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MsMusicRadio
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Who were the jocks on WFOM and how did it compete with WQXI? I was in Atlanta on and off in the late Sixties and I don't remember being able to listen to it.
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SUCCESSFUL CLASS IV STATIONS
- Thread starter Bob E. Nelson
- Start date
MsMusicRadio said:Who were the jocks on WFOM and how did it compete with WQXI? I was in Atlanta on and off in the late Sixties and I don't remember being able to listen to it.
WFOM had practically no signal in Atlanta, so it was no competition for WQXI. Also, WQXI had no signal in Marietta (at night); WFOM owned the town and focused on it - making the station so successful.
You can read more HERE. Scroll down to 1230.
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MsMusicRadio
Guest
That brings up another question. Why did WPLO at 590 give up the format so early to stations with inferior signals?
1450/KLWW Cedar Rapids IA was a very successful Class IV top 40 station throughout the 60s and well into the 70s. In the early 70s, they had a 25 share to top 40 5000 watt rival 1600/KCRG's 15 share. (Old line MOR 600/WMT was number one with 30+ share.)
KLWW didn't lose the battle to KCRG until the mid-70s.
1450 is now locally-owned KMRY with standards, with a respectable five share and lots of local programming, along with ABC's Timeless Classics.
KLWW didn't lose the battle to KCRG until the mid-70s.
1450 is now locally-owned KMRY with standards, with a respectable five share and lots of local programming, along with ABC's Timeless Classics.
WJQS 1400 in Jackson, Ms was a god operation years ago...
WTAL-AM 1450 in Tallahassee was mentioned in an earlier thread. During some of its Top 40 era in the early to mid-70s
their slogan was "WTAL is everywhere." They had contests built around it - bumper stickers, call-ins, etc.
Interestingly enough, they bought ads in our school yearbook every year - even though it was a Christian school and WTAL was secular Top 40. Tom Derzypolski ("Tommy Dee") did a lot of on-air work and was doing mornings at WTAL
during part of this time. It was owned by the Hoy family for most of this time. They sold it to Frank Veihmeyer sometime around 1976 or 1977, I believe.
WTAL was the very first station I ever worked for. In the late 70s Top 40 was on FM and TAL was fighting to stay in the Top 10. When I arrived in 1979, they were playing a mixed music format of softer AC, country and oldies. I enjoyed this format and soon became an assistant, picking oldies for the DJs to play, as every 3rd song was an oldie. This format
managed to pull a 4.1 share, keeping the station in 8th place. This was when WTAL had to reduce power to 250w at night. The inside joke was the boss couldn't pick up the signal once we powered down because he lived at the bottom of a hill way out in Killearn. I started as an overnighter, which also meant board-opping the Larry King Show. I was on from 9 PM to 6 AM and also did Sundays from 6 AM until 1:30 PM.
At the end of 1980 the station sold to a new owner, Don Keyes, who got rid of us and the format, going to the Music of Your Life format instead. Pretty much all of my co-workers were gone, as was I.
I managed to collect most of the music from the mixed music format and still have it today - complete with the color coding system we used.
I really liked being at WTAL.
their slogan was "WTAL is everywhere." They had contests built around it - bumper stickers, call-ins, etc.
Interestingly enough, they bought ads in our school yearbook every year - even though it was a Christian school and WTAL was secular Top 40. Tom Derzypolski ("Tommy Dee") did a lot of on-air work and was doing mornings at WTAL
during part of this time. It was owned by the Hoy family for most of this time. They sold it to Frank Veihmeyer sometime around 1976 or 1977, I believe.
WTAL was the very first station I ever worked for. In the late 70s Top 40 was on FM and TAL was fighting to stay in the Top 10. When I arrived in 1979, they were playing a mixed music format of softer AC, country and oldies. I enjoyed this format and soon became an assistant, picking oldies for the DJs to play, as every 3rd song was an oldie. This format
managed to pull a 4.1 share, keeping the station in 8th place. This was when WTAL had to reduce power to 250w at night. The inside joke was the boss couldn't pick up the signal once we powered down because he lived at the bottom of a hill way out in Killearn. I started as an overnighter, which also meant board-opping the Larry King Show. I was on from 9 PM to 6 AM and also did Sundays from 6 AM until 1:30 PM.
