June 7 Radio History

Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis

In 1917...singer/comedian/actor Dean Martin was born in Steubenville Ohio.


He was one of the most famous music artists in the 1950s and 1960s. Playboy magazine later called Martin “the coolest man who ever lived.” He & Jerry Lewis began as a team in movies & on NBC radio in the late ’40’s, and did TV together in the early 50’s, but split in 1956.  He became a big TV star with NBC’s Dean Martin Show (1965-74) and his Celebrity Roasts (’73-’84.)

He succumbed to lung cancer Christmas Day 1995 at age 78.


In 1932..WLW 700 AM Cincinnati was authorized to experiment with a power of 500,000 watts at 700 khz.  Two years later WLW became the only North Amerian radio station to regularly transmit with that much power.   After complaints of signal interference and years of controversy the permission for the extra power was rescinded in 1939.


In 1945...an NBC radio summer replacement show The Adventures of Topper aired for the first time. Roland Young reprised his title role from the 1937 movie of the same name. Eight years later the program would move to TV with a different cast and become a big hit.


In 1955...NBC radio presented The Lux Radio Theatre for the final time. The program had aired for 21 years, most of them on CBS.


In 1959…KLX-AM, Oakland, California changed its call letters to KEWB-AM. Now it is known as KNEW 960 AM.




In 1965... Bob Crane, popular morning personality on KNX 1070 AM in Los Angeles told his audience he’s leaving the show to star in a new TV series “Hogan’s Heroes.” Crane says he’s been
considering offers for years. Most recently, he co-starred on “The Donna Reed Show” while still doing mornings on KNX. He begins shooting for the new series in two weeks. He’ll be replaced by Pittsburgh’s Rege Cordic. Because of contractual obligations, Cordic won’t be able to debut until January.

Bob Crane came to KNX in 1956 from WICC in Bridgeport, CT. He got his job in Los Angeles, when someone at another station sent KNX a tape of Crane, to get him out of town (Crane had huge ratings at WICC).

In 1978...House Speaker Tip O’Neal announced that for the first time in history, the House would allow complete radio coverage of its proceedings. Radio and TV coverage until now has been limited to ceremonial occasions.


In 1986...Bruce Wayne KFI-in-the-sky traffic reporter was killed after his small plane was taking off in Orange County. Wayne was about to file his first traffic report of the day when the crash occurred. In two weeks, he would have celebrated his 25th anniversary on the job.


In 1986...Wally Clark announced he would resign his post as president/general manager of Gannett powerhouse KIIS-AM/FM on September to form his own consultancy. All outlets in the growing Gannett chain will be his first clients. Clark joined KIIS in 1982 when the station had a 2.2 share and charged $37.5 per spot. KIIS now commands $2.500 per spot and is a top billing radio station.

In 2002…Longtime Seattle radio and television sportscaster (KIRO-AM, KIRO-TV) Wayne Cody died after a heart attack at age 65.



He was Nicknamed the "Mound of Sound" by Brent Musburger of CBS Sports, because of both his rich voice and his large size. The bearded and rotund Cody, who estimated his own weight at 325 pounds, vitalized the sports scene in Western Washington for more than 20 years. He was well known for his on-camera antics and his entertaining style of broadcasting. In the 1980s, KIRO TV ran a promotion called "Watch Wayne Disappear." The sportscaster was to lose 100 pounds over nine months and collect a $25,000 bonus. He was 25 pounds too heavy by deadline day.

Cody is best known for being the sports anchor on KIRO-Channel 7 TV and hosting KIRO 710 AM "Sportsline", a weeknight sports radio talk show that was the only one of its kind at the time in Seattle. He was also the original sideline reporter for the Seattle Seahawks radio network. Cody's other play-by-play experience in the Pacific Northwest included the Seattle SuperSonics (NBA) during the late 1970s thru the mid-1980s, Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League and University of Washington Huskies college football games. Earlier in his career, he also was the sideline reporter for the Seattle SuperSonics (NBA).

