Variety (January 1954)

Wednesday, January 27, 1954 Although It’s still January, NBC4TV is anxious to sot its summer house in order, and has notified elients^to get in their answer pr6n. to on whether they're taking a hiatus or whether they're in the market for a summer replacement show. The 8ummer-planning-in*midwinter cue stems from the. faet that^ tv costs being what they are, the' networks can no longer afford to dabble around in areas of uncertainty. They’ve got to know the answers to forestall the possibility • of being saddled with open time. Even loss of d half-hour these days, if only for 13 weeks, means a lot of dollars. Too, the webs have to plan accordingly on setting their summer shows. Indicative ' of the early planning is the fact that a 90-minute “Summer Show of Shows” has already . been set for Saturday nights as replacement for the Sid Caesar-lmogene Coca display. (Out of last year’s summer entry came a half-dozen potential personalities now under contract, standout among them George Gobels.). Cast for next summer’s show, however, hasn’t been set yet. For the most part, clients how prefer to stick around 52 weeks of the year, since the tv impact during the summer months has been ®o definitely established by the. Hofstra and other studies. However, while the clients retain their time franchises, most of the major shows go off for a minimum of 13 weeks, necessitating the need to test replacement packages as early as February. WLIB is undergoing a complete overhauling* that Will ultimately cost owners: Morris and Harry Novik close to $150,000. The Gotham radio indie, to increase ifs specialized Negro market, has built ■ >b new transmitter in the middle of the East River, has indicated major personnel shifts and has changed a good part of its programming sked— all of which becomes effective off "Feb. 1 or shortly thereafter. Half of the coin has already gone into building the transmitter. By the middle of next month, WLIB will give Up its tower way out in Brooklyn and start transmitting from the one in the river. Though the 1,000 w. power will not be upped, location of the tower, constructed on pilings and surrounded completely by river waters, is good place for the signal to reach every Negro-populated area in and around New York City. Crisis in the Hub Boston, Jan. 26. A crisis nearing major proportions Struck 4WBZ, WBZTV last week, when some unscrupulous (and unknown ) art lovers absconded with several life-size Marilyn Monroe Calendars and at a late hour had not been apprehended. Incident : created such a furore that the station auditor posted : the following notice: . “A wooden crate, approximately 3 ft. x 7 ft. in size, containing Marilyn . Monroe calendars arrived on our shipping platform yesterday morning. Sometime between noon \ and 2 p.m. the same day, the crate was broken into . and some ; of the calendars, removed. Several calendars : have since been returned. The •* remainder are to be returned immediately. Please bring or mail them to me. Only authorized personnel are to open and distribute station property. This is on(T of several instances ' when the policy has been vio . lated and. it should be completely understood that further violations will receive disciplinary actions.” WLS’ ’BARN DANCE’ MOPS UP ON ROAD Chicago, Jan. 26. . Contrary to previous fears that the spread of television might take the edge off the p.a. circuit for radio talent, WLS “National Barn Dance” cast members had their biggest road year last year in the 29 years the country balladeers and comics have been hitting the trail. Last year the troupe, which includes such midwest household names as Bob Atcher, Lulu Belle & Scotty, Red Blanchard, Beaver Valley Sweethearts and Capt. Stubby & Buccaneers, made 515 personal appearances* before a total audience estimated at more the 1,500;000 persons. This, is an increase of nearly 300,000 over the 1952 total. Client Likes 'Down You Go' Helene Curtis Industries accelerated its sponsorship of DuMont’s Friday “Down You Go” paneler from twice a month to every week and at the same time, extended its contract for another year. Curtis deal commences on Aflto Makers Poor Coin Into Mutual’* Coffers To catch potential buyers on introduction of ’54 models, auto dealers and manufacturers have thrown Increased coin into broadcasting. One of the biggest beneficiaries is the Mutual co-op newscast with Fulton Lewis Jr. The commentator always had auto dealers on the local plane, but during this last month time sales have upped 18%^ Lewis now has 74 stations with local car hucksters footing the tab. One of them, Cadillac, has bought the stanza on the Don Lee portion of the Mutual Coast stations. Segmented programing by the web is another mode being utilized by car makers to push high inventories. A recent Mutual deal was consummated with Dodge, which will begin six-week participation on the network’s “multi-message plan” and 4s also footing the bill for an a.m. five-minute stanza. Both shows -begin under Dodge sponsorship by Feb. 8. A similar setup on Gabriel Heatter program has been arranged by Buick to pitch its hew models. Television is on the air via public broadcasts in 20 countries, is in the experimental broadcast stage in eight more and in 17 other nations steps are being taken to introduce video. That’s the substance of a survey of world television published last week ’ by UNESCO, the United Nations educational agency. Report s points out significant trends in the development of television, among