Variety (March 1955)

Wednesday, March 2$, 1955 • • PSriety S ' " •' I 1 R AMO mVIBEO . W FOMS 27 •4 4 > One of the primary things that N.. Y. radio and- television stations would, have liked before publicly announcing their seven- point program of “minimum standards for home demonstration advertising*’ would have been the open support of the metropoli- tan dailies, which, broadcasters. said, were just as guilty as they Of accopting “bait” and “switch” advertising. But a couple of N. Y. newspapers dissented, preventing others from going along. Ob- jection was to Point Four, which said: If the home demonstration advertiser’s policy is to offei* additional models or N types of the product or service advertised, then lie must, also advertise the prices of all articles or none at all. John Glass, advertising chief at the.N. Y, Daily News, summed it up for the dissenters. He said that his paper has for several years embraced the spirit of the seven-point broadcaster’s program, but that lie didn’t feel it fair for one media to^lay down rules for another. He added that the Newa had sufficient jules of jits own to cover all the points mentioned, and that, at reader com- plaints, objectionable advertising would be dismissed or. cleaned up. As for Point Four itself, Glass said; “Legally, you can’t tell a man what price to advertise at.” He drew an anology to also' stress how “impractical” point four was for newspapers; if a de- partment store mentions a $9 dress, then must it mention a. $15 dress it lias on sale too? When asked how the analogy fits home demo advertisers, he replied that department stores have home demo departments too. A N. Y. Times spokesman, though he would make no direct comment oh the subject, implied that newspaper rejection; of the “switch” plan was. not necessarily final. WPIX’s Hey, Look at Us As ‘Rascals’ WPIX, N. Y. tele outlet, has put 4 the clincher on the extraordinary rating payoff, market to market, of the Interstate - distributed “Little Rascals” ("Our Gang”)' comedy shorts; The current after- noon kidvid ratings on the Daily News station’s celluloid clue a serious threat by syndicated-for- kids films to the longtime suprem- acy of the high-priced live network kid shows—NBC-TV’s “Pinky Lee” and. the rating giant “Howdy Doody.” At last reading—with the “Ras- cals” on (it 5:30) WPIX for less than two months in which to build- an audience following-—ARB and Pulse give the indie’s stripped films a 12.8 and an 11.5, respec- tively; this against competing “Doody’s” 7.6 and 11.1. Stacking the same ratings and rating periods against the NBC-Pinky Lee-at 5 p.rri. (a time when other stations have slotted “Rascals”) combina- tion, “Rascals” far outrides it also. According to ARB and Pulse, in that order, Lee grabbed off 8.9 and 11.5. against the substantially higher WPIX. figures. On Jan. 17, like most other “Rascal” stations, WPIX launched the pix under a completely new program format and title (“Club- house Gang Comedies”). Within five days, the first local video rat- ings gave the show a 5.8—78% higher than the old show in the 5:30 time. This was- substantially higher than the station ever got before ,in the time, and, inciden- tally, the N, Y. station had rarely, if ever matched, its current ARB (Continued on page 34) CBS-TV’s public affairs sector took a lo.ngslobk at the pilot of its upcoming Sunday kidded series this week and figured it has a po- tential hit ih the moppet sweep- stakes. Show, tagged, “Let’s Take a Trip,” is headed for 3:30 to 4 p.fn. next month (the 17th) in the springtime reshuffle of the Sabbath day patterns. “Trip” is designed for the 6 to 12 group who’ll be taken on live offbeat ex- cursions . around the country ac- centing the entertainment values. (Pilot used a firehouse as spring- board.) Starting stanza will re- volve ■ around helicoptering, with subsequents to embrace tugboats* railroad yards, jet planes, a diary fawn and ah ocean liner. There’s a couple . writers as- signed (Bob Fenwick, Bob Allison) foi* the general framework, but show will actually be an ad libber With Sonny Fox; and a couple of iPontinued on page 34) „, 5 t \ U. S. Steel’s Repeat Repeats of full hour live shows are on the ascendancy. This time it’s ABC-TV’s U. S. Steel going in for the repeat pattern. Vehicle is the Ralph Bcllamy- starrer, “Fearful Decision,” whiph brought the sponsor one of its heaviest mail pulls of the season. Date for reprise is May 10. Last repeat was “Patterns” on Kraft Television Theatre. Sets lark/‘Spy Guild Films looks to be waging a one-company campaign in sup- port of telefilm production in New York. Firm is about to sign a new series, “Brother Mark,” which Mar- ion Parsonnet, who owns the prop- erty, will produce at his Parson- net Studios in Astoria. Meanwhile, Guild put another series, the Ray- mond Massey-starring “I Spy,” into production at the Parsonnet ,lot, and two weeks ago began produc- tion on “The Goldbergs” at Lou Klotz’s Biltmore Studios in down- town Manhattan. Total of three half-hour series exceeds the efforts of any one company in the Gotham production picture thus far. “Brother Mark” will be an adven- ture segment, with the principal character a European playboy who becomes a virtual monastic, com- ing out of his isolation to help peo- ple in trouble. Casting and scripts haven’t been set yet, but Parson- net will produce. "I Spy” will be turned out by another old Gotham production hand, E/i Montaigne, who did the “Man Against Crime” and “The Hunter” series in Bed- ford Park Studios in the Bronx for R. J. Reynolds.