Variety (June 1954)

2* RADIO-TELEVISION PSSStBFf VtJnwhr, June 23," 1934 Steele, GT Features as After a seven-month shortage of '■¥ live programming and a much older overabundance of red ink, WOR-TV, General Teleradio sta- tion in New York, emerges on July 5 with an enlarged live schedule and prospects for big coin returns.. With Ted Steele, who launches three added hours of Jive programming on that date, and hopes for sale of the strong GT 30 feature films, station execs have assumed an air of “expand- ing optimism.’* Steele ankles WPIX, N. Y-, on July 2 and picks up three days later bn WOR-TV with three back- to-back programs, First will be a two-hour variety stanza, then juve and teenage vehicles, all emceed by Steele. Layout is similar to that of WPIX at present. More than $1,250,000 is involved, with a sell- GE REPACTS WARING FOR 4 TV SPECIALS General .Electric this , w^ek signed Fred Waring to return to his Sunday night CBS-TV spoLfOur 1 times^ next year with special holi- day shows,. two of them to be done in color. BBD&O, GE’s agency, will completely control production on all four, the first time it’s been able to do so on CBS-TV for some time. First show will air between Elec- tion Day and Armistice Day; two will be given at Christmas time and one at Easter. With Waring Set McNeill Sabs ChtaKQf June 22, Don McNeill’s reptecements have been set for his four-^mek vaca- tion from ABC’s sirtfulcasir^Break- fast Club.” S First week will go to Walter O’Keefe, who takes over June 28,^ followed by Peter Donald, Walter Kiernan and Dennis James. on tour part of those times, two out grossing WOR-TV in excess of ■ will originate in N. Y., one from $15,000 weekly. I the Coast and the fourth in Chi- WOR-TV now signs on at 4 p.'m. .cago. Programs will air Sundays with Jean Phair’s homomaking show, but with Steele, the telecast day will begin at 1:25 p.m. with five minutes of news, followed by Phair four days a week and Lodge's “Man In Your Life” on Fridays (when there are the least baseball preemptions scheduled). From 2-2:30 it’s “Treasurama.” Then it’s Steele’s three hours, fol- lowed by “Colonel Venture” (half live and half film), shortened from an hour to a half-hour, At 6 it’s the presently slotted “Merry Mail- man.” Doris Steele, wife of the per at 9, supplemental to the 22 live and 13 filmed Ronald Reagan- hosted dramatic shows. BBD&O hasn’t set a producer or director yet. Canada’s 500G Record Sponsor Sports Deal Toronto, June 22. In the biggest tv-radio deal in Canadian sports history, Northern Electric Co. and National Carbon will pay $500,000 for rights to the former, is lining up a slate of spon-} British Empire games and Big Four sors, with five practically pacted. j football schedule. Deal was set Probability is that a number of j with the CBS this week, underwriters will follow Steele j Northern Electric will pick up from WPIX. > the full tab for the games and Deal with Steele was made with then will be joined by National Gordon Gray WOR and WOR-TV! Carbon in sponsoring both teevee topper giving the former a nnd radio coverage of the Canadi- guaranteed salary and a percent- an Rugby Union teams. Exact ex- age over the minimum. , tent of the intra-split arrangements Since the advent of Steele forced j the station to add; facilities and an additional tv crew, Gray asked his program boss, Larry Menkin, to line up another live housefrau . were not revealed. Trout, Jackson To Chewy • Chevrolet’s 12 capsule newscasts per week starting July 3 on CBS stanza, which probably will put the Radio have drawn Robert Trout station on the air at 12:30 within a few days after Steele’s preem. ...... With the feature Tilms cited as al- i -tbe-board plus four Sunday airers. most a certainty to go on, program- . and Allan Jackson as the pivots. Trout is down for 9:55 a:m. cross- mers are mulling bringing back Menkin’s “High Tension” and “Harlem Detective” nighttime. These shows were killed last year, when WOR-TV gave up its out- sized and extra-costly 67th Street studios. To take care of Steele and any additional live stanzas, Gray is building a large stuuio on the ground floor of the GT-Mutual Broadcasting building. In use now is a small studio in the Empire Jackson will handle three briefies on Saturday during the 13-week contract. NBC’a ;aural arm took a .windup this week to set itself for. the come-what-may next Monday (28) when the web’s Radio Affili- ates Committee will meet at New York’s Plaza