Variety (December 1953)

trVilnftftdaT* P ecem ^ !r ^ COLOR IN ltA»IO-TKIJKVISION Amid the abundant positive factors relating to the FCC's go- , p„d on colorvision, comparatively little attention was drawn to y. ’ part 0 f the Commission’s 44-page treatise signalizing, the ,Hinl advent of the ‘‘color era.” But big as life loomed “Com*. natibiUty Clauses” 34, .35 ahd; 36 of the overall docket which was ol made officially a part of the publicly directed statement. The first clause defines compatibility “in the usual sense,” i.e,, satisfactory reception of b&w pictures from colorcasts; but then "lacitieslThptHen"the: subject ■which‘ :: maiy" , deyeib'p' , 'fhtb''"dne"y-r-‘ of the ‘‘hot potatoes” after tint receivers get into the homes tor. mavbe even before). This is ‘‘reverse compatibility,” which re- latcs to satisfactory reception of monochrome signals bn color receivers without alteration. While no change is required in existing b&w Sets for reception of a monochrome picture from color transmissions, the FCC observes that ‘‘it appears that the b&w pictures suffer some degradation” and that “at distances from the receiver where the line structure is evident there is also a dot structure visible.” It says, however, that beyond this critical distance ‘‘there appears to be no significant deterioration in the picture . . . the degree of degradation is not substantial,: and we do not believe it will interfere seriously with the public’s ' vic u Tn^ f'TolOT^ogramming-in-black-&-white^ _ But when it comes to the second aspect—“reverse compatibil-. it v >! the statement reads: ‘‘No test data has been submitted. a' number of parties commented favorably on the ability of present color receivers in this, respect, but the statements were of a general nature unsupported by data. Our own observation in- dicates that the monochrome picture suffers a notio.eable. loss of definition when received on a colorset.” Clause 37 brings up the rear of this phase to put convertibility in the dead pigeon class when it comes to changes necessary in order to enable existing sets to receive color transmissions in color. FCC’s coup d’grace: ‘‘No practical .. converter has been demonstrated nor does it appear that proponents of the proposed Signal specifications have_any current plans for the produc tion : of converters.” ' The ‘‘hue and cry”—when and if it does edme—is expected to center on* the quality of monochrome reception stemming from a b&\OTtnTsnTissi'on j intended"for^'C0 loi , set^^—=■ From both a public and industry view, some of the FCC’s comment on costs embodied in the. official nod on colorcasting is in many ways the most important of its de- tailed statement. Ever 'since CBS’ field sequential system was nixed, the Commission has been Ultra- sensitive to ‘‘the public interest” —and “interest” includes the money factor, which in turn means a receiver cheap enough to be “available” to the masses. . A few months ago in Washington after the FCC had held tinted dem- onstrations in New York, oppo- nents of tfrtr new color specifica- tions on which the. go-ahead has now been given contended that “little basis now exists for a rea- sonable assurance” that receivers .under the proposed system would bo cheap enough for the public at large. The Commission, however, okayed the NTSC method after considering a multitude of factors oilier than the cost to the con- sumer of a colorset. (Before it capitulated to the “mating” meth- od. CBS had been the foremost op- ponent of compatibility, plugging instead its controversial field se- quential method.) The Commission admits in its covering statement that figures in the record concerning estimated (Continued on page 36) Wfcat’s The Tint Story? A group of experts, including Drs. Allen B. DuMont and Thomas T. Goldsmith, are being called in to cue the public on the nature and future of color TV via DuMont’s “What’s the Story?” Thursday; Jan. 14. Third member of the panel will be Kenneth B. Wilson, president of the National Better Business Bureau. . Emcee John K. M. McCaffrey will drop regular format for stanza to conduct round-table . discourse on the recent FCC greenlight on color TV. The best laid plans of mice and monochrome will be executed from •hc£e_ in on; .th^apMpach.;.Jq„_^J '‘greater black & white era” smack in the face of the FCC’s authoriza- tion last Thursday (17) of commer- cial telecasting via the compatible color system fostered by the NTSC to take effect immediately after adoption of standards. Ordinarily, a waiting period of 40 days, during which the standards are to be pub- lished in the Federal Register, must elapse. Commission got around that technicality imme- diately by permitting interim Touring Tintele Robert E..; Lee; “baby” mem- ; ber of the FCC, in his concur- ring statement on a color^- sion system, wound up with: v “I am delighted St long last to have had a small part in putting the show on the road.” wire in advance of program time. In short, colorvision is here and all that remains is (It performance, and (2) the public’s reception