Re: The Kaiser Stations (was Re: WTAO (FM?), WCOP-FM, WTTK)

[aerie@attbi.com]

I always thought it amusing that the Globe for months 
listed the 740 and 96.9 stations in their radio dial 
listings as WKBG and WKBG-FM
> Hi Joe:
>      Please check out the history of WKBG-TV (as WXHR)
> on my website http://RadioDXer.com in the "The UHF
> Morgue". WKBG-TV was the first of the Boston Kaiser
> stations to make the complete makeover in December,
> 1966.  The AM and FM stations had and still remained
> at separate locations.  The WXHR-FM used some very old
> studios at Zion "Mountain" in Woburn up until the time
> the new operations took effect.  Yes, the FM was
> silent for a few months in preparation for Commercial
> Wharf to go on-line in May of 1967.  WXHR-AM/740 while
> technically still located at Concord Avenue in
> Cambridge basically took the FM feed and fed it to the
> board, to cover for the COL (City of License)
> requirements.  96.9 was originally a Cambridge
> allocation.  But, since Cambridge was already well
> served by 2 other FM's (WTBS and WHRB) and 1 AM
> (WXHR), they got the FCC OK to change the city of
> license to Boston.  They tried to change the COL of
> Channel 56 to Boston but, no..... it was the only TV
> "voice" in the City so they had to settle for
> Cambridge of which the station is still really
> licensed to, to this day.  Kaiser/Globe really went to
> town in getting the best studios, the best equipment
> to make these stations "sing".  WJIB/"FM 97" was an
> immediate hit to the HI-FI/Stereo crowd in Greater
> Boston. 
>      WCAS/740 (Wickus Island) was not so much of a
> hit.  Only today under Bob Bittner does today's 740
> show the most continued stability in the 54 year
> history of that station. 
>      We all know that WKBG-TV/Channel 56 was doing
> quite well in its' first few years of renewed
> operation from Zion Hill transmitter site.  So much in
> fact that they (along with Channel 25-WREP, and
> 38-WSBK) put up a new cooperative tower in Needham in
> 1968.  WKBG/56 fired up at Needham in October, 1968,
> WSBK/38 in the fall of 1969 and WXNE/25 fired up on
> October 12, 1977. This tall candlabra tower still
> serves these stations quite well.  As a little boy of
> 8, I loved watching Channel 56 then. Remember "Bunker
> Hill", "The Captain Boston Show" with Chris Clausen
> (still doing voice-over work to this day!) and "Magic
> Key"?  Well... when they fired up their new "million
> watts of power from our new tall tower!", I thought I
> had died and gone to heaven.  It was that good! Boy,
> UHF was fun then!
> 
> 
> Cheers,
> -Peter Q.
> 
> 
> 
> --- "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyross.com> wrote:
> > On 18 Aug 2002 at 14:34, Peter Q. George wrote:
> > 
> > > The AM went silent for a few months in 1967 in
> > preparation for WCAS. The
> > > FM became WJIB in May, 1967 with the famous Stereo
> > beautiful music
> > > ("ding, ding....").  They limped along from Zion
> > Hill in Woburn, MA
> > > until the Commercial Wharf studios were built. 
> > 
> > I believe that the FM also went silent for awhile. 
> > I have some 
> > recollection of going to see the guy who was in
> > charge of getting the 
> > stations on the air with their new identities, to
> > try to get a summer 
> > job.  I went to see him at the Central Square
> > studios, and WCAS may have 
> > been on the air by then, but WJIB was not.  And I
> > believe neither was 
> > WKBG-TV.
> > 
> > -- 
> > A. Joseph Ross, J.D.                          
> > 617.367.0468
> >  15 Court Square, Suite 210                
> > lawyer@attorneyross.com
> > Boston, MA 02108-2503           	        
> > http://www.attorneyross.com
> > 
> > 
> 
> 
> =====
> Peter Q. George (K1XRB)
> Whitman, Massachusetts
>                            "Scanning the bands since 1967"
> radiojunkie1@yahoo.com
> radiojunkie3@yahoo.com
> ***********************************************************
> 
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