KABC 790

[thebeach33445]

Hey Guys:

Did KABC have a music format before they became talk in 1960?

Thanks

T.J.

 

[davideduardo]

Hey Guys:

Did KABC have a music format before they became talk in 1960?

Thanks

T.J.

Going back to KECA (Earle C. Anthony, who owned it as well as KFI, Red and Blue nets) it was a traditional network affiliate...

 

[michael hagerty]

Hey Guys:

Did KABC have a music format before they became talk in 1960?

Thanks

T.J.

T.J.:
Yes. They were MOR (competing against KMPC) in the mid-50s. In fact, KMPC took Airwatch Traffic and Roger Carroll away from KABC in 1959.
They tried a Top 40 format for a few months in '59 (with the legendary Don MacKinnon in mornings...he'd been there for the MOR format, too), got killed by KFWB, and went talk in 1960.
Back to the MOR format...KABC was quite innovative, with Roger Carroll playing music in stereo in '58 and '59...one channel on KABC-AM and one on KABC-FM, with listeners told to take two radios, separate them by six feet and sit in the middle. Tape exists and it sounds quite good. The FCC didn't approve FM stereo until 1961, so KABC was ahead of its time.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

For simplicity's sake, we'd better not bring KEHE 780 or KECA 1430
into the conversation, unless Jim Hilliker is around.

 

[nmoore6676]

Hey Guys:

Did KABC have a music format before they became talk in 1960?

Thanks

T.J.

T.J.:
Yes. They were MOR (competing against KMPC) in the mid-50s. In fact, KMPC took Airwatch Traffic and Roger Carroll away from KABC in 1959.
They tried a Top 40 format for a few months in '59 (with the legendary Don MacKinnon in mornings...he'd been there for the MOR format, too), got killed by KFWB, and went talk in 1960.
Back to the MOR format...KABC was quite innovative, with Roger Carroll playing music in stereo in '58 and '59...one channel on KABC-AM and one on KABC-FM, with listeners told to take two radios, separate them by six feet and sit in the middle. Tape exists and it sounds quite good. The FCC didn't approve FM stereo until 1961, so KABC was ahead of its time.

In my case it was WBLY in Springfield that started witht AM_FM stereo at about the same time but only on weekends. Do you recall, was it FM on the left and AM right or visa versa? They must have pre-purchased an FM stereo generator because they began FM stereo almost as soon as it was finally authorized by the FCC. I am sure that other areas had those AM-FM combos doing the same thing back then. Most record labels were releasing or re-releasing albums in Stereo as the craze swept the nation. Some of them had to create artificial ping-pong after the fact recordings as the originals had been done in mono and those were not so good.

FM tuners at that time had an extra output on the back for a stereo adapter, I got one from EICO for my mono tuner but it didn't work so good, maybe my bad because I built it from a kit. Anyway I bought a factory assembled Sherwood stereo tuner in '62 or '63.

I believe that RCA had the foresight to master all of Elvis's sessions in stereo, but I might be wrong on that. Of course the old original Sun Sessions were mono. In any case many of those nascent stereo recordings totally isolated certain instruments or the back up vocalists on one channel with the lead equally placed in the middle. If you listened with headphones the overemphasized artificial spatial placement was painfully obvious but on the early home stereos, especially the furniture console models, it sounded ok.

 

[michael hagerty]

Hey Guys:

Did KABC have a music format before they became talk in 1960?

Thanks

T.J.

T.J.:
Yes. They were MOR (competing against KMPC) in the mid-50s. In fact, KMPC took Airwatch Traffic and Roger Carroll away from KABC in 1959.
They tried a Top 40 format for a few months in '59 (with the legendary Don MacKinnon in mornings...he'd been there for the MOR format, too), got killed by KFWB, and went talk in 1960.
Back to the MOR format...KABC was quite innovative, with Roger Carroll playing music in stereo in '58 and '59...one channel on KABC-AM and one on KABC-FM, with listeners told to take two radios, separate them by six feet and sit in the middle. Tape exists and it sounds quite good. The FCC didn't approve FM stereo until 1961, so KABC was ahead of its time.

In my case it was WBLY in Springfield that started witht AM_FM stereo at about the same time but only on weekends. Do you recall, was it FM on the left and AM right or visa versa?

If they said on the tape, I don't remember.

 

[westfield60]

I for one would vote to have them go back to a music format. Anything to stop torturing your listeners with the drone of Peter Tilden, and the overly "happy" and excited John Phillips fiasco.

 

[colininla]

I for one would vote to have them go back to a music format. Anything to stop torturing your listeners with the drone of Peter Tilden, and the overly "happy" and excited John Phillips fiasco.

What about 'Frosty, Heidi and Frank' doing midday? Combine rampant narcissism with stark vapidity and shake gently with a constant dose of shrill cackling and you've got something pretty frightening.

 

[Lopaka]

I do recall both KABC and KGO attempting to compete in the pop/rock field in the late '50's and very early '60's. It must have been difficult to promote a rock format while carrying Don McNeil's Breakfast Club in the a.m.