Hotel tb act on-the proposed nighttime rate cut. In informing RAC members of the huddle, chairman Robert D. Swezey, of WDSU, New . Orleans, pinpointed this Friday (25) as the deadline for receipt 1 of data to pro- vide the weekend for assembling the material for the Monday ses- sions. Swezey suggested as the first order of business a review of “the purpose” of the committee “to de- termine whether in fact it can per- form any useful function.” “If we reach a conclusion that it cahnot,” Swezey declared,. “let’s fold the thing up pronto and waste no fur- ther time and money . If we decide, on the other hand, that the effort is not wholly futile, we should certainly consider ways and means for increasing its efficacy.” NBC had put forward jt plan for a 20% reduction in night remun- eration for the affiliate stations after CBS has announced its inten- tions in that direction. Columbia’s prior push for a “dip in the clip” has reportedly met with approval of 86% of its affiiliates, with only 85% necessary to put the plan into realization. From a competitive view, NBC’s affiliates would, it is argued, be forced to accept a de- crease in rates. If a decision is reached at Mon- day’s get-together . (originally carded for Chicago but space un- available there because of Furni- ture Mart), it will not end NBC’s fuss with the affiliates. Latter have been pecking away at the web’s one-minute participation set- ups which They claim hits into the area of spots. . .-. ., Cincinnati, June 22. “Moon River”-has returned to WLW after a two-year absence In response to fan clamor for the romantic slumber 25-minute program which had a midnight run for 22 yeaift Comeback Monday* (21) was saluted with a full hour program. v There*, were special recordings by former* Crosley staffers who Nyrorked on the show and ascended to top places in radio and tv. Such names as Doris Day,. Clooney Sisters t Anita Rllia, Lee Irwin, . Gene Jperazzo, Lucile Norman, Phil Brito,- Hap'Lee,* Jay Jostyn and Ed Byron. - *;'4* ■ * It was jfryroh who wrote-the: -now. *€amed..' • theme ‘ iotig in 193*0, requested by Powell Grosley, whb owned the sta- tion then, as “an appropriate, soothing signoff.” TheByron tune ■ has figured in countless romances over many states andi|U$o has been the .“signoff” requested by death-row prisoners,.. •Crosley and his successors never permitted the shpw th bh* spon- sored, turning down repeated requests by mattress maken$:.^) par- ticular, It goes back to the regular 12 r30 a.m. starting time and '25-minute length tonight (23 L * New... York Shortage of directors now finds CBS-TV’S' Bywn Paul ‘ Hnnhlinf* Rudy Bretz, veteran tele producer, director and author, has been named dean of the faculty of the SRT Television Studios in New York. Aside from instructional duties at the school, Bretz will concentrate on ways and means of lending the school’s facilities for educational telecasting. Bretz recently returned from a three-month trip to State Building, where WOR-TV i Germany where on a special assignment from the State Dept., he uc — 'assisted the German tele stations and network in formulating pro- gramming and production techniques. has its transmitter.' There’s an- other studio being constructed ; there, but only for rehearsal and : film editing. i GT’s feature pix are being readied for a fall start 14 times , a week, first at 7:30 p.m. and then j again at 10. The intervening 9-10 ! time and the adjacencies, as with j Steele, are expected to accrue , heavy returns over and above reg- ular program sponsorship, No Sat. Aft. CBS WCBS-TV’s. “Camera Three” lays claim to being the only 46-minute show in video. Educational series of the N. Y. key of CBS was squeezed into adding, 60 seconds to take up the slack from the segue- ing program, “Shakespeare on TV,” which is being kinnied by courtesy of KNXT on the Coast. One minute of that show, as originally run live, was used to inform viewers where to write for booklets and other info necessary to take the course for college credits at the U. of Southern Cal. Since no rah-rah credits are involved in the Gotham repeat, “Camera” is eating into Prof. Frank C. Baxter’s expostula- tions on the Bard. - ' ■ At its 30th annual convention, the National Assn of Educational Broadcasters will undertake its initial commercial venture. Invitations to participate as* paying exhibitors at the conclave, marked for Oct. 27-30 in New York, are equipment manufacturers. Reps from all of