KFI (640
AM) is a
radio station
Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...
in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, owned and operated by
iHeartMedia, Inc.
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
It began operations in 1922 and became one of the first high-powered,
clear-channel
A clear-channel station is an AM broadcasting, AM radio station in North America that has the highest protection from Interference (communication), interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. The syste ...
Class A stations. It was the first U.S. station west of Chicago to broadcast at 50,000
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
s.
Studios and offices are in
Burbank
Burbank may refer to:
Places Australia
* Burbank, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane
United States
* Burbank, California, a city in Los Angeles County
* Burbank, Santa Clara County, California, a census-designated place
* Burbank, Illinois, ...
, between the
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...
Studios and
The Burbank Studios
The Burbank Studios (formerly known as NBC Studios) is a television production facility located in Burbank, California. The studio is home to ''Days of Our Lives'', ''Extra'', the '' IHeartRadio Theater'', and was formerly home to the Blizzard ...
. The
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which i ...
site is in
La Mirada
La Mirada (Spanish for "The Look") is a city in southeast Los Angeles County, California United States, and is one of the Gateway Cities. The population was 48,527 at the 2010 census, up from 46,783 at the 2000 census. The La Mirada Theatre for ...
near the Artesia Boulevard exit of Interstate 5, the
Santa Ana Freeway
The Santa Ana Freeway is one of the principal freeways in Southern California, connecting Los Angeles and its southeastern suburbs including the freeway's namesake, the city of Santa Ana. The freeway begins at its junction with the San Diego Free ...
. By day, its signal can be heard throughout
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
, with city-grade coverage as far as
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
,
Santa Barbara and
Tijuana
Tijuana ( ,["Tijuana"](_blank)
(US) and [< ...]
, and secondary coverage as far as
Bakersfield
Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
and northwestern Mexico, and at times can be heard some distance into Nevada and Arizona. At night, it can be heard across much of the western half of North America.
KFI and
KNX
KNX is an open standard (see EN 50090, ISO/IEC 14543) for commercial and domestic building automation. KNX devices can manage lighting, blinds and shutters, HVAC, security systems, energy management, audio video, white goods, displays, remote ...
(AM 1070 & 97.1 FM) serve as the primary entry points for the Southern California
Emergency Alert System
The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a national warning system in the United States designed to allow authorized officials to broadcast emergency alerts and warning messages to the public via cable, satellite, or broadcast television, and both ...
, which are responsible for activation of the EAS when
hazardous weather alerts,
disaster area
A disaster area is a region or a locale that has been heavily damaged by either natural, technological or social hazards. Disaster areas affect the population living in the community by dramatic increase in expense, loss of energy, food and serv ...
declarations, and
child abductions
Child abduction or child theft is the unauthorized removal of a minor (a child under the age of legal adulthood) from the custody of the child's natural parents or legally appointed guardians.
The term ''child abduction'' includes two lega ...
are issued.
KFI is licensed by the U.S.
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
to broadcast in the
HD (hybrid) formatl; however, it was reported that KFI turned off its HD signal as of August 12, 2015. Like other stations owned by iHeartMedia, KFI uses iHeartRadio to stream its webcast.
Programming
KFI airs a
talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...
format
Format may refer to:
Printing and visual media
* Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements
* Paper formats, or paper size standards
* Newspaper format, the size of the paper page
Computing
* File format, particular way that informatio ...
, with mostly local hosts and frequent news and traffic updates. One
nationally syndicated show is heard overnight, ''
Coast to Coast AM
''Coast to Coast AM'' is an American late-night radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics. Most frequently the topics relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was hosted by creator Art Bell from its inception in 19 ...
with
George Noory
George Ralph Noory (born June 4, 1950) is an American radio talk show host. Since January 2003, Noory has been the weekday host of the late-night radio talk show ''Coast to Coast AM''. The program is syndicated to hundreds of radio stations in ...
''. KFI also supplies some weekend shows for national syndication.
Two Los Angeles TV stations do live segments with cameras in KFI's studios:
KTTV
KTTV (channel 11) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV outle ...
(
Bill Handel
William Wolf Handel (born August 25, 1951) is a Brazilian-born American radio host and attorney.
Handel currently hosts two radio programs on KFI in Los Angeles, California. First is KFI's local morning drive time show, in which he comments on ...
) and
KTLA
KTLA (channel 5) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of The CW. It is the largest directly owned property of the network's majority owner, Nexstar Media Group, and is the seco ...
