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820/570 Share Time
- Thread starter TomBenson
- Start date
The time share ended May 1, 1970. (http://www.dfwradioarchives.com/1970.htm)
The full story is long and complex and truly dates back to the very beginning or radio in the market when all stations had to share time on what was a limited number of frequencies.
Quick thumbnail version: WBAP and WFAA wound up stuck together on 800kHz in 1929. 800 was slated to be one of the 'superpower' frequencies and neither party wanted to surrender its rights to such a potent spot on the dial. Nine years later, WBAP & WFAA bought KGKO/570 in Wichita Falls and moved it to Fort Worth to augment WBAP & WFAA. In short, KGKO would clear whatever programming WBAP or WFAA could not clear. (http://www.dfwradioarchives.com/1930s.htm#1938)
This setup eventually ran foul of the FCC, and the KGKO call letters were deleted, leaving 570 and 820 to each be split between WFAA and WBAP - while WFAA was on 570, WBAP was on 820 and vice versa. (http://www.dfwradioarchives.com/1940s.htm#1947) And that's the way it was until the time share ended.
The full story is long and complex and truly dates back to the very beginning or radio in the market when all stations had to share time on what was a limited number of frequencies.
Quick thumbnail version: WBAP and WFAA wound up stuck together on 800kHz in 1929. 800 was slated to be one of the 'superpower' frequencies and neither party wanted to surrender its rights to such a potent spot on the dial. Nine years later, WBAP & WFAA bought KGKO/570 in Wichita Falls and moved it to Fort Worth to augment WBAP & WFAA. In short, KGKO would clear whatever programming WBAP or WFAA could not clear. (http://www.dfwradioarchives.com/1930s.htm#1938)
This setup eventually ran foul of the FCC, and the KGKO call letters were deleted, leaving 570 and 820 to each be split between WFAA and WBAP - while WFAA was on 570, WBAP was on 820 and vice versa. (http://www.dfwradioarchives.com/1940s.htm#1947) And that's the way it was until the time share ended.
Mike Shannon must not be awake yet, I think he has some info on his website.
Split operation on 570-820 ended on April 28, 1970and an aircheck of the last 20 minutes exists. The last 20 minutes was nothing spectacular...both stations were doing their regular formats and at midnight the patch cord was pulled and replaced for good...WBAP went into news and a paid religious program, WFAA had some kind of all night show.
Originally WFAA-WBAP handed off to each other every 2-1/2 hours or so. The network affiliation remained with the frequency....820 was always NBC, 570 was always ABC. I've heard all the WFAA tapes during the Kennedy coverage of 1963 and like clock-work WFAA and WBAP would swap. BTW the coverage, 99% from the networks was boring (just like it would be today!). I don't know if WBAP used slogans for their programming but in the 60's WFAA on 820 was
"Southwest Central" and on 570 they called themselves "Melodic Living."
Toward the end of the share-time era I think WBAP and WFAA swapped frequencies every 6 hours or so. Could be very wrong on that.
When I was a kid DXing in the midwest years ago I could never understand why some nights the station on 820 was WFAA and others it was WBAP. Imagine how local listeners must have felt!
Split operation on 570-820 ended on April 28, 1970and an aircheck of the last 20 minutes exists. The last 20 minutes was nothing spectacular...both stations were doing their regular formats and at midnight the patch cord was pulled and replaced for good...WBAP went into news and a paid religious program, WFAA had some kind of all night show.
Originally WFAA-WBAP handed off to each other every 2-1/2 hours or so. The network affiliation remained with the frequency....820 was always NBC, 570 was always ABC. I've heard all the WFAA tapes during the Kennedy coverage of 1963 and like clock-work WFAA and WBAP would swap. BTW the coverage, 99% from the networks was boring (just like it would be today!). I don't know if WBAP used slogans for their programming but in the 60's WFAA on 820 was
"Southwest Central" and on 570 they called themselves "Melodic Living."
Toward the end of the share-time era I think WBAP and WFAA swapped frequencies every 6 hours or so. Could be very wrong on that.
When I was a kid DXing in the midwest years ago I could never understand why some nights the station on 820 was WFAA and others it was WBAP. Imagine how local listeners must have felt!
C
cd637299
Guest
This is interesting stuff.....I was not quite 11 when the thing ended, but I do recall 820 as WFAA. Once in 1975 I caught WFAA on 570 from south Florida....those were the days of the Monday maintenance for many other stations. I'd like to read more.
