, Jr., which mean^ -that Itivers will have to go through hearhfg if any more requcats for Atlanta reach FCC. New England Television Coi., .new- comer to radio, already bidding for Boston and fall Biver, Uass., sta- tions, put in a request for the No. 5 channel in wide-open Kansas CSty, Mo. Other bidders included: lice Segall's' '.Variety Broadcasting Co. (KIXL) tor the No. •a spot in Dal- las, and -Boy Bofheinz; doing busi- ness as the Texas Tetevision Co, for the No. 7 channel in Houston, and ""The Friendly Grougj" operators of .WFPG, Atlantic Cil^, late . Friday (16) entered a hid for a commu^- nity-sized video outlet: on Atlantic City's only assigned channel. TALE—rENN SWIM MEET 30 Mins.; 3 p.m. Sat. (17) Sustaining WNBT. .N. Y, Of a winter afternoon an Ivy lieague swim meet makes a nice flUer for viewers. NBC delivered same to the Metropolitan audience -Via WPTZ, Philadelphia. The keener the competition the more interest, of course, but greatly In favor of these aquatic meets, this one anyway, is the speed with which they're run off. Nine events, includ- ing the diving, in an hour and 10 minutes. That spells no waits, no Pittsliarelr — James L. Snyder, from Duquesne Univ. piitillci^ serv- ice, has been added to the staff of the KDKA news room. Bob Clay- ion, of WLOA in Braddock, has gone to WJAS as an announcer, filling berth left vacant by resignation of ijpogef Kelly. ■ Par has decided to let matters ride for the time being. What coarse otter broadcasters win take under similisir situation hasn't yet been ptit to the- test because of the' newness of theatre tele. *' Par Has Ambitious Plans Par's action, it's believed, may be based on its own plans for theatre telci Company has already success- fully demonstrated its intermediate film method of llashiitg . regular video shows oil to its theatre screens but has'not put the system into commercisd operation yet because of various' copyright and union prob- lems stm to be solved. When the Sj^tem i.? ready to go Par -will need just such cooperation- from broad- casters as it's now offering the Paii- tages. It's current mode of opera- tion, consequently, may help pave the, way for an early start to- its tfaeitre tele, Demonstrations of theatre televi- sion on the C!Oast have done more to, awaken exhibitors to the threat of video than anything else to date. And following close on the heels ot such showings on New Year's Day, theatre operators are scox'rying to get their toes» at least, in the tele- door^ Topper is National Theatres and Fox-West Coast, execs of which indicate that the circuit will be in it but good and soon^ while, Holly- wood's FOin Row continuest buzzing wildly with talk of the new'medium, its,applicatiMB and/or otppoaifion. Seattle — Cliff Han.son, chief an- nouncer at KOMO, Seattle, has re- signed and will freelance. Hanson is also president of Seattle AFBA locaL hsybTekYi^ NBC screened the annual dinner of Washington's Touchdown Club Saturday night (17) from that city. It ought to prove an early lesson to television. It has always been one that radio failed to learn. The point is that these sports gatherings are better left alone. The reason is that the local tal^t'is seldom, if ever, either verbally fancy or funny and there's never enou^ professional talent -around to save the mght Besides; the informality oi these stag affairs often leads to pro- fanity which can't be cut off. The guilty party here was a veteran sports- caster who was audibly told he was on television before he started to speaks He paid it no mind. . This affair was well on its way to being a first class stage wait until Harry Wismer, toastmaster, introduced Jimmy Conzelman. Recipients of the gridiron awards had been as inarticulate as usual and the various speakers bad been dealing: heavily in "locals," so Conzelman and his Chicago Cards found; a ready welcome. Any consistent rfjader of eastern sports pages must know by now that Conzelman has worked out a regu- lar routine about his football team and his family. And. it's a good mono- log if sometimes betteir delivered than others. This happened to be one of James' ordinary nights but, even so, based on what'had gone before it didn't seem as if anyone could follow him, Yet George