PROFITABLE RETURNS

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 29, 4 February 1932, Page 17

PROFITABLE RETURNS

FOR BROADCASTING STARS

"The British Broadcasting Corporation, which. is maintaining a marvellous standard* of broadcast entertainment, superior, probably, to anything ;olse in the radio world, is paying enormous fees to Secure" first-class talent," said Mr. Ivan Menzios, an English actor who is playing,, leading roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas. "For example,' 1 he added, "Harry Lauder and Maurice Chevalier, whose following in Britain is tremendous, each received fees totalling from £500 to £800 for a single appearance, which means about twenty minutes in front of the microphone. Such fees are reminiscent of the remuneration earned in the palmiest days of the stage." Mr. Menzies, who has done a large amount of broadcasting in England, and who was for some time the Uncle Jimmy of the children's hour at the big broadcasting station, 2LO, said that his own fee from the British Broadcasting Corporation Jwas from 16 to 25 guineas for a song at the piano extending over ■less than twenty* minutes, ■and,, by giving four consecutive performances, he earned £100 a. week, in, addition to which he sometimes received £50 from the music publishers for introducing a new song; i

- "Broadcasting has become a tremendous new industry, and ■ those artists who command ' nation-wide popularity can obtain the fees they ask," said Mr. Menzies. "Lesser stars naturally compete vigorously for such • highly-paid work, for an engagement with the Broadcasting Company is • always well worth while. There are two drawbacks. In the first place, once your item has been broadcast it cannot be repeated over the air; in the second place, a great deal of pirating goes on among the artists. A performer like myself, for example, who writes his own comic patter, may at any time find his original work stolen and used by someone else. It is very profitable, however, for javariety or concert entertainer to have his entire act broadcast, as, for instance, was the case wtih my act at the Coliseum in London. In such cases the microphone is set up on the stage and the artjst receives a special broadcasting fee of £50."