WEZE, WCOP and NBC

[Doug Drown]

The Yankee Network ceased to exist when WNAC became WRKO.  IIRC, toward the
end, the network had two or three newscasts a day (with the "Yankee Doodle"
intro), plus it broadcast a Saturday evening religious program featuring the
evangelist Jack Wyrtzen.  Wyrtzen's ministry was part of my upbringing; he
had a decades-long association with the Yankee Network and, earlier, with
Mutual.

The question of WNAC's dual affiliation with NBC and Mutual in the late '50s
has to do with WNAC's ownership by General Tire and Rubber, which bought the
station from John Shepard in the late '40s, I think (I'd have to look up the
date; Donna would know right away).  Shepard had started the Yankee Network,
with WNAC as its flagship.  General Tire at one time owned Mutual as well as
several regional networks, of which Yankee became one.

I'm sure there's a list of former Yankee affiliates somewhere on the Net.  I
know Norman Knight's stations (WGIR, WEIM, WHEB, WSAR) were all affiliates,
by virtue of his former connection with WNAC.  I used to listen to Yankee
newscasts (and Wyrtzen's show) on WEIM.

Point of trivia: WNAC-TV 7's test pattern had the Yankee Network logo on it
long after the Yankee Network became defunct.

-Doug


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Donna Halper" <dlh@donnahalper.com>
To: "Rob Trovato" <xtrovato@yahoo.com>; "Dan.Strassberg"
<dan.strassberg@att.net>; "Doug Drown" <revdoug1@verizon.net>; "Kevin Vahey"
<kvahey@comcast.net>
Cc: <boston-radio-interest@lists.BostonRadio.org>
Sent: Monday, January 28, 2008 10:48 PM
Subject: Re: WEZE, WCOP and NBC


> At 09:53 PM 1/28/2008, Rob Trovato wrote:
>
> > > Now. was the Yankee Network still in existence in
> > > the summer of '56?
>
> Yankee Network breathed its last in February of 1967.
>