Evening star., 1937-02-21


tions at no cost except that Of the
few watts needed to light the tubes
behind the dials.
Latest institution to take to broad
casting Is Harvard. That pioneer col
lege has wired class rooms so regu-
lar schedules can be presented via
WlXAL, Boston short-wave station
operating on several frequencies. The
station is financed by the Rockefeller
Foundation and other private con-
tributions and is operated by Walter
Lennon, who incidentally is working
on a radio typewriter for a maker of
business machines.
IT'S still anybodys guess when tele-
vision will be offered on an every
day basis, and you can get scant COM
fort out of the vague predictions Of
the leaders of the radio industry.
Current developments, however. lend
credence to the belief previously ex-
pressed in this column-namely, that
television on a local scale, started
experimentally as it was begun in
London last Winter, will probably be
offered in New York by Christmas Of
this year. 1t will be available then,
OF course, only to the limited few
who purchase the highly expensive
televiewing sets (probably costing
around $500, and the public reaction
to the New York tests will then de-
termine where and how fast it shall
be expanded.
While Radio Corp. of America,
leader in television experimentation,
was still secretly testing its new AL
line television BROADCAST from its
transmitter atop the Empire State
Building in New York, Philco Radio
& Television Corp. of Philadelphia,
last week got the Jump on that COM
pany by demonstrating to the press
its 441-line development The con-
sensus was that the clarity of the pic
lures was well ahead of the former
345-line images demonstrated b. both
Philco and r. c. A. last Fall, and
Philco revealed that it had perfected
a much simpler model receiver, hav-
ing only 10 control knobs as compared
to IA and 26 tubes as compared to SO.
VET James M. Skinner, Philco pres
ident, told reporters he was cer-
tain there will be no television by
Christmas of 1887" He was speak
ing for his own company, Of course,
and its interests are primarily in pro-
tecting itself in a patent way for re-
ceiver manufacture rather than enter
ing the field of transmission.
Out in Hollywood Lenox r. Lohr,
president of National Broadcasting
Co., told reporters I'VE may have tele-
vision broadcasts within a year or so.
say, between New York and Washing
ton, and later extend it to Chicago"
Mr.. Lohr. like his chief, David Sar-
noff, N. B. c. president, is an avowed
enthusiast over television. R. c. A.
has yet to demonstrate publicly its
441-line images, which reach the
standard for home receivers set last
year by the Radio Manufacturers
Association. Its subsidiary, N. B. c.
however, is preparing for early tele-
vision and has already named man
to give his full time to handling its
non-technical phases.
A LSO in Hollywood William S.
= Paley, president Of Columbia
Broadcasting System, expressed the
belief that television may be offered
in New York "in the next two years"
-ointing out that it will necessarily
be introduced in the big cities first
because of the difhculty in trans
mitting to rural areas due to the fact
that the ultra-short waves have such
limited carrying ranges.
From England come reports that
the British Broadcasting Corp, which
since last Winter has been expert
menting with both the Marconi and
Baird systems Of transmission. has
decided to utilize the Marconi system,
which is virtually the counterpart of
the R. c. A. system here. All Of the
televisions demonstrators show their
best pictures on the fluorescent sur
faces Of cathode ray tubes, framing
them about 7h by 10 inches in size
and the big question is whether the
public will react favorably to such
small pictures. however clear.