(
John and Ken
''The John and Ken Show'' is an American talk radio show, hosted by ''John Chester Kobylt'' and ''Kenneth Robertson Chiampou''. The show airs Monday thru Friday, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific Time on KFI AM 640, a local Southern California tal ...
).
History
Effective December 1, 1921, the U.S. government adopted regulations formally defining "broadcasting stations". The wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) was designated for entertainment broadcasts, while 485 meters (619 kHz) was reserved for broadcasting official weather and other government reports.
["Miscellaneous: Amendments to Regulations"](_blank)
''Radio Service Bulletin'', January 3, 1922, page 10.
KFI was first licensed on March 31, 1922, to
Earle C. Anthony
Earle C. Anthony (December 18, 1880—August 6, 1961) was an American businessman and philanthropist based in Los Angeles, California. He worked in broadcasting and automobiles and was also a songwriter, journalist and playwright.
Early life
...
, Inc. in Los Angeles, for operation on the 360 meter entertainment wavelength. The KFI call letters were randomly assigned from a roster of available call signs. The station made its debut broadcast on April 16, 1922, which featured vaudeville performers
Eugene and Willie Howard.
["We Pay Out Respects to—Earle C. Anthony"]
''Broadcasting'', July 15, 1932, page 17. Earle Anthony had trained at
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
as an electrical engineer, and was best known as the owner of a Packard automobile dealership. KFI was originally located at Anthony's home, using a 50 watt transmitter Anthony had personally constructed on a kitchen table.
["KFI Los Angeles, California Station" by Jim Hilliker, ''Encyclopedia of Radio'', 2004, pages 1343-1346.]
1922 saw a rapid expansion in the number of broadcasting stations, most sharing the single entertainment wavelength of 360 meters, which required progressively more complicated time sharing schedules among stations in the same region. In mid-May 1922, KFI was assigned 1:45 to 2:30 and 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. weekdays. An August 1922 schedule reported that KFI was conducting broadcasts, in conjunction with the ''Los Angeles Examiner'', on both the 360-meter "entertainment" wavelength (daily from 1:45-2:15 p.m, with additional hours of Tuesday, 9 to 10 p.m; Wednesday, 6 to 7 p.m; Friday 9 to 10 p.m.; Saturday, 6 to 7 p.m., and Sunday 10:45 to 11:30 a.m. plus 4 to 5 p.m.), and on 510 meters (588 kHz) on Sunday from 7 to 9 p.m. A regional schedule adopted November 1, 1922, listed KFI's slots as 1:00 to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m Tuesday and Saturday, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. Sunday, and 9:20 to 10:00 p.m daily.
Anthony moved quickly to expand operations. The station's studios and transmitter were moved to the top of the Packard dealership building, formerly located at Tenth and Hope Streets in Los Angeles, with a rooftop "T" antenna mounted between two short towers. This installation reportedly cost $30,000, and included a 500 watt Western Electric transmitter, the most powerful commercially available transmitter at this time. This new facility went into operation on January 27, 1923. In September 1922 the Department of Commerce set aside a second entertainment wavelength, 400 meters (750 kHz) for "Class B" stations that had quality equipment and programming, and KFI was assigned to this more exclusive wavelength, joining
KHJ on a timesharing basis. In May 1923 additional "Class B" frequencies were made available, with Los Angeles allocated 640 and 760 kHz, and KFI was reassigned to 640 kHz, with KHJ moving to 760 kHz.
From 1922 to 1926, early programming consisted of such things as reading
news
News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the tes ...
from a newspaper and local gossip. Broadcasting hours were very short, since Anthony was involved in many other activities, and programming sources were limited. However, Anthony stressed the need for quality programming that would be in keeping with his status as the seller of luxury automobiles.
[
]
Expanded programming and higher power
In November 1926, the National Broadcasting Company
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
(NBC) was incorporated. When NBC's network facilities were extended to the west coast of the United States, KFI immediately became one of its affiliates
In the broadcasting industry (particularly in North America, and even more in the United States), a network affiliate or affiliated station is a local broadcaster, owned by a company other than the owner of the network, which carries some or al ...
. In joining this network, KFI had the advantage of NBC's vast entertainment and news resources. One of the first NBC programs to originate on the West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to:
Geography Australia
* Western Australia
*Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia
* West Coast, Tasmania
**West Coast Range, mountain range in the region
Canada
* Britis ...