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dakareedog
Guest
For more history of Dallas Fort Worth Radio go to: http://www.knus99.com/
317C50KW said:
In the mid-60's I recall the 820 schedule was:
WBAP Midnight-7:30am
WFAA 7:30am-12:30pm
WBAP 12:30pm-5:00pm
WFAA 5:00pm-Midnight
Of course, 570 was the reverse.
This was while I was growing up in Austin. Actually very little difference in signal level there between the two frequencies.
C
cd637299
Guest
Wow that can be confusing.....I had read that the 3-way 1240 Chicago switched maybe 6 to 8 times a day!
I saw Mr. Shannon's aircheck list, including the final switch. is this actual monitoring of one frequency as the stations swap?
cd
I saw Mr. Shannon's aircheck list, including the final switch. is this actual monitoring of one frequency as the stations swap?
cd
Before the evening of the final switch (4/30/71) BAP was on 820 from midnight until 6:30 am daily. The switch actually took place daily at 11:59:40p and 6:29:40a... FAA was on 820 from 6:30a until 12:30p (12:29:40p). The afternoon switch was made at 6:00 p.m. (5:59:40p). The board had a headphone button so you could have 820 in one ear and 570 in the other for the switch. The frequency switch panel at WFAA, although easy to operate, looked complicated. It was lettered from "A" thru "R" for the 18 studios (AM/FM/ Automation/TV and WFAA recording) so that, if needed, any studio could be switched to either frequency. Although I'm not aware of it happening,a botched switch could have resulted with Mr.Peppermint on the air instead of WFAA Radio.
There were two large consoles at the transmitter, one in front of each transmitter in very large rooms. Each console had a three position up/down toggle switch labeled WFAA/Parallel/WBAP. Before each switch the transmitter engineer would place each switch in "Parallel". After the switch he would move each switch to which ever station was to be on that frequency to prevent an accidental switch.
Each Saturday one of the radio studios (4 total including the Schafer automation for FM, 97.9 "Stereo 98") was taken down and completely cleaned by Mac Weldon Jeffus who was one of the great old time radio engineers. It wasn't a big deal for the announcer since all of the studios were duplicates. When he was finished with a studio it was so clean that it looked and smelled like a hospital room.
Each studio operated with 4 Collins cart machines, two Ampex 354 reel to reel and three QRK turntables. The only person known to constantly use the back TT was Ted Cassidy (Lurch) because he was the only one who could reach it while on mike. The carts were kept in two circular metal racks mounted on wheels each holding 500 carts. They were easy to move for changing studios but hell if they tipped over on you. The studios were built on springs and there were sound locks outside each studio door. The acoustics were tremendous. The sound panels in each studio were metal (although they looked like the Styrofoam ones) with holes in them that created a sound which I had never heard before. Upon entering the studio your voice would seem to drop a full octave. Also for the sound, none of the studios walls were parallel. There was no money spared during construction.
There were two large consoles at the transmitter, one in front of each transmitter in very large rooms. Each console had a three position up/down toggle switch labeled WFAA/Parallel/WBAP. Before each switch the transmitter engineer would place each switch in "Parallel". After the switch he would move each switch to which ever station was to be on that frequency to prevent an accidental switch.
Each Saturday one of the radio studios (4 total including the Schafer automation for FM, 97.9 "Stereo 98") was taken down and completely cleaned by Mac Weldon Jeffus who was one of the great old time radio engineers. It wasn't a big deal for the announcer since all of the studios were duplicates. When he was finished with a studio it was so clean that it looked and smelled like a hospital room.
Each studio operated with 4 Collins cart machines, two Ampex 354 reel to reel and three QRK turntables. The only person known to constantly use the back TT was Ted Cassidy (Lurch) because he was the only one who could reach it while on mike. The carts were kept in two circular metal racks mounted on wheels each holding 500 carts. They were easy to move for changing studios but hell if they tipped over on you. The studios were built on springs and there were sound locks outside each studio door. The acoustics were tremendous. The sound panels in each studio were metal (although they looked like the Styrofoam ones) with holes in them that created a sound which I had never heard before. Upon entering the studio your voice would seem to drop a full octave. Also for the sound, none of the studios walls were parallel. There was no money spared during construction.
unclepudd said:
Ah, the Belo of old! Sure not like THAT anymore!!!
When I was at FAA radio in the early 70's, I worked Saturday morning news from that little closet-of-a-booth located in the NW corner of the TV newsroom. On Saturdays, Jeffus would do his routine maintenance and cleaning. That SMELL...there was one particular chemical he used (cleaning the cart machines, I think) that was absolutely HORRIBLE!. Never smelled it anywhere else. It literally ran me out of the room!
