Variety (Jan 1949)

RADIO TIDKO MUSIC I HEW FACES GET ffWOOD BUILDUP TV to Pro# Market for 5,000 Hours Of'Pix in a Few Years^ Paley Predicts Broadway Nitenes at Lowest Ebb A- Since DepressiiHi of Early 1930's .With the closing of the Embassy,+- ,W,-Y., last week, the number of ';.Manhattan' niteries: are at their ,'lowest point since the depression ■ "of the early '30s. Amount of larger ;scaters has dwindled doWn to a ■fistful. Ma.ror eafes remaining are 1 ithe Latin Quarter; Diamond Horse- ; ^^,tihoe, Copacabana) Havana^Madrid ,'attd Leon & Eddie's. Of course, 'these are separate and distinct ''from such spots as the Storlc, Ver- ' .'sallleSi El Morocco, and the like, tauder Cavalcade Glasgow, Jan. 25. ; Sir Harry Lauder, now in his 7Bth year, is to be honored by the first theatre he ever played, tlie Glasgow Metropole, Management is to stage "Roamin' in the Gloamin'." a Scottish musi- cal cavdlcade of Lauder song and story, as Christmas show of 1949. ".wjhiieh are not nlterles per se, but | It will trace in song the comedian's "niore in the idiom of restaurants. | career down through. 60 years. ■ ■ ' - . Embassy was the latest fold on a ',list that in the past few nionths iu' , eludes the Hai-em, Carnival, La "Martinique and Le Directoire, _ all of,which have been standard sites f'on'lhe N. Y. cafe scene for some , 'xears, although a few operated un- 'deJT different names. ' . ,.^s a' result of these shutterings, ^^the' remaining cafes are. in a^ Comparatively solid position. The . jninor amount of trade drained off 'by the now closed spots has been Bufficient to put most of the cur- . „ ^ . , .. .. rent operations on the black side' Cliicago, once a key ongmat.on of the ledger or close to it. i P"'"^ ^"P .^^o^'' V xpu6«^i wiusc iv. . ' may assume a similar role m tele- [ vision in ?the near future.'Despite Chi Tele Future Seen Promising Via Talent Setup However, the scramble for business will most likely resume (Continued on page 63): the ■ mild bickering betweeri tele officials in Hollywood and N. Y. Over which Will take over the uppermost role in prograiniiiing, industi-y observers now believe that Chi will hav^ a .definite parti at least for the less ambitious |»ro^ ductibhs. ! :■: ' , Chief reisOhS' for the Windy , City's emergence into the TV pic- Just -when TV is taking over as 1 ture are the wealth of unexploited Uncle Don Off WOR After 23-Year Reign; Kids Too Sophisticated? a baby sitter, WOU. N. Y. an- ^nOunces the bowing out of Uncle iDon, (Don Carney), wlio has been Ion the'station lor 23 years. : .Starting Feb. 6, "Uncle Don "Reads .the Funnies" will be re- - placed, by the Gainsborough As- f Sociate package, "Here's Heidy," ! with Heidy Mayer ■ telling stories \tp tlie moppets 'every Sunday at 8:45 a.m. WOU programmers fell <-that- kids were losing interest in :-Uncle Don's funny paper stinl, bul •,Wo«ld perk up to Heidy's modern ♦approach. In additioil to the growing ,;•. (Continued on page 15) and Inexpensive talent there and the limited production facilities of the networks and ad agencies on both coasts. Now that the coaxial cable link has been effected be- tween the east and midwest, it's expected that a steadily-increasing number •. of shows, especially for (Continued on page 22) CIEIIPEfi TILENT By HERB GOLDEN This vvill be one of films' great- est years for new faces. That's the promise of major company talent execs. They see a' tremendous break for. the liewcomer and for the young contract players as an answer to the demand on ■ every front for economy in Hollywood production. Studios are demanding cheaper talent in place of name players getting top fees per picture. They feel tliat in many cases these people mean little at the boxofCice and substituting contract players can produce a dual advantage. . First is a saving of perhaps $75,- 000 or .$80,000 in production costs —a sum that can only be compen- sated for by a mighty quantity of coins tossed on boxoffice sills. ^ Second advantage is the fact that a studio, by using contract players in these parts, can start building its own performers. Whatever click they are able to achieve will re- dound to the studio's credit, since the players are under contract at low salaries for. future films. Katural'result of the entire pro- duction ti'end currently/ talent ex- perts maintain, will be greater at- (Continued on page 20) . , :. By ABEL GREEN Look, Ma 7-- H611ywood, Jan. 2Si " The New Show Businesst Local nitery, ready to ink a chirper for its ilobrshow, discov- ered that to the lady, there was something more ' im'portant than money, position or billing. Before she'd sign, the management had to guarantee to provide a baby sitter so she could come to work each night. S. Africa Nixes Daggers, Cnns on Posters; ^^^^ . Cape Town, Jan. 25. JSouth African Board; of Censots is tightening up on posters and WlISrcon«aei-ed*^bj/ectHm^ie,--A parently acting on edict from gov- ernment quartets. Censors :'n6\v order exdsed aU pifitureS of reyolv- ers or daggers. For somo time noW exhibitors have been; ordered to paint- in alteratioris to bathing costUiries considered too scanty, and siini- iarly to alter dresses displaying too much fiesh, but rule about weapons is a new one. These four .have to be painted out before post- p. , . '• : j ers or still is passed for exhibition, hv H,f"iE^'y^^® ^^^^ ^ver run and frequent cis of cowboy films "... ."