, and KFI, was the broadcast of the 1927 Rose Bowl Game from Pasadena, California
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district.
I ...
, with announcer Graham McNamee
Thomas Graham McNamee (July 10, 1888 – May 9, 1942) was an American radio broadcaster, the medium's most recognized national personality in its first international decade. He originated play-by-play sports broadcasting for which he was awa ...
.
On November 11, 1928, the Federal Radio Commission
The Federal Radio Commission (FRC) was a government agency that regulated United States radio communication from its creation in 1927 until 1934, when it was succeeded by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The FRC was established by t ...
's (FRC) General Order 40
The Federal Radio Commission's (FRC) General Order 40, dated August 30, 1928, described the standards for a sweeping reorganization of radio broadcasting in the United States. This order grouped the AM radio band transmitting frequencies into thre ...
divided transmitting frequencies into "clear", "regional" and "local" classifications. 640 kHz was now classified as a "clear channel", and KFI remained on this frequency, now designated as its dominant station. KFI was allowed to operate with a non-directional antenna
A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates or receives greater power in specific directions allowing increased performance and reduced interference from unwanted sources. Directional antennas provide increased performance ...
at the highest allowable power of 50,000 watts, while other stations on the frequency were required to protect KFI's signal from interference.
NBC operated two radio networks, the Red Network
Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...
and the Blue Network
The Blue Network (previously known as the NBC Blue Network) was the on-air name of a now defunct American Commercial broadcasting, radio network, which broadcast from 1927 through 1945.
Beginning as one of the two radio networks owned by the N ...
. The Red Network carried sponsored commercial programs, while the Blue Network carried the sustaining ones where the network sold individual commercials within the shows. In 1931, NBC reorganized its West Coast operations, creating regional Orange and Blue networks that replaced its previous Pacific Coast network. KFI was part of the Orange group, along with KGO in Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
, KGW
KGW (channel 8) is a television station in Portland, Oregon, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Tegna Inc. The station's studios are located on Jefferson Street in southwestern Portland, and its transmitter is located in the city' ...
in Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
, KOMO in Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, and KHQ
KHQ-TV (channel 6) is a television station in Spokane, Washington, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is the flagship and namesake of the KHQ Television Group, a subsidiary of the locally based Cowles Company, which also owns ''The Spokes ...
in Spokane
Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Ca ...
.
In July 1931, KFI increased its transmitter power from 5,000 to 50,000 watts, becoming the first U.S. station west of Chicago to broadcast with that power. A special 4-hour program was aired, featuring congratulatory speeches by NBC West Coast vice president and others, joined by entertainers from New York and Chicago on a coast-to-coast live hookup. ''Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' reported that Los Angeles mayor John Clinton Porter
__NOTOC__
John Clinton Porter (April 4, 1871 – May 27, 1959) was a U.S. political figure. The ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote that he represented a "unique mixture of reform politics and xenophobic Protestant populism hattook him quite literall ...
was comically effusive in his praise.
NBC's, and KFI's, programming expanded in 1930s and 1940s. The NBC radio network was owned by the Radio Corporation of America
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
(RCA), which also owned the Keith–Albee–Orpheum vaudeville circuit, later renamed Radio–Keith–Orpheum (RKO). RKO
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...
handled many vaudeville comedians and singers, including Jack Benny
Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
, Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen was an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen. They worked together as a successful comedy team that entertained vaudeville, film, radio, and television audiences for over forty years.
The duo ...
, Fred Allen
John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...
, Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Familiar to Broadway, radio, movie, and early television audiences, ...
, and Rudy Vallee
Rudy or Rudi is a masculine given name, sometimes short for Rudolf, Rudolph, Rawad, Rudra, Ruairidh, or variations thereof, a nickname and a surname which may refer to:
People Given name or nickname
*Rudolf Rudy Andeweg (born 1952), Dutch poli ...
, whose programs were highly rated. During the Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
of the 1930s, many people could not afford movie tickets, but they could purchase a radio where they could listen to commercially sponsored entertainment for free. During its early days, KFI carried such sporting events as the World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
and the Rose Bowl. Although KFI's call letters were randomly assigned, many people assumed that the "FI" stood for "Farmers Information". Every winter evening from 1924 to 1956, KFI delivered a frost report at 8 p.m. telling citrus farmers whether to turn on wind machines or light " smudge pots" to keep their orange and lemon groves from freezing. The frost warnings moved to 7 p.m. until the late 1970s when they were removed from the schedule.
