Variety (July 1949)

28 RABIO Wednesday, July 6, 1949 SCHWERIN FORMUU VS. ‘DON’T BE HALF SAFE’ ON ADVERTISER RETURN IN RADIO Thret years of radio testing — 1,100 separate program tests, plus nearly 2,000 commercial studies for NBC, Mutual and more than 30 national advertisers — provides the Schwerin Research Corp. of New York with an unequalled body of Information on the whys and wherefores of broadcasting success and failure. Out of it all have come literally hundreds of casj-histories, five basic principles to be observed by j those striving for success in radio, an one central fact. I The central fact is this: Radio has been wasteful — Horace > Schwerin puts the estimate of ^ waste, conservafvely, at 50% of I programming and 90% of commer | cials. I What causes this tremendou.s waste? Misuse, s; ys the research | er, of one or me e of the five basic f)rinciples of su ccssful broadcastng. As he sees them, these five sources of erro' are: Familiarity, which includes the public’s mental concept of your star, story, music, or other main elements, and (in commercials) the “frame of reference” of your audience’s experi TR’s Flock of Sponsors Chicago, July 5. Transit Radio picked up 101 new sponsors during the past month, including Bendix, Swift & Co., Miles Laboratories and Sears Roebuck, and will shortly add Kansas City as the 15th city using TR. Sales veepee Frank Pellegrin said that the largest gains have been registered in appliances, furniture and beverages. The sponsor list now totals 456. B&A Join Comics’ N.Y.HuddleParade I This is “TV huddle time” for ra' dio’s top comics. In the wake of I the Eddie Cantor, A1 Jolson, Jack ! Benny, Ed Gardner, Dennis Day, et al., discussions in New York I over the past 10 days, latest I Gotham-bound team to set video ! plans will be Burns & Allen. I Team is due in later this month ELLIOT WAGER KLZ Script Chief KLZ script writer, Elliot WaRcr, was sinRled out recently by the Denver Advertising Club for scripting two award winning programs, “Knave of Hearts’’ and "Enterprise I'nllmited" — another evidence of KLZ’s leadership in the field of radio production. KLZ, Denver. The Schwerin Fmdings This spring, the Schwerin System of qualitative radio program testing had its third anniversary. Since that first postwar spring of 1946, when NBC undertook to sponsor the Schwerin System with a long-term contract, more than 30 of radio's top advertisers have subscribed to tests of their programs. Result is, 1,100 different pro< grams.and nearly 2,000 commercials have been tested, 350,000 radio listeners have come to NBC and MBS studios to volunteer their reactions to every conceivable kind of radio entertainment. This spring Schwerin began to apply his AM-experience to television with methodology tests in New York, Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland, with the staff preparing a complete recapitulation of their testing experience in radio. The results were capsuled and paraphrased for three different groups — The N. Y. Radio Executives’ club in April, 1949; the Chicago Radio Management club in May, and the N. Y. Chapter of the American Marketing Association in June. These results, and the principles distilled from them, will be presented here for the first time. Beginning with this issue, separate articles will deal with Schwerin’s findings on each of 17 leading types of programs and commercials, in the hope that agencies, sponsors, producers, writers, directors and all broadcasters will profit from this, perhaps .the most comprehensive effort yet made in qualitative radio research. CBS Streamlining Axes Shayon, Six Asst. Directors; Chester Heads News ence, into which your sales message io powwow with their new boss. must fit; Appro-’ch, which means finding the right beginning for your show, and making that right Beginning strong; Mood, or the atmosphere created in your audience by your program, into which all the elements and commercials mu.st dovetail; Emphr*-fs, or the proper apportionment of stress on various elements of the program or commercial, and Direction — not having anything to do with the director's Job, but rather concerning the seection of your audience, and directing your program and commercial to that group. Each of these principles can be applied, in varyi.Tg degrees, to all types of progrr s and commercials. Among the program-categories to be ana yzed in this scries are: Comedy, variety and comedydrama; drama and mystery; popular music. semi-' ’''ssical music, and music and talk; news; audience participation and quiz; serials; homemaking and daytime talk; public affairs; juveniles. Outstanding examples of misuse and/or intelligent use of the five F-A-M-E-D principles on programs from each category will be cited. Testing-Whi?c-You-Walt Basis for all conclusions offered by Schwerin is the “Schwerin Fystem” of testing and pre-testing. It was evolved after Horace Cchwerin’s six prewar years of experimentation for ad agencies and four years with the Army; without the cooperation of Army personnel and equipment, .Schwerin believes at least 