Variety (September 1957)

TV-FILMS ' Wednesday, September A, 1957 Pubaffairs Gets a 1-Shot in-Arm Via Syndicated ‘Odyssey’ Segs}. Use of film in one-shot public affairs shows may be a prime factor in increasing the number of such one shots among the network in the future, and also in undertaking more ambitious and: costlier projects. The film factor is underlined in the current plans of CBSTV to turn over several of its “Odyssey” shows to CBS Television Film Sales for rerun syndication. ‘Vidi Chatier George Carlson,. formerly in charge of MCA-TY’s Boston office, has joined Gross-Krasne. He will | be headquartered in Chicago, re porting to G-K’s midwest sales v.p. Sohn Rohrs . ... Character Mer ‘Gray Ghost’ Sees Black | chandising of New York has been CBS Television Film Sales’ “The! selected by Ziv to develop a line Gray Ghost” has already recovered of w “Harbor items ted to Ziv's its negative costs with sales hitting | 3 Outfit also is handling licensing the 89-market level this week./on Ziv’s “Highway Patrol” . . That's before any additional shows| George Jessel, whose “George Jes | are in the can and before the show sel's Show Business’ ty series, i has taken to the air, with the series] film Associates, is off to Israel for. If the web can recoup some of-! sold strictly, as CBS puts it, “‘on ala combination’ business and vaca the cost of the original production | niiot and a premise.” on “Odyssey,” which ran fast season on CBS-TV as one of its most ambitious pubaffairs sustainers of date, then it will probably okay higher-budgeted pubaffairs entries and more of them for the future. Biggest drawback to top-level public affairs projects has been their costliness, which until now has been totally unrecoupable. Web will keep an eagle-eye as well on “Air Power,” the series of 26 halfhours which: will be turned over to CBS Film Sales next fall, following their use as summer reruns for Prudential in the Sunday 6:30 to 7 p.m. period. Film Saies to take on only a halfdozen “Odyssey” shows, _ since these are all that were completely on film. ‘The hour film entries include “Revolution of the Eye,” “Music of the South,” the Mexican Passion Play show, “Samurai” and a couple of others. However, the web is exploring the cost factors in taking other “Odyssey” shows which were part film ‘and shooting new narration and bridges to bring them up to hour's length. “Odyssey” shows won’t be sold as a series, but rather as local oneshots, since the web _ believes there's a growing local market for . {tion trip... ABC Film Syndica“Ghost,” the Civil War series/ tion has a testimonial on ‘26 Men” about Mosby's, Raiders, was set this|from Arizona Governor Ernest W. week on a 52-week basis in five (Continued on Continued on page 4 48) ae WGN-TV's Vidkid Twilight Strategy week .sponsorship in Pittsburg, ‘while WGN-TV picked it up for 52 . Chicago, Sept. 3. The indie WGN-TV, in looking weeks in Chicago, with Brylcreem coming in as alternate sponsor. for an éarly evening programming Block Drug bought alternate weeks {with Gunther Beer) in Washington and show. was also set in Omaha and Ft. Wayne. Silvers Reruns T ee . | trend of rallying around the kiddies in the 6 p.m. hour, deferring its newscast to 7 p. m. Station’s expensive. and as yet Bros. cartogns, lately acquired Be Syndicated In L-Way TV Spread. from Associated Artists Produce | “Phil Silvers Show” is due as|6:30-7 strip under the umbrella, the next CBS-TV series to cash in} “Bugs Bunny and Friends.” Leading on its residuals. CBS Television| into this strip—which the station 10pes will overtake the network Film Sales, the CBS syndication opposition—will ‘be five adventure subsidiary, is preparing to take} series, “Cisco Kid,” “Brave Eagle,’ over the first 39 shows in the series; “Steve Donovan,” “Sky King,” and for rerun Syndication, in one of the rare instances where the network| in that order. strategy, has_elected to join the | | untapped. package of 337 Warner | “Annie Oakley” . across the board | H'wood to Ease Off on Pifots Hollywood, Sept. 3. " Hollywood telefilmeries, scorched by approximately 