Variety (Jan 1949)

Wettnesday, January 26j 194^ habio RADIO FEARS m THREE' SHRINK Bing Bags Another Miilion Hollywood, Jan. 25. That $13,000,000 said to be lying around in the CBS coffers spoiling to be spent is now only $12*000,000. Bill Paley last week made a mlllion-'dollar notation on his checkboolc stub after talking long distance to Bing Crosby up on the Monterey peninsula follow- ing a few days of conference with John O'Melveny^ Bing's attorney and business intimate. The. cool million went for 25% interest in one of the two Crosby corporations, ^whicti -controls ' hiS' radio and picture activities; It - proved the '.'sweetener" that stirred the deal to a, full boil. Al- though everyone concerned with the third big push by the Paley "raiders** have had their lips buttoned, it is fairly well established that Bing's guarantee by CBS for a 39-week season is approxi- mately $1,500,000; This figure is said to be around $200,000 more than his current Philco-ABC seasonal take, the differential being in tiie nature of a bonus arrangement because of Columbia's greater, collection of high powered stations which would nmessitate fewer of the Whistle stops now supplementing the ABC lineup^ It is also fairly certain that Crosby will hold to the same 9 p.m. time on Wednesday, which both Philco and Crosby are said to have dcfmanded, :and which is okey-dokey with Paley because it fits so snugly into his plan to build up another big night. He's well satisfied with Sunday, Monday and Thursday. The big argu- : ment of Crosby's that had to be batted down by Paley before The Groaner would say "I do," was the type, and potency of programs to precede and f ollow him. Now it's up to Paley to make good his promise, so the pressure is on again; with MCA running interference and doing the missionary work. : . ■ ' After being the toast , of the town and'regaled with red-letter social soirees, Paley and his missus blew the Coast for his Manhat- tan citadel where more spectacular deals are being brewedv While in Hollywood he talked to most of the toppers on NBC and just about knows whose car he can get the fastest. Skelton Newest Star to Hitch On To Taley s Comet' as Web Rides High CBS has bagged another NBCf comic—^Red Skelton—for next fall, and he's been pencilled in for the Sunday night 8:30 period. Procter & Gamble, which sponsors Skelton Friday nights at 9:30 on NBC, will continue to bankroll the show un- der the Columbia banner. Mean- while it's reported International Silver is all set to move "Ozzie and Harriet" back to CBS from NBC, recapturing <he Sunday 6:30 seg- ment it occupied a coupl^ seasons back, CBS announcement ' Monday (24) came on the heels of the web's acquisition of Bing Crosby, although In the case of Skelton it's strictly a moving of program to . another network sans capital gains. OF other intricate financial deals; Same for .Ozzie and Harriet. Thus the Paley concept that one or two pivotal shows will in- vite a wholesale switchover in tal- ent is seen beginning to pay off ■ for CBS, A couple of years back the situation was just the reverse, with Columbia losing a succession of comedy shows to NBC, leaving it practically stranded with Arthur Godfrey as NO; 1 personality. With Jack Benny, Amos 'n' Andy, Crosby and Skelton in the hag, CBS now has time periods re^ served for Fibber McGee & Molly ijind Edgar Bergen. Pitcher C^oes to the Well Shortly after bagging Bing Crosby as the third bigtime per- sonality to fatten the web's.Hooper batting average!' Paley called for time-out last week; From Pruden- tial Insurance Co. he borrowed $5,000,000 at 3V6% annual inter- est for 15.years. CBS said the purpose was to In- /sure continuation of strong cash reserves In view of expenditures for development of TV operations. September Songr Here's how the CBS Sunday night lineup shapes up for next fall in the wake of new- est maneuvers engineered by board chairman William S. Paley: 6:30, Ozzie & Harriet. 7:00, Jack Benny. . 7:30, Amos 'n' Andy. 8:00, Edgar Bergen. 8:30, Red Skelton. Status of Coca-Cola's' Spike Jones show in the 6:30 seg- ment is still in doubt come next September, in view of the coke company acquiring Bergen for S o'clock; but It may be shifted, ta another night. CBS Seeks Rayve Acct With 15-Minute 'Winner' CBS last week whipped up a presentation, of "Winner Take All" as a 15-minute, cross-the-board program when J. Walter Thomp- son's Chi office Indicated that Its chent, Rayve (Pepsodent - Lever JJros.) was seriously eyeing day- time radio. ..ABC, too, has been bidding for A account with its Eleanor and Anna Roosevelt commentary program. Contemplated commer- cial IS m connection with the com- pany s newly-launched Home Per- manent. ■u^L'^ the case of Its present naw-hour sustalner, Bud Collyer }i;°"i<l emcee "Winner" in its re- vised format, liayve is mulling it Paley Plugging Wednesday Nite Mtar Parlay Now that Bing Crosby is flying the Columbia colors, the Bill Paley strategy encompasses a Wednesday ^ night lineup for his GBS network matched only by the Sunday Jack Benny-Amos 'n' Andy (plus Edgar Bergen and Ozzie & Harriet next fall) parlay. Paley