• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Atlantas QXI

P

Part15rulesdude

Guest
Way back when , Say like in the 50s, is it true, That the once mighty Quxie
was a country and western Station? If so when did they flip, and what was the reasoning, what ever it was, it was a good decision..<P ID="signature">______________
"Am Top 40 radio was the best"/Long Live 79 WQXI
Atlanta Georgia...........</P>
 
> Way back when , Say like in the 50s, is it true, That the
> once mighty Quxie
> was a country and western Station? If so when did they
> flip, and what was the reasoning, what ever it was, it was a
> good decision..
>
All I know is that WQXI was a Mutual affiliate in the '50s,
but I suspect the format change may be related to the coming
of WPLO, after WAGA sold its radio station at 590 on AM.
WPLO was a quite popular country station, and I agree with
you: WQXI may have been the best top-40 station in the South.
 
I heard that Rounsaville bought WQXI, probably in the early sixties. Rounsaville owned several Top 40 stations in Florida including WFUN in South Miami. It may have changed format when it was purchased.

I only remember WQXI as a Pacific & Southern station along with KKDJ in LA and WWDJ in Hackensack, NJ/NYC.

> Way back when , Say like in the 50s, is it true, That the
> once mighty Quxie
> was a country and western Station? If so when did they
> flip, and what was the reasoning, what ever it was, it was a
> good decision..
>
<P ID="signature">______________
[email protected]</P>
 
> I heard that Rounsaville bought WQXI, probably in the early
> sixties. Rounsaville owned several Top 40 stations in
> Florida including WFUN in South Miami. It may have changed
> format when it was purchased.
>
> I only remember WQXI as a Pacific & Southern station along
> with KKDJ in LA and WWDJ in Hackensack, NJ/NYC.
>
>
>I know that from 1968 to 1973 Pacific & Southern owned
both WQXI and Channel 11 (which was WQXI-TV then). When
Pacific & Southern merged with Combined Communications,
they sold WQXI radio to Jefferson-Pilot, who kept the
WQXI call letters; and retained Channel 11, which became
WXIA in December 1973 (Christmas Day, IIRC).
>
 
Re: Atlanta's QXI

> I heard that Rounsaville bought WQXI, probably in the early
> sixties. Rounsaville owned several Top 40 stations in
> Florida including WFUN in South Miami.

Rounsaville built WQXI in 1948. Originally, it was a daytimer with 1kw (the 5kw-D/1kw-DA-N came in 1954). As it was with a number of independent (non-network affiliated) stations that came along after WWII, WQXI might have been a "3 R's" (Rural-Religion-Race) station. 3 R's stations programmed country (rural) in the morning, quartets/preaching (religion) in middays, and rhythm & blues (race) in the afternoon, until sign-off.

I don't know for sure that 'QXI had this type format, but it wouldn't surprise me. It may have been a true block-formatted station, with different blocks of music types throughout the day. On the other hand, it may have had a total (or mostly) country format. If it did, it would've competed with WTJH/East Point, and WEAS (now WGUN)/Decatur. These stations also programmed significant amounts of country (or hillbilly, as it was then most often called) music.

By all accounts, Rounsaville (whose 1st station was WGAA, located in his hometown of Cedartown, built in 1941), likely jumped on the Top-40 bandwagon with WQXI in 1957, after observing Storz and McLendon's huge successes, not to mention Bartell's success with Atlanta's WAKE, which began programming Top-40 in late '55/early '56. He built WMBM (later WFUN) in Miami in 1947. Originally, it was a 1kw daytimer on 800 (moving to 790 in the mid-50's), and probably had a format similar to WQXI. With Storz's WQAM right next door, he was able to observe Top-40 in action, upclose and personal. WMBM became Top-40 WFUN in late '59, and, under the leadership of Bud Connell, beat the pants off 'QAM.

I'm told that he sold WQXI to Esquire Broadcasting in 1961, because they offered big bucks ($950,000.00 in 1961 dollars), and because he had other opportunities to expand elsewhere (remember...there was a 7 station ownership limit in those days). Esquire (yes, Esquire Magazine was the parent company), which built WKXI(FM)/Smyrna in 1964, sold its broadcast interests to Pacific & Southern in 1968. Pacific & Southern also bought WAII-TV from Fairbanks in 1968, and it became WQXI-TV.

Eventually, Rounsaville's holdings were all black formatted stations, including WLOU/Louisville, WCIN/Cincinnati, WVOL/Nashville and WYLD/New Orleans.

<P ID="signature">______________
Jay Braswell - Moderator
Atlanta/North Florida/South Carolina/Georgia Boards</P>
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom