South Florida Sun Sentinel from Fort Lauderdale, Florida • Page 59

Sun-Sentinel 7 sc Thursday, May 22, 1GC3 Lorimar buying WTVJ, 6 other stations John Povjars By David Altaoer Columnist i Wrtitr Justice Department OKs GE-RCA merger In a blockbuster deal, Miami-based WTVJ Channel 4 has tentatively been sold to the producers of Dallas and Dynasty. The TV station, Florida's oldest, and six other stations were sold to' Lorimar-Telepictures Corp. of Culver City, for $1.85 billion. WTVJ and some downtown Miami real estate were sold for $405 million, company officials said. WTVJ, a CBS affiliate, has been on the block since earlier this year.

Its parent company, Wometco Broadcasting, headquartered in Tkt AmocUU4 Pros WASHINGTON The Justice Department on Wednesday endorsed General Electric proposed purchase of RCA for $6.28 billion, raising no objections to the two companies' overlapping consumer electronics business. The combination, which still faces approval by the Federal Communications Commission, would be the largest non-oil acquisition in U.S. history. RCA is the parent of the National Broadcasting Co. The decision means the two companies won't have to spin off RCA's $2 billion consumer electronics business.

GE and RCA both sell TV sets. "We did not feel that there would be anti-trust concerns about the combined domestic market share of GE and RCA's consumer electronics businesses because of the recognition that consumer electronics is a fiercely competitive international business," said GE spokesman Bruce Bunch. The FCC is considering whether to approve the transfer of RCA's broadcast and communications properties to GE. The FCC staff hopes to have the matter ready for consideration by the commission by the end of June, an FCC spokesman said. The Justice Department said it believed the purchase would violate a section of the Clayton Act because part of GE's business is in the production and sale of vidicons, a type of electron tube in TV cameras.

GE, however, has agreed to divest its vidicon business soon, a Justice spokesman said. Kohlberg Kravis bought Storer and Wometco in leveraged buyouts, where the buyer takes on debt to acquire a company, then uses the company's earnings or sells its assets to pay the debt Kohlberg is now liquidating much of Storer, its only TV station left is in Toledo. It still retains its cable operations, which have about 1.5 million subscribers, including 140,000 in Dade and Broward counties. Lorimar-Telepictures was formed in February by the merger of Lorimar Inc. with Telepictures Corp.

of New York. Lorimar owns TV and movie production and advertising companies, while Tele-pictures owns five TV stations and is involved in TV production and syndication and publishing. The sales prices, although large, are topped by the Tribune purchase in December of the Los Angeles TV station, KTLA from Kohlberg Kravis, and Rupert Murdoch's $2 billion purchase last year of seven big-city TV stations. He later agreed to sell Boston station WCVB-TV to Hearst Corp. The world according to Turner Miami, is controlled by a New York investment firm, Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts which also owns the Miami-based cable company, Stor- er Communications.

Federal Communications Com- mission rulings restrict companies from owning a cable TV firm and a TV station in the same market Viewers shouldn't expect any im- mediate changes at WTVJ, said -Wometco's presdient "I think it will probably be busi- seven stations together reach about 10 percent of the total U.S. TV audience. The deal is conditional on federal regulatory approval. Also being bought is Storer's program production and advertising sales units, and its Washington news bureau. The price for the Storer properties is $1.4 billion.

ness as usual for people at the station," Anthony Cassara said. "It's being operated as a good CBS TV station. Lorimar-Telepictures also agreed to buy six stations from SCI Holdings, the parent company of Storer Communications. The stations were WJBK-TV in Detroit, WJW-TV in Cleveland, WAGA-TV in Atlanta, and WITI-TV in Milwaukee, all CBS affiliates; WSBK-TV, an independent station in Boston, and KOST-TV, an NBC affiliate in San Diego. The purchase gives Lorimar a captive audience for syndicating its movie and TV programs.

The Ted Turner is just a typical businessman, not really different from the average executive who runs a major corporation. Shuuuuuuuure. And Larry Bird just doesn't know how to shoot a basketball, either. Turner was the speaker Tuesday at the Fort Lauderdale Marriott when Leadership Broward Alumni honored Elliott Barnett as Leader of the Year for his role in guiding completion of the Museum of Art. Whenever you see Turner's name it is usually preceded by the word PERSONAL INCOME Quarterly price fall biggest in 37 years 1 CONSUMER PRICE INDEX Seasonally adjusted measure of inflation by percentage of monthly change in consumer prices Seasonally adjusted in trillions of U.S.

dollars 1 340- "335" "'fj i II nc; "maverick." His actions are either "bold" or "controversial." He is "the entrepreneur's entrepreneur," What makes some businessmen media stars, while others, just as talented, labor in obscurity? Part of it is having access to the media or being in a high-visibility business, like sports or entertainment Lee Iacocca was well known in the industry but wasn't a household name until he started appearing in television commercials. Turner got his start in 1970 when he bought an Atlanta TV station. By bouncing the signal off a satellite, he created a Superstation. He then formed Cable News Network. Next he tried to buy CBS.