SF Radio: KOSF 103.7 FM Goes Totally ’80s

iHeartMedia today announced the launch of iHeart80s in San Francisco. The all new ‘80s dedicated station will feature music from the most beloved icons of the decade including Madonna, Michael Jackson, Duran Duran and more.

iHeart80s is a broadcast extension of the popular iHeart80s Radio station on iHeartRadio, the all-in-one streaming music and live digital radio service. iHeart80s kicked off at noon on 103.7 KOSF FM in San Francisco with eight days of commercial-free programming.

On the ninth day, June 14, Martha Quinn, queen of ’80s MTV video jocks, will become the morning host. Quinn will do her show from her home studio in Los Angeles for exclusive use on KOSF.

“I love everything about music from the ‘80s, and I’m psyched to relive the excitement of my favorite decade every morning with San Francisco’s ‘80s fans of all ages,” said Quinn. “This influential decade obviously holds a very special place in my heart, and every day I hear from people who remind me that I’m not the only one. Hosting the first iHeart80s Party earlier this year was a total blast, I knew I had to be involved with the launch of this trailblazing new station. Every day will be a boombox of awesome.”

Martha Quinn

iHeart80s began as an iHeartRadio original digital-only station that gained instant popularity as one of the most listened-to stations on the platform. The ’80s ranks as one of the most important American decades in terms of influencing today’s pop culture, and Millennials, 44 million of whom were born in the ’80s, are increasingly rediscovering the decade. In February, iHeartMedia held its first-ever iHeart80s Party, hosted by Quinn, which celebrated the unforgettable decade with performances by ‘80s superstars Tears For Fears, Culture Club, Billy Idol, Missing Persons, Rick Springfield, Loverboy and more.

“Following the major success of our iHeart80s Party, which sold out in minutes, we can certainly confirm that the ‘80s are having a moment, and iHeartRadio is celebrating the success of its resurgence,” said Don Parker, SVP/Programming, San Francisco Region for iHeartMedia.

“iHeartRadio has an unparalleled ability to connect with its audience through a variety of great music and top-billed live events like the iHeart80s Party. When we were discussing creating the first iHeart80s-branded FM station, we knew that San Francisco would be the perfect place for it to launch, and that Martha Quinn was the only person we wanted to launch it with.”

“We’re thrilled to be the first station in the U.S. to give listeners a 24/7 celebration of such an iconic decade as the ‘80s,” said Katie Wilcox, Market President for iHeartMedia San Francisco. “As the popularity of the music of the ’80s increases, the introduction of iHeart80s here in San Francisco shows our commitment to our listeners as well as to music variety. iHeart80s is undoubtedly going to be a popular addition to our line-up of exceptional stations.”

Following Quinn in the morning starting June 14 will be Christie James, who will come over from sister station 98.1 Kiss-FM, which recently switched from rhythmic oldies to rebrand itself as the Breeze, playing relaxing hits. Morris Knight, also a Kiss alumnus, will do afternoon drive with KOSF host Ron Michaels moving from afternoon to evening.

KOSF 103.7 FM (6.4 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

The target audience will be adults ages 35 to 54. “That was the last generation where Top 40 radio played all different types of music,” Parker said. “After the ’80s, everything got splintered into niches.”

Viacom Drama: Dauman Wants Redstone Medical Evaluation

Philippe Dauman

More shots were fired in the battle for control of Viacom on Monday, as CEO Philippe Dauman and director George Abrams urged a Massachusetts judge to approve an immediate medical evaluation of Sumner Redstone, according to Variety.

The two men are challenging their removal from the Redstone family trust and the board of National Amusements, the movie theater company that owns controlling stakes in Viacom and CBS. They contend that Sumner Redstone is not mentally competent to oust them from the trust and was manipulated into doing so by his daughter, Shari Redstone.

“Time is of the essence,” according to the latest legal filing, painting a portrait of Redstone as a man who is near death. The mogul suffers from dementia, and is unable to stand, walk, read or eat on his own, according to the filing, which claims that Redstone was recently hospitalized.

Sumner Redstone

“The life expectancy of a reasonably healthy 93 year old man is limited and unpredictable,” write attorneys for Dauman and Abrams. “There is grave risk that Sumner Redstone will not be available to provide any evidence in this case,” they add.

As Redstone’s health declines, Shari Redstone and Dauman have found themselves in opposing camps. Their hostility spilled out into the open last winter, after Shari Redstone opposed Dauman’s elevation to the chairmanship of Viacom.