- It’s to be the stories of great spies of history. “The Goldbergs” is being pro- duced by Guild itself, with Marc Daniels directing. —— - - • - - - ■ • - . _ WCBS-TV Taps Littell For City Editor Role Sam Cook Digges, general man- ager of WCBS-TV, aiming to strengthen local (N. Y.) coverage, has assigned Blaine Littell as news bureafi manager. He’ll function a s the CBS flag- ship's “city editor,” cover some stories himself and also assign cam- 'eramen. Signals have gone up around the country to prove that “bait” and “switch” advertising is not just N. Y.’s problem. Execs of the Bet- ter Business Bureau feel it is a national disease that seems preva- lent in many of the larger cities. To the BBB afid local vigilante groyps this type .of suspect adver- tising is prominent in newspapers as well as radio and television, despite the latter having, come in for the biggest share of complaints lately. The “bait” trend has been grow- ing in the past seven or eight years, according to George Young of BBB. Victor Nyborg, prez of BBB, calls it “vicious, insidious and damag- ing.” yet there has ; been compara- tively little self-regulation by me- dia. Most of the radio-tv'ers give out with, “we won’t cut it off unless ! there are complaints” or “caveat emptor.” When there is self-regu- lation^-as in the case of N. Y.’s 24 radio and tv stations-^there is fre- quently seen a reticence to obey. qne’s own law; N. Y. broadcasters have had rules in effect for nearly three weeks, but only a few days after the rules were publicly an- nounced, there were heard and seen on local stations violations as flagrant as any before. So far, in- formed onlookers feel that many of the stations which are riding along with the rulings are merely doing so in fear of legal reprisals, perhaps from the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, where the matter was recently rekindled and where one advertiser and three of its execs have already been indicted. Other stations are slammed for their open hypocrisy — signing a preventive platform on standards and still airing objectionable “bait” and “switch” ads. It’s said that the Gotham broadcasters’ -set. of “mi imuni standards” to combat b & s~ are. quite clear and easy to follow, but some of the stations .won’t. comply unless legal claws are* added by the Government, Few State Laws The BBB reports there Were b &« cases in 44 American / cities, spanning several stated, yet few states in the country now have laws to stop it. As of July '53, ac- cording to BBB spokesmen, only Massachusetts had any state law on the matter. There are perhaps six or seven others today., but. a closer scrutiny, shows that there are repeated violations in those states too and that, in some in- stances, the laws are viewed as impotent. Efforts are being made to bring some of them up to date. A legal case, aside from N. Y.’s recent indictments, is against two L.A. used car dealers—and their tv announcers—for b & s frauds. It went before a judge last week. ' BBB stated that San Francisco broadcasters, hearing of the Brook- lyn Grand Jury investigation around early February, got’an anti- b &'s campaign of their own going in anticipation of legal repercus- sions from the state, California be- ing one of those with b & s legisla- tion. It wasn’t made clear whether S.F. papers were in on the drive as "well. Ih Akron, BBB reports a home- demonstration advertiser has fold- ed his company, “because things got too hot.” Another Ohio store chain sold its Akron branch to lo- cal interest because of the drive against b & s. BBB, says there are some cities, like Omaha, Amarillo, St. Louis, which won’t tolerate any such fraudulent advertising in any medium. Another source adds that “clean” towns, like this are at a scant minimum. Who’s Consulting Whom? NBC consultants are now taking each other to lunch. * Seen, at N. Y.’s 21 last week: John Royal .lunqhing with -Sol Hurok. Both are on tlffe NBC consultancy roster, the latter pacted to frame some ’55-’56 “Sol Hurok Presents” specs on the Monday night ‘Producers l Showcase” series. Something; ‘S west Corner to TV As Sponsors Eye B way Closings ‘Bleecker St.’ TV’er NBC’s “direct from Broad- way” gleam — with “Peter. Pan” the first in the legit-to- tv moveover — currently cen- ters on “Saint of Bleecker 'Street.” Menotfi opera-drama has been struggling to get into the money and on Friday (25) goes from full week to four- performance weekend policy. The web is aiming at a May 15 slotting at 3:30 to 5 p:m„ and since that’s a Sunday, it indicates either (1) that the show will omit a performance that day or (2) won’t be around. At any rate, the “direct” bill- ing would still hold, with “Bleecken” putting badly need- ed tv money into its till, just , as “Pan” was $85,000 in the red on its Broadway run, a fig- ure reduced when the home- screen coin was’put into*the pile. Menotti’s musical was previously displayed on CBS- TV’s ; “Toast of the Town” as a 20-minute