150 unsold pilots last spring, are going to ease up on pilot-filming for next. season with some definitely slamming the brakes: on, although afew are planning business-as-usual. With rare exception, most of the vidfilm plants here have lost considerable coin in turning out pilots in the past. Consequently, there will be moré caution exercised in the future, and more of an ee .to earn, what market demands are before. making pilots Among “those: planning to curtail pilot-making is ‘Warner Bros. “tv, and exec producer. William Orr explains “there will be less pilots made here next year because more shows will be bought on the reputation of the“producers from outlines, presentations and stars.” Desilu, which made a number of unsold Pilots. in the past, will continue pilot.filming, but with more caution. Martin Leeds, exec v.p. of the company, said “we feel a few shows are So good they can be-sold through presentations rather than Pilots: But we do not plan a change in our policy on pilots. What makes the sales problem difficult is that when pilots are made no one really knows what market conditions are, or what the trend will be for the season at which thé pilots are aimed. Pilots are rejected for reasons other than quality, too; it may be because the price is.too high for the sponsor, or the time slot is not. satisfactory. We turned down sales on pilots because we didn’t like the slots offered.” ‘ Screen Gems, which didn’t sell any of 11 pilots last spring, will tighten its belt regarding pilats for next season, but does not plan to eliminate them. * Irving Asher,production chief at TCF-TV, 20th-Fox. subsid, says there will be no change in pilot-filming at his plant although “I think the pilot system is awful. It’s unfair. This is not the way ta judge @ series, because usually a company will put: all of its money into the pilot, and it’s not an accurate sample of what follows.” Revue Productions, which outdistanced the entire vidfilm field in sales of pilots last spring, plans no slowdown whatsoever in pilot-filming. In fact, it’s already at work filming pilots for next season, and is preparing others. McCadden Productions, the Burns & Allen firm, also plans business-as-usual on pilots, with no change in policy. Four Star Productions is prepping pilots for next season, and no change in policy is apparent at that telefilmery. ‘ Show-Laden Syndicators Ofer Double Bills’: OF Pitching Three With the comparative plentitude of new syndicated first-run prod (Continued on page 46) ee show and the syndicated repeats -| will be on the air simultaneously. Silvers segment is entering its third season, with R. J. Reynolds. and Procter & Gamble as the spon Flock of Sales On Sword, ‘Decoy Official Films, with its syndication arm out selling two first-run properties, “Swiérd of Freedom” end “Decoy,” and with “The Big Story” slated next, has racked up a flock of sales on the Edmund Purdom (“Swerd”’)} and Beverly Garland (“Decoy”) starrers. a » Lined up for “Sword,” only out MSquad, the new Chi eounteron the market a few weeks, are:; Part of Los Angeles’ “Dragnet” and KPHO, Phoenix; KTLA, Los An-| San -Franciseo’s “Lineup,” debuts geles; WNHC, New Haven, Mian Jhere on Sept. 30 despite opposition. WHDH, Boston; KLAS, Las Vegas; (fe it by Chicago's’ police departKGGN, Albuquerque, N.M.; WABD, ment. Though the other two vidN.Y¥.; WTCN, Minneapolis; and! films are based generally on actual icases from the police’ records, y ] es WISN, Milwaukee. Additionally,! ' Chi Police Commissioner Timothy skein is half sold to a sponsor in| An .. O'Connor. had repeatedly © denied San tonio, Corpus Christi, Aus-| ;NBC-TV access ‘te his files for tin and W ichita, Kans., as well as! , “M-Squad.” Id B being sold in Buffalo. 