From 1929 to 1944, Earle Anthony also owned KECA, now KABC. KFI was an affiliate of the NBC Red Network, while KECA carried programming from the Blue Network. However, in August 1941 the Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
(FCC) adopted a "duopoly" rule, which restricted licensees from operating more than one radio station in a given market. Therefore, Anthony sold KECA in 1944 to the Blue Network for $800,000. (In 1942, under the provisions of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act
The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce. It was passed by Congress and is named for Senator John Sherman, its principal author.
Th ...
, NBC had been required to divest itself of its Blue Network, which later became the Blue Network Incorporated, and subsequently the American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
.)
During World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, KFI was a prime source for war news in the Los Angeles area. It was feared that an attack on the west coast of the United States was possible, and people were warned to turn off lights and drape black cloths over windows, so that enemy bombers would not see identifying landmarks. Periodically, KFI and the other Los Angeles radio stations signed off so that any hostile aircraft could not use their signals as a guide for bombing attacks, which had been the case in the December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...
.
On November 29, 1944, KFI officials broke ground on Mount Wilson for construction of a new FM and TV facility. The ceremony was broadcast from noon to 12:15 p.m. over KFI. KFI-FM
KFI-FM was a short-lived FM broadcasting station, licensed to Los Angeles, California. It was the first station with a transmitter located on Mount Wilson. The station began test programs in 1946 and only lasted until 1951, when the owner, Earle C ...
began broadcasting with its first test program on 105.9 MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
in July 1946, although other sources say the station went on the air in 1947. KFI-FM only lasted until 1951, when Earle C. Anthony decided to end operations and returned the station license to the FCC for cancellation.["The History of KFI-FM -- Mt. Wilson's First FM Station"]
by Jim Hilliker, December 2009 (earthsignals.com) That same year KFI-TV was sold to the General Tire and Rubber Company
Continental Tire the Americas, LLC, d.b.a. General Tire, is an American manufacturer of tires for motor vehicles. Founded in 1915 in Akron, Ohio by William Francis O'Neil, Winfred E. Fouse, Charles J. Jahant, Robert Iredell, & H.B. Pushee as ...
. This station is now KCAL-TV
KCAL-TV (channel 9) is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS West Coast flagship KCBS-TV (channel 2). Both stations share studios at the C ...
.
Full service radio format
In the 1950s, sponsors began a gradual migration from radio to television, reducing radio advertising revenue, and less money became available for quality radio network entertainment programming. NBC and the other radio networks began dropping large-budget entertainment shows in favor of news and information programming. "NBC News on the Hour" and "Emphasis" became the network staples as entertainment programs were slowly phased out.
NBC radio affiliates like KFI had to decide whether to reduce or eliminate their network connections in order to maintain profits. KFI became a disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...
station oriented station, with live hosts playing phonograph records. Between 1968 and around 1975, KFI's programming alternated between streamlined MOR and full-service programming, dropping most long-form NBC programming.
Later, when music licensing
Music licensing is the licensed use of copyrighted music. Music licensing is intended to ensure that the owners of copyrights on musical works are compensated for certain uses of their work. A purchaser has limited rights to use the work without ...
fees became too difficult to maintain and as FM had replaced AM radio as the primary source for contemporary music, KFI became a news and information outlet.
KFI programming transitioned during this period from block programming, often featuring 15-minute programs, to a full service Full service or Full Service may refer to:
* Full-service radio, a wide range of programming
* Full Service Network, a communications company
Entertainment
* "Full Service", a song by the New Kids on the Block from their album ''The Block''
* F ...
middle of the road format. Popular disk jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile D ...
s played records and chatted about local events, interspersed with aggressive local news and sports coverage. The station also carried "Monitor
Monitor or monitor may refer to:
Places
* Monitor, Alberta
* Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States
* Monitor, Kentucky
* Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States
* Monitor, Washington
* Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...
," the NBC network's very successful weekend radio service.
KFI was the flagship station for the Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...
professional football team during its inaugural year in the American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
in 1960, when the team was based in Los Angeles, before spending the next five decades in San Diego.[KFI To Serve As Flagship For Los Angeles Chargers]
by Lance Venta, (RadioInsight.com) From 1960 to 1973, the station was the radio network flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
station of the Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
professional baseball team. KFI aired all the games as well as feeding the play-by-play broadcasts to other stations in the Southwest.
KFI's founder, Earle C. Anthony, died on August 6, 1961.
In April 1972, KFI celebrated its 50th birthday. Festivities included a 12-hour special, featuring interviews and commentaries from many former NBC Radio personalities.
Cox Broadcasting ownership
In 1973, Cox Broadcasting
CMG Media Corporation (doing business as Cox Media Group) is an American media conglomerate principally owned by Apollo Global Management in conjunction with Cox Enterprises, which maintains a 29% minority stake in the company. The company prim ...
, headquartered in Atlanta, purchased KFI for $15 million, which at the time was the highest amount paid for a radio station. James Wesley, Cox's general manager at WIOD
WIOD (610 AM) is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to Miami, Florida, serving the Miami metropolitan area and much of surrounding South Florida. Owned by iHeartMedia, WIOD serves as the Miami affiliate for ABC News Radio, ''The Glenn ...
in Miami, and that station's operations manager, Elliott "Biggie" Nevins, were dispatched to Los Angeles to manage KFI. Cox instructed Wesley to find an FM station in the Los Angeles market to buy, and a deal was reached with Dallas broadcaster Gordon McLendon to purchase KOST
KOST (103.5 FM) is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts an AC radio format, switching to Christmas music for much of November and December. Its studios are co-located with its sister s ...
(103.5 FM) for $2.2 million. Wesley also decided against renewing the long term agreement for carrying Dodger baseball, allowing KABC to become the new Dodger radio station in Los Angeles.
Top 40 format
Starting in the mid-1970s, KFI switched to top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...
music. Cox Broadcasting hired John Rook
John Harlan Rook (October 9, 1937 - March 1, 2016) was an American radio programmer and executive, most known for his tenure in Chicago. Under his guidance in the 1960s, 50,000-watt ABC-owned WLS became the highest rated station in the Chicago ...
as program director. Rook was considered the force behind the success of WLS in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. One of his first hires was Dave Sebastian (Williams), formerly of KHJ, as music director and air personality. Rook's first air staff included "The Lohman and Barkley Show" with Al Lohman
Al Lohman (January 15, 1933, Sergeant Bluff, Iowa – October 14, 2002, Rancho Mirage, California) was a personality and comedian with a long career in American radio from the 1950s through the 1980s and into the 1990s. Among his early career sto ...
and Roger Barkley
Roger Barkley (September 11, 1936, Odebolt, Iowa, USA – December 21, 1997, Duarte, California) was an American radio personality, based in Los Angeles, California, best remembered for his work with Al Lohman as part of ''The Lohman and Barkley Sh ...
(top-rated in the morning), Mark Taylor (midday), Bob Shannon (afternoon drive time
Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this c ...
) and music director Dave Sebastian (evenings). Within the first year Dave left abruptly for crosstown Top 40 competitor KTNQ
KTNQ (1020 AM) is a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, with a Spanish News/Talk format. It is owned by TelevisaUnivision. From its original licensing on March 13, 1925 until 1955 it was called KFVD. The station has studios on th ...
(1020 AM; Ten-Q). John Rook then moved in Eric Chase (midday), Charlie Fox (early evening) and Dave Diamond (late night).
By the late 1970s the staff was revised to Lohman & Barkley mornings, Tim & Ev Kelly in middays, Jack Armstrong afternoons, Big Ron O'Brien evenings and Charlie Fox at night.
Personality radio format
Rook and several of the on air personalities left in the early 1980s. At that point, KFI began softening its playlist
A playlist is a list of video or audio files that can be played back on a media player either sequentially or in a shuffled order. In its most general form, an audio playlist is simply a list of songs, but sometimes a loop. The term has sever ...
to adult top 40
The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...
(in between top 40 and adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
). By the mid-1980s the station was more news and personality driven than music intensive with a full service format.
In the 1970s and '80s, the station featured a hybrid format
Format may refer to:
Printing and visual media
* Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements
* Paper formats, or paper size standards
* Newspaper format, the size of the paper page
Computing
* File format, particular way that informatio ...
combining adult contemporary music with comedian hosts. In addition to Lohman and Barkley, other hosts included Hudson & Landry
Hudson & Landry were an American comedy team who wrote and recorded four gold albums on the Doré Records label in the 1970s: ''Hanging in There'' (1971), ''Losing Their Heads'' (1972), ''Right-Off!'' (1972), and ''The Weird Kingdom'' (1974). The ...