insert. “Bleecker” will either be the legit or publication version. No decision- yet. Hoopers AM-Only, ARB Restricted To TV in New Teamup The ever-shifting research- indus- try last week found one of the eld- est and one of the* newest of the rating outfits joining forces. C. E. Hooper Inc. and American Re- search Bureau reached an agree- ment under which Hooper will con- fine itself to radio, ARB to televi- sion, with the two companies main- taining their separate staffs and identities bdt cooperating in mat- ters of consultation and special re- search, production and sales prob- lems. Agreement involves an ex- change of stoclc, with ARB prexy Jim Seiler getting Hooper shares and a place on the Hooper board, and Hooper’s James Knipe dittoing on ARB. Immediate result of the agree- ment is the abandonment by Hoop- er of its television service in some 55. cities. ARB overlapped in all but three of those cities, so that it will merely'be left alone in the field, except where the still-compet- ing Pulse flourishes. Hooper’s ra- dio service is currently in 90 cities, 55 of them on a regular basis. ARB has a roster of 70 cities, plus 10 more on a station-financed basis, plus its monthly national ratings. Neither service will be expanded immediately. Both firms will con- (Continued on page 34) Double-Talking Taxes Maybe it takes a aouble-talker to take the double-talk out of the income tax. A1 Kelly, one of the foremost of the breed (lie’s Joey Adams’ partner, but sometimes it’s hard to figure who’s playing straight as they frequently go into reverse), will appear on a simul- cast this Saturday (26) over WRCA and WRCA-TV, N. Y. (at 11:30 p,m.) to attempt to put some sense into the gobbledygook. The sup- porting cast will Consist of 14 tax men and 14 models on an hour- long “Al Collins Tax Party.” (Col- lins, known as.Jazzbo, is better known as a disk jockey, than a pitcher of financial legerdemain.) Phone lines will be set up to give the public opportunity to shoot questions at the internal revenuers. The NBC stations are sending out a follow.up press release on Form 1040/ * ' i i The idea of transferring just- closed Broadway legit properties tt> tv, as in the case of “Peter Pan,” is gaining momentum. This time it’s “Southwest Corner,” the John Cecil Holm play which recently folded after a brief run at the Holi- day Theatre, N. Y. It’ll be done on “Kraft Television Theatre” the night of March 30, condensed to an hour version, with the original cast, including Eva LeGallienne, Enid Markey and Parker Fennelly, However, unlike the motive be- hind “Peter Pan,” Which was de- signed as a “qne-nighter USA” to blanket the whole country and thus eliminate the necessity of a road tour to help recapture Broadway losses, “Southwest Corner” is be- ing transferred to tv as a means of stimulating nationwide interest in the production as the prelude to a cross-country tour. In this respect the producers of “Southwest Cor- ner”- are taking their cue from Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the Town,” where capsule presentations of just-about-to-tour legit attractions have created wide interest and sub- sequently proved a b.o. boom on the road. The idea; of transferring legit properties to. tv, lock Istock and bar- rel, is gaining momentum in video circles, working to the benefit of all concerned. It permits the tv producers to bring in a finished, polished presentation, with the only major headache the hurdling of the tv technicalities. On the other hand, the one-shot tv sponsor coin helps to get the iegiter off the hook in the case of an early Broadway demise, not to mention the afore- mentioned interest it stimulate* when ‘a road tour is in the offing. Chicago, March 22. Wild swinging charges and coun- tercharges by Windy City poli- ticians embroiled in the torrid city election campaigns, caught NBC- TV’s WNBQ in the middle of an “equal time” hassle. On the grounds if would only add more fuel to the flames,, the station last week nixed a script readied by State’s Attorney John Gutknecht for use on time offered him to answer an earlier blast fired by Alderman Allen Freeman on WNBQ’s “City Desk.” Gutknecht, a Democrat, left the impression ih his subsequent com- ^ ments to the newspapers that the station had denied him time to an- swer the Republican city council member, Henry Sjogren, WNBQ assistant general manager, pointed out immediately that the station did not withdraw its offer of free time to the state’s attorney last Friday night (18) and that, the offer still stands. Sjogren argued that Gutknecht’s script went considerably beyond answering Freeman’s charges and introduced several new ones. “In- troduction of new issues would obligate us to give Alderman Free- man, and perhaps others, time in which to reply to Judge Gutknecht. And this could go on indefinitely,” the NBC exec stated. Gutknecht was offered the Fri- day night 15 minutes when he turned down an invitation by NBC news director Bill Ray to appear on his “City Desk” show where the Freeman allegations were made. Guy LeBow Capsules Charles Basch (Basch Radio-TV Productions), has signed sports- eastcr Guy LeBow for “Fact of Fable,” radio sports capsule with top guests. Show is going into 39-episode production for syndication...