Longest Off-Air Hiatus of a Broadcast Station

[Stanislav]

What are some of the longest time frames in which an operating OTA broadcast station has gone off the air, only to return? And what was the reason for the hiatus? (Financial, legal, license dispute, tower collapse, fire or natural disaster, etc.)

Two examples from here in the South:

(1)In 1968, the facilities of WAKA-8 in Selma AL (at the time a very low-powered CBS affiliate not allowed to expand its signal into the Montgomery market) were destroyed in a fire, and they did not return to the air until 1973 after new owners rebuilt the station. It returned as a CBS affiliate (and was finally allowed more powerful facilities in 1984, extending their coverage to Montgomery.)

(2)In 1976, independent WSWB-35 Orlando FL left the air after only two years of operation when their owners went bankrupt. (The plug was actually pulled on the station in the middle of a program when U.S. Marshals arrived to seize the equipment for creditors!!) After a lot of legal hassles, and attempts by both Ted Turner and Pat Robertson to purchase the station, it returned in 1979 as WOFL-35 (also independent, but later becoming the Fox affiliate for Orlando).

 

[azumanga]

(1)In 1968, the facilities of WAKA-8 in Selma AL (at the time a very low-powered CBS affiliate not allowed to expand its signal into the Montgomery market) were destroyed in a fire, and they did not return to the air until 1973 after new owners rebuilt the station. It returned as a CBS affiliate (and was finally allowed more powerful facilities in 1984, extending their coverage to Montgomery.)

Wasn't WAKA (at the time WSLA-TV) an ABC affiliate at the time of the fire, getting its programming from WBRC in Birmingham?

 

[Stanislav]

(1)In 1968, the facilities of WAKA-8 in Selma AL (at the time a very low-powered CBS affiliate not allowed to expand its signal into the Montgomery market) were destroyed in a fire, and they did not return to the air until 1973 after new owners rebuilt the station. It returned as a CBS affiliate (and was finally allowed more powerful facilities in 1984, extending their coverage to Montgomery.)

Wasn't WAKA (at the time WSLA-TV) an ABC affiliate at the time of the fire, getting its programming from WBRC in Birmingham?

I stand corrected -- it was ABC primary, and CBS secondary, but for Selma they were the de facto CBS affiliate, with WCOV-20's UHF signal from Montgomery not too well received in the area. And it was protests from WCOV that for many years kept WAKA from expanding its signal into Montgomery. (They were fearful that a strong VHF signal from WAKA would lead CBS to yank WCOV's affiliation and make WAKA full-time primary CBS.)

 

[pqgeorge]

I can tell you about probably the one of the longest off-air hiatus' of any licensed TV station (next to WICA-TV15), WHRC-TV (now WWDP), Channel 46, Norwell-Boston, MA. I was the last master control operator of Channel 46 in September, 1989. The station went silent for over 7 years until it returned to the air in December, 1996 at a new site, new owner and new facilities. However, the original antenna at the old site was refurbished and side mounted to the new tower site. Guess who was one of the FIRST master control operators of the reborn WHRC-TV? Yup, that was me!

Peter Q. George (K1XRB)
Alum WHRC-TV, 5/88-9/89 and 12/96-7/02

 

[KeithE4]

My guess for the longest absence is WCAN-TV Channel 25 Milwaukee WI. It went off the air in 1955 and its "successor" didn't return until 1980.

The Milwaukee UHF situation in the mid-late '50s was probably a bigger clusterf*** than the Chicago Paramount/ABC/CBS/WBKB/WENR/WBBM/Channel 2-4-7 mess of 1953. WCAN maintained a CP until the late '70s that included a one-channel downshift for all Milwaukee UHF allocations in 1958. It returned to the air as WCGV Channel 24 in 1980. IIRC, the license for WCAN-TV was never returned to the FCC.

 

[Tim L]

One of the longer off-air stints of a broadcast channel would have to be The Channel 45 license in Youngstown, Ohio..As Independent station WXTV, the station went off the air in March 1962, returning by the summer of 1973 as WNEO-45, licensed to Alliance, Ohio.This station serves as the PBS affiliate for Youngstown..

Here's are two recent postings on my Cleveland Classic Media Blog about WXTV-45 and its brief history..