Dauman was once among Redstone’s most trusted lieutenants, a man that the Viacom mogul routinely praised on earnings calls as the “wisest” person he’d ever known. However, his tenure atop Viacom has been sharply criticized by investors and analysts.

The media company’s cable properties, a group that includes Comedy Central, MTV, and Nickelodeon, have taken ratings hits. Last week, Redstone’s camp released a statement that the mogul believes Dauman is doing a “bad job” of running Viacom. The opinions were offered during May 20 and May 24 examinations by Dr. James Spar, a geriatric psychiatrist, who told the court that he found Redstone to be “alert and in no distress.”

Growth In Time Spent with Media Is Slowing

Thanks to media multitasking, US adults will squeeze an average of 12 hours, 5 minutes per day of media usage into their waking hours this year—nearly an hour more than the average in 2011. But the daily figure is now rising slowly and is expected to grow by just 3 minutes between 2016 and 2018.

eMarketer reports while mobile devices enable people to consume media content anywhere at any time, the numbers suggest a saturation point is near—and that increased time spent with one medium will tend to come at the expense of time spent with another, as explored in a new eMarketer report, “US Time Spent with Media: eMarketer’s Updated Estimates for Spring 2016.”

Nondigital TV, despite a downward trajectory, remains the single largest part of US adults’ media day. TV time far exceeds time spent on any one component of the overall “digital” category. While digital video is on the upswing, the sum of mobile viewing and desktop/laptop viewing will be less than one-fourth the amount of time spent on nondigital TV this year, eMarketer predicts. (Note, though, that 14 of the 26 minutes per day spent with "other connected devices" in 2016 will go to digital video, as when a consumer uses a Roku device or a smart TV to access digital video content like a program on Netflix.)

It is a sign of digital video’s strength that it is the one desktop/laptop element that will grow rather than shrink through most of the forecast period. Even after an expected retreat of a minute per day of time spent in 2018, desktop/laptop video time spent will still be above the 2012 figure, at 24 minutes vs. 20 minutes. Over the same period, mobile video will add a daily 25 minutes of usage, going from 9 minutes to 34 minutes.

Even in a category as robust as digital video, though, growth has slowed and is expected to slow even more. Mobile video was one of the media posting a triple-digit increase in time spent in 2012 (218.0%) as smartphones and tablets became common household appliances. This year, by contrast, the increase will just barely make double digits (10.0%) before falling below that level in 2017 (8.5%) and 2018 (7.2%).

Marlins Scoreboard First With News Of Ali Death

Before most of the world knew Muhammad Ali had died, an unexpected scene unfolded  at Marlins Park on Friday night: A photo of him appeared on the scoreboard with his name and “1942-2016,” indicating his passing, reports WSJ.com.

This was shortly after 10 p.m. EDT, immediately following a 6-2 Marlins loss to the New York Mets. At the time, the seriousness of Ali’s condition was being widely reported, but news of his death had yet to hit the wires and official word didn’t come for at least two more hours.

“Then all of a sudden my phone wouldn’t stop ringing and then texts wouldn’t stop,” said Marlins President David Samson. “And I realized that it’s possible that that was the first place that it had been public.”

Initially, the photo tribute caused a bit of confusion—perhaps the Marlins jumped the gun, it seemed—because it appeared before major news outlets had reported his death. Instead, it looks like theirs may have been one of the first, if not the first, public announcements that the legendary boxer had died at 74 years old.

Samson said it was a “very innocent, heartfelt situation” and after receiving the news of Ali’s death, he “triple confirmed” it with “someone very close to Muhammad Ali.”

“There’s no way I would have broken the news of Muhammad Ali’s passing at a Marlins game,” Samson said. “As far as I knew, it had already been made public.”

ComScore Says People Prefer Ads in Podcasts

According to results of a new comScore study, ads within a podcast were found to be the least intrusive when compared with other types of digital ads. And not only do listeners not mind hearing them—they act on them, reports AdWeek.

The study of 2,000 U.S. respondents ages 18 to 49 found that two-thirds of listeners have acted on ads they heard in a podcast either by researching a product or service or by actually purchasing something they first heard about in an episode.

The comScore study was commissioned by Wondery, a podcast startup founded by two former Fox executives. The company, which manages seven podcasts, will launch its first Wondery-branded show later this month.

Hernan Lopez

"It confirms one of the things people find notable about advertising on podcasts," Wondery founder and CEO Hernan Lopez said. "There is a lot of direct response advertisements, but they're a special kind."

The podcast boom doesn't seem to be slowing down. The report found that one in three current podcast listeners plan to increase their podcast consumption over the next six months. The demographics of listeners should also be appealing for advertisers: Nearly one in five Americans between the ages of 18 and 49 listen to podcasts at least once a month with one in three men ages 18 to 34 also claiming to tune in. Listeners tend to have a college education, $100,000 or more in household income and describe themselves as early adopters of tech, movies and consumer packaged goods.

The study also asked respondents questions about how they felt emotionally before and after listening to podcasts. Many said they felt more "connected, intelligent and energized" after listening.

Report: GM To Re-Add HD Radio To Some Models

General Motors may have yanked HD Radio out of some car models such as the Chevy Traverse, but it’s poised for a return, reports InsideRadio.

That’s according to Jon Kirchner, chief executive for HD audio tech company DTS. Kirchner blames a “bad antenna design” in some models for curbing digital radio service in some cars. “They ultimately put a halt on it,” Kirchner told the B. Riley & Co. Investor Conference in Los Angeles last week. GM is now working to use different antennas so HD Radio can again be part of the dashboard, although DTS shared no timeline.

HD Radio is now in 37% of U.S. vehicle dashboards and DTS believes it should be able to achieve a 60% penetration rate. “We are currently working with automakers on 2020 and 2021 model vehicles so a lot of what you will see in the next three years was signed up two or three years ago,” Kirchner said.

Today the primary selling point of HD Radio is improved audio quality and data services, but Kirchner said the next generation of data implementations is what he’s most excited about.

“Everything from safety information to broader forms of entertainment, and other forms of media,” he said. “We’re having conversations with the auto guys who are thinking about these things for the 2020 model years and beyond.”

So far this year HD Radio has expanded to additional models such as Audi, Hyundai, Kia, Lexus, Toyota, and Alfa Romeo. And the Acura NSX will start to feature DTS Neural Surround technology and HD Radio. To date, the receivers are in roughly 17 million cars and trucks.

Car Infotainment Systems Increasingly Important

Cars' infotainment systems are becoming increasingly innovative and elaborate — drivers can navigate to a destination while operating a smartphone hands-free. And drivers' demand for in-car technology powered by the infotainment screen has been growing over the past year. In fact, consumers value in-car technology more than the car's driving performance, according to an Accenture survey.

The infotainment center — which is becoming the next mobile device — is creating a massive market opportunity. And tech companies like Apple and Google are entering the auto market to capture a share of the growing market.

In a new report, BI Intelligence examines the rise in demand for in-car technology over the past year. Further, we will examine the importance of Apple and Google in transforming the infotainment center and discuss how automakers are reacting to the two tech giants' entry into the market.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

• Consumer demand for in-car technology has increased significantly over the past year. Among recent car customers — those who recently purchased a car — in Germany, the US, and China, 37% agreed they would switch to another manufacturer if it was the only one offering a car with full access to applications, data, and media, up from 20% in 2014, according to a McKinsey survey. 
• Several factors are driving increased demand, including the consumer's expectation of always-on connectivity, greater awareness of connected car offerings, and governmental restrictions on using mobile phones while driving (which push consumers to hands-free modes of communication).
• Recognizing consumer demand for cross-platform in-car systems is crucial for automakers. 61% of consumers believe it's either essential or important that their car have the same operating dashboard as their phone, according to an Accenture survey. However, the recent acquisition of Nokia's Here by BMW, Audi, and Daimler may signal that automakers are attempting to keep Apple and Google out of the car's infotainment center.

Brent Musburger Inks New Deal With ABC/ESPN

Brent Musburger

Legendary commentator Brent Musburger has reached a multi-year contract extension with ESPN, and will remain the signature college football voice of the SEC Network, among other continuing assignments. Musburger, who has been with ESPN/ABC since 1990, was the first voice heard when the SEC Network went on the air (Aug. 14, 2014) – the most successful network launch in the history of cable television. He calls weekly primetime football action with analyst Jesse Palmer.