is shooting for a Crosby- Fibber & Molly-Bob Hope back- to - back Wednesday sequencing. There's lots 6f open time kicking around on the GBS Wednesday Sked and in the process of filling it Paley wants to out-Hooper NBC's top drawing card of "Duffy's Tavern" and "Mr. District Attor- ney." ■ ■ ■ ■ :The Fibber-Molly negotiations have variously been reported as hot. There's some doubt, though, whether Paley can' maneuver a Bob Hope switchover in view of Charles Luckman's (Lever Bros.) concept on network programming. When a move was initiated last year to switch CBS' top-rated "Lux Radio Theatre" over to NBC, it's recalled, Luckiwan expressed him- self as "not wanting to put all his eggs in one basket." At that time Amos 'n' Andy was still bracketed On NBC with Hope. And should the latter move over, it would give GBS a complete five- way Lever spread on all its top- rated shows. ("My Friend Irma" and "Godfrey's Talent Scouts," the other two audience-pulling Lever programs, are also CBS properties.) By GEORGE ROSElf A few top economists have been at. work on behalf of some seg- ments of the industryj.re-apprais- ing the radio picture in terms of the future; It's being done on the q.t. and no official report is con- templated; but what they've come up with Is anything but heatening. Their findings are destined to have a vital beanng on tha future of all radio and: particularly the net- works. In the. opinion of these experts, the sales peak has passed for the . three major industries that through the years have been the mainstays of commercial radio- food, drugs and soap. These three industries alone have been re- Trade Ponders Future of ABC In Radio in Wake of Talent Shift, Stock Unloading, Noble's Desire to Sell 'Protect Radio' Stance : Same situation that cropped up at the. NBC convention in Sun Valley last September was evidenced over the past week- end at the CBS Television Clinic In New . York; It's re- called that the affiliate mem- bers of NBC translated their apprehensions and fears over video's costs (and what it might conceivably do to their radio operations) into. a. re- sounding endorsement of the status quo in AM. The whole thing_got a re- peat performance at the .GBS ■ Clinic. The "pratect radio" stance . that highlighted the talk by William Gittinger, CBS veepee in charge of sales, probably got the biggest hand ot tlie three-day meet. NBC's New Thinking NBC from all indications doesn't Intend fighting AM with AM. Network toppers are pretty well convinced now that tele has moved Into the big- time and will throw its Sun- day night at 7 heavy artillery asainst the Jack Benny oppo- sition via video rather than radio. (They're pretty much reconciled to the Horace Heidt drubbing on AM as stacked up against Benny's Hooper.) NBC is getting set to spring Its Sunday at 7 TV surprise; It'll be a strictly bigtime. spread, but otherwise the web is keeping it hush-hushV k ABC het>vork ah4 its ifuture: In the radifJ-TY jtatterii has been; sbaring ^almost etjual. ji^rominenc*' with William S. Paley-CBS in Man-; hBtt'an trade , tallt this.; past iv^ The: events qif the past few Weeks have only served to heighten teiir sioh; among, the network persoh- nel at Radio City headquarters,. and many are asking put I6ud: ''Wonder what*ll happen to us?" No one around the network 'is denying that the. loss of Blni Crosby to CBS - is a hafd ; bloyFi: For it practically eliminates the Web from Wediiesday night com- petition with !NBG or GBS and leaves the web's, brace Siinday night attractions, Walter . Wlnchell and "Stop, -the Musilc,'' ast prac-- ticaUy tbe loiii^ ABC cbht^^ for ■ the. bigtim.e • Hbopier swc!^^ stakes.;-' ■ : D-„-,^_- ^ The FCC may soon determlue D6ry6ll''L0Cd''Li0ld ^'^^^ ultimate fate of the "Stop the V" &t" ''V t" ^y*** Music" giveaway, : And Paley has his eye and bankroll on the top Hooper draw of them an, Wincheil. WW. however, Is uiider contract to ABC, Which presents a com- plication for Paley & Go. in any attempt to wop him over. .(When NBC's- Sunday . time, started opea'-. ing up. the web thought it would Edgar Bergen's return to the ; « So""^^^^^^^^^^ airlane* next fall will be under fil V^Viq Coca-Cola's auspices, with Bergen!?"^"* '^Sht off the CBS herd, loinTna .T».ir ttp'nm,'..ra Amn« -n' '^^'^ whcu everybody concemcd [en-Coca-Cola Join CBS Sunday Lineup Next Fall sponsible ,for about 75% of annu- al network billings. It's no secret, of course, that the three vital industrieSi which bought up large, inventories ' on products, are now taking losses on these inventories. Prices are com- ing down. Advertising budgets are being re-appraised in the face of an uncertain sales future. Some have already gone into action, with radio taking the rap. Strain On Food Front On the food front, for example, Standard Brands dropped a full hour of Sunday night network time (Edgar Bergen and Fred Al- len) to effect a. saving of several million dollars. The American Meat Institute has cancelled out of the Fred Waring morning pro- (Contlnued on page 42) , the joining Jack' Benny and Amos 'n' Andy in the Sunday night lineup. , . „p, -.nntrartnal "hahv" However, Bergen is detouring capi-1 ^"^,1 fT,?