, Charlie and Mitzi (Charlie Brill
Charlie Sanford Brill (born January 13, 1938, Brooklyn, New York) is an American actor, voice artist, and comedian.
Acting
Brill's first motion picture was ''The Beast of Budapest''. He appeared in ''Blackbeard's Ghost'' and ''The Amazing Dober ...
and Mitzi McCall
Mitzi McCall is an American comedian and actress.
Life and career
Television
In the early 1950s, then known as Mitzi Steiner, McCall had the ''Kiddie Castle'' program on KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She received national attention in 1 ...
of ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...
),'' and Gary Owens
Gary Owens (born Gary Bernard Altman; May 10, 1934 – February 12, 2015) was an American radio announcer, personality, disc jockey and voice actor. His polished baritone speaking voice generally offered deadpan recitations of total nonsense, wh ...
. In the early-1980s, KFI began broadcasting in AM stereo, with the C-QUAM
C-QUAM (Compatible QUadrature Amplitude Modulation) is the method of AM stereo broadcasting used in Canada, the United States and most other countries. It was invented in 1977 by Norman Parker, Francis Hilbert, and Yoshio Sakaie, and published i ...
system, which were ended in January 2000.
Transition to talk format
By the mid-1980s ratings began to slip, as music listening switched to the FM band. In the spring of 1984, KFI was ranked 28th in the Los Angeles Arbitron ratings
Nielsen Audio (formerly Arbitron) is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio broadcasting audiences. It was founded as the American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by mergin ...
, ahead of only KHJ among the market's AM music stations. KFI moved the music to more of a soft gold-based AC and began to play less of it. The talk shows moved from a blend of entertainment, comedy, and lifestyle to more political issues.
Writer/Producer John Thomas was assigned to Lohman & Barkley in 1984 and helped raise their ratings for the morning show to a tie for #1 in the 25-54 demographic in Fall 1985. Shortly after Thomas left KFI for WLS in Chicago the morning show fell apart. Barkley split off from the morning show to go to KABC.
The music was dropped in 1988 as KFI evolved to an issues-oriented talk
Talk may refer to:
Communication
* Communication, the encoding and decoding of exchanged messages between people
* Conversation, interactive communication between two or more people
* Lecture, an oral presentation intended to inform or instruct
...
format. The first hosts were psychologist Dr. Toni Grant
Toni, Toñi or Tóni is a unisex given name.
In Spanish, Italian, Croatian and Finnish, it is a masculine given name used as a short form of the names derived from Antonius like Antonio, Ante or Anttoni.
In Danish, English, Finnish, Norwegia ...
, TV game show host Geoff Edwards
Geoffrey Bruce Owen Edwards (February 13, 1931 – March 5, 2014) was an American television actor, game show host, and radio personality. Starting in the early 2000s, he was also a writer and broadcaster on the subject of travel.
Background
P ...
and Tom Leykis
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
hosted a politically oriented "combat radio" program.
Competitor KABC, which had been doing talk radio for some time, sued KFI in U.S. District Court to have KFI cease and desist using the term "Talk Radio" with the call letters. Therefore, the slogan ''More Stimulating Talk Radio'' was created. Rush Limbaugh
Rush Hudson Limbaugh III ( ; January 12, 1951 – February 17, 2021) was an American conservative political commentator who was the host of '' The Rush Limbaugh Show'', which first aired in 1984 and was nationally syndicated on AM and FM r ...
's nationally syndicated conservative talk
Conservative talk radio is a talk radio format in the United States and other countries devoted to expressing conservative viewpoints of issues, as opposed to progressive talk radio. The definition of conservative talk is generally broad enough ...
show replaced Edwards in 1989 after Edwards refused to play promotional spots for the controversial Leykis show.
iHeartMedia ownership
In 1999, Chancellor Media traded 13 stations to Cox to acquire KFI and KOST. Cox opted to exit the Los Angeles market
Market is a term used to describe concepts such as:
*Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand
*Market economy
*Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market
Geography
*Märket, an ...
and focus on medium radio markets and its TV stations.
Chancellor merged with Capstar
Nitenpyram is a chemical frequently used as an insecticide in agriculture and veterinary medicine. The compound is an insect neurotoxin belonging to the class of neonicotinoids which works by blocking neural signaling of the central nervous syst ...
in 1999 and became known as AMFM Inc. In 2000, AMFM merged with Clear Channel Communications
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
making KFI Clear Channel's top AM radio station in Los Angeles. In 2014, Clear Channel changed its corporate name to iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
to identify its radio stations with its iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming Computing platform, platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbr ...
internet streaming platform. The station license continued to be held by a subsidiary of Capstar.
