Facts & Figures, Feb. 16, 1948

Bomb Dropped. Lieut. General Leslie R. Groves, boss of the wartime atomic bomb project and now head of the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, will become research head of Remington Rand, Inc. when he retires from the Army this month. His new job was broadly described as “including applications of physics, chemistry, electronics, plastics and photography.”

Down & Out. Philco Corp. cut prices as much as 25% on its 1948 model radios and 6% on its refrigerators. Another sign of stiff competition in the oversold radio market came from Majestic Radio & Television Corp. It went into bankruptcy, along with Majestic Records, Inc., and asked a Chicago court for permission to reorganize.

In & Out. The first postwar shipment of Japanese rayon arrived in the U.S. But it gave U.S. rayon men no competitive worries. The Japanese product was so poor that importers could sell little of the cloth to U.S. buyers. They were offering it for reexport at about 50¢ a yard, considerably under domestic prices.

Remodeled Price. The 1948 model Cadillac, with a wide new interior and finlike rear fenders, went on display in Detroit. The big new car also has a big new price: up 9.5% over last year.

Indian Giver. Northwest Airlines asked CAB for permission to rebate 5% of the fare on flights more than half an hour late in arriving. But the offer had an Indian-giving feature: the line also asked CAB for a fare boost of 8%, the third increase, if granted, within a year.

Bulletproofed? The first tubeless, puncture-sealing automobile tire was put on the market. The tire, made by B. F. Goodrich Co., fits tightly enough to the rim to hold air. A gummy layer under the tread, similar to the material in bulletproof aircraft fuel tanks, instantly seals up punctures. Price: $21.95 for a standard-size (6.00 by 16) tire, slightly more than an ordinary tire & tube.

Humane Sunday. As a guide for advertising men, the Department of Commerce issued a pamphlet on “Special Days, Weeks and Months in 1948.” The list of 247 “official” occasions includes Large 1 Size Week, National Donut Week, Honey for Breakfast Week, Perfect Shipping Month, Humane Sunday, Iced Tea Week, Sweetest Day. The pamphlet also includes eight “additional possible events,” such as National Be Kind to Taxpayers Week and Better Floors Week.