^S ,.1. tal gains, a maneuver which scut-' ^''^S was forgotten), tied his negotiations with the' The ultimate fate of ABC will soft drink company a couple i be the determining factor in WW's months ago. i future affiliation. Ju&l where that leaves Spike ' The fact that Ed Noble is *anx- Jones, who now occupies th,e pre-1 ious to sell the web; the revela* Benny 6:30 Sunday segment on tion. of prexy Mark Wopds and GBS for Coca-Cola, is problemati-' exec veepee Robert Klnther un- cal. (Coke outfit Is also cancelling | loading their stock, have had an out on the Friday night Jane Fro- undeniable effect on the morale man-Percy Faith musical and drop- [ around ABC headquarters. While ping Morton Downey on NBC, al-1 Noble Isn't talking, it's accepted though latter is getting a TV show- j thaf if ^he can get a good price case for Goca-Cola). Jones lias a j from someone who could get past contract, which protects him for the i the FCC pearly gates on an okay, balance of this season. As the cur- Noble would divest himself of 'Benny Coattail?', Nuts, Sez Harris Phil Harris let his hair down at a "bruncli" tossed by NBG-BBD&O agency last Saturday (22) at 21 Glub, N. Y., day after his sponsor, Rexall, clinched the show's contin- uance on NBC for another 13 weeks. Comic-bandleader's re- marks indicated that, despite his pleasure over the Hooper. upbeat which convinces him he's no longer "riding Benny's coattail," it still 'doesn't make sense (to. either sporn- sor . or listener) to. slug it out in opposition to CBS's "Amos 'n' Andy." Harris bluntly acknowledged he "doesn't know what'U happen" as far as the. Harris-Faye and A'n'A' competition is concerned,- but the shifting of the Rexall show into a new NBC Sunday time segment is considered by many within the realm of possibility. Harris' "Jackson" gags in tribute 1 to .Tack Benny and his longti^ne i association with GBS' newly-ac- I quired comic were strictly on the I level, but Harris' reemphasis . of 1 the fact that his show can now i stand on its own Hooper has ' strengthened belief among inti- I mates that Harris intends check- ling off the Benny show. tain-raiser for Benny and A 'n' A, the show has a rating edge over the NBC opposition, "Ozzie and. Har- riet.'V And "Ozzie & Harriet" are moving back to GBS 6:30-next fall to precede Benny. Bergen did a disappearing act following his appearance .at the In-, augural "Gala" In. D. C. last Wednesday and when next heard from he was hunting and huddling with Coca-Cola top man, Robert W. Woodruff, in Atlanta. Although the Woodruff-Bergen hunting rou- tine has become an annual cus- tom, the boys were gunning for bigger game this, time out. Both got what they wanted. Indie Baseball Webs Protest Western Union ABC. immediately. But the $64 question Intriguing the.- trade is whether the new buyer would grab'it off for its TV potentialities alone and decide to Jet the AM. operation go by :th« boards; For some close ofoservieiRS say they wouldn't be suil>rlsed if, in the upcoming video era, ABC would be the first to fade from the radio picture.' . Eversharp's leave It' To Stay Put in NBC Slot Althouigh some report!* had Eversharp's "Take It Or Leave it'* headed for a Switchback to CBS, the show stays put In its Sunday night at IQ segment on NBC. A couple ' weeks ,. back when Eyersharp introduced its tele- Plan tn Hika Ifc Ratoe Phonic gimmick on.the show. NBC rwn lU nine U& IVdie^ cWmed in with a "no can do," with a resultant' ultimatum from the sponsor that the network keep it in or it would inove out. NBC decided to let it stay. Western Union's move to hike its i rates on ■ telegraphic reports of ballr games Is meeting solid opposition from indie outlets. Many of the indies, organized into small base- ball networks covering schedules of the "local leagues, regard WU's move as sounding the death knell! for their operations since it would' make costs prohibitive. ' "'■ Western Union is aiming Its in- creased tariff at stations feeding a I re-creation of the games to a net- I work comprising other indies and thereby cutting , wire charges. It's reported added toll would amount Young & Rubican staffers h a v« produced a 16m film short, for inter-office cphsumption; kidding the career of - ISigurd Larmori, agency prexy. Film ■was run all day Friday (21). ; ' ■ Joe Mprah, radio veepee and :0x? actor, is producer, narrator, and' to's2.5Valt7tTon"for'7lirfirsrfive f"^'^^ ^Tl^' t ^"'^'^ stations in such a network and ^^^^^^J^t'^.'l^J^ $1.50 each for additional outlets, Before adding the charge, how- ever, WU must receive permission from the FCC. Edward Breen, Nab board member for small sta- tions and head of ; KPV1>^ Fort Dodge; la., has wired the B'CC for notification in event hearings on the increased rates are ordered. Smith, both of the motion picture-, TV dept Tony Zaghl, business manager of the radio department, and other staffers are in supporting rdles. One scene, showing basket- ball team in dressing room, was played by' biggies of V&R plans board. Gimmlcli; ki film is that Larmon is shown throughout wear?' ing a wliite carnation.