I was the GM in Big Lake from October 1980 through June 1981 under the new owner, a gentleman out of California.
W. Gracie Hicks signed on the station, I think, in the late 1950s or early 1960s. She had hosted a program on a Big Spring station but I think it was cancelled. Her husband made sure she could 'play' radio via KWGH. Poor Gracie had alzheimers and couldn't recall what she had done the previous day. Once the staff figured that out they'd get her to write paychecks again when she had paid them the day prior.
Her format was mostly old standards. Every commercial was typed for live reads each day. 5 minutes of news off the AP wire at the top and bottom of the hour. Her family got her to sell to Marvin Schwartz.
Marvin did his due dilligence but indicated to locals he was with the FCC not a potential buyer. You might say he had three strikes against him. He was from California, Jewish and he had deceived them about his true identity (say he was with the FCC). He brought in his son's friend from California. Jason was a good guy but not a good mix for West Texas back then. Big Lake at the time was very backward socially. At that time, if you weren't white you lived on unpaved streets without water and sewer nor cable TV and if you were white you didn't mingle. Most of the anglo population that did not work in the oil and gas industry were from families that had moved to Big Lake in covered wagon. At that time, outsiders were not very welcome, especially if you were running a business they felt someone local should be running.
I followed a year later and let's just say it was one of my worst experiences in radio. I wasn't from there so that was a strike against me. I didn't know sales and I had no business being a GM. I liked a little longer hair than the community liked.
Gracie, being set financially, gave free commercials to local businesses or might charge them up to 25 cents a spot. She sent folks to Midland/Odessa and San Angelo to sell dollar spots. Poor Marvin learned this the hard way. The broker thought the $6,000 figure was a monthly billing, not annual billing. The best month I had was about $3,000 and it took $5,000 to break even. Needless to say, I wasn't much help but I tried.
I cannot say I have good memories of living there. There's a guy in the Panhandle that had a story much like my experience in Big Lake. My experience was caused by balking at those who ran the town. It all started when I was told not to annouce an event. Two events were being held the same night. The heads of each event were arch enemies. One of them was the wife of a 'big man' in town that told me not to annouce the opposing event. That resulted in a call from another 'big man' in town who told me I didn't know who I was messing with. Without going further, let's just say I used to call my Dad twice a day to say I was still alive and had instructed him to do something if I didn't call. Transmission lines were cut several times. My landlord (a Justice of the Peace) put pot in our trailer and called the cops. I remember airing a farm worker rights PSA on some Ag program and getting a guy calling the station saying he'd come down and shoot me if I played it again. Believe me, I double checked the cue sheet! It was rough time. They succeeded in running me out of town.
After I left, there was a new guy that came in and he did well about a year (I think about $80,000) but then it dropped to about $36,000. I believe he had come from Tulia. Finally it sold to somebody that ran a really weird format of mostly big band and long form semi-educational shows but once he was down to about $2,000 a month in billing he took KWGH silent. It never returned.
KWGH was a great station. The building was designed very well. The 1,000 watt daytimer went miles and miles. We had listeners in Garden City, Rankin, McCamey, Ozona, Sonora and Mertzon. Too bad the town was not as accepting and the statin suffered from poor management (including me).