them the fact that whereas at one time tele was developed. in the most “industrially advanced” countries but that now it's, being introduced into much less advanced nations, “and thereby is bringing about a fundamental change in the world communication picture.” « Rough estimates undertaken in the report, titled “Television — A World Survey,” show one set for every 7,l|> persons in the U. S.; one for 24 persons in the United King-, ddm; one for every 55 Cubans; one for every 704 Frenchman; one for every 2,400 Russians and one for every 8,000 West Germans. Basing its observations oh the advances of Cuban television despite the absence of any manufacturing facilities for tele, the report predicts a trend for high set ownership and telecasting facilities in Latin America and later in Asia and Africa. Feb. 5 It is within a few miles of Harlem, Jamaica, the Bedfofd-Stuyvesaht section of Brooklyn and the East Bronx — the biggest Negro communities. There were times in the past, with the old Brooklyn transmitter, that spots in Harlem couldn’t get clear station* reception. Another $75,000 will be used to hypo sales and programming. George Bernstein has been brought in from WOL in Washington, D.C. (where he was general manager) to replace Bill Travis as WLIB sales head. James Fleming has been named director of community, hews and special events. Negro dee jay, Hal Jackson, has been inked to emCee an hour daily segment via the station. The number of local newscasts will— be doubled with the new amount reaching 32 a Week. A remote audience participation program and others are in the offing. ‘Jinx Diary’ in Tint WNBT, N. Y.,. goes into its first local colorcast on Friday (29) when “Jinx Diary” (with Jinx & Tex McCrary) will receive a tint exposure out of the Colonial Theatre, N. Y., color hq of NBC. Regular 1:45 to 2:30 p.m. slotting of the strip will prevail and about six sponsors will be represented, with station g.m. Hamilton Shea hosting the spenders. Among guestars will be Dennis Day, Ethel Waters, and Beatrice Kraft, and there’ll be a March of Dimes fashion layout. Public relations counsel Edward L. Bernays was out this week with results of a quizzing Of educators, sociologists, churchmen and other group leaders whose opinions on tv commercials are designed “to stimulate the public to demand a saner policy” in the plug department. Bernays called it the “opening gun” in a movement to improve the quality and effectiveness of the blurbs. Replies were received from 111 and most of them blasted commercials in four different categories of questions (see box). Some typical replies: Grayson Kirk, president of Columbia U.— “I do not believe that present-day television commercials serve either the best interests of the sponsoring company or the ‘public interest, convenience and necessity’ as stipulated by the FCC. They are insufferably repetitious, and far too obstructive. They have cast a withering blight over the early development of an important communications medium. 1 am sure that they cause many viewers to determine never to buy the advertiser’s product. “In my judgment the permitted time for commercials should be reduced, at least to the point which would bring about the elimination of those in the middle of each program. Further, I think it is imperative to require higher standards of taste in the commercials. The present situation* is* disgraceful.” Dr. Pitirim A. Sorokin, profes sor of sociology at Harvard— “My total impression is that with some exceptions the commercials, as well as the programs themselves, are terrible. Intellectually, the commercials, as well as the programs, are on the level of semimoron. Aesthetically, they represent the school of education in ugliness and utter vulgarity. Morally they are poison by their concentration on physiological crime and sex. “It is a real pity that speh a perfect instrument of communication is actually used for such vul (Continued on page 42) The Four Questions Following are the four questions asked in the Edward L. Bernays. survey on tv commercials: 1. Do you believe presentday tv commercials serve “the public interest, convenience and necessity,” criteria by which the performance of the licensed tv stations is judged by the FCC? 2. If you do not believe that tv commercials, by and large, meet these criteria, please state why in your opinion they do not. . 3. Have you any constructive suggestions to improve tv commercials? 4; How many hours weekly do you view television? Pat Weaver, Frustrated Actor * Pat Weaver, NBC’s new president, who In the early days of his career was an announcer on American Tobacco shows, may well turn out to be the most on-camera prexy in network annals. Not for nothing has he been dubbed by close associates as a “frustrated actor.” He’s been known to respond to “camera calls” at the drop of a hat, or tjjefore you could s# iconoscope. A couple weeks back, to commemorate the second anni of “Today,'* which is a Weaver “baby,” the prexy played the AfTRA time as “guest” of emcee Dave Garroway. And last Week Weaver really had his innings, this time on behalf of another one of his brainchildren, the upcoming “Home” xhow. Althougtothis time it was a closed-circuit job, strictly for the NBC "family,” there was no doubt that Weaver was putting his best w thesping foot forward as he played the “lead” in familiarizing the network staffers and “inside” viewers with the razzle-dazzle techniques-and patterns of the “Home” show. / on ini Moppet TV’er Grows Up “Star Time,” kid