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Jackson's old WRBC
- Thread starter Scanman55
- Start date
> Who can remember WRBC in Jackson and can tell me the history
> of it's rise and fall . I believe they were at 1300 AM , and
> didn't Dick Miller from WJTV 12 work there at one time ??
>
I was real little at the time but I vaguely remember it. Ive heard Peter Christian on Z 106 mention that he worked there. Bob Pittman who founded MTV and ran AOL also worked there and Walt Grayson from WLBT DJ'ed there too. From what I remember it had the classic fast talking jocks and cool 60's and early 70's jingles. I can't remember when it changed but it was right before disco hit, maybe 1975 (?) It first went all news before changing to AC as "The Adult Entertainer" I remember the TV commercials saying it was the Station you grew up with. WRBC died when they moved WKXI from 94.7 to 1300 and changed WKXI FM to WTYX which started out jockless and automated with mostly AC around 78 or 79. The early jockless days at 94TYX were pretty terrible, sorta like a pop version of WLIN. There are some WRBC and WJDX airchecks at reelradio.com http://reelradio.com/findit/findit.cgi<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by Pat2 on 03/01/06 09:31 PM.</FONT></P>
> of it's rise and fall . I believe they were at 1300 AM , and
> didn't Dick Miller from WJTV 12 work there at one time ??
>
I was real little at the time but I vaguely remember it. Ive heard Peter Christian on Z 106 mention that he worked there. Bob Pittman who founded MTV and ran AOL also worked there and Walt Grayson from WLBT DJ'ed there too. From what I remember it had the classic fast talking jocks and cool 60's and early 70's jingles. I can't remember when it changed but it was right before disco hit, maybe 1975 (?) It first went all news before changing to AC as "The Adult Entertainer" I remember the TV commercials saying it was the Station you grew up with. WRBC died when they moved WKXI from 94.7 to 1300 and changed WKXI FM to WTYX which started out jockless and automated with mostly AC around 78 or 79. The early jockless days at 94TYX were pretty terrible, sorta like a pop version of WLIN. There are some WRBC and WJDX airchecks at reelradio.com http://reelradio.com/findit/findit.cgi<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by Pat2 on 03/01/06 09:31 PM.</FONT></P>
> I was real little at the time but I vaguely remember it.
> Ive heard Peter Christian on Z 106 mention that he worked
> there. Bob Pittman who founded MTV and ran AOL also worked
> there and Walt Grayson from WLBT DJ'ed there too. From what
> I remember it had the classic fast talking jocks and cool
> 60's and early 70's jingles. I can't remember when it
> changed but it right before disco hit, maybe 1975 (?) It
> first went all news before changing to AC as "The Adult
> Entertainer" I remember the TV commercials saying it was
> the station you grew up with. WRBC died when they moved
> WKXI from 94.7 and changed WKXI FM to WTYX which started out
> jockless and automated with mostly AC around 78 or 79. The
> early jockless days at 94TYX were pretty terrible, sorta
> like a pop version of WLIN. There are some WRBC and WJDX
> airchecks at reelradio.com
> http://reelradio.com/findit/findit.cgi
>
I believe Ron Frazier worked at WRBC too.<P ID="signature">______________
"...and the countdown continues until the neanderthals that govern college football do something about their pathetic postseason."--Tim Brando, Sporting News Radio</P>
> Ive heard Peter Christian on Z 106 mention that he worked
> there. Bob Pittman who founded MTV and ran AOL also worked
> there and Walt Grayson from WLBT DJ'ed there too. From what
> I remember it had the classic fast talking jocks and cool
> 60's and early 70's jingles. I can't remember when it
> changed but it right before disco hit, maybe 1975 (?) It
> first went all news before changing to AC as "The Adult
> Entertainer" I remember the TV commercials saying it was
> the station you grew up with. WRBC died when they moved
> WKXI from 94.7 and changed WKXI FM to WTYX which started out
> jockless and automated with mostly AC around 78 or 79. The
> early jockless days at 94TYX were pretty terrible, sorta
> like a pop version of WLIN. There are some WRBC and WJDX
> airchecks at reelradio.com
> http://reelradio.com/findit/findit.cgi
>
I believe Ron Frazier worked at WRBC too.<P ID="signature">______________
"...and the countdown continues until the neanderthals that govern college football do something about their pathetic postseason."--Tim Brando, Sporting News Radio</P>
The old Rebel Broadcasting Company combo studio & tower site is still standing, minus the tower. Look just to the right of the Sound and Communications building at N. State St and Beasley Road.
> The old Rebel Broadcasting Company combo studio & tower site
> is still standing, minus the tower. Look just to the right
> of the Sound and Communications building at N. State St and
> Beasley Road.
>
The building is shaped like an old 1930's radio. Some idiot built some ugly addition on the front of it and ruined it. The building should be restored and painted. its very unique.
> is still standing, minus the tower. Look just to the right
> of the Sound and Communications building at N. State St and
> Beasley Road.
>
The building is shaped like an old 1930's radio. Some idiot built some ugly addition on the front of it and ruined it. The building should be restored and painted. its very unique.
Former employee Bob Bishop went on to be part owner in WKYV. Now 106.7 in Jackson. He also owned WBBV in Vicksburg before he passed away in 1997. I believe Bill Keith(Hoisington) worked there in the 60's and went on also to be part owner in WKYV before going to work for Harris?? I remember when they were duking it out with WJDX and then later WWUN who gave away a house when they first went on the air. Dem wuz da days.
I remember WRBC like a normal sane person would remember their first-love-that-didn't-quite-work-out. I never did work there, but through junior high and most of high school I wanted to.