Marshall did, and did it well. The Washington Bedskins owner was on his feet more ^ delays, no_ fuss or feathers, °toa?on'^«?e ev?nt'*One*was*^^^ " minutes and was in turn followed by Jack Lavelle, the Notre to the course, the other behind the i I^'-we scout The latter, heralded as quite a speaker, no more than got starting, or. deep c!ui. The parallel 1 started when NBC blacked out on hini, calling the whole thing off after f filinera-. had its troubles because al"' 70 minutes. fZV NEW YORK CtTY ... Watttei Setdeit has chedced out as casting dhrecfor of Foote, Cone St Beldibg. Bas'stoiy sold to AlUed Artists, subsid of Monogram pix, and U mining to the Coast Columbia Fictuies, now shootiog "l Sarrender, Dear," will use Jack Bigctt at flie Cap» loimgB Max. 1 for one Kqueocf on a N. Y. disk jockey... .Ghl horn to Mrs. Qscar.Katz, wife at the CBS researcher.....Norman Bmkensbice in Washington Jan. 31 to i^peak at fha anniversary of the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous... .Nancy Ranson,' wife ot Jo BansoR. WHN publlcily chief, win have a "oiie-man show" the George Bfoet GaUery ior three weela starting Saturday (24). Featura porixaits win include one of hubby... .ABC peddling the Henry Burbig coRiedy show (-with Margo l>ee as femme stooge) around the agencies..., Mutual's* revived "True or False" is looking for a new quizmaster. BUI Slater checked off becauss of 'other eommitmcnfs Iiorraine Sherwood ceIelHrates.-hcr tcnOt anni cm WOB's 'VSoing Places" ^ext Sunday (25).... Lanny Ross cut An audition ^dioar. -with .an audience patticipation angle for ABC last week. Web may give him a sustaining spot foQowiag his current .-vaude tour.,..Iiesler Gottlieb postcaxds £r«Mn New Orleans that the street ear Is slitl ndming. AH of the quizees on Tack Bany's "Dally Dilemmas" today CWed.) cn WOR will be Manhattan'disk Jockeys, in there plugging their big benefit show at the Met Opera House next Sunday (25)... .ABC program veepe* "Bud" Barry mysterious,about a "big thing," to -wit, an. honr-long show, he's thinking about slotting in the "Sunday Evening Hour" spot starting Feb. 1. TsSaj hop to the Coast to wrap- up deal. .. .C%ar1cs S. Webster added to "Strange Hcnnance of Evelyn Winters."' Jeanette Dowlitig new to "Romance of Helen Trent." Ivor Francis, (Hiff Carpenter ^iind Kath- erhie Kmmet added to "Just Plain Bill." lyle Sudrww, Martin Vfottsnw and Rene Crekiere into the "iFront Fags Farret]" cast Arnold Moss; fini^ted -with his stint in Rifa Kgnrarth's 'Xoves of Carmen," heading home to old N. Y. radio haunts. ' Bale Blan'a script,' "The Une Is Dead," which: was beam on . "^Murder at Midnight" and "Stars Over HaUywood," was adapted into a three-act Stage play by the diama^ group at Bowling Green, iTnrr., in Ohio.,.. Art Hoieh, Chicago wHter, has Joined the NBC news and special- events staff in New York Virginia' Grace has joined the writing staff of the Margaret Arlcn series on CBS. ...William Rafael is with the ABC writ. 'ing staff, coocentratmg on documentaries and news shows After more than a year's efforts by the Radio Writers Guild grievance committee, Daisy Amoury was paid a disputed $250 script fee by the. Buchanan agency....Phyllis Jeanne Creore has been cast for. a running part in "Frwti Page Farrdl.''- Sbe's omtinuing the commercials on the Knox Hat television, series from Madison Square Garden and &e narration and dabbing on a Hcdlywood-niade ecRmnezeial ffibn' for Armour. ...Ra-Best Features; iaew pacfaige outfit, has acquired the right to six iSeSey Roos cmnedy whodunits, and' wiD peddle them as a half-hbiur scries, with a $4,000 price tag.... .Ethel Colby has replaced her husiiand, Julius; on WMCA's RKO "Hiss Holftrwood" daily, program. This is not a new trend for Mrs. Coilbiy. She had replaced her husband as.drama and motion pic- tare reviewer ftnr the JTew York Jotunal of Commerce, eight years ago, when he left tlle^aews{laper i^r a fling in radio... Morris No-vik on vaca- tion-biz trip to Bhvana;-w||3i return stopoff h^ Miami scheduled for AIT, exee booed merihig, Herajd-Ttih's new "Quizdown^ on WMCA isn't the first aiset to get active GoopetatiDn of the N.T. Board of Education, sez WQXR, pointing to its thtee-yearrOld "Youth