Variety (November 1955)

USSuETt Wednesday, November 23, 1953 TV-FILMS SI WHERE DID MAJORS GO WRONG? 4- Les Harris Gets Off a Few Gripes Report NBC Film Division Switch Hollywood. Nov. 22. It may become necessary to bring vidpix directors from N.Y. or to shoot telefilm series there, since there aren’t over a half-dozen directors in Hollywood he would trust to shoot a series. This was low estimate of Hollywood craft voiced by Leslie Harris, CBS-TV Film Sales v.p., in town last week to set up two new series. “Too many picture directors take the cavalier at¬ titude that it’s a cheap film, their pay is comparatively low, and get it out of the way as fast as possible," he declared. “There’s practically no preparation, no tender care or pride in their work. We thought that because of their familiarity with low budgets, the “B" directors would be best qualified for tv films. It didn’t work out that way and it may be necessary to draft directors from live tv. They, at least, don’t take a superior atti¬ tude toward the job and can be depended on to make a sincere effort to turn out a good picture." (Three-day directors’ scale is around $1,000.) ' ■ ' Nor did Harris spare telefilm writers in his criticism of the vidpix crafts. “The good ones you can’t get because of the short pay and those you have to take just haven’t got it. It may surprise Hollywood to know that 19 of 26 scripts for CBS-TV “Navy Log" are written in N.Y. and airmailed here. Such a situation is dis¬ tressing because I believe Hollywood’s output of telepix will pro¬ gressively increase because of the expanding foreign market. By spring, five new pilots will be filmed, to bring current CBS- TV output to 21 half-hour subjects, Harris stated. Among these will be “Man From the Islands/’ “Sir Henry Morgan, Admiral of the Black,” a legal-profession series, reactivation of “Suspense,” former radio series, and “The Legionnaire,” to star Yvonne De Carlo and to roll either here or in N. Y. and Spain. “For the foreign market, we’ll concentrate on outdoor adventure, mystery dr^na and cowboy pictures,” Harris disclosed. Quality Key to Syndicated Vidpix, Martin Cautions TV Film Council Spelling out the statistics of 4 oversupply and under-demand of syndicated telefilm product, Gen¬ eral Teleradio v.p. Dwight Martin last week urged the telepix industry to concentrate on “quality” -films —“which are not in oversupply.” Speaking at the fall forum of the National Television Film Council at the Delmonico Hotel, N. Y., Martin bluntly stated that “our future is assured only if we accept the hard fact that in this business, as in any other, our success varies in direct proportion with our ef¬ forts to improve the quality of our product.” Using the comparative data of total annual film programmed lo¬ cally by the 451 stations in the 290 markets vs. the amount, of available film product on the mar¬ ket, Martin painted a definitely downbeat picture, indicating over¬ supply in both the feature and the program categories, the latter by over 4 to 1 based on hours devoted to programs (half-hours) alone. On an all-types basis, total annual film hours are 685,736, based on an average-per-station of 29^ hours weekly. If all this time were given over to half-hour series comprising 39 films each, Martin stated, with each of these series playing every station in the country, only 79 such half-hour series would be (Continued on page 38) Webb s Day & Date Syndication Idea Hollywood, Nov. 22. Vidpix producers can’t make bet¬ ter quality vidfilms unless they have higher production budgets, and since sponsors can only pay so much for teleshows, immediate syndication of network shows may be the answer, “Dragnet" produc¬ er-director-star Jack Webb be¬ lieves. Webb declared he thinks an en¬ tirely new concept such as virtual day-and-date syndication is a must if quality is to be upgraded, adding he is now exploring the feasibility of syndicating a series almost im¬ mediately after it begins airing on a web. “In this way, if a producer spent $60,000 on a telefilm and received, say, $40,000 from his network sponsor, he could immediately be¬ gin to recoup the rest through spot booking, by placing his series in markets not covered by the net¬ work sponsor," Webb explained. T think this is a better answer than multiple, or alternate spon¬ sorship,” he added. Webb said that while he hadn’t (Continued on page 34) Film Festival’Biz ABC-TV has signed on some six sponsors to participations totaling $78,000 for the next four weeks of its Sunday night “Famous Film Festival.” Biggest spender will be Presto appliances, which is in for one participation on three of the four weeks. Others are Toni, with two; Zenith, a newcomer, two; Ameri¬ can Chicle (new), also two; Turns, two and Florists Telegraph Deliv¬ ery Assn., one. Int i Telefilm Meet Proposed On Com’l Level Vidfilm exec Leon Cagan is be¬ hind a fresh movement to start planning an industry-sponsored in¬ ternational vidfilm confab. While there was recently a Tangier con¬ ference, Cagan believes that it was almost entirely on a “cultural” level and did not embrace the needs of the commercial vidfilmer. He’d like to set the powwow up in N. Y. under