“The SEC is the best football conference in the country. You can’t beat it,” Musburger said. “Terrific football, clearly—year in and year out. The conference has been tremendous to work with. I’m glad the SEC Network is such a great success. It’s been great working with Jesse Palmer.”

Musburger will also continue as play-by-play commentator for weekly college basketball contests on ESPN.

In his monumental on-air career that now spans nearly 50 years, Musburger has been a part of some of the most meaningful events, programs and milestones from around the world of sports. That amazing run will continue as a result of this new deal.

ESPN Executive Vice President Production and Programming, John Wildhack, noted: “This agreement will help build upon one of the most extraordinary careers in all of sports. The impact that Brent’s work has had on generations of sports fans is immeasurably positive and we are thrilled he will continue to be a significant part of the ESPN family, including the SEC Network.”

Mag Newsstand Sales Fall Again

Newsstand sales of consumer magazines continued to decline in the beginning of 2016, according to the latest figures from MagNet, which tracks single copy sales across the U.S. and Canada.

The number of magazines distributed by wholesalers also dropped compared to last year, according to MediaPost.

The total number of magazines distributed by wholesalers in the U.S. fell from 369.1 million in the first quarter of 2015 to 334.8 million in the first quarter of 2016, for a 9.3% decline over this period.

Also, the number of magazines actually sold fell 10.1% from 98 million to 88.1 million, meaning the proportion sold slipped from 26.6% to 26.3%.

Turning to specific categories, some of the biggest drops in newsstand sales hit business and finance, down 27.9% to one million copies sold; health and fitness, down 19.9% to four million copies sold; home and garden, down 15.7% to 5.1 million copies sold; and celebrity, down 13.7% to 26.6 million copies sold.

MagNet noted that the proportional declines in overall newsstand sales in terms of magazines and dollar volumes are actually smaller than in previous quarters, providing something of a silver lining to the latest figures.

NPR Journalist, Translator Killed In Afghanistan

David Gilkey

(Reuters) -- A veteran American photojournalist and a translator working for NPR were killed while accompanying Afghan troops in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, NPR and military officials said.

NPR's David Gilkey and Afghan translator Zabihullah Tamanna were in an Afghan army Humvee traveling between the provincial capital of Helmand province, Lashkar Gah, and Marjah, when their vehicle was struck by an 82mm rocket during a Taliban ambush, Shakil Ahmad Tasal, a spokesman for the Afghan army's 205th Atal Corps told Reuters.

The attack occurred around 2:30 p.m. local time and also killed the vehicle's driver, an army soldier, Tasal said.

The pair were traveling on assignment with fellow NPR employees Tom Bowman and Monika Evstatieva, who were both unharmed, according to a statement from NPR.

Gilkey was an award-winning veteran of covering Afghanistan and other conflict zones.

"David has been covering war and conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan since 9/11. He was devoted to helping the public see these wars and the people caught up in them. He died pursuing that commitment," Michael Oreskes, NPR's Senior Vice President of News and Editorial Director, said in a statement.


The road between Marjah and Lashkar Gah had only recently been reopened by security forces after heavy fighting in the area. The details of the attack and the journalists' deaths were confirmed by the 205th Corps commander, General Mohammed Amin.

Helmand has been the scene of deadly fighting between Taliban insurgents and NATO-backed government troops.

Afghanistan is among the most dangerous countries for media, with at least 27 journalists killed since 1992, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

In January at least seven employees of a major Afghan TV station died in a suicide attack in Kabul, while the last foreign journalist killed in the country was Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus, who was shot to death by an Afghan policeman while covering the elections in 2014.

June 6 Radio History

In 1938...NBC radio introduced two melodramatic soaps to the daytime airwaves, Stella Dallas and Young Widder Brown, both produced by Frank & Anne Hummert.  Stella Dallas, “the true to life story of mother love and sacrifice,” continued in 15 minute radio bursts until 1955.  ‘Brown’ outlasted it by a year.


In 1940...Superjock Larry Lee Blankenburg a.k.a Larry Lujack was born in 1940 in Quasqueton, Iowa, and reared in Caldwell, Idaho. At 18 he joined KCID-AM in Caldwell, adopting the surname of his idol, the Chicago Bears quarterback Johnny Lujack.

