BILLBOARD Is Current Glut of Charity Events One Outright
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CHARITY EVENTS VIE FOR SPOTLIGHT (Continued from page 1) whereas the others are strictly ce- charity market is over-saturated, for June 15 at Giants Stadium in lebrity -driven." but argues with that perception. New Jersey. The show is being UPCOMING CHARITY EVENTS Kragen notes that 1,000 celebri- "With a country of more than 200 headlined by U2 and Sting. ties have signed up to participate in million people -the leader of the Tony Verna, who directed last Here is a partial listing of the major charity events planned for 1986. Hands Across America, but adds free world-I don't understand all year's Live Aid broadcast and is that relatively few are from the this talk about saturation. So also overseeing the anti-drug Con- The Concert That Counts (to combat drug use, L A ) April 26 rock world. there's a Pro Peace March and a cert That Counts, April 26 in Los Fashion Aid (for AIDS research, N.Y.) April 29 "Rock stars have been just fair at Hands Across America: It seems Angeles, says the key to the success Hands Across America (to combat hunger in the U S ) May 25 coming to this project," he says. that if we have more than five chari- of each event is the cause. Veteran's Unity Festival (L.A.) May 26 "They've always been the hardest ty events, people start saying there "If you've got the right cause and Sports Aid (to combat African hunger) late May ones to get, but now the rock star is a saturation. I resent that. the right credibility, I think they'll Amnesty International (East Rutherford, N.J.) June 15 market is inundated [with charity "The fabric of the American peo- come and support it, whether That's What Friends Are For (for AIDS research, S.F.) June events]. Fortunately a lot of actors ple is just beginning to be worked they're 'Live Aid -ed' out or not," he Home Aid (to benefit the hungry and homeless in N.Y.) ... October and athletes have signed on and we for good things. I think the talk of says. Verna concedes that there has don't have to rely on just the music saturation is a little too cynical." been some saturation. "Too many community." Still, Healey acknowledges that fund-solicitors hit the market where Jack Healey, executive director of he's had trouble getting American people had to keep going to their event postponed this year. A Los there and agents and managers are Amnesty International USA, agrees bands to commit to play the Amnes- wallet," he says. "I'm not asking for Angeles show to benefit the Ameri- just flooded with so many of them that there is a perception that the ty International benefit concert set that [in the Concert That Counts]. can Foundation for AIDS Research, that they don't know what's real This is more about awareness and originally planned for spring, has and what's not." raising social consciousness." been pushed back to fall. Weinstein also says some charity The Concert That Counts is set to "We wanted to do a big event and events have been poorly organized, feature three top acts by satellite: we just weren't prepared at this casting a dark shadow on the oth- Mr. Mister from Japan, James time," says Bill White, the founda- ers. "It gives a bad name to other Watch for Brown from France, and John Den- tion's director of development and events that may be legitimate," he ver from Australia. planning. "We decided that to do it says. "All of a sudden, artists and Rick Brenckman, who is organiz- properly and to get the right artists, managers become very careful." ing the Home Aid concert to help we'd have to push it back." David Wolper, the producer who the homeless of New York, says the Other events have been cancelled masterminded the entertainment at BILLBOARD is current glut of charity events one outright. An Anti -Apartheid Jam, the 1984 Olympics, is now oversee- of the reasons he postponed Home set for April 16 in Nashville, was ing the festivities for the July 4 un- Aid from March 13 until October. cancelled last week due to a skimpy veiling of the Statue of Liberty in "Spring has turned into the roster and low ticket sales. New York Harbor. Neither event is SPOTLIGHTS spring of charities," he says. "I like Larry Weinstein, who is organiz- charity -related, but both are the the fact that people are becoming ing the Veteran's Unity Festival at type of entertainment spectaculars aware and conscious of motives oth- the Los Angeles Coliseum on May that have inspired the key charity in April and May er than profit, but it does make it 26, says that