the 127 NAEB member stations are expected to attend the “first business exhibition” of the group. According to NAEB, plans for educational video in the U. S. represent a $10,000,000 market for station equipment in the next three years. The “Morning Show” type of format is due to invade the tele sports precincts. CBS-TV is now | biz. and. nonpro names in 13 taped radio programs “to promote,a American Foundation for the Blind has enlisted the aid of show mulling that kind of program for ; more realistic attitude among the sighted toward those who happen the Saturday afternoon period dur- j to be blind.” Series is being readied for October distribution, Among ing the football season. Actually; participants are Peter Lind Hayes, H. V. Kaltenborn, Lowell Thomas, no plans have been finalized at this j Margaret Truihan, Dorothy Thompson, Steve Allen, Eva Le Gallienne, point, but discussions in the CBS , John Gunther, Raymond Swing, Dwight Cooke, Leon Pearson, Dr. sports and program departments! Ralph Bunche and Nelson Rockefeller. are being steered in that direction, j President Eisenhower is honorary chairman; Hayes, acting radio CBS-TV will be in the , middle chairman; M. Robert Barnett, executive director, and Dr. Gregor during the grid season. ABC-TV is i Ziemer, emce.e-moderator and director of public education of the set to do the NCAA “Game of the foundation. Week.” NBC-TV is primed for Canadian football, and DuMont Malcom (Mai) Boyd, onetime radio-tv exec, was ordained as a will have pro games Saturday eve- Deacon in the Episcopal Church on the Coast Monday (21), his sue- nings and Sunday afternoon. The j cessful completion last week of the canonical examinations of the Columbia net, thus being left with-; diocese: Ceremony by Rt. R0v.^ Francis Eric Bloy, Bishop of the out any important games, is there- fore concocting a sports show that is likely to have a heavy slant to football plus other sports. The web is expected to rely on guests and L: A. Diocese, capped three yeaps of ‘ seminary studies by Boyd at the Church Divinity Schdol of the Pacific in Berkeley. Boyd resigned his radio-tv posts ih 1951 to study for the ministry. He had been a partner and v.p. of PlCkford, Rogers A Boyd, the pack- aging firm owned by Mary Pickfor'd and. Charles (’Buddy) Rogers, - eports results to hypo the draw of; and had also been president Of * the National Society of Television the show. I Producers. "*’ doubling from Jaiie'Froniah show, which he also produces, into Tuesday night Danger.” Beii Grauer planes to Coast to- day (Wed.) for “March of Medi- cine” narration tomorrow on NBG* TV , . . Russ Johnston, radio-tv boss of defunct Ward Wheelock, to McCann-Erickson as account exec . Dick Berman upped to WNBT production supervisor under Steve Krantz while “inside" flack John O’Keefe was promoted to contact editor . . . Fred Rickey, producer of CBS-TV “Omnibus” last season, nabbed first video award pi speech-theatre debt, of L. I.. Univ, for “advancing the . standards of television” ... Jack Barry pinch- hitting for hospitalized Waiter Cronkite on CBS-TV “Morning Show.” Cast lined up for NBC-TV’s four new daytime, shows starting next month. Pat Barry and Val Dufour for “First Love”; Larry ** Kerr, Jeanne Jerrens, Viola Berwick, Len- Wayland, Jack Lester and Carletoii Kadell for “A Time to Live”;'Louise Albritton, Jane Sey- mour, Helen Shields, John Raby, John Gibson, Patti Bosworth and Eddie Brian for “Concerning Miss Marlowe” and Leila Martin for “The Golden Window” ... WNBT newscaster John Wingate to inter- view foreign correspondents June 27 on subject of “As Others See Us” , . . Marvin Marx and Walter Stone, head writers of Jackie Gleason show for past four years, have signed new three-year pact commencing with the .fall season. Pr. Alien B. DuMont -named Father of the Year in science by the Boys’ Clubs of America . . . Three tele stations have signed tin to DuMont affiliate roster, bring- ing, web total to 213 . . . Glenn Denning, who recently completed a role in Warner’s “Battle Cry” on the Coast, flies to Gotham today (Wed.) for an upcoming role in “Kraft Theatre” on NBC . . . ABC- TV’s Martha Wright appearing as classical soloist with the Connecti- cut Symphony under the baton of Meredith Willson Friday (25) at Fairfield U. . . . Wright King into “Kraft Theatre” on NBC next; Wednesday (30) . . . Philippa Bevans into ABC’s “Kraft” the fol- j lowing night (1) . . . Kitty Kallen pacted as first guest