10 civilian yeais (Continued on page 36) William S. Paley, who has pacted them to a CBS “exclusive” with "guarantees” for next season. B&A have been pitched up to a number of potential clients, but thus far there have been no takers, chief stymie being the high-priced tag attached to the comedy duo. Paley has been trying to peddle them as an AM-TV package, j After meeting with CBS. B&A sail on the Queen Elizabeth for a ' twoweek engagement at the London Palladium Aug. 15. They return to N. Y. after a week in Paris. mm Net On 8 Shows Seen Via HIGM Network’ ABC’s ‘1st Hundred Years,’ ‘Mr. & Mrs. Met’ Prepped ABC is prepping a new situation comedy, "The First Hundred Years,” dealing with the adventures of a young married couple. Scripted by Jean Holloway, the airer will mix tragedy with the humorous elements for a change I of pace. I Miss Holloway is also writing the audition script for “Mr. and Mrs. I Met,” which will cast Lauritz Melchior and Helen Traubel as a j husband and wife operatic team. ' The airer will have a backstage ' locale and will blend longhair and ' pop music with light drama. Audi, tion record, which will be cut this I week, will use the* Mark Warnow orch. STEVENS MADE AD MGR. AT AMERICAN TOBACCO Appointment of Albert R. Stevens as advertising manager of American Tobacco Co. (Lucky Strike! puts another radio-conscious personality into the ad helm. That’s file post formerly held by Sylvester tl’at) Weaver before the latter moved over to Young & Rubicam a < ouple years back. Since Weaver’s departure. I.ouis Riggio, son of American Tobacco proxy Vincent Riggio, has held clown the ad berth for Lucky Strike (with veepee Paul Hann handling Ibo Pall Mall ad account!. Stevens was formerly director of advertising and sales promotion for National Dairies and as such was Involved in the Sealtest NBC programming. He moves into .\mciican Tobacco Aug. 15. ‘Lassie Show’ Set for '50 Chicago. July 5. Morrell Packing Co. will renew the "Lassie Show” for Red Heart Dog Food. 52 weeks from Sept. 3 via NBC, but the 15 min. Sat. show from Hollywood will shift from ifs present 4 p.m. (CDT) period to 10 a.m. Show is now off for .summer. MGM Radio Attractions, Metro’s ' venture into the transcription busi | ness, should net $1,000,000 annual | ly in profits, according to Bert i Lebhar, sales manager of WMGM, I N. Y., and head of the new outfit. More than 150 stations have already signified their interest in buying the eight programs featuring Metro stars and properties. On ; the basis of 150 outlets, gross take would be around $5,000,000, with production and distribution costs well under $4,000,000 a yeaf. Radio Attractions has already spent $100,000 to turn out 12 hour broadcasts of “MGM Theatre of the Air,” 60 quarter-hours of “At Home With Lionel Barrymore,” 60 quarterj hours of George Murphy’s “Good ' News from Hollywood” and 110 i quarter-hours of Paula Stone’s 1 “Hollywood U. S. A.” Production of “Maisie,” “Dr. Kildare.” “Judge Hardy’s Family* and “Crime Docs Not Pay” will not start until the station sales picture has been clarified. Stations are being offered the programs at prices ranging from . one-fifth to one-half their commer■ cial rate, Lebhar .said. Metro’s aim is to establish a “network” of affiliates who will aid all eight shows and also get promotional aid from the studio and its theatres. • Continued on page 36) 4 N. Y. Replacements On NatL AFRA Board Vinton Hayworth, representing the actors, and Lawrence Tibbett, Lanny Ross and Alex McKee, representing the singers, have been elected as replacements on the national board of the American Federation of Radio Artists from the New York local. Defeated candidates for the vacancies were Leon Janney, actor, and Julie Conway and Chuck Goldstein, singers. The N, Y. local has 15 other seats on the national board. Janney previously had been named to fill a vacancy on the N. Y. local board, caused by the resignation of Ted deCorsia because of film commitments on the Coast, Janney had been 10th in the election to fill nine seats. The N. Y. group also elected 95 delegates to the ’^49 AFRA conven ■f" Although CBS’ 10% economy cutback last week for the most part effected the secretarial-lower divisional staffs, cuing a whole.sale doubling up and streamlining, some of the lopoffs has occasioned trade surpri.se. Among those to be axed was Robert L. Shayon, for the past few years one of the vital cogs in the scripting of CBS documentaries, and whose solo efforts have won him industry kudos. Factor in the Shayon dismissal was the dropping of the “You Were There” historical reprise series, which the web had been unable to sell. For a while there was talk of dumping the entire documentary unit. Six assistant directors who had been assigned to commercial shows were dropped, with only a minimum of squawks from the agencies involved in the programs. Otherwise program veepee Hubbell Robin.son, Jr,, came off without los.ses on the creative level. Al.so occasioning some surprise was the dismi.s.sal of Jack Bachem tion which will be held in August in San