Mr, Pudd...did we cross paths at "The BIG 57" during those days? Ralph Robison was the radio news director during my days there...Travis Linn was TV news director.
[/quote said:
I think that smell came from Carbontech chloride or some other chemical that today is banned because it kills mice or rats.
Probably did know each other my friend.. I went to work there in '69 before Mr. Ted Dealy died and was there until '74. Charlie Van was PD. Looking back I realize there was more great talent in one place than anywhere else. Much of it was in the newsroom! That was one place that you had to experience to understand what it was really like. Even the Altec studio speakers were so big and powerful that, when turned up, would make the pens on the console roll around (and we wonder why today many of us have have hearing problems).
Remember Ralph did all the voice work for FM and Grady Royster was the FM Program Director? I was also there when the radio newsroom was later moved to the second floor. I had never before worked, or even imagined, working with a newsman who was on a different floor and you couldn't see them. We only knew we had a newsman when a few seconds (and ofter very few) before the newscast we would hear a "I'm ready" through the intercom. A couple of news guys on my shift I didn't meet for weeks and only then when they would bring the weather forecast upstairs. Your newsroom was also a unique place. Travis was ND after Bert Shipp had stepped down but was still there doing something. Remember his claim to fame was that he somehow got into the Beatles suite during their '64 concert and got an interview? I also did booth announcing for TV which is another story..
The air staff on radio consisted of Tony Lawrence, Jeff Dale, Arch Campbell, Chuck Murphy, Lee Douglas, Don Norman and Ken Benson who was on duty the night of the final switch to 570 "The Big 57"... Announcers, except for the 5 hour overnight shift, worked 3 hour shifts.
Belo would replace almost new equipment with an even newer model just because it was newer...
We worked for a nationally known giant and were too young and reckless to know it at the time. Thank God for the memories...
When I was 10 years old, I would bring a little 6 transistor AM radio to school in my lunchbox, and bet someone if 820 was WBAP or WFAA. I told them they would lose a dime if they were wrong, but I would give THEM a quarter if they were right. Whatever they said, I would have them write it down their answer on a piece of paper for each of us. Of course, we would find out who was correct either at morning recess or after school.
M
MikeShannon914
Guest
Wow, great remembrances by all! Thank you.
The date I have for that final switch is 4/27/70 (end of day.) Wally Wawro, audio whiz at Ch 8, is who gave me a copy of it. He assured me that the date was correct. The recording has WFAA on one channel and WBAP on the other. If there's still conjecture, I'm sure I can find something in the Dallas News archives to verify the date.
The date I have for that final switch is 4/27/70 (end of day.) Wally Wawro, audio whiz at Ch 8, is who gave me a copy of it. He assured me that the date was correct. The recording has WFAA on one channel and WBAP on the other. If there's still conjecture, I'm sure I can find something in the Dallas News archives to verify the date.
D
dfaulkner
Guest
Fascinating thread ! Thanks to all for sharing.
Certainly I remember WFAA 570. It had all the GOOD shows: Terry and the Pirates; Hop Harrigan, Ace of the Airways; Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy (later just Jack Armstrong, All American); Sgt. Preston and Yukon King; and the Lone Ranger. There was also Little Orphan Annie (but she was a gurl).
C
cd637299
Guest
Can somebody tell me what a typical announcement was (verbatim, if possible), right before each station swapped frequencies?
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MikeShannon914
Guest
According to the Dallas Morning News archives, April 30, 1970 was the last day the two stations shared frequencies. This lasted until midnight that night. At midnight going into May 1, 1970, is when the stations officially split. So Domingo, you're correct on the day it all started, and my source was off three days on when this specific aircheck was recorded, since the tape was made during the last 11 minutes (11:49PM-12:00AM) on 4/30/70.
The DN article gave no specifics on WBAP but gave plenty of info about the "new" WFAA (naturally, of course...Belo tooting its own horn.) Here was the DJ lineup effective 5/1/70: Ron Gray, Tony Lawrence, Arch Campbell, Chuck Murphy, Cal Haynes, Ken Benson and Don Norman.
The DN article gave no specifics on WBAP but gave plenty of info about the "new" WFAA (naturally, of course...Belo tooting its own horn.) Here was the DJ lineup effective 5/1/70: Ron Gray, Tony Lawrence, Arch Campbell, Chuck Murphy, Cal Haynes, Ken Benson and Don Norman.
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