Via Walt, I came upon WRBC about the same time I got bit with the bug to want to be in radio. Some of the folks I remember were Gary Phillips (later WZZQ monrning "shock jock"), Rick Shannon (later "Dr. Brock" of WCFL, etc), Roz Franks (music director, later with WNBC), Graham Jasper (later "Brock Boulette"), Bob Ralls, Don Brady, Peter Christian (the original Boulette), Ron Frazier, Mickey Coulter, Tony Maddox (later WHBQ, KCBQ), Ron Wood, news guys Dudley Evans and Ken Cook.
I'm sure I've told this story a million times on here (Altzheimers is a wonderful excuse), but Harry Nelson (later WRKO and the world) let me run the board for him one night when I was about 12 or 13.
I don't specifically remember him from WRBC, but Gerry Cagle (Peterson KCBQ, KHJ and the world...) worked there early on, and was later my insultant at Y-16.
For you history buffs, WRBC and WJDX swapped the 620 and 1300 frequencies in 1952.
RG
Via Walt, I came upon WRBC about the same time I got bit with the bug to want to be in radio. Some of the folks I remember were Gary Phillips (later WZZQ monrning "shock jock"), Rick Shannon (later "Dr. Brock" of WCFL, etc), Roz Franks (music director, later with WNBC), Graham Jasper (later "Brock Boulette"), Bob Ralls, Don Brady, Peter Christian (the original Boulette), Ron Frazier, Mickey Coulter, Tony Maddox (later WHBQ, KCBQ), Ron Wood, news guys Dudley Evans and Ken Cook.
I'm sure I've told this story a million times on here (Altzheimers is a wonderful excuse), but Harry Nelson (later WRKO and the world) let me run the board for him one night when I was about 12 or 13.
I don't specifically remember him from WRBC, but Gerry Cagle (Peterson KCBQ, KHJ and the world...) worked there early on, and was later my insultant at Y-16.
For you history buffs, WRBC and WJDX swapped the 620 and 1300 frequencies in 1952.
RG
> ... Ron Frazier...
Ron worked for me for a time. He tells me that he once did mornings at WRBC in the nude. He even walked through the station in that state, as if he owned the place. That's a picture I am trying very hard to get out of my head.
"Think good thoughts... Think calming thoughts...."
But, then again... Ron is the same guy who almost caused me to run into a tree while running in the park off Pear Orchard Road. I was wearing my Walkman and Ron announced a song by the exotic Nigerian-born chanteuse Sade . He pronouned it with all the conviction in the world as if it rhymed with "Made."
Still makes me laugh to this day...
DE
Ron worked for me for a time. He tells me that he once did mornings at WRBC in the nude. He even walked through the station in that state, as if he owned the place. That's a picture I am trying very hard to get out of my head.
"Think good thoughts... Think calming thoughts...."
But, then again... Ron is the same guy who almost caused me to run into a tree while running in the park off Pear Orchard Road. I was wearing my Walkman and Ron announced a song by the exotic Nigerian-born chanteuse Sade . He pronouned it with all the conviction in the world as if it rhymed with "Made."
Still makes me laugh to this day...
DE
Gee... and no one tells the tale of how Graham Jasper was on the air one night through a tornado which destroyed their tower and he didn't find out for over a half hour because he was listening to the board monitor and not off the air? As I recall, about the only damage from that tornado was WRBC's tower. They were transmitting off a strung cable for a month or so afterward. This happened when I was working at WJDX.Odd side note: when I lived in St. Louis, I could pick up 1300 from Jackson crystal clear almost every night at one particular intersection. Go figure that one out...
were you in the 1300 block?
Legend has it that one WRBC chief had them kicking over to full power at midnight during the "experimental period" for a while. They were getting request calls from California.I don't know if the FCC gigged them or not, but the control room at one point didn't have actual remote control of the transmitter, but had a closed circuit TV camera focused on the meters.RG
Z
zell
Guest
Good thing they set those cameras up after I left.
O
oldbuzzard
Guest
Those were the days!!
I worked for a 1300 kc in Nashville (WMAK at the time) late 1970’s. I became quite familiar with the night-time allocation picture on 1300. Everybody on there at night, except Colorado Springs, had to protect the 1300 in Jackson. It was an old Class III allocation and it looked like it received protection to it’s 2.5 mv/m contour at night. The WMAK night interference free contour was 9.8 mv/m and most of that came from WRBC. I could pick that thing up everywhere even at my home in Nashville that was in a deep null of WMAK. So it’s not at all surprising that it can be heard up in St. Louis at night.
w/
w/
Well, I couldn't pick up WRBC in Hattiesburg. But then again, that was in the early 70's when they were running 1 KW at night and not 5 KW "experimental." Does anyone remember their top of the hour ID in the early 70? If my memory serves me correct, they ran some tone or something. Comments???
My dad had a Big Bands show Sunday nights on WRBC during the late 70s/early 80s: "Reflections with J.R." Of course I'm biased, but it was an excellent show and was very popular with the listeners. Most of the stuff was Big Band music from the 40s, but he went back to the 20s and 30s and also up into the 50s and 60s as well. Mainstays of the show- Ellington, Basie, Glenn Miller, Harry James, Dorsey brothers, Hampton. Lots of vocalists- Ella, Billie, Sarah, Lena. The older folks in Jackson loved it- old-timey music with some artistry and soul instead of the watered-down "Music of Your Life" schlock.
After my dad's show, there was a younger guy who did a contemporary jazz show but I can't remember the name of the show or the host.
Good times...spent lots of hours as a kid taking phone requests and ripping news off the wire for my old man. The soda machine kept the Barq's root beer extra-cold...
After my dad's show, there was a younger guy who did a contemporary jazz show but I can't remember the name of the show or the host.
Good times...spent lots of hours as a kid taking phone requests and ripping news off the wire for my old man. The soda machine kept the Barq's root beer extra-cold...
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