4 O’Connor further forbade all Joining the ‘‘Decoy” parade are: Chica go policemen fo assist the KPHO, Phoenix; KTTV, Los An-|} !NBC camera crews in any way geles; KPIX, San Francisco; KLZ, | while they were shooting scenes of Denver; WTIC, Hartford: WGN:! . ; the Loop and other neighborhoods Chicago; WBZ, ‘Buston; KLAS, Las! ‘here for the series. “I can’t stop Vegas; KOB, Albuquerque, N.M.; them,” the commissioner said, “but WPIX, N.Y; KYW, Cleveland:, WPFH, Philadelphia: KDKA, Pitts-; 20¥thing they do will be pure fic burgh: KTSM, El Paso; KING jtion. They. are not going to get . ’|any kind of help from us.” . Seattle; WISN, Milwaukee; WTCN, ’ Minneapolis, as well as markets of: O'Connor said he didn’t believe in dragging any city’s crime before Nonut alles: City are Bismarck, ‘the public and objected to showing “The Big Story” pilot, starring; Burgess Meredith, has just been} completed, and its syndication sale will begin this month. Prior to the pilot, DuMont’s WABD, N-.Y., WTTG, Washington, and its sister Paramount. station, KTLA, L.A., bought the skein. KMGM CAUGHT WITH ITS CELLULOID DOWN) ational Telefilm Associates.}the term “producer.” ‘hich recently purchased KMGM,! Miss Wolas had contended that. Minneapolis, finds itself in the odd; while she was brought in to proposition of shopping around for: duce the series, it developed she film programming. ‘would have had a secondary role for reruns are the first season’s recently took over the Brooks” reruns’ and earlier took on “The Honeymooners. a ‘M-SQUAD* PREEMS IN CHI SEPT. 30 Chicago, Sept. 3.. Thus far, plans call for CBS children. ‘Wyman Producer Hollywood,: Sept. 3. New producer of the Jane Wyman telepix series: is Jane Wyman. She replaces Eva Wolas, who resigned following a difference with Miss Wyman as to the meaning of sors. Episodes becoming available| nels here from 6:30 to 10, and group. CBS Television Film Sales| most desirable newscasting time “Our Miss| for the working classes. any films of crime and violence to | Of Own Telepix Series .| with Terrytoons and Transfilm (he’s Lioyd Pettit’s 15-minute news strip at 7 then rolls out the carpet for the adult programming to fol low. Pettit’s show will be the only | newscast on any of the four chan WGN-TV is convinced that 7 is the ABC-TV, which pioneered. kiddie programming in the twilight period, generally has -had the rating edge here in the. 6;30 slot on. its o&0, WBKB. WGN-TV’s “Bugs |. Bunny” strip, which starts Sept. 9, will have to tackle such ABC entries as “Cheyenne” and “Sugarfoot,” “Disneyland, ” “Circus Boy,” and “Rin Tin Tin.’. Its CBS oppo“sition will be “Robin Hood,” “Name That Tune,” “I Love Lucy,” “Sgt. Preston of Yukon,” and “Leave It to Beaver,” and from NBC it faces “Flicka,” “Panic,” “Wagon Train,” “Tic Tac Dough?! and “Saber of London. Ul Cal Nat’s Development: Board on Merchandising California National Productions last week overhauled its merchandising operation and set up a fiveman “top-to-bottom” -products development board. Ne ~ unit, headed by Robert R. Max, manager of the CNP. merchandising division, will originate, develop, market and promote products based on NBC and CNP shows and personalities. from the ground up, on the premise that mere casual licerising and let-it-go-at-that won’t work in today’ s Imarket, In addition to Max, the board will consist of Selwyn Rausch, former merchandising’ chief for Terrytoons; Gladys Murray, former exploitation manager for Eagle-Lion Pictures’ and v.p, of Dogpatch Styles: Mario Trombetta, formerly CNP’s current art manager as well); search and sales development manager, Rush ‘African Patrol,’ ‘Jungle’ Into Syndication Syndication of Gross-Krasne’s NTA prior to its acquisition ‘soldi i in the production, and received |two new. half-hour vidpix series is off its big 20th-Fox packages to competing stations. In Milwaukee, WTCN is the NTA Film Network affiliate. Tedd Cott, NTA exec is: shopping around at other syndication houses for programming, telefilms, cartcons, etc. forKMGM, which lest it be forgotten, has the} Metro library. | producer credit she didn't earn; | hence she exited.. over the producer reins. to function as producer. on NBC-TV Sept, 26 at 10:30. p,m. | Consequently, Miss Wyman takes. prints of She will star in only six of the vidfilms in |Kenya location shooting on both the series, so will have the time | shows is going -on under producer Actress | George Breakston. will host the series