At the end of 1980 the station sold to a new owner, Don Keyes, who got rid of us and the format, going to the Music of Your Life format instead. Pretty much all of my co-workers were gone, as was I.
I managed to collect most of the music from the mixed music format and still have it today - complete with the color coding system we used.
I really liked being at WTAL.
MsMusicRadio said:That brings up another question. Why did WPLO at 590 give up the format so early to stations with inferior signals?
1965. WPLO saw a golden opportunity with what they called the "Town and Country" format.
There was an upscale "new" sound in country music emerging (even though the Grand Ole Opry still banned drums) that was quickly catching on, and all the country stations in Atlanta were "old" style hillbilly at the time. WPLO realized that WQXI was going to be the number 1 Top-40 station no matter what and decided to cash in on the new format.
It was a huge success for them; they never looked back.
WXVW, 1450 kHz in Jeffersonville, IN (Louisville, KY-IN market) signed on in September, 1961 and did well with local ownership (WXVW, Inc. and later Sunnyside Communications) until Cumulus eventually acquired it a couple of years ago...it's now ESPN 1450 "The Ticket"" WQKC. During its earlier periods, WXVW programmed Oldies, Top 40, Country and "Music of Your Life," becoming one of the most successful MOYL affiliates in the country. They were also respected for their coverage of South Central Indiana high school sports and community issues (about 300,000 of the 1.4 million population of the Louisville CMSA live in Southern Indiana counties). WXVW held its own, even in the days when the Louisville market had such legendary AM's as WAKY, WKLO, WAVE-AM, WLOU and the classy (pre-Clear Channel) WHAS-AM.
Former WXVW station GM/Managing Partner Charlie Jenkins, OM Gil (Doc) Daugherty, and MD Ron Chilton are well-respected local radio personalities who treated listeners and advertisers right. All in all, an excellent small Class IV who did it right for years.
Former WXVW station GM/Managing Partner Charlie Jenkins, OM Gil (Doc) Daugherty, and MD Ron Chilton are well-respected local radio personalities who treated listeners and advertisers right. All in all, an excellent small Class IV who did it right for years.
There is only one King 'B'!The King Bee said:WXVW, 1450 kHz in Jeffersonville, IN (Louisville, KY-IN market) signed on in September, 1961 and did well with local ownership (WXVW, Inc. and later Sunnyside Communications) until Cumulus eventually acquired it a couple of years ago...it's now ESPN 1450 "The Ticket"" WQKC. During its earlier periods, WXVW programmed Oldies, Top 40, Country and "Music of Your Life," becoming one of the most successful MOYL affiliates in the country. They were also respected for their coverage of South Central Indiana high school sports and community issues (about 300,000 of the 1.4 million population of the Louisville CMSA live in Southern Indiana counties). WXVW held its own, even in the days when the Louisville market had such legendary AM's as WAKY, WKLO, WAVE-AM, WLOU and the classy (pre-Clear Channel) WHAS-AM.
Former WXVW station GM/Managing Partner Charlie Jenkins, OM Gil (Doc) Daugherty, and MD Ron Chilton are well-respected local radio personalities who treated listeners and advertisers right. All in all, an excellent small Class IV who did it right for years.
I listened to his Majesty all the way from Indianapolis first on 1360/WSAI with his other Tulu Buddies (or however you spell it) and Mug Club, then on WCFL and WIND. Sadly for me, he disappeared, having moved to FM. But then he took a trip on the X-Bands and I could hear him again. Long live Ron Brittain!
Sorry, I'm not that "King B"...I'm a TV and radio ops and facility consultant (station evaluations for brokers, planning for facility re-builds and upgrades, setting up new operations, etc.) from Louisville. On the TV side, I also run camera, videotape and "Elvis" (EVS digital replay) for many broadcast and cable sports networks that visit the region.
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