After working at stations in Idaho and Washington State, Mr. Lujack joined WCFL in 1967 and moved to WLS four months later. Except for a four-year stint back at WCFL, he remained with WLS for the next two decades.

In 1984 WLS gave Lujack a 12-year, $6 million contract, making him one of the country’s highest-paid radio personalities. (“I am not the least bit excited,” he was reported to have said.) But in 1987, amid declining ratings, the station’s corporate parent, Capital Cities-ABC, bought out his contract.

His honors include membership in the Illinois Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame (“It’s not Mount Rushmore,” he said on learning of his induction) and the National Radio Hall of Fame.

He passed away December 18, 2013.

War correspondent Wright Bryan gives detail of his flight with paratroopers over occupied France. News and reactions from around the world of the allied invasion. plus more. Some of it is harder to hear for static, but I like the originality of the broadcast, especially Eisenhowers message to occupied Europe. Its like its 1944 and your sitting by the radio listening to it when it happened.


In  1944….Radio covered first news of the Allies’ D-Day Invasion…

William Wright Bryan, a former editor of the Atlanta Journal was the first World War II correspondent to broadcast an eyewitness account of D-Day.  He was the newspaper's managing editor, war correspondent and an NBC radio stringer when he became the first newsman to give a report on the D-Day invasion of France on June 6, 1944.

Bryan 1944

He covered the invasion from a transport plane dropping airborne troops. When the plane flew back to London, Bryan went on the air and made his broadcast immediately after a one-sentence announcement by the Allied command and tape-recorded statements by King George VI and President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

While covering the Allies' further advance across Europe, Bryan was wounded and captured by the Germans and spent six months in hospitals and in a prisoner of war camp in Szubin, Poland. He was freed by Soviet troops in January, 1945.

Bryan died February 15, 1991 of pneumonia at the age of 85

The Allies had gone to extreme measures to protect the location of the invasion including planting fake documents, fake troop placements, and fake announcements. Germany did all it could to try to find out just where the Allies would land. One tactic was to falsely claim the invasion had begun hoping to fool the Allies into revealing the real location.

So it was no surprise that the news organizations were shy to jump on any announcement of a pending invasion. News reports included flash announcements which were deemed immediate and important information received; the other were bulletins which were also important but not deemed as immediate.

On June 3rd there had been a flash announcement that the invasion was under way but within minutes the announcement was withdrawn as the source, the Associated Press, killed the story as false.

When the first announcements started coming in the early morning of June 6, there were cautions attached to the bulletins. NBC reportedly came on the air with announcements around 12:41 AM EST after waiting at least 3 minutes from the time the AP bulletin was received.

The music of Harry James and his Orchestra was broadcasting over WOR (Mutual) from the Hotel Astor in New York. Kitty Kallen had just begun singing ironically "In Times Like These" when her song was interrupted right after 12:45 AM for bulletin.  Listen Here. Ned Calmer with CBS broadcast the bulletin around 12:48 AM. CBS waited until a second source, the Independent News Service, also released a bulletin.

Later repeats of the bulletins appeared over both networks. Irwin Darlington with CBS broadcast the breaking news. Listen Here.   Over at NBC this bulletin was aired.  Listen Here.

Click Here For Much More.

CBS reporter Darlington was very cautionary in his bulletin announcement reminding listeners of Winston Churchill's warnings of Allied feints and the expected invasion story from the Germans. He also carefully identifies where the information is coming from as well as the actual quotes. They also provide reports from the German DNB and German radio broadcasts.

NBC's bulletin was very formal and straight-forward with little warning that the information could be false. Later cautions came from the summary of news reports they broadcast later. (H/T: Radio Days)

In 1955…Bill Haley & Comets', "Rock Around the Clock" hit #1 on Radio.

In 1960…Roy Orbison released "Only the Lonely" to Radio.

In 1986...1050 CHUM Toronto, the station with North America’s longest-running hit record chart, abandoned its Top-40 format for a mixture of soft rock and oldies. CHUM adopted the rock format in 1957 and published its chart for 1,512 consecutive weeks.