Variety (September 1952)

^cdncsJay^ Scplembci* 10, 1952 a P^IETT ORdfESTnAS-MVSlC 41 f^Sif Scoreboard OF Two Local 802 Execs Rap Own Group In New Alliances for Dec. Election TOP TALENT AND TUNES Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution Encompassing the Three Major Outlets Coin Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music as Published in the Current Issue for ■ WEEK ENDING SEPTEMBER 6 - NOTE: The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder U arrived at undi^ a statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets enur merged aoove. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive with VARIETY. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de- veloped from the ratio of points scored: two ways in the case of talent (disks, coin machines) and three ways in the case of tunes (disks, coin machines, sheet music). TALENT POSITIONS This Last week, week. ARTIST AND LABEL 1 4 JO STAFFORD (Columbia) 2 1 ROSEMARY CLOONEY (Columbia) .... 8 2 EDDIE FISHER (Victor) 4 3 VERA LYNN (London) 5 ’B FRANKIE LAINE (Columbia) 6 5 NAT (KING) COLE (Capitol) 7 8 HUGO WINTERHALTER (Victor) 8 .. LES PAUL-MARY FORD (Capitol) ... '■9- .. PATTI PAGE (Mercury) 10 7 FRANKIE LAINE-D. DAY (Columijia). I TUNE (You Belong to Me ) Jambalaya (Half as Much ) Botch-A-Me Wish You Were Here Auf Wiederseh’n High Noon (Walkin’ My Baby Home ) Somewhere Along Way Vanessa Meet Mr. Callaghan I Went to Your Wedding Sugarbush TUNES POSITIONS This Last week. week. TUNE PUBLISpnER 1 . 1 AUF WIEDERSEH’N SWEETHEART ; Hlll-R 2 4 YOU BELONG TO ME Ridgeway 3 2, WISH YOU WERE HERE......... Chappell 4 3 HALF AS MUCH Acuff-R 5 6 S.OMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY United 8 5 BOTCH-A-ME Hollis 7 8 HIGH NPON Feist 8 I WENT TO YOUR WEDDING St. Louis 9 s.. MEET MB, CALLAGHAN Leeds 10 . JAMBALAYA 1 Acufl-R ^ •» RETAIL SHEET BEST SELLERS Survey of retail sheet music sales, based on reports obtained from leading stores in 12 cities and showing comparative sales rating for this a,nd last week. National Ratinf This Last Week Ending Sept. 6 (0 Q Ih & 8 o o n d CO B o; a I ho (U >* <u S o W d S o •l-l d s d n B n CO 2 o S f-H 4 ) ► o O (O d s CO d •pH r!^ fl s n o U (O d 6 rd u W ■ rH s. ei 43 d d •rH A A d CO o •rH CO d s CO ‘3 4^ Wi uS ‘3 o o u o d (0 •rH P4 O 6 CC o •a •2 5 o U o •pH CO d A n) O C4 (0 2 pq u <u d (O <u I? I 93 rd M •k d 0 e 93 01 (0 a o T O T A L P 0 1 N T Music in tha Deep Having run the gamut in gimmiclcs and new sounds, the disk industry is now going un- der water. A recently launched U. S. sub, the Harder, had a jukebox installed for the gobs aboard. It’s the first Navy sub to include the juke- ! box as part of its equipment Machine plays six sides for a nickel. ‘ Lawrence Exit From Cornell Tour Cancels 27 Out of 44 Bookings Bowout of Elliot Lawrence from projected concert-terp one-niter tour he was skedded to make with Don Cornell forced cancellation of 27 of the 44 dates that already had been lined up. The 17 dates which held on will spotlight Cornell with local orchs. Associated Booking Corp. is handling the concert-terp package. Lawrence moved out of the pack- age when he inked a pact to appear regularly with a quartet on Jack Sterling’s cross-the-board early morning program on CBS. It’s Lawrence’s first musical chore with- out a full orch. J. MACDONALD SET FOR 30 CONCERTS IN FALL Jeanette MacDonald, under Sol Hurok’s concert management for the first time this season, has been set for a recital tour of 30 dates this fall, running till Xmas. Film soprano opens her tour Sept. 28 in Chicago, and goes as far west as the Coast. Only eastern date is in D.C., Nov. 30, Singer was under James A. Da- vidson Mgt. auspices last year. She filled four al fresco dates this sum- mer, at Robin Hood Dell, Philly; Red Rocks, Col.; Milwaukee, and Evansville, Ind. Fix Majors Nix SMACEM Bid for U.S. Cleffer Coin Mexico City, Sept. 2. Demand of the Mexican Society of Authors, Composers & Publish- ers of Music (SMACEM) that it col- lect royalties for U. S. composers and songwriters on music in U. S. pix that play Mexico continues to be given a flat nixing by the major American film companies operating down here. Companies execs aver there’s no such agreement between them and SMACEM. They point our that the recent “war” between SMACEM and the Mexican pic trade was end- ed by Mexican pic producers agree- ing to pay a flat $60 royalty for SMACEM’s members work used in their films. Execs say they will continue to nix paying SMACEM the demanded royalty unless that payment is okayed'by TJ. S. musi- cians’ organizations. Little Orel’s Fall Bow Little Orchestra Society, beaded by Thomas Scherman, will open its sixth season with a concert at Town Hall, N. Y., Oct. 13. Scherman will conduct. Thea Dispeker is orch’s manager again. Publicity this season will be handled for first time by the Eliza- beth Winston office. Cutting Joins K.C. Symph Kansas City, Sept. 9. Kansas City Philharmonic Or- chestra last week added Raymond Cutting to the staff as director of the Philharmonic chorus and assis- tant orchestra conductor. Cutting came here last week from Chi- cago where he was assistant con- ductor for a 13-week summer ses- sion at the North Shore Music Theatre in the Roun(i at Highland Park. As assistant to Hans Schwieger, conductor, Cutting will round up a chorus of 100 voices which will work out in the “Elijah” oratorio in December, a couple of pop con- certs, and the opera festival next spring. With elections for the officers of New York’s Local 802, biggest in the American Federation of Labor, three months away, an entirely new pattern of alliance.'^ has been created among the local’s adminis- tration and opposition groups. One of the most surprising shifts to date was made last week when two members of the current admin- istration, Al Kno^ and Hy Jaffe, denounced the union leadership with which they have been associ- ated for years. Both Knopf and Jaffe, have left the Blue Ticket, representing the administration, and will travel as independents. Pullout of the two. Blue leaders is linked closely to the recent and equally surprising embrace be- I tween the Blues and the Unity group, the erstwhile opposition to the administration. Bill Feinberg, standard-bearer for the Unity Ticket in the 1950 elections; buried the hatchet with Sam Suber, Local 802 prexy and head of the Blue group. Knopf and Jaffe castigated the administration for entering “into a phony and unholy alli- ance” with persons whom they have for years denounced with very strong words. With Feinberg and Suber now in agreement with each other, only Al Manuti represents a threat to the reelection of the Incumbent administration. Manuti, an inde- pendent, has run for the past couple of years, racking up high votes and once losing by less than 75 ballots. Manuti will once again make his bid for the local’s leader- ship this December. Although Knopf, who heads the disk and film division of Local 802, and Jaffe, trial board mem- ber, have not disclosed their fu- ture plans, it’s expected that they will attempt to link up with the Manuti group in the next couple of weeks. DEVON, INDIE LABEL, LAUNCHED IN PHILLY Philadelphia, Sept. 9, Organization of new Devon Rec- ords, Inc., brings together four men in local platter industry—Melvyn R. Korn, Harry Fleet, Robert Ira Goldy and Moose Charlap. New outfit will specialize in pop waxings and set up nation-wide web of distribs. Kom, who was as- sociated with father in the J. M. Kom Advertising* Agency and Fleet, Yorkshire Worsted Mills exec, were responsible for bringing out Four Aces’ disk of “Sin.” Korn will act as president of new cor- poration and Fleet is secretary. Charlap, a songwriter responsible for “Here Is My Heart,” “The Pur- tiest Little Tree,” “Balboa,” etc., is the v.p.; and Goldy, a member of Philly' bar, will act as treasurer and general counsel. Devon Rec- ords will manufacture platters in New York at 78 rpm speed, with other speeds to be added later. Initial release is skedded.for early this month. Louisville Amateurs Form Cleffer Outfit Louisville, Sept. 9; Local amateur songwriters have formed a non-profit organization Songwriters Associated, with pur- pose to join themselves, talents and material to Improve existing channels of contact between song- writers and the various outlets for their product and to undertake a co-operative promotion program for this product. Future plans include a songwriting workship and bu- reaus for musical legal assistance, information, songwriting history and education. Group meets once weekly in the WKLO studios, and has some 20 members as a start. At present the group is holding auditions for vo- cal and instrumental talen, who will be required to perform gratis. Station WKLO has offered Song- writers Associated a half-hour once-a-week spot for a radio show, and will provide scripters and an- nouncers. Tentative plans call for the first show to be ready for air- ing sometime in October. Officers of the songwriters group are Chuck Gorman, president; Jay Lee, vice-president; Jerrilin Jones, secretary, and Cliff Eblen, treas- urer. All are local amateur song- smiths.