A general overview on how channel 45 operated:

http://clevelandclassicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/11/wxtv-channel-45-valiant-effort.html

Update post a few days later, with new information (at least to me)

http://clevelandclassicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/11/update-wxtv-channel-45-youngstown.html

 

[genius]

I know of a few lengthy hiatuses...

I don't know if this one counts or not, but in 1972 WGSP signed on channel 50 in DC briefly running test patterns before going in dark until 1981, when WCQR signed on channel 50(later becoming WFTY and being known today at WDCW). I haven't a clue of what happened to WGSP.

In Philadelphia there is the sad story of WKBS on channel 48 when was forced to sign off in 1983 due money problems. The station went dark, FCC auctioned off the license and channel 48 didn't come until 1992 when it signed again, but in a few years ago it became a religious station, again due to money problems.

Here in Albuquerque the Fox station was orginally KGSW on channel 14 until 1992 when the owners bought and flipped to channel 2 KKTO, a distressed independent station which had to briefly sign off, becoming KASA.  Channel 14 remained dark until 1999 when Paxson bought, thus being a Pax station. (they sold it to TeleFutura/Univisión in 2003, now known as KTFQ).

The longest hiatus I know of is I know is channel 21 in Dallas/Fort Worth. The channel was orginally KFWT in the late 60s, but signed off in 1969 or so for at least twelve years until KTXA signed on channel 21. I remember hearing of a few other stories similair to KFWT/KTXA(short lived station in the 60s going off air until 80s when new station takes same license/channel assignment), but I can't recall any of those at the moment(though I really wish I could!).

 

[fortmill]

A few that come to mind---KNUZ/39 Houston came on the air in 1953, lasted about 18 months, then signed off until the late 60s, when it came back as KHTV---now KHCW, but still same license. WNET/16, Providence RI, was on for a few years in the 50s, resurfaced in the 80s(!) as 64. I don't think WTVU/59, New Haven CT was ever on the air in the 50s, but they had a CP that lasted until the late 80s or early 90s whe they finally came on--now WCTX....

 

[pqgeorge]

A few that come to mind---KNUZ/39 Houston came on the air in 1953, lasted about 18 months, then signed off until the late 60s, when it came back as KHTV---now KHCW, but still same license. WNET/16, Providence RI, was on for a few years in the 50s, resurfaced in the 80s(!) as 64. I don't think WTVU/59, New Haven CT was ever on the air in the 50s, but they had a CP that lasted until the late 80s or early 90s whe they finally came on--now WCTX....

WNET/16 was on the air from 1953 until 1956. It did not return to the air until the fall of 1981 as WSTG-TV/64, even then it was only operated two hours a day to cover the license. It only went fulltime in the fall of 1984. WTVU/59 did not operate for nearly 40 years as a CP. It wasn't until the early 1990's when the CP was finally brought into fruition. In the Boston area, WQTV (now WBPX) was a CP for over 8 years until it finally hit the air early 1979. Same with Boston's Channel 25 (WREP, later WXNE, now WFXT). It was a CP for nearly 10 years until it finally hit the air on October 10, 1977 as WXNE.

 

[KML0224]

Why hasn't channel 18 of Hartford been mentioned yet? WHCT-TV was forced off the air in April of 1991, running mostly Home Shopping Network, religion and informercials by then. They came back on in 1997 or so, and it looked as if they were going to be the Hartford/New Haven PAX affiliate. I still believe had channel 18 never had all its financial problems and stayed on through the 1990s, they would've been this market's WB affiliate from 1995 onward.

 

[pqgeorge]

Why hasn't channel 18 of Hartford been mentioned yet? WHCT-TV was forced off the air in April of 1991, running mostly Home Shopping Network, religion and informercials by then. They came back on in 1997 or so, and it looked as if they were going to be the Hartford/New Haven PAX affiliate. I still believe had channel 18 never had all its financial problems and stayed on through the 1990s, they would've been this market's WB affiliate from 1995 onward.

You're right. Channel 18 deserves to get an honorable mention here. This poor little station never really ran right, since the days of WGTH-TV (Channel 71), the CBS days of WHCT-TV (Channel 18), the RKO Phonevision Pay Television days, the two Independent eras and the Dr. Gene Scott era. Only now as WUVN (Univision 18) is this station actually being operating with some stability. The station was off the air several times. First, after the transmitter was vandalized in the fall of 1979, it went silent for the better part of 6 months. Once Dr. Gene sold the license to Astroline, it went silent again for another 6 months in 1985. Again in 1991, the station went silent for over 6 years until February, 1997 and barely made back to the air just in time before the license was to lapse. So, hats off to WHCT-TV (now WUVN). What a history that station has had. I got to admit, that the Dr. Gene era made for some very unique programming. It was fun to watch that cranky preacher and his unique style.