Francisco. The local will | in the sales department. He had be able to send a large contingent i been with the network for 12 years, to Frisco with proceeds of approxi [ working on the Compton and mately $14,000 from the ball it staged in the Hotel Astor May 20. Folsom on AM Vs. TV: ‘Always Be Room For Maxon agency accounts and covering the Philadelphia-BaltimorePittsburgh area. He was one of the higher paid .salesmen. Network’s news department, both AM and TV, got the most thorough going over, with the establishment of a pattern of intcn 1.L’ C *1 / 1? gration on all public affairs bruad DOUI 9 OHliS tor turopo casts under Davidson Taylor. ^ ^ , J X r ! Perhaps the mo.st dra.stic rcalign On the eve of his departure for ^ Qf jobs affects Ed Chester a six-week busine.ss-vacation trip | and Wells Church. Chester, forin Europe, leaving tonight (Wed.) I mer director of news, special on Ihe Queen Mary, RCA president ^ events and sports in TV, becomes Frank M.,,F'olsom supplements last week’s Variety roundup on findings that "Show Biz Cools Off on Video.” Folsom accents that teleI vision is an extension of sound ! broadcasting, much as .sound augmented the silents, excepting that I in AM-TV there will “always be room for both of them. • Continued on page 3G) MARKLE TO TAKE TIME OFF TO COMPLETE PLAY Hooper Top 15 and the Opposition WNEW’s Humor Series Gilbert Scldcs and Dick Pack are priming a comedy series at WNEW, New York, titled *’;\merita’s Funny Bone.” It will he a .series of recorded programs embracing dialect humor, the New Yorker type of humor, cle. Louis Untermycr is doing one on puns; Harry Hershfield on philosophical humor; Paul Denis on practical jokes; Laurence Larier on cartoon humor; Dr. Frederick Werthain on psychological approach to humor, and so on. i Program Ilooprrating Walter Winchell 15.5 I.iix Radio Theatre 13.1 Talent Scouts '. 12.2 .Suspense 12.1 My Friend Irma 11.9 Crime Photographer... 11.7 Mr. District Attorney... 11.6 l.ouella Parsons 113 Curtain Time 9.8 Big Story 9.8 Mr. Keen 9 4 .ludy Canova 9 2 Stop tlie Music 9.1 Dennis Day 9 1 Our Miss Brooks 8 8 Total network Sponsored Network rompe Competition tion NBC Symphony 3.4 11.6 Telephone Hour 4.9 9.1 Dr. I. Q 4.4 Henry J. Taylor 1.3 8.0 Johns-Manville News . 1.8 Voice of Firestone ... 4.0 Music Hall 5.3 9.3 Arthur Gaeth '2.3 8.0 Contented I’rogram . . . 3.8 Name the Movie 2.2 8,6 Sealtest Variety .Show. 4.3 Lawrence Welk 3.5 10.2 NBC Symphony 3.4 11.6 No Sponsored Programs 8.9 No Spon.sored Programs 9 3 Theatre U.S.A 2.1 10.4 Fish & Hunt Club ... 1.3 Burns & .Mien 7.0 Titles of Fatima 4.4 10.1 Sam Spade... 7.0 13.1 I. urn A Abner 5 9 Fred Allen 4.9 NBC Symphony 3.4 National Barn Dance . 2.8 112 Jimmie Fidler 3.1 11.2 Am. .Mbum of Music . 5.0 Instead of returning to the CBS staff under terms of his Icnd-lcase arrangement whereby he directed j “The portable radio that one can ' “Ford Theatre” for Kenyon & Eck^ carry around the hou.se, on the hardt agency the past season, i porch, to picnics, into the bath Fletcher Markle will take a leave rooms while shaving, for the house of absence. He sails for Europe wife to listen to news and .soap today (Wed.) along with Vincent operas while she’s doing the dish McConnor, script editor on the I es and the household chores, indi' Ford show. Markle hopes to fineate that sound broadcasting will ish a play while abroad, always be with us,” he says. / I CBS is committed to rehire I “Things that will be perfectly Markle, now that Ford has cannatural to look at, like Berle, Ben celled out the hour-long dramatic ny. Cantor and such stars will show. But the European trip will naturally be ideal for television,” ! hold up his return, and also gives Folsom continues, “but we must ' Markle an opportunity to explore i strike a balance in our belief that other outside commercial deals be]the American public will desert fore finally deciding to check m i radio MWh for TV. That’s not ju.st with Columbia again. I so, nor likely ever to become so. There’s certainly a place for both • Continued on page 36) WGL’s New Ownership Fort Wayne, July 5. News-.Sentlnel Publishing Co., * , . ..riov publishers of the Fort Wayne her Monday through Friday r my Ruth Lyons’ Cincy SRO Cincinnati. July Ruth Lyons, Ciney’s top femme radio enterVainer in point of service and five-figure annual salary, brightened her halo with a single* announcement audience sellout or News-Sentinel, has taken over op1 Club” show for the entire eration of WGL, that city, from the stretch. Block reservations F.\R Liquidating Corp., formerly scries this year were filled in tw Farn.sw(»rth Television and Radio days. . . C’orp.. which owned the station A luncheon and participai since 1944, pitch, the three-year-old License for Farnsworth’s experi nates in the Gibson hotel aiid u ’ imtal television station, which its attendance to 50 women, lee me I was not sought by the News-Sen $1.25 per head. 1 tinel, has been transferred to the Most of the daily 'nu I Capehart-Farnsworth Corp. by the cover complete groups from pom i FCC. J within a 300-miie vadiu*.