There was an owner between Jolly Jim Hepler and The Pottsville Republican. I believe his name was Gordon Lockwood. I believe he was convicted of something, but I don't remember what. WQIN remained on the air for several years after Lockwood was gone.
Yes. Jolly Jim Hepler. He sold WQIN around 1986 and went on the air with Love 99 (WQLV) around 1990.
Lykens
Gordon lockwood took possession of the station from Hepler in Mid February 1986. Lockwood did have some partners, as I recall. Shortly after I graduated from the now defunct Broadcasting Institute of Maryland, I was hired by Lockwood on17 Feb 86 to work as an on air announcer. Over the next four months I thought I had done a very good job, until I made the mistake of flipping the wrong switch and succeeded in turning off the FM signal (Which almost nobody listened to back then). Some engineering guy named Bill was on the phone going through the procedure with me and his directions weren't clear enough. Anyway, Lockwood chose to fire me. To be more specific he allowed me to resign on 18 June, and he didn't even have the courage or class to do it himself. No, he delegated that task to his Program Director (Or Henchman) Curt Davis, for whom I had no regard whatsoever. Davis was Gordie's yes man. I signed the resignation Davis gave me and left, but in retrospect wish that I had not done that. Lockwood was ANYTHING but a professional, and before his downfall, Lockwood fired several more people who worked at the station. He was arrogant, obnoxious, an ego maniac and thought he was above reproach. He actually appeared on the air mornings with Davis for a time. Their show was billed THE CURT AND GORDIE SHOW, and according to what I was later told by another Engineer, a nice guy named Roger Allvord, Lockwood was so unpopular among the listeners that his partners ordered him off the air. Lockwood, from what I heard exceeded the budget by buying and installing new equipment. The guy had delusions of grandeur. Roger Allvord also told me that Lockwood was visited one day by law enforcement who asked to see a valid ID. Lockwood could not come up with one, so he was taken into custody. It appears that his real name was CLYDE ERNEST RAUCHENBACH, JR. He was a con artist, and that con artist singlehandedly DESTROYED my enthusiasm for broadcasting. He ruined it for me permanently. I did get another job with another small market station, but it wasn't the same. Two months after I began the job, I quit and ended my fledgling broadcasting career.
Was there ever a station in Tower City?