on the Dorsey Bros, program, starting July 3 on CBS-TV as the Jackie GlCason re- placement. Sidney Reznick sighed by pro- ducer A1 Span to assist Larry Markes on scripting for Jack Paar who’s replacing Robert Q. Lewis, on CBS crossboarder for four weeks. Reznick also starts on pro- duction staff of Jan Murray’s “Dollar a Second” in its summer switchover to NBC from DuMont ... It’s now cut down to Calkins & Holden from Calkins, Holden, Car- lock, McCJinton & Smith . . . Michael Dreyfuss cast for “Mama” on CBS (25) and Philco “TV Play- house” on NBC (27) . . .. Celeste Holm’s upcomer for CBS is titled "Honestly Celeste” and it’s being cut tomorrow (Thurs.) with How- ard St. John featured . . . Int’l Shoe has bought into 26 Pinky Lee programs on NBC starting Aug. 19 . . . For the birds: Atlantis Sales JPorp,, makers of bird care prod- ucts, latches on to NBC’s “Today” next fall with 12 participations, WCBS-TV replacements: Peter Hackes for Bob Hite on “News of the Night” for June 26 only; Peter Thomas as Lt. John Jet for Stall Sawyer on “Space Funnies” tmxt two Sundays, and for Harry Mar* ble’s “News of N.Y.” for four weeks to July 30. Station’s Satur- day “Jr. Sports Session’* makes summer switch next month as Pub- lic Schools Athletic League bows out as the Board of Education’s cooperative unit on the show and N Y. State Public H.S. Assn, comes in, with PSAL returning in fall... Legit actibss Dorothy Jolllffe will play the lead in preem of “Stran- ger” on DuMont Fridav (25).. Dor- ren liayne, British-born American actress and singer, will begin a se- ries of half-hour programs over WRTV. UHF station at Eatontown, N.J., this Saturday night (26) from 9:05 to 9:30 o’clock. Mark Finhell, singer - composer, and his wife, Paula, of jGross-Baer tv productions, performing and-di- recting this summer at Sam Kameti’s Maplewood Country Club in New Hampshire . . . Nat Hiken’s NBC-to-CBS deal maneuvered by Art Herskowitz (not William Mor- ris), with WM.. jn fact, preferring he stay with Martha Raye (who’s in the agency’s stable) , . . What- ever happened to Bob Burns? ; Chicago ; Jim Stirton, ABC-TV Central Division topper-, -celebrates his ?5th anni in the biz this week . . . Ray (McCarthy - Army) Jenkins ^nesting on Breakfast Club today (Wed?). . . . Tommy Bartlett and Win Stracke exchange. WBKB time periods .Tulv 5 . . ; G. B. Gordon joined WICS-TV, Springfield, 111., as director .. . Two Ton Baker will replace Angel - Casey on WBKB when latter vacations ... Dorothy E. Miller, formerly educational di- rector of WBBM and now with WFTL-TV, Ft. Lauderdale, visit- ing friends at CBS . . . Stan Vain- rib new veep of Academy Films, not Atlas as erratumed here last week ... Tom Duegan picked up Colorstone as WBKB sponsor three times : weekly . . . Chuck Acree emceeing Range Riders on WBBM- TV . . . WBKB set sponsors on three vidpix; Waterfront, Cowboy G-Men, and My Hero . , . Dorsey Connors renewed for 5? by T oanna Western on WNBQ ... Swift tablifting WBKB’s “All About Baby” . . . P. J, Hoff joining WBBM-TV as weatherman after similar duties at KSTP-TV, Mples. . WBBM-TV reviving the 7-9 a.m. strip “Raynor Shine” with Ray Raynor. TV Followups Continued from page 27 it Is, too, actually having a yacht- dock attached to the roadhouse. Telecasting from the terrace made for a picturesque background, with good camera work flashing onto Wantagh Bay and adjacent waters with the speedboats and the warm-looking, summer action. Certainly a niftier background than the Hotel Roosevelt (N. Y.) Grill, especially since Lenny Her- man has replaced the Lombardos for the summer season. The maes- tro experimented with the NBG engineers who were satisfied with the pickup, and the end-result was satisfactory, Julia Meade, who also foils on the Ed Sullivan commer- cials, dittoed on one of those Lin-< eoln-Mercury giveaway (banknite variation) stunts . . . Becomes a question of judgment if “What’s My Line?” acquiesces to a Colum- bia “gold record” award for Doris Day as the “mystery celebrity.” as occurred this past Sunday. Gets it in the orbit of publicity bally- hoo . . . Eddie Cantor and Eddie Fisher were a good parlay on the latter’s Coke-Time stint last Fri- day (18), with the inter-changing of actual vocal renditions while both Eddies cavorting in one an- other’s style. Younger Fisher. is starting to look peaked—looks like he’s trying to do too many things. Currently he*s on the Coast for the Cocoanut Grove engagement. Abel.