vaudeo on WNBT, N. Y., has hit a bigtime network status with NBC-TV riding it on 33 stations after a twoyear Saturday . night standby run on the flagsh|p. It’s in a new time, at 5:30 p.m., and on a co-op basis, with the Gotham backers being' Gerald 6, Kaye, Bendix dtstyib, via Arnold Cohan agency. Moppet variety format is produced by George Scheck, who also scouts, the pocketsize talent. JANE PICKENS’ TV SERIES VICE ’ORCHID’ New tv series starring Jane Pickens has been tapped by ABCTV to replace the outgoing “Orchid Award,” oh the web Sunday nights following Walter Winch ell. It?s a musical segment, scripted by novelist Beth Brown. It also marks Miss Pickens’ bow as a video regu i lar. . UnusUal. aspect of the setup is th'at it’s the first show packaged by and Sponsored on the Web’s N. Y. flagship, WABC-TV, to go full network. Show was set by WABC-TV v.p. John H. Mitchell and sold locally to Old Dutch Coffee. It’s sustaining on the rest of the net, but should the web be able to sell it, Old Dutch can be preempted in favor of the network Sponsor. WMPS’s St. L Ballcasts In Budweiser Pact Meniphis, Jan: 26, WMPS, Memphis’ ABC affiliate, will .air the complete sked of the St. Louis Cardinal National League baseball broadcasts, beginning with the exhibition slate from the Grapefruit Florida circuit on March 18. This is the first time in its 29-year-history that WMPS will air major league baseball games. Heretofore, WHHM, Memphis indie, had aired the Cardinal baseball sked. WHHM was dickering with other clubs in this area in order not to be blacked out in the “heavy money” getting baseball broadcasts and adjancies. Harold o R. Krelstein, WMPS prexy, engineered the deal with Anheuser-Busch, Inc., which Will pick up the tab for Budweiser, and Harry Renfro, cxec of D’Arcy agency of St. Louis. •■■■■■ Chicago, Jan. 26. WMAQ and NBC Shot Sales teamed up to finalize a saturation purchase on tho Chi q&o by Texaco which involves the biggest news show sale in the station’s history. Bundle, totalling $75,000 on an annual basis, includes a seventimes weekly 15-minute newscast at 11 p.m., plus six newscasts scattered through the Saturday and Sunday daytime schedule. Cohen Exits FCC Washington, Jan. 26. Another FCC attorney , resigned last week* to enter private radio law practice in Washington. Latest is Stanley B. Cohen Who is now associated with Leo Resnick, former FCC examiner, who left the agency nine months ago. Portland, Ore.—Earle W. Stephens has resigned from the display advertising staff of the Oregon Journal to join KOIN-TV as an account exec. Washington, Jan. 26. FCC Was given a severe legal jolt last week when the U. S. Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia circuit ordered it to hold a comparative hearing betw -en Zenith Radio Corp. and CBS to determine which should be entitled to use channel 2 in Chicago. The decision means that — barring an appeal to the Supreme Court— the network, after paying $6,000,000 to Balaban & Katz for its Chi o&o outlet, WBBM-TV, will now have to convince the Commission it should be allowed to keep it. In upholding Zenith’s longstanding claim that its pre-freeze application^ for channel 2 gave it a right to compete for the channel when it was substituted for channel 4 under the new allocations in 1952, the Court said Zenith should have been given a hearing with B&K or any other proposed licensee of channel 2 at the time. The Court said, however, that the purchase of WBKB by CBS “cannot be ignored.” It pointed out that CBS was tryipg to acquire WBKB as early as July, 1951. If a comparative hearing had then been held between B8& and Zenith, the Court added, B&K “would have been entitled to establish that if it Were awarded ,the license it would join in an application for a transfer of it to CBS.” Under the circumstances, the Court declared, since the transfer of WBKBjto CBS was not appealed and has become final, “whatever is left to station WBKB . . . belongs to CBS. The comparative hearing, therefore, between Zenith and B&K must actually be a comparison between operation by Zenith and operation by CBS.” Zenith originally filed for channel 2 in Chicago early in 1948, It then had a license to operate channel 2 as an experimehtal station and later conducted its Phonevision tests through this station. The company’s commercial application was caught in the freeze invoked in September, 1948. At the time, B&K was operating (Continued on page 44) Plan (or ‘Mask’ With ABC-TV determined to establish itself firmly in the Sunday night field via its new Gary Merrill-William Prince-starring meller series, “The Mask,” the web has worked out a sales formula for the one-hour, show under which a quarter-hour segment is selling at 25% of the hour rate instead of the customary 40%. Web is selling the show on the basis of a quarter-hour segment, a half-hour or full sponsorship, With a couple of bankrollers reported nibbling at the bait. Understood no client decisions will be made, however, until after at least the first four shows. Web is selling a quarter-hour at a time-and-talent rate of $14,590, figuring $8,625 on program costs. Entire program cost for full sponsorship has a $28,750 tag, with time on. a 51-station lineup for the hour listed at $22,417 on a 52-Week basis. Web, however, is concentrating on the quarterhour sales, in that they represent a reasonable price for a small bankroller and because there are few big clients willing to risk big coin against the Colgate-Ed Sullii van monopoly on Sunday 8-9*