of that-^on sets. they do not yet haye. Blit those hordes with a huge stake in durable goods—black St Set alongside the enthusiastic statements by the two other webs f RCA-NBC and CBS-Columbia) '_vi*Ith_ a rich-- stak e’ in both program-. Thing andteTesbt"manufacturing for " colorvision; Dr. Alien B. DuMont’s view of FCC’s greenlight on tint took a downbeat turn as he glbmmed the situation beyond the rainbow. While taking note of the “progressive course” charted by | the TV. industry, the head of Du- Mont Labs declared that the FCC decision “is ahead of the indus- try’s ability to deliver commercial- ly practical color television equip- ment and programs in any appre- feut he also put into the record that “we are abreast of technical and industry’ manufacturing prog- i ress. and in some respects we be- lieve we are ahead, of it.” : WOR-TV would like to shed its-U; Dr. ^uMont. a piorieer TV and $3,000,000: Gotham studios on 67th . tmtele technician, said^his company white telesets, plus manufacturers UtiWr N Y itv hppn vprifipd hv ! would devote itself to bigsereen a b i Barnes M^ah^and GOrdom* video because he believes the pub- of. video equipment in general aren’t inclined to wait for “any “40- ; ‘We Won. Mom!’ Washinton. Dec. 22. Adoption of NTSC color _standacds^4s i ^“5.i;eat for the people.” Sen. Edwin C. Johnson iD-Colo.? told VARIETY last week following the FCC action authorizing commercial, use of the new. compatible system. “It’s been a long hard fight and a very happy day for me,’’ he added. Sen. Johnson, as former Chairman of the Interstate Commerce Committee, played a major role in prodding the FCC to shake color TV out of the laboratories. Only last Spring he threatened a Sen- ate investigation of the elec- tronics manufacturing indus- try to determine whether color, was being deliberately held 'back. ^ Gray, : outgoing and incoming ! demand it and ‘our policy chiefs, respectively, of the local' with respect to large screens shall divisions of General Teleradio. For ’ not change insofar as color is coii- J-the—past--t h ree—months^- NBC-T\L T Cerne.d : _. Compan y will produce and others have reportedly been ’ a receiver some Cline in 1954, crying for the studios, large enough i n o particular Period of the to house a network Drosrhmmine J’ ea C indicated, opefatiom*" -7■■^^*TKr , _ . . ' , Dr. DuMont said, “that neither Du- charge of WOA? ahd VOA1-TV; g’Tbte to deUver ahy su£ war'Vend rtatfd" in A 5 t0 meetini stantial number of color'.'receivers with his successor^ that all but two ^ -h” r general public can afford for sev- I of wOR-TV s shows will emanate J , v 5_ Nbr will there b€ , from the new studio in the Empire ■ ■ V . nrAOra _i. enough color programs broadcast to justify a large receiver instru- ment investment by the viewing public until color receivers arc available in quantity. Meantime, nc one should deprive himself of the enjoyment of television on black & white receivers which will a! ways be able to receive both -coloi and black & white programs.” SarnofT-Folsom Statement In ah elaborate ,10-page state- State Building. Two major dra i matic productions, “Broadway TV . j Theatre” and “Harlem Detective.” , will for the time being, at any rate, ^continue to be seen from the 67th ’ street studios. I Neither Gaines nor Gray would I disclose the prospective buyers’ ■ names, but it was indicated that. ! two of them are major TV webs | and the third, a major motion pic company. .Presently, General Tele- I radio is renting the better portion men L RCA board chairman Brig day wonders” - to find out where of its 67th street studio floor space Gen. David Saraoff and prexj their revenues are going. Galvan- <■ ized into the proverbial action by ; the FCC’s red-blue-and-greenlight.; the TV manufacturers association ; i. and regional and state subdivisions (Continued on page 30) COMEBACK VIA TV are going down the line at the! very source to try to stem the j color tide until they can divest j Pittsburgh, Dec. 22. themselves of teleset inventory and Tommy. Riggs, a Pittsburgh boy “tool up” for “Operation Tint.” ^vho got his start here in radio s And the best source for “pressure ’; more than a score of years ago is; of course,.'the .local. TV stations, ; vrith a now-forgotten partner, i which, themselves hardly" ready to Glenn Moke, is poised for another ’ accept. the newly ordained color■; comeback, this time in television. j Frank M. Folsom cited the $25.- i 000.000 role of RCA-NBC in tintec '.TV and said that another $15,000.