In sports and entertainment, he won the America's Cup. He bought the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks. He put together $1.4 billion in junk bonds to buy MGM-UA Entertainment Co. in a $1.5 billion deal, with plans to sell all the assets except the classic film library. But Turner doesn't think he is unusual.

He says he is different only in that everyone is different. Does he have any one thing he wants to accomplish? "Not really. A lot of things." What is he going to talk about in his speech? "I don't with gains posted for food, housing, clothing and entertainment. The overall Consumer Price Index, which unlike other department calculations is not adjusted for seasonal factors, stood at 325.3 in April. This means that goods costing $10 in 1967 would have cost $32.53 last month.

April's 0.3 percent fall was propelled by an 11.3 percent drop in the price of gasoline, slightly less than the 12.0 percent drop of March. From February-April, prices at the pump fell 26.5 percent, the lowest since mid-1979. So far this year, inflation has been running at an annual rate of 2.3 percent. For all of last year, consumer prices rose 3.8 percent The 1.2 percent rise in personal income in April was the largest increase in two years, but it was due mostly to unusually large government subsidy payments to farmers from a new program, the Commerce Department said. Without the farm subsidies, the April gain would have been just 0.2 percent, matching the March increase.

Personal income was at an annual rate of $3.45 trillion. Americans' savings rate, savings as a percent of disposable income, rose to 5.4 percent in April from 4.5 percent in March. The April rate was the highest since 6.8 percent in May 1985. The Associated Pran Pushed down by slumping gasoline costs, consumer prices fell 0.3 percent in April, the Labor Department said Wednesday, giving the three-month period its biggest decline in 37 years. In a separate report, the Commerce Department said Americans' personal income rose 1.2 percent in April And real average weekly earnings increased 0.4 percent in April, according to still another report, to $304.15 per capita.

Analysts said the increase, adjusted for Inflation, was mostly due to the price declines. The drop in the Commerce Department's Consumer Price Index followed declines of 0.4 percent in February and March. But analysts said the best of the good news is over. Over the past three months, consumer prices have fallen at a 4.3 percent annual rate, the largest three-month drop since the November 1948-January 1949 period. And not since early 1952 have there been three straight declines.

But the dramatic fall in oil prices masked the fact that prices in most other categories have been rising. And further price increases, partially reflecting increases in the prices of imports because of the weakening dollar, were expected in the months ahead. Excluding energy, consumer prices rose 0.4 percent in April, r. v. im 2 4 LJ w.vv iHiliiHHi1 1985 19S8 Apr85 Mar86 Apr86 1335 1333 Apr85 Mar86 Apr86 .4 .,3 -K4 3.13 3.41 SOURCE: U.S.

Commerce Department SOURCE: U.S. labor Department Ford starts takeover talks with Alfa Romeo know." And apparently, he didn Like his conversation, the speech jumps from topic to topic, one thought leading to another, until you wonder if he will get back to where he started or make a point But he does. The audience loves it He says he was a free spirit having a good time and making money until he started CNN. Running a news organization brought responsibility. He began to read about Buying all of Alfa Romeo apparently would increase Ford's involvement in South Africa, where Alfa has an auto plant and marketing arm.

Ford last year lowered its profile there somewhat through a merger with a South African carmaker while refusing to end its operations there. Ford recently broke off merger talks with Fiat when the two companies couldn't agree on who would run the company. A Fiat merger would have been a much bigger deal than Alfa Romeo because of Fiat's giant size, European market presence and its high-technology and automotive engineering operations. sporty small cars, ranks second to Fiat SpA. In the United States, the Alfa Romeo name could add image to Ford's growing and diverse stable of imports.

Ford already imports cars from its own West German factories and plans to import more from France, Australia, South Korea and Mexico in the next several years for U.S. sale. But Ford didn't spell out precisely what it would do if it acquired Alfa. Ford spokesmen wouldn't elaborate on the company's four-paragraph statement However, a spokesman said Alfa Romeo was interested in increasing its exports through Ford. The Auociated Prat DETROIT Ford Motor flush with cash and trying to buttress its profitable European operations, said Wednesday that it had entered takeover talks with the small, unprofitable Italian carmaker Alfa Romeo SpA.

Ford said the companies have begun a two-month study with Ford aiming for a majority interest of Alfa Romeo, which lost more than $97 million last year and is owned by the Italian government Ford, despite a perennial ranking as a European market leader, is weak in Italy where Alfa Romeo, known for its giuuai aiiairs. He formed the Better World Society, with a dozen world leaders as members at the moment, to work primarily in arms control, overpopulation and the environment If these were Biblical times, he says, prophets would call the Soviet nuclear power plant accident a LATE NEW YORK PRICES FOR THE DOLLAR Therapeutic Technologies Inc, prepared to start production warning. People have to get to know each other. For his part, his son is living and working in a news hnroail in thn Rnvipf ITninn ((AM quotation aqual U.S. $1) Currency Wed.