the climate for charity events of the past year. tough, because it puts us in competi- events has changed considerably "There definitely is a prolifera- tion. Who's to say whose cause is since he began planning the show tion of charity events," Wolper more important?" two years ago. says. "But if they're different Brenckman suggests that record "For quite a while, it was like enough and people are interested in labels are becoming wary of charity banging our heads against the wall. the causes, they'll be successful." SPECIAL INTEREST VIDEO projects. "The proliferation didn't The hardest part was just getting Deborah Tranelli, who organized hurt us in terms of organizing and people to see that this was possible. last week's We Belong To The City cutting the record ( "Not A Hand- But when Live Aid happened, peo- benefit to aid the homeless and AUDIO FOR VIDEO out, Just A Hand," with Roberta ple all of a sudden started to be hungry in Los Angeles, expresses Flack, Richie Havens, and Peter more receptive to the idea. Now, concern that the proliferation of Yarrow), but in terms of involving a with the show just around the cor- charity events might cause burnout. AUDIO FOR RADIO label, there definitely is caution. ner, the obstacle we're running into "It becomes the chic thing to do, When you ask labels to work for is that so many events have sprung so everybody jumps on the band- less than their normal profit mar- up lately that agents have been in- wagon," she says. "We need to SPONSORSHP J CORPORATE gin, they don't like it so much." undated with offers. know that this is ongoing." Home Aid isn't the only charity "There are too many events out LI TALENT WRING: ON THE ROAD IN THE USA & EUROPE METROMEDIA SELLING RADIO OUTLETS from page 1) (Sound, Staging, Lighting & Tianspatatán/ (Continued dio executives as his partners. the deal will give Brazell and com- plan." MALL RETAILING The development comes in the pany stations in six of the country's "We have some work to do on rtl same week that Katz Communica- top 10 markets, including some leg- WIP and WASH," Bazell says, but tions agreed to sell its 11 radio out- endary properties. otherwise, "We don't anticipate any lNl/fNTORYMANAGfMfNT lets to a group led by in -house exec- That list is topped by WNEW- changes in station operations." utives (separate story, page 10). AM-FM New York. The AM outlet Metromedia program directors Morgan Stanley is also involved in went on the air in 1934, and a year appear to be happy about the in- HEAVY METAL arranging financing for that $68.3 later became the home of Martin house buy. Drawing from his AOR million deal. Block's "Make Believe Ballroom." medium, WMMR PD Ted Utz quips, According to Sharon Armbrust, The station, which now airs mostly "It's 'meet the new boss, same as WEST GERMANY an analyst for the Carmel, Calif., big band music and New York Gi- the old boss'." The development, media research firm Paul Kagan & ants football games, pulled a re- says Utz, "means that Metromedia VIVA PUERTO RICO Associates, the price paid for Metro- spectable 3.0 overall share in the Radio will be an entity unto itself. I media is "by far the highest" paid fall Arbitrons. think it will make us even more ag- for a radio group. One year ago, WNEW -FM, which refers to itself past"gressive than we have been in the RECORD MERCHANDISING Capital Cities made broadcast his- as the "home of rock'n'roll," is one tory by announcing its $3.7 billion of the first outlets to adopt the al- WNEW -FM program director purchase of ABC Inc. Armbrust bum rock format, which it has car- Charlie Kendall echoes Utz's enthu- AUDIO BOOKS says her firm's estimate of the radio ried since 1967. Unchallenged as a siasm about the possibilities inher- price breakout on the Cap Cities/ Gotham rocker between the time ent in a radio -only group. ABC merger was $265 million. when WPLJ dropped album rock for Speaking of the new company's DIGITAL AUDIO RECORDING Brazell says he approached top 40 in 1983, and last July, when growth potential, Kendall relays the Metromedia president and chairman WXRK adopted AOR, WNEW -FM story of Brazell joining Metromedia John Kluge a year ago, when Kluge drew a 4.1 share in the fall book. in 1967 as a news anchor and asking sold six TV outlets to Rupert Mur- The rest of the Metromedia prop- in his entrance interview, "Are doch. At the time, Brazell says, erties involved are two Philadelphia there growth opportunites here?" Kluge wasn't interested in selling stations, market leader WMMR and Metromedia Inc.'s WCBM Balti- the radio outlets.