auspices of Ameri¬ can tv film producers-distributors since America “has the responsi¬ bility of leading the rest of the world in the medium.” He wants an exchange of ideas on what (Continued on page 40) King Features Snags ‘Popeye’ Acquisition In Par Sale of Shorts Deal under, which some 1,800 Paramount short subjects were sold to UM&M Inc. last week did not include the studio's 174 VPop- eye” shorts, it’s been learned. Stumbling block to transfer of the cartoons is King Features, which owns a half-interest in the prop¬ erty with Paramount. Understood King Features is asking well over $1,000,000 as its share in the subjects. This would be above and beyond the $3,500,000 paid Paramount by UM&M for the other 1,800 shorts, which include in the cartoon category “Little Lulu” and “Betty Boop” subjects. Charles Amory, UM&M prez, wouldn’t comment on,the “Popeye” situation, but it’s understood that the telefilm outfit has an option on the cartoons but considers King’s demands way out of line. Hollywood, Nov. 22. Telefilm producers are breathing easier these days, having finally become convinced of the truth of the old copy-book maxim about the biggest not being the best. As a result, the panic that set in with the advent of major studio vidpic production has eased and the in¬ dependents are once again pro¬ ceeding with their own plans for series. There is, however, a consider¬ able amount of conjecture in Hol¬ lywood regarding the failure of the major film studios to make the an¬ ticipated impact in the new field. For the most part, the conversation is confined to dark corners of rent¬ al lots—since many independents nurse the hope that they may someday get a bid from the ma¬ jors and are therefore unwilling to rush into print with explanations. Consensus is that the majors, by the very nature of their operation, are unable to gear themselves to the restricted production facilities which the electronic medium com¬ mands. “The majors,” one telefilm pro¬ ducer declares, “are not a threat any more. In the “first place, they have sidestepped entertainment and are merely trying to trailerlze their product. And in the second, they haven’t learned how to make television films at a price." Not all the telefilms are as san¬ guine, however. Bob Stabler, pro¬ ducer of the “Gunsmoke” series, for example, is convinced that the majors may yet inundate the small¬ er firms as they threatened to do with the first announcement of their entry into the field. Stabler feels it’s a case of a studio trying to do something it doesn't know how to do and isn’t geared to do. But, he warns, it’s a situation that won’t last. “The proof,” he offers, “is the Job Columbia has done through Screen Gems. Instead of trying to make television films with the studio setup, they created a sub¬ sidiary firm, brought in people who know the field and have been con¬ sistently turning out good product. When the other majors decide on the same step, many of the smaller independent television film units may be hurt." Chief difficulty experienced by the majors, in Stabler’s view, is the failure to realize that the me¬ diums are different and must be handled differently. It’s.an opin¬ ion shared by others who’ve been making vidpix for a considerable period. They point to the fact that a telefilm producer, unlike the aver¬ age film producer, is a Jack-of-all trades. He knows every aspect of the business and works closely with all_his department heads. They in turn, work with each other. “In a major,” Stabler contends, “the art department and the cos¬ tume department may not even know that they are working on the same film. In telefilms, each pro¬ duction is a result of cooperative planning. Everyone is conscious of everyone else’s problems. If they weren't, we wouldn’t be able to shoot some of these in three days.” Chief bone of contention among the indies is that the majors may be alienating a portion of the video audience by lengthy plugs for product. They point out that com¬ mercials on some shows have cre¬ ated unfavorable comment in the past. The trailers, they declare, constitute an added commercial which cuts into the story and dis* tracts the viewer. More TV Film News On Page 39 To an Autonomous RCA Service Desilu, CBS to Partner On ‘Whirlybirds’ Series Hollywood, Nov. 22. Desilu Productions will produce another vidpix series, this one in partnership with CBS, with Art Napoleon set as producer of the new entry, “The Whirlybirds.” Napoleon and his wife, Jo, cre¬ ated the property and wrote the pilot script. Series is an adven¬ ture show dealing with two leads who run a helicopter charter serv¬ ice. Pilot film rolls Dec. 12 at Mo¬ tion Picture Centre. Dozier Sez RKO Telefilm Output On Future Sked Hollywood, Nov. 22. RKO Pictures is planning to be¬ gin telefilm production eventually although th£ studio's primary pur¬ pose is production of theatrical films, production chief William Do¬ zier disclosed here. Dozier, cur¬ rently CBS-TV program chief on the Coast, has resigned that post and joins RKO Dec. 1 as produc¬ tion head of the studio taken over by Tom O’Neil and General Tele¬ radio. Dozier said details re-the vid¬ film operation haven’t as yet been