^"^atre to be given advance will now see stills of their favorite M, Paramount Video Draws'Em for Inaugural <i;i J'^'^atre television proved itself * * ™® boxoffice last Wednesday ana Thursday, when the Broadway ,f f.^amount theatre projected on its '!^"-screenthe festivities attendant :J0 President Truman's Inaugura- "on. It -vfas all televised in " ?S»nt pool pickup by the ; mkjor TV networks. Benny's TV Preem Set for March 1 Hollywood. Jan. 25. i Jack Benny will be the first of; the new CBS star roster to bow; in as a television emcee. Amos 'n' , Andy and possibly fling Crosby ; and Edgar Bergen will also appear, on the show, set to tee off about! March 1.- i Tentatively slated to run some- j time during the middle ot . the' week, so as not to interfere with Benny's Sunday night radio sliow, i the program will last an hour or ; an hour-and-a-half. Benny as: emcee will parade the. top CBS j talent, including Margaret Whit-i ling, Lum 'n' Abner and possibly , I Crosby, Bergen and other CBS ■ ; newcomers. Show will also include I (Continued on page 22). Tele Threat Seen Key in Pic Names GoingPA(orB.O. Hollywood, Jan. 25.. Paramount Theatres talent execs Nate Piatt and Harry Levine, here lining up personals for stars, be- lieve the threat of video is making it imperative for . vaude-shy film names to hit the road. They claim that if tele 'hurts pix, stars' - own chances of survival will be dam- aged, hence the importance of names dragging customers away from tele sets. This would also build stars' importance to studios. Pair are on prowl for big names, "and they don't have to singj dance or juggle." ■ • . - Several deals are hot,, including those for Eddie Cantor, Gene Kelly, Betty Grable, Harry James, Judy Garland, Betty Garrett, Larry Parks. Van J o h n s o n and Dan Dailey, plus "borderline" cases who cannot compete In song-dance league but can be be built via mon- ologs or dramatic sketches. Industryites cited for helping (Continued on page 2) Hollywood, Jan. 25. Esllipate by William S. Paley, Columbia . Broadcasting System prexy, that video within a few \ years will provide a market for; 5,000 hours of film annually is a source of both relief and perpleX", ity to the picture industry. Five- thousand hours of film is a tre« ipendous order when it is realized that Hollywood's current total out- put of features* westerns and shorts. occupies something less than 650 ' hours of screen time. Above all, even the most casual visitor to this capital of CcUuIoidia must realize that the potential in- jroad of XV is one of the principal problems bothering execs. There is apparent a great deal of con*' fusion and consternation III the re- alization by studio toppers th^t they've got to get into the video act but they don't know exactly [ wliere. They know they can hardly expect to sublimate TV, so they're ready to accept that hoary advice: "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," The question Is how—by station ownership, film production or some other way? »That's why Paley's estimate of TV's whopping maw foi\ pix is a re- ' lief. If tele actually proves, to be (Continued on page 20) Paramount Defines Video Do's-Don'ts To Crosby and Hope Hollywood, Jan. 25. Bob Hope and Bing Crosby can do all the televising they want as long as It isn't put on film or is competitive to pix made by Para- mount, to which they're under con- tract. Under their pacts they must first discuss any video project with the studio before venturing into It. Tele rights were defined by the (Continued on page 20) ■ ^" tlie N, Y. dailies. As a'hero holding up tlic liorde of bad the fii'-ef «possible to judge for men with his empty hands, mennt ! Whether theatre TV i Reason for all this is apparently Accoi'dino fi 4* boxoiflce. bad effect the shooting irons or ^wcung to the Paraniount's roan-1 stilettos might have on the minds tLontmued on page 20) lof the natives, Bedded Cage Coach Directs Team Via TV Salt Lake City, Jan. 25. i A new era In sports coaching' dawned here when Coach Vadal! Peterson of the Utah Univ. basket- j ball team coached his team to a; ! 69-35 victory over the Colorado ! ' A. & M. . . . 'ffia video. With coach I sick at home, a rush installation I of i) TV .set and a telephone to the ! gym made possible the ].''^g-dis- j tance parLicipalion. KDYij cov- ' . CCpntinued on page 15) Telephone CO - 5-1393 For AU Business Coneeming The Hour Of Charm All Girl Orchestra and Choir under the direction of PHIL SPITAUVY