- | 000 will go into the pot for tin • first year on the rainbow course ’ Folsr^n said that colorsets will come off the production line ir small quantities in about si> (Continued on page 36) scheme, are expected to lend a sympathetic ear to the plaints of local retailers, distributors, ct al. Should this, squeeze play mean anything at all, it's bound to Riggs departed for Chicago over. weekend to sift three network of-, fers there <ABC, CBS and DuMont 1 after spending three months rest-' ing up here at the : home of his ‘move upstairs” from stations-af- ; father following a year’s stretch as , Tlu 1 ready they |\vo major networks were "ith program skeds which Chicago. Dee. 22. The Windy City may be lagging behind in its entertainment-type radio-TV network contributions but it’s living up to its nickname as far as network newscasters and pun- dits are concerned. There are cur- rently, seven Chi gabbers getting} national radio exposure with ABC leading the parade with four. Within recent weeks Austin Kip- linger, who inherited the Elmer Davis strip, and Ulmer Turner, ! (Continued on page 36) a jaek-of-all-trades in _Birmingham. Ala., teevee. \ Some of Riggs’ new plans also Philadelphia. Dec. 22. Westinghouse outlet WPTZ tele cast the nation’s first color T\ programming and advertising by ; local station Friday f 1S* followinr include his Wife. Noel, who was the FCC’s approval of compatibh w.k. in broadcasting circles in New color'TV. Thursday night < 17 ! York before their marriage four or Phileo Corp., former owners o' five years ago. He’s put together a' wpTZ. cooperated with-the statior . format for a Mr. and Mrs. audi- j n the color telecast, which was : ence participation show which is presented under the first color ex | now under consideration in Chi. ; pcrimental license issued bv tin : During the Riggs’ Birminghanw flee to a local station. That the FCC went into its stay. Mrs. Riggs was active in lit- “Color Now” act with its eyes wide } ti e theatre work. 11 K ' V T v^ ,)lo * ted ^ ea vily following l ' ,( '■ vColor announcement. A'nong those on the tint list of .BC are “Mr. Peepers,” Bob Hope, a C '. , ° Conn or, ‘‘Show of s ?i)i S, c I ' Kraft Tv Theatre,” Kate Din i Dave JGarroway, and Dinah Shore. Web’s big tint tor- v move int0 Position New r-,mnL Da r J ,Y ia c ol orcast of Tour- fipn', 0nl Pr ft Roses Parade in Pqsa- hup ’r' r 1 2 . 1 stations carrying the in ? rwise ’^; this’ll- be, the first lion nS 0 ' 6 ^ 1, in c °ast origina- outviru d f r v he W standards, in snechf Stl i dl 4 0 remote pickup of hv and in net program quartPi-Kf USh ( ed its S olor scheme in ( r y „?- teps ‘ with web antici- 'Continued on page 28) • -i • ir kV T X T tk open to the public “disadvantages” ; with bis Monday tluouglT Thuis- j Q . ] ninie( jiate tintele is refiected in day quarter-hour, joined Paul Har- V n , , t . bccur arta i u an d vey as from-Chi ABC hcwsspielers. | ^ . n # aetajlod declaration ol f Harveys .daily _ nooni aircrvis , »|. t Thui . sdiy (I7) from washing-] pi esently. one of the web s most ^ But the Commission’s overall lucrative co-op ventures with '»?»> objective won out-color TV will: sponsor pickups across the country. I ° J - .. * •• ' Turner To Pursue Tint TV Prod. b » rcdcHer for ( the t public : ti ^l ‘^^^ V |apRaf t, to 0 ^s?1ix; PTZ h * verge of being sold to Hal- ^, re S i “I 1 * 1 i If Telecast consisted of color filiv programming and a color commer- cial, presented on “Skinner’s Spot light” (2 to 2:30 p.m,). Film por- tion CO n si st ed of cli.ps .from Wall Disney Technicolor production "Living Desert.” The color com- mercial was the regular plug in tlu program for Fels & Co. Felso had prepared color slide* local soap. manufacturer S^rX^’^o s^Sr m;;, Tocam" ] premature : {-jj- ^a^ iose "iui;more .ban In. months ago. on WENR. In the show biz news 1 in - say ’ 1954 or 1959 . | porarily at least, on their most gossip category,' Sun-Tiines! Some of this thinking was sup-; recent common stock , dividends. Irv Kupcinet partici- 1 ported in the concurring state- > Firm’s board of directors met- last and columnist pates in City Byline” roundelay Tuesdays through Fridays. WGN has two newsmen working Mutual spreads — Holland Engle ahd Robert F. Hurleigh. Latter, however, switches to the web side permanently at month’s end, exit- ing his WGN news director post to join Mutual’s Washington staff. (Continued oil page 36) the network’s “Three j ments of Commissioners E M. Web- Friday (18» in its. December get ster, George E. Sterling and Rob- together—right on the heels of the ert E. Lee.. While all of them stood j FCC okay on commercial color TV solidly behind opening the door,| standards—and decided, to take no to color; they had certain qualifi- action on the stock, cations;. Webster, for instance. Money will be used in produc-j After pinpointing high cost of tele- tion of color tubes, receivers sets, complexity of receivers, de- gradation of color, transmissions as received on monochrome sets, de- (Continued on page 36) transmitting equipment. Dr. DuMont indicated that sales for the first 11 months of ’53 were up 20% over like period last year. Video section of colorcast, whicl was seen by Philadelphians ii black-and-white, originated fron Phllco Research Laboratory, ir North Philadelphia. Audio narra- tion was from the WPTZ midtowi studio, by George Skinner, emcei of the “Spotlight” show. Added technical interest stem> from use of what is believed t( be the only 35m continuous pro- jector. : Four-mile distance be- tween Phileo plant and WPTZ wa* spanned by a microwave relay.