settled, but stressed O’NeiR prexy Daniel O’Shea and he are very “tv conscious.” “We are not going to overlook the opportunities in television; we also know what the pitfalls are. We also know that tv isn’t some¬ thing you can do on a Saturday afternoon with your left hand. It’s something you have to do all week long with both hands,” he empha¬ sized. RKO is currently discussing ac¬ quisition of several teledramas seen on CBS, both on “Climax,” which Dozier oversees, and “Stu¬ dio One,” he disclosed. “RKO will look everywhere for story material, and certainly this includes tv,” he commented. How Geneva Goes, So Goes Ziv’s ‘Three Lives’; Upbeat Laid to Cooloff Ziv Television Programs execs believe they can trace an Increase in ratings of the anti-Commu- nist “I Led Three Lives” series co¬ incident with the cool-off period of the “Geneva spirit.” In the recent period that the Russians have been backtracking on their Geneva promises, says Ziv, the show's rat¬ ings have indicated a consistent in¬ crease in audience. Series is based on the uncover activities for the FBI of Herbert Philbrick. Complete separation of the NBC Film Division from the parent net¬ work is reportedly in the works, with the end purpose to be the establishment of the syndication subsid as an autonomous “service of RCA.” As the first step, the Film Division has been given no¬ tice to move bag & baggage into new and separate headquarters on Fifth Ave., away from the web’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza h.q., with pos¬ sible changes of key personnel and a probable integration with the RCA Custom Record Division top¬ ping the list of considerations. While RCA and the network have been talking about autono- mizing the Film Division for a couple of years now, the impend¬ ing moves take on greater signifi¬ cance in light of two developments; (1) the downgrading of the Film Division’s income and prestige over the past two years from a top position to its present state with nary one topflight new property dui*ing all that time, and (2) the rapid expansion of the Custom Record Division . into syndicated telefilm as a competitor (although dealing largely in library proper¬ ties) to the Film Division. It's not likely that, in setting up the Film Division as an autonomous body within the RCA structure, the Film Division-Custom Record com¬ petition would be allowed to con¬ tinue. Likelihood is that they will be merged, with manpower from one or the other moving into the one body, Under such a merger, it’s said that key execs may be dropped or moved to other net¬ work or RCA posts. Custom Record angle achieves greater significance in that - the primarily-radio-transcription oper¬ ation is about to unveil several new telefilm properties, among them its first new half-hour series which is set to go before the cam¬ eras in about three weeks. Also in the works is an expansion of Custom Records’ sales staff. $1, (WO,000 Spurt For ABC Films ABC Film Syndication has writ¬ ten a record $1,000,000 in new busi¬ ness over the past three weeks, with most of the business coming out of Canada in a series of three national sales and one regional, but with a 25-market-plus domestic deal with the Mennen Co. for “Passport to Danger” also account¬ ing for a big share. One of the Canadian deals was with Coca-Cola for “Ozzie & Harriet,” first time that series has been sold out of the D. S. Mennen deal, set via McCann- Erickson, marks the first time the company has looked to syndication for its teladvertising purposes. Sale reportedly puts ABC Syndica¬ tion and Hal Roach Jr. well into the black on the Cesar Romero starrer. As to “Ozzie & Harriet," this series is still not a syndica¬ tion entry, but ABC Syndication (Continued on page 40) Ziv researchers base their con¬ tention on reports from two rating services. The Pulse 20-market average for syndicated shows re¬ ported “Lives” in the No. 2 spot in September with an 18.4 rating, but in October it had jumped to the No. 1 spot with a 21.6. There’s a normal increase in viewership from September to October, Ziv concedes, but that doesn’t explain away the fact that the show took over the No. 1 spot from another series. Second source is Videodex’s national rating for syndicated shows, with “Lives” remaining in the No. 1 spot from the end of Au¬ gust to the end of September but increasing its rating from 15.4 to 19.4. Meanwhile, Ziv has racked up renewals for nearly 100 markets on the new‘'cycle of 39 “Lives” pix, the third such cycle on the series. Ed Grossman Exits Guild For Own Telepix Outfil Ed Grossman has exited as man¬ ager of the radio division of Guild Films to set up his own telepix financing and credit organization. According to Grossman, his new organization will handle financing problems of telefilm producers and also work out a credit system to cover the time lag between initial production and billings returns in syndicated film productions. Grossman’s been with Guild vir¬ tually since its formation in late 1952, first having served as con¬ troller and latterly heading up the radio transcription operation. Prior to joining Guild, he was with Loew’s for some 18 years and also with Film Classics.