 

[LKellerIII]

I do recall both KABC and KGO attempting to compete in the pop/rock field in the late '50's and very early '60's. It must have been difficult to promote a rock format while carrying Don McNeil's Breakfast Club in the a.m.

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

Even if KABC had basically a music format before 1960, it was typical in those days for network affiliated stations to have a wide variety of programming, similar to KNX - which had Bob Crane playing MOR in the morning, but also long news blocks, Mike Roy's cooking show, Art Linkletter's House Party and Arthur Godfrey from the CBS network.

As somebody noted, I've also heard KGO tried Top 40 very briefly in the early-mid 60s before going to NewsTalk, branding itself as K-Go naturally. This was before Drake's KFRC, so you would have thought they'd be a strong competitor against KYA and KEWB's inferior signals.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40
(1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split
into four ABC networks.

The killer news block ran from 5:55-7:20 PM, but with the split it was pared
down to 5:55-6:15.

 

[Lopaka]

When very old stations like KELW or KEHE or KTM come up I am always curious what they broadcast. I wonder if any recordings exist of these very old stations, and how you might go about listening to them.

 

[michael hagerty]

I do recall both KABC and KGO attempting to compete in the pop/rock field in the late '50's and very early '60's. It must have been difficult to promote a rock format while carrying Don McNeil's Breakfast Club in the a.m.

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

Even if KABC had basically a music format before 1960, it was typical in those days for network affiliated stations to have a wide variety of programming, similar to KNX - which had Bob Crane playing MOR in the morning, but also long news blocks, Mike Roy's cooking show, Art Linkletter's House Party and Arthur Godfrey from the CBS network.

As somebody noted, I've also heard KGO tried Top 40 very briefly in the early-mid 60s before going to NewsTalk, branding itself as K-Go naturally. This was before Drake's KFRC, so you would have thought they'd be a strong competitor against KYA and KEWB's inferior signals.

Llew: WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club...but despite everybody's recollections, WABC had to struggle to get to #1...something that didn't really happen until '68 or '69. While WINS went news, it took a while to dispatch WMCA.

As for KGO, signal wasn't that much of a factor...in 1959, KYA and KEWB more than adequately covered the San Francisco/Oakland metro. And they were walking right into a buzzsaw...wasn't much hotter in those days than the just-launched Chuck Blore "Color Radio" format at KEWB.

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40 (1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split into four ABC networks.

Are you sure? I could swear Herb Oscar Anderson was warbling "Hello again, here's my best to you..." and playing the hits on WABC in morning drive around 1962. Just sayin'...

 

[michael hagerty]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40 (1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split into four ABC networks.

Are you sure? I could swear Herb Oscar Anderson was warbling "Hello again, here's my best to you..." and playing the hits on WABC in morning drive around 1962. Just sayin'...

Nope. '68.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40 (1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split into four ABC networks.

Are you sure? I could swear Herb Oscar Anderson was warbling "Hello again, here's my best to you..." and playing the hits on WABC in morning drive around 1962. Just sayin'...

Nope. '68.

What exactly are we all referring to here?

Prior to the ABC network split in '68, WABC was saddled with Breakfast Club,
but it was for one hour a day (10-11 AM, IIRC). HOA was on 6-10.

Review the WABC DJ schedule here:

http://musicradio77.com/schedule.html

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40 (1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split into four ABC networks.

Are you sure? I could swear Herb Oscar Anderson was warbling "Hello again, here's my best to you..." and playing the hits on WABC in morning drive around 1962. Just sayin'...

Nope. '68.

What exactly are we all referring to here?

Prior to the ABC network split in '68, WABC was saddled with Breakfast Club,
but it was for one hour a day (10-11 AM, IIRC). HOA was on 6-10.

Review the WABC DJ schedule here:

http://musicradio77.com/schedule.html

Thanks for clarifying. Shows my synapses are still firing properly regarding HOA, but not McNeil. I was in class by that time and the nuns trucked no nonsense.

 

[michael hagerty]

In New York, WABC was number 1 for many years with a Top 40 format, even though they had long network news blocks. I'm not sure if WABC was Top 40 during the Breakfast Club period or not.

WABC had to air the format killer (Don McNeill) from the day they went Top 40 (1960?) through the end of 1967. 01/01/68 was "freedom day" with the split into four ABC networks.

Are you sure? I could swear Herb Oscar Anderson was warbling "Hello again, here's my best to you..." and playing the hits on WABC in morning drive around 1962. Just sayin'...

Nope. '68.

What exactly are we all referring to here?

Prior to the ABC network split in '68, WABC was saddled with Breakfast Club,
but it was for one hour a day (10-11 AM, IIRC). HOA was on 6-10.

Review the WABC DJ schedule here:

http://musicradio77.com/schedule.html

Thanks for clarifying. Shows my synapses are still firing properly regarding HOA, but not McNeil. I was in class by that time and the nuns trucked no nonsense.

Epic brain cramp on my part. '68 is when HOA left and was replaced by Harry Harrison.

 

[Lopaka]

Out of curiosity, how did WABC do in the ratings during the Alan Freed era? As a kid I was a devoted Freed listener during his KDAY days. He has always seemed a pivotal figure in music and radio.