Evening star., 1951-01-28

p.mD, still thinks radio is here
to stay. What's more, he thinks
he's going to stay in 1t for a long
time yet.
II don't think people are going
to watch week in and week out
Just because they have television,"
he told Wayne Oliver of the AS
sociated Press the other day.
II think that if they have both
radio and television-and prac-
tically every one who has televi-
sion also has radio-they're going
to choose.
II do think, though, the impor-
tant thing in radio today is to see
that your shows are good. If the
show isn't good, the listener will
say to himself, Maybe I'd better
see what's on television.
Since the question, Did you
hear what Jack Benny said last
night?" has been a stock part of
American conversations since
about 1882, 1t is understandable
that Benny feels as he does. Ra-
dio has been good to him for
long time. and it must certainly
have seemed that 1t would 60 on
forever.
1t might go on forever for him,
but there also is the possibility
that he is being over-optimistic.
For one thing. this matter of the
listener turning away from the
show that isn't good" doesn't
work out quite the way Benny
sees 1t. He must have lost a siz-
able chunk of his audience al
ready, with 10,750.000 television
sets estimated in use in only 65
cities in the country.
What happens in almost all of
those homes is that the television
set Is turned on first. The radio
even when Mr.. Benny is on it
has become in television house
holds a last resort, after all the
available TV channels are tried
and found wanting.
TV FomiIies Outnumber
Others in Six Cities
So far this does not affect
Benny Or other top drawing radio
stars as much as the 10.75O.OOo
figure might lead you to believe
however. Only II of the television
cities have three or more TV
stations in operation. Seven of
these have only three, WASHINGTON
and Chicago have four, New York
has six and Los Angeles has seven.
In the cities where television
Is concentrated. even Benny must
admit a shrinking audience,
whether or not radio is dying. In
SIX OF them, according to the
figures Of the NBC sales planning
and research department, slightly
more than half of the families
have television sets.
In Boston. the leader, nearly
SIX families in ten (59.2 per cens)
own TV receivers. Nearby Balti-
more is second on the list viii,
55.9 per cent. In Philadelph1a.
SOL per cent of the families watch
televlsion in their homes; in New
YORK. 52.7 per cent: in Los An
geles. 52.6 per cent; in Cincinnati,
81 per cent. Close to the half
way mark are Chicago. with 4a.7
per cent; Cleveland. with 49.2 per
cent. and Washington. with 438
per cent.
According to the American Re-
search Bureau the latest indica-
tions here are that between 81
and 81 per cent of WASHINGTON
families are television families.
The percentage must have risen,
TOO. IN the other areas, even be-
fore the NBC mathematics boys
were done with their addition,
Even so, the NBC figures show
that at least 6.174.O00 Of the Ma
tion's 10,750.o00 TV receivers are
concentrated in nine cities. There
Were-and this is the next -to-last
statistic you get here today
3,95O,O00 sets in the entire country
on January l, 1850.
Last statistic: The five-year
leap to today's total was made
from standing start Of 10000 TV
sets IN use on January l, 1946.
Where Else Con You Go
To the Movies Thi, cheop?
Whatever is being demonstrated
oy those Phonevision tests in Chi
cago. the movie studios, though
some are cooperating, have not
oeen won over. A note from the
2oth Century-Fox publicity de-
partment, for instance, hints that
the tests may prove to be sue
cessful everywhere except in the
pocketbook. At 81 a movie, even
II they are recent releases the
tab might be too steep, a survey
SHOWS. Viewers said they enjoyed
the movies but didn't want to
think about possible SIS addi-
tlon to their phone bills at the
end Of the month";"
This all may be very true, but
there is plenty of room for the
suspicion that the publicity man
who wrote this never takes his
family to the movies. If he does
ne gets In on a pass and never
mas noticed that list of admission
prices over the box office window
His next assignment ought to
be to count the fathers in the
land who would be happy to learn
where they can take the wife and
young to the movies at a total
cost of 81.
Movie Makers Still Think
Novelty Will Wear OFF
The Chicapo teSts oooord;,, .