Just picked up WLW 700 just southeast of Houston Tx

[gr8oldies]

The article may reference WCKY-FM which is Country in the Findlay area. As far as I remember to at least the mid 70s, WCKY was some time of news/talk maybe with some MOR music. Don't ever remember country.

Did WLW (W8XO) ever actually operate the 500kW rig in the daytime. I heard the radio special on WLW's anniversary, and read in print (maybe on the web and of course that means it has to be true that the engineers would turn down the audio of the program that was airing just before the switch to 500000 watts just so the local listenes would hear a difference in volume (which, with AGC, they wouldn't have).

 

[nmoore6676]

The article may reference WCKY-FM which is Country in the Findlay area. As far as I remember to at least the mid 70s, WCKY was some time of news/talk maybe with some MOR music. Don't ever remember country.

Did WLW (W8XO) ever actually operate the 500kW rig in the daytime. I heard the radio special on WLW's anniversary, and read in print (maybe on the web and of course that means it has to be true that the engineers would turn down the audio of the program that was airing just before the switch to 500000 watts just so the local listenes would hear a difference in volume (which, with AGC, they wouldn't have).

According to my fast growing foggy memory there was an all night country music show, called "The WCKY Jamboree" that sold farm oriented products including baby chicks between the records. According to the history section of "The Cincinnati Radio Guide" that continued until 1964 when the radio broadcasts of the Reds games went to WCKY.

In my mind for some reason I had thought that Jimmie Skinner's record shop program also went out over WCKY a country music history source said WNOP. I can't think that would have been correct because they are on 740, with only a thousand watts daytime in those days. If anyone remembers where Jimmie was on the air maybe they can straighten me out. I know Chubby Howard plays songs written by Jimmie and mentions his mail order record store but he never said where it was broadcast, that I've heard. I recall him playing records and then pitching the way you could order them to have to listen whenever you wanted. I also remember that his show was overnight which could not have been with a daytimer station.

 

[Cincinnati Kid]

From the late 1940's until April, 1964, WCKY -1530-AM - featured a country music program from approximately 7:15 P.M. until 11 P.M. called "The WCKY Big Y Jamboree". It's theme song was "Steel Guitar Rag" by Spade Cooley. Disc-jockeys on the program were country music artists themselves such as Wayne Raney and Jimmie Logsdon. Sponsors included mail order items such as "Red Top Baby Chicks" and Wayne Raney's "Talking Harmonica". Through WCKY's night-time signal the show was heard not only over a good portion of the United States, but into parts of North and Central America as well as letters, cards and telephone calls received by the station pointed out. During the other hours of its broadcasting time, WCKY basically had what wound be called a middle-of-the-road format with music, news and ABC Radio Network shows, but the "Big Y Jamboree" remained intact during its time period. The show stopped in April, 1964. WCKY had become the flagship station for the Cincinnati Reds Radio Network and the Reds opened the regular season that month.

With regards to Jimmie Skinner, I recall his radio show was heard on WNOP - 740-AM - in the early 1960's and it may have originated from his music shop in downtown Cincinnati. That would have been during the day as WNOP was only on during daylight hours. With regards to Jimmie and his music being heard on WCKY, perhaps some of his recordings were aired on the Jamboree program.

 

[Jeff_Davis]

Some of those guys from WCKY moved over to WCLU when it came on in 1965. Nelson King and Jimmie Logsdon were two of the name I heard a lot when Irv Schwartz would talk about the good ol' days on "Big CLU Country." WCLU was only a daytimer then, so they didn't do the nighttime jamboree, of course.

 

[CW]

Hi their. I just went to the store locally around 8:30pm and i wanted to see if i could get lucky and pick up the cubs-reds game in my car on the way their. The station was mixing in with Houston's 700 am which is only 1000 watts at night. I was able to get WLW in enough to make out who was batting for the cubs for about a minute. On the way back home of course the Houston station had WLW beat out. It was fun while it lasted. I bet if i turned my old clock radio in the right direction i could pick up WLW better and beat out Houston's 700 am. I currently live in deer park tx.
Just registered so i could post this. Thought it would be interesting.
I used to try to pick up distant stations at night on a skip. But i lived a few towns further east of Houston; stations such as 1120 KMOX St louis when they used to broadcast the cardinals, 720 wgn Chicago, and WLW. WLW seamed easyer than WGNto pick up.

Back in the 70s, WLW, WLS, and others would BLOW into the TX Gulf Coast at night like locals.....I remember the early 80s listening to the end of the Top40 era on WLS.......I have walked through the 1930 era 500KW WLW xmtr.....and then again, heard John Records Landecker and the rest of the crew again live on Musicradio89 one more time....if I died now, I felt like life has come full circle and I made it....the BIG 50KW blowtorches still live....even with the increased noise and din on the channels (and the Mexicans too!)......

 

[mjlarochelle]

I get WLW absolutely clear at night in London, Ontario, like a local station.

 

[Stuart]

WLW is a great station. I discovered it on XM Radio and never turned back!! (also for Baseball Fans, XM broadcasts all of the ballgames) ;D

Thanks,
Stuart
Visiting from The Raleigh/Durham Board

 

[HafDawg]

I'll be in Webster, TX next week. I'll have to see if I can get 700 as well, then.

 

[schmave]

I'll be in Webster, TX next week. I'll have to see if I can get 700 as well, then.

That shouldn't be a problem. I live less than five miles from Webster and WLW makes it in most nights, sometimes surprisingly loud given our distance from Cincinnati.