 

[mjlarochelle]

I believe a relay in northern Vermont for WGMU-CA Burlington (MNTV, formerly UPN) was off the air for a few months last year. Someone over there can tell that story.

On the Canadian side of the border, that "award" would likely go to Global station CIII-TV-22 at Stevenson, Ontario, serving Windsor. It was one of the original six repeater stations of Ontario's Global Television Network in 1974, originally with the callsign CKGN-TV-1 and located closer to Windsor, at Cottam. A fire at the transmitter building shut that station down in 1978, and the station remained silent until 1986 when the station was re-launched at Stevenson, originally as CIII-TV-1, later changing to its current callsign.

CHOV/5 in Pembroke, Ontario was off the air for six days in 1976 when it was a locally owned CBC affiliate. It returned to the air rebroadcasting CBOT Ottawa, until it was sold to Mid-Canada Communications the following year, at which time the station was re-launched as CHRO. That station remained as a CBC affiliate until 1991, and today is the A-Channel station for Pembroke and Ottawa.

 

[johnnya2k6]

The Fairbanks flood of 1967 knocked KTVF-11 off the air for a few months; their studio was in the basement of the Northward Building and after floodwaters hit them, they moved to the second floor (where they would remain until 1990). By that time, KFAR-TV 2 -- who were unaffected by the flood -- had already broadcast in color (network shows only; local color programming would come in 1971-72), and KTVF would follow suit after returning to the air before the end of the year.

Jonathan Allen

 

[retrothoughts]

Channel 38 in the Tampa Bay area, then WSUN-TV, signed off in 1970 after being that area's first TV station, but its return to the airwaves wasn't until 1991, as WTTA, which it still is.

 

[RadioMan203]

One that may qualify is WICC-TV, channel 43 in Bridgeport, CT. It was on the air from around 1953 through about 1960. The station went off the air and nothing returned until 1987 when a group of women put the channel back on in the transmitter located on a cable tv tower site in Seymour.


Bridgeport's Channel 43 Station History:
http://www.geocities.com/radiojunkie1/wicc.html

 

[MarcB]

And today Channel 43 is WSAH owned by Arthur Liu's Multi-Cultural Broadcasting. It's a brokered station. 42 hours/week are leased out to TV Super Store Infomercial Network and 28 hours/week are leased out to GEMS-TV. Before all infomercials on the screen in says "To Buy Airtime to promote you business or Service on WSAH TV 43 call 212-966-1059".

 

[Stanislav]

I got to admit, that the Dr. Gene era made for some very unique programming. It was fun to watch that cranky preacher and his unique style.

Gawd, I miss him. Being a nonbeliever, as a rule I disdain television preachers, but Gene was always fun to watch -- so unconventional, and so unapologetic for it. Used to be you could see him on some channel somewhere much of the time, even in the middle of the night (when he was a good laugh to watch when insomnia hit).

 

[RadioMan203]

I got to admit, that the Dr. Gene era made for some very unique programming. It was fun to watch that cranky preacher and his unique style.

Here, here! I gotta strongly agree on that. I discovered Dr. Gene relatively late in the game, but it was always a fun watch.

The two best things I've ever saw on UHF was Dr. Gene and the Uncle Floyd Show, from beautiful "New Joisey!"

 

[azumanga]

Channel 38 in the Tampa Bay area, then WSUN-TV, signed off in 1970 after being that area's first TV station, but its return to the airwaves wasn't until 1991, as WTTA, which it still is.

However, WTTA was issued a new license, while WSUN's license was cancelled a few years after going dark.

 

[w9wi]

In most of the cases being mentioned here, there was no hiatus in the operation of a station - the original occupant's license expired or was surrendered for cancellation, and then another permit was issued to a different licensee for the same channel.

For just one example, go to http://www.milwaukee-horror-hosts.com/MilwTV.html and search for "WFLD". It notes that the WCAN-24 permit was deleted in 1969. Different owners applied for a new permit on channel 24 in 1973, received the permit later that year, and finally went on the air in 1980.