In summer 2004, KFI became the most listened to talk radio station in the United States, beating New York City's WABC in cumulative audience during the rating period. That year KFI was named the ''Radio & Records
''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...
'' "News & Talk Radio Station of the Year".
The syndicated ''Rush Limbaugh Show
''The Rush Limbaugh Show'' is an American conservative talk radio show hosted by Rush Limbaugh. Since its nationally syndicated premiere in 1988, ''The Rush Limbaugh Show'' became the highest-rated talk radio show in the United States. At its ...
'' was heard on KFI from July 4, 1988, to January 20, 2014, when it moved to sister station KEIB
KEIB (1150 AM) is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California. Owned by iHeartMedia, the station brands itself as ''The Patriot'', and broadcasts a talk radio format. The station's studios are on West Olive Avenue in Burbank.
By day, ...
.
On August 10, 2015, KFI began a simulcast on KOST's HD 2 signal.
KFI served as the flagship station of the Los Angeles Chargers, carrying all of the team's game day broadcasts from the team's return to the Los Angeles market in 2017 until 2020, when games were moved to co-owned 98.7 KYSR
KYSR (98.7 FM) is a commercial alternative radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving the Greater Los Angeles area. Owned by iHeartMedia, Inc., KYSR is the flagship station of syndicated morning drive program ''The Woody Show''. T ...
.[
]
Federal Election Commission complaint
In recent years, especially since the 2003 recall of the Governor of California, afternoon drive hosts John and Ken have become actively involved in several political causes, most notably that of illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...
. In the months leading up to the 2004 election, the hosts instigated several political rallies advocating the defeat of Congressmen
A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...
David Dreier
David Timothy Dreier OAE (/ draɪər/; born July 5, 1952) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and politician who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from California from 1981 to 2013. He was one o ...
(a Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
) and Joe Baca
Joseph Natalio Baca Sr. (born January 23, 1947) is an American Democratic politician who served as the U.S. representative for southwestern San Bernardino County (including Fontana, Rialto, Ontario and parts of the city of San Bernardino) from ...
(a Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
), both of whom they felt were wrongly supportive of illegal immigration. As a result, the ''John and Ken show'' was the subject of a Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Cam ...
complaint filed by the Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
, alleging that John and Ken engaged in an illegal campaign against Congressman Dreier. The "Political Human Sacrifice" campaign, as they dubbed it, was not successful, since both Dreier and Baca were re-elected, albeit Dreier by a substantially smaller percentage than in past terms. On March 16, 2006, the complaint was dismissed.
Transmitter site
The main transmitter was eventually relocated from Anthony's Packard dealership to its present location in La Mirada, California
La Mirada (Spanish for "The Look") is a city in southeast Los Angeles County, California United States, and is one of the Gateway Cities. The population was 48,527 at the 2010 census, up from 46,783 at the 2000 census. The La Mirada Theatre for ...
, where a "T" antenna was erected between two medium height towers, and the studios of the KFI and its sister station, KECA, were moved to 611 South Ardmore Avenue. The 611 South Ardmore Avenue building is now gone, replaced by a parking lot. (The Packard dealership site was retained as an emergency transmitter for many years, but powered by a 5,000 watt transmitter.)
In 1948, the "T" antenna was replaced by a vertical tower and a emergency vertical tower, as long before vertical antennas had been determined to be superior to "T" antennas for high-powered stations, although 195 degrees (which would be on 640 kHz) would have been optimum. Competitor KNX employs just such a 195 degree tower, as do many other U.S. Class A non-directional stations, and even some Class B non-directional stations. KFI was relatively late to convert from a horizontal to a vertical antenna: same-market Class A KNX converted to a vertical in 1938, and same-state Class As KGO and KPO (now KNBR KNBR may refer to:
* KNBR (AM), a radio station (680 AM) licensed to serve San Francisco, California, United States
* KNBR-FM
KNBR-FM (104.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California, serving the greater San ...
) converted to verticals in 1941 and 1949, respectively.
There is an unpatched bullet hole in the ceiling of the transmitter building, where a National Guardsman accidentally discharged a rifle during World War II on December 10, 1941. The bullet hole has been preserved as a monument to KFI's wartime service.