Tim. Change British pound 0.6631 0.6575 .0056 Japanese yen 169.20 168.55 .65 W. German marks 2.268 2.237 .031 Swiss francs 1.879 1.864 .015 French francs 7.210 7.125 .085 Canadian dollars 1.3675 1.3692 .0017 --J Italian lire 1,551 1.536 15 GOLD Wed. Tim. Change N.Y.

Comex $339.40 $339.00 $0.50 -ssT N.Y. Rep. Bk $339.00 $339.00 unch. (T It all seems natural. Turner is totally uninhibited.

But it goes beyond his saying exactly what he thinks. You don't know if he reallv Therapeutic Technologies an exercycle-type device that reportedly maintains the health of paralysis victims. doesn't care what people think or doesn't realize he doesn't care. His actions are sometimes 8ILVER N.Y. Comex well eccentric.

While we were Wed. $4,938 Tim. $4,944 Change 0.6 lamine. ne in nis aevii-mav-care fashion, reached up, for no apparent reason, and chucked me under the chin with his finger. Admittedly, we were in a casual position.

We were often interrupted by people wanting to meet him, to get an autograph. I was down on one knee by his table so we could converse eye-to-eye. Still, I have chatted with other tinnredirtahle media ntant. Inrlnti- the placement itself. Therapeutic Technologies common stock is traded over-the-counter and has been at $3.37 bid and $3.50 asked this week.

Buyers of the preferred stock have to hold it for two years, and it can be resold only for investment purposes, Goodman said. The $6 million line of credit with investors is part of the same transaction, Goodman said, and is also subject to shareholder approval. Therapeutic Technologies was incorporated In 1982 to develop, manufacture and market state-of-the-art medical devices to provide cost-efficient, long-term rehabilitation for persons with paralysis and other neuromuscular disorders. Therapeutic Technologies offers patients streamlined versions of the cumbersome experimental equipment pioneered by Dr. Jer-rold Petrofsky, a medical researcher at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio.

Petrofsky's equipment was featured on the CBS show 60 Minutes, and Therapeutic Technologies has received exposure on Cable News Network. Therapeutic Technologies posted a net loss of $2.2 million last year, compared to $1.5 million the year before. By Kevin Gale BuUwm Writer Therapeutic Technologies a Fort Lauderdale company that has gained national attention for its ex- Eerimental exercise machines to elp the paralyzed, is preparing to start regular production, the company announced Wednesday. Therapeutic Technologies has arranged for a $6 million line of credit and $750,000 in new capital from private investors to set up a sales department and begin production, company spokesman Harvey Goodman said. The company will begin monthly production of about 25 of its REGYS I exercise machines within two months, he said.

When using a REGYS a patient's feet are strapped into boots that form pedals, and then the leg muscles are electrically stimulated to create a pedaling action. A minicomputer sets the speed, and the resulting exercise helps ease muscle spasms, atrophy (a wasting-away of muscle tissue) and increases circulation, the company said. The REGYS I is designed for hospital use, but Therapeutic Technologies is also designing a model, 8EC0NDARY BOND, TREASURY BILL MARKET (Cloae, change on Wadnaaday) (Sourer. Salomon Brothara Inc.) Treasury bills, 3 months 6.19, .02 Treasury bills, 6 months 6.21, .01 Treasury bills, 1 year 6.30, .01 Treasury bonds, 30 years 7.59, .04 (Tha following ara In polnla or fractions of a point; a full point la $10 In the faoa value of a $1,000 bond.) Treasury bonds, short unch. Treasury bonds, Intermediate y4 Treasury bonds, long V4 Municipal bonds, general obligation V4 Municipal bonds, dollar Corporate bonds, utilities Corporate bonds, Industrials V4 MONEY RATES South Florida prime rate 8.5 Mortgage rate (fixed, 30-year) 9.125 to 10.375 Money-market funds (7-day average) 6.25 Money-market accounts (average) 6.17 13-week new Treasury bills 6.22 26-week new Treasury bills 6.28 ing Ross Perot and Iacocca, and no one even put a hand on my shoulder or patted me on the back, much less fhimlrAH ma nnHnr ttiA nhln H1H ha called ERGYS for home use.

Hospitals with the REGYS I will not pay for the machines, but patients will each time they use them, Goodman said. Hospitals will then remit a portion of that fee back to Therapeutic Technologies. Funding for the beginning of production and sales is coming from private investors, he said. "The arrangements were made for the issuance of a new security, a preferred stock," Goodman said. "The preferred stock is not authorized yet but a majority of the shareholders have informally agreed that they will approve it So approval is a mere formality." The private placement involves 750 shares at $1,000 each, Goodman said.

The company is handling really like me? Was he being playful? Did he feel a compulsion to reach out and touch someone? I'll never know. I wondered, "If he's so weird, whv is he rich?" What can you say about a man who puts together a billion-five to buy MGM's films, like Gone With The Wind! Maybe he wants to watch someone else set Atlanta on fire. Insitto House OKs increase new chairman literally worked way up Dow average loses 8.81 as trading remains thin Page 3D on VA mortgage ceiling Business wire, Page 3D Page 2D.