P&G unhappy with Wal-Mart entertainment union

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Wal-Mart's entertainment union with Procter & Gamble is not a marriage made in movie heaven yet, according to P&G's top executive.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, teamed up with P&G, the biggest household products maker, to promote family-friendly television programming last February.

The duo airs TV movies and collaborates on advertising and displays in Wal-Mart's U.S. stores.

But P&G Chairman and Chief Executive Bob McDonald, a strong promoter of the Family Movie Night concept, said execution "has not been as good as we would like."

There have not been as many P&G items in Wal-Mart's circulars or as many displays in stores around the times that the movies air as there should be, McDonald said during his company's quarterly conference call on Thursday.

The companies have aired four films so far. The January 8 broadcast of "Change of Plans" on Fox, which aired opposite an NFL playoff game, drew 3.1 million total viewers.

The first three movies aired on NBC in 2010. The first movie, in April, averaged 7.8 million viewers and was the best performer to date.

The duo is wrapping up production on a fifth movie that is set to air on Fox this April, a P&G spokeswoman said.

P&G is not new to entertainment. The company started airing radio soap operas in the 1930s and brought them to television in the 1950s. It has also produced more than 50 television movies and other shows, such as the People's Choice Awards.

(Reporting by Jessica Wohl, editing by Matthew Lewis)