which debuts | half-hours will be made for. syn-. to begin on or shortly after Sept. 20, when the first completed |a “African Patrol”. and “Jungle Boy” arrive in New York. Tota: of 78 ‘dication.. and Serge Valle,, CNP re-} a %. New Indie Vidfilmery . Hollywood, Sept. 3. West Coast TV Productions has been formed by 3o0b Shannon, Wally Ramsey and Joe Boise as a new indie vidfilm firm. Initial project is. package comprising three hour-long western, country music variety shows which bows on KTLA next month under the title “West Coast Jambc Coast Jamboree.” That Extra Push’ Needed in Station’: _ Film Supremacy With the fedtures of the majors no Ionger a novelty on ‘tv, and in |many multi-station markets, with stations having packages of roughly similar strength, the nod for greater viewing of theatricals will. go to the station which. promotes, -exploits and slots its features best. That’s the opinion of some pro station operators, who liken the feature field to record in broadcasting. The parallel, they say, holds true especially for those-mar| kets where three or four stations have about equal strength in their packages, a situation which holds true in man¥ sections of the country. In radio ‘broadcasting, there’s records,” with each local radio station in a market having about (Continued on page 48) Robert Alan Aurthur’s , ‘Viking’ Script Revisions " Robert .Alan Aurthur, partner on Barbizon Productions’ “Viking” series, has returned from .London where he made revisions in the script and helped launch the pilot. He was gone for over two ‘weeks. Series, which Aurthur scripted, is to be produced by Al. Crown. CBS is financing. Pilot is. twothirds finished, according to Barbizon topper, Morris Helprin: Aurthur is currently at work. on a new play he is writing and‘ for which he’s signed a contract with David Susskind. He’s partnered with the latter in Jonathan Productions, but has no immediate plans for a theatrical film. Aurthur has written a “Playhouse 90” script which goes on Oct. 3, what they call a “democracy in. alternating uct on the market, an unusual. development has occurred. Some syn | dication houses, most of whom’ in ” the past confined themselvés to selling one first-run show at a time, finding themselves with. two series. Official Films is pitching three first-run shows. , The “double bill’ ‘holds -true for Sereen Gems, which has. “Ranch Party” and_“Casey Jones”; Ziv, which introed “Harbor Command’’ as it was mopping up on “New Adventures of Martin Kane,” NBC Film Sales introing “Boots and Saddles” as it was cleaning up remaining markets on ‘Silent Service’. and the kingpin in numbers Official Films which begins selling “The Big Story” in the midst of its syndication campaign on “Sword of Freedom” and “Decoy.” In station selling, having a numeber of first-run shows is considered desirable in many quarters. “If a station doesn’t like one show, or. would like a different type of show, having another property on hand (Continued -on page 46) __. ok ; ee a . WPIX Last-Minute Onrush-of Clients ’ AS the fall season approaches, with miany deals still awaiting final okays from still vacationing adagency execs, WPIX, N-Y., «has begun to rack up sponsors for its telefilms. Nine. syndicated properties als ready have garnered sponsorship coin, including General Electric, alternating on ‘Victory at Sea” and “Captured”: Ballantine beer, renewal of double exposed “High way Patrol”; Nationwide Insurance, on “TL Remember ™ Mama.” Also National Presto Indiastries, alternating on “Kingdom of the Sea,” “Life with Father,” and “City Detective”; Paul Masson, “San Francisco Beat” alternate; Remco Industries and American Character Doll, on “Popeye” participations. In addition, Rival Packing picked six shows for a spot campaign; Liggett & Myers selected 10 shows for a spot drive, Pontiae division of General Motors picked seven shows for a spot and participations, Peter Paul has scheduled a 32-week spot and participation drive, and -— ‘Robert Hall Clothes will use 14 spots and participations weekly: in a saturation campaign slated té | begin Sept. 23.