Forum". ...C. L. MacNelly, ex-Doherty,'Clif- ford & Shenfidbd. has joiiKid Pedlar & Rjran as an assistant account'excc.... James C. Douglass has been, brought in. from Colgate's radin oifice. in Sydney, Australia, which he nHmaged, to be,radio coordinatoK.of the company's toreign dept ^ N.Y. Ward Wilaim, WHN sports conrunenta- tor and .comic, honeymooning with Kay Loring of stage and radio George Hamilton. COmhs; dcnss-the-board n^ws stint on WHN has been shifted from evening'to daytime since his retuiit fi!om Europe.,.,Hdbros Watcher vdiidt has jdcked tip the tab m Motiial's;.''Quick as a Fiasli'' for five years running, signed last week for three more yearft, m HOLLYWOOD ... It's ot rare vintage when a picture star wants to do something on radio besides act and the "what else" ttaat int^&fst Robert Montgomery is com- - menting on the news., So to this end BiB t.awrence cut a platter with him for an interested C3iicago agency. wlii«A is said to have an interested client, which makes it interesting all around ...Frank Woodruff, wha deserted direction of Lux Radio Theatre' for ^ctures 'and after the war returned as director of The Camay Show, has moved into the Lennen & Mitchell agency as assistant to Mann Holincr;.; .Lathrop Mack turned in his resignation after two years as spot sales manager on the Coiast for NBC While down New Orl«ms way iEdgar Bergen will tifike bis troupe over to the leper colony for his second caU on the inmates. Last time he :was there he rtearked that he'had never played to .a more appreciative audience Memo to the N.Y. office: qheck Sidney Strotz and Nonuaii Blackburn on the score pad of their Pasadena-to-Chicago gin game ahcKtrd- The Chief Pencilled date for takeoff of Dinah Shore-Harry James entry for Philip Morris is now Feb, 13 Mac Bcnoff, who turned from acting to gag -writing, now wants to merge fie two talents in a new comedy piece snaking out of his typewriter called "Sam .Pilgrim's Progress." * Sit- u..tions are built around a Manhatfan cab driver.,. .Rochester's bosses are paying off with fancy prices at Santa Anita blit flie other :i(adio-stait)les are stUl trymg to pay off' the feed bill. Bob Wolfe and Ian Smith of the Kepyon & Bckhardt forces hack east in town to work up some new ideas .for Mark Wamocv'.4 Bordea musii^. Not that the client is unhappy but, an improvement in the show and gat- ing would not be sneered at Hal Peary passed a quarter of a century in radio with last week's airing of "Great Glldersleevc" Jinunie Fidler got himself iammed up with his "man ol the week" by putting out the unverified news that a victii-n ot leukemia, since "cured," was now offering his blood to other sufferers. It later developed, after a flood of mail, that Fidler bad been "taken in" and was forced to send out apologies to those who had written in from all over the country.^ .Medical science knows of no cure for leukemia which Fidler could feave found out by checking a»qr medico ■•. ' ■ ■,' IIS CHICAGO ... Warren G. Nelson, former sales manager ot WAAT, has joined the station rep firm fflE George P, HoUingbery,.. .New WBBM series will be built around Myrus the Mindreader, il satisfactory format is worked out Westinghou.sc order of 60-minute "i^mphonic Hour" six nights a week on WGNB is the biggest time sale on Chi FM to date... .Joe Kelly, quiz- ma.ster of the <3,K.'s, will unreel stories for moppets on a new fransbribed series packaged by Green Associates Marvin Boscne, v.p, of WQUA, Moline, HI,, takes over as general manager of WKTY, La Crosse, Wis,, Feb. 2. WKTY tetaff is .set for Tate March... .Jimmy Cominos, LeVally's radio director, biz tripping to Hollywood... .Prize-winning script oii Jan. 21 airing of "Dr. Christian" was written by Harrison Bingham, of Evans- ton, ni..,..Nelson Boswell, formerly with the SunbeamXorp., has joined WBBM's sales force....Fnmklyn. MacC^>fmack doing his first disk show since 19,32, "Record Preview," on WIND.., Patsy Lee, "Breakfast CTlub" chirp, win return home to Oakland, CaL, for two weelcs, recuperating from her recent bout with pneumonia. RCs Sam Cowling meanwhile is stricken with hives Announcer Sid Mandel described his sensations while donating blOod tO a civilian blood bank last week via WKAN, Kankakcci Bl.