2004 tower collapse
On Sunday, December 19, 2004, at 9:45 a.m., Jim and Mary Ghosoph were killed when their rented Cessna 182P single engine airplane, traveling from the El Monte Airport
San Gabriel Valley Airport (formerly El Monte Airport) is a public airport north of El Monte, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. In November 2014, its name was changed from El Monte Airport to San Gabriel Valley Airport.
The F ...
to Fullerton Municipal Airport
Fullerton Municipal Airport , owned and operated by the Fullerton, California, City of Fullerton, is a regional relief airport in Orange County, California.
The airport is in the southwestern corner of Fullerton on Commonwealth Avenue, northeast ...
, struck KFI's transmission tower
A transmission tower, also known as an electricity pylon or simply a pylon in British English and as a hydro tower in Canadian English, is a tall structure, usually a steel lattice tower, used to support an overhead power line.
In electrical gri ...
. The solid steel truss
A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure.
In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...
, originally built in 1948, collapsed upon itself, mostly landing in a parking lot to the north of the site. KFI's signal was knocked off the air for approximately one hour.
The Ghosophs had taken off from the El Monte Airport with a planned stop at the Fullerton Airport to pick up two passengers. From there, the plan was to fly to the island of Catalina to spend the day, after which they would make the return route to Fullerton and then to El Monte. Pilots had complained for years to KFI management that it needed to put strobe lights on the tower and highly reflective balls on the guy wire
A guy-wire, guy-line, guy-rope, or stay, also called simply a guy, is a tensioned cable designed to add stability to a free-standing structure. They are used commonly for ship masts, radio masts, wind turbines, utility poles, and tents. A thin ...
. KFI and Clear Channel Communications management responded by saying the tower was in compliance with FCC and Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
regulations and that it did not need to make any changes.
Until a replacement was erected, the station transmitted from the auxiliary tower at a power of 25,000 watts, but provisions had been made to transmit from the disused KRKD (KIIS) 1150 AM site just north of downtown Los Angeles, whenever the RF field towards the tower erection crew would exceed safety limits. Work was conducted at the site on November 19, 2006, temporarily interrupting a broadcast of Leo Laporte
Leo Laporte (; born November 29, 1956) is the host of ''The Tech Guy'' weekly radio show and a host on TWiT.tv, an Internet podcast network focusing on technology. He is also a former TechTV technology host (1998–2008) and a technology author. O ...
's talk show KFI Tech Guy at 11:55 a.m.
2008 replacement tower collapse
At 2:30 p.m. on March 18, 2008, the replacement tower collapsed while under construction. The tower was about tall (the final height was to be when a guy wire support failed, causing the tower to tip over in the opposite direction. There were no major injuries, and only limited collateral damage.
The reason for the failure is assumed to be a combination of factors, including the much higher per unit weight of the new cross-section tower, compared to the 1948 tower which had a cross-section, and the inadequacy of the 1948 pier and guy wire terminations, one of which had previously been modified to a cantilever design to facilitate the passage of vehicles under that termination (and, it was the cantilever termination which catastrophically failed during this erection attempt). All of these structural components were replaced or strengthened in preparation for erection of the third tower, which is identical in design to the (failed) replacement tower.
Third tower construction
A new tower began construction at the end of July 2008 and was completed on August 14, 2008, by Eli the Construction Guy (structural engineer). It has a top-loading "capacitance hat", which electrically extends the tower's height another , effectively, without actually needing more tower sections. The tower was also equipped with high intensity strobe lights due to its proximity to the Fullerton Municipal Airport
Fullerton Municipal Airport , owned and operated by the Fullerton, California, City of Fullerton, is a regional relief airport in Orange County, California.
The airport is in the southwestern corner of Fullerton on Commonwealth Avenue, northeast ...
, and additional safety upgrades because of the previous plane crash. It has torque arms which limit the twisting of the tower in high winds. (Local regulation authorities in apparent defiance of electrical engineering principles, and communications law, demanded "a 10 percent reduction in overall height", otherwise the necessary permits would be refused, not withstanding the federal government's primary authority A primary authority is a term used in legal research to refer to statements of law that are binding upon the courts, government, and individuals. Primary authority is usually in the form of a document that establishes the law, and if no document exi ...
over radio communications, and KFI's strategic role as an Emergency Alert System
The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a national warning system in the United States designed to allow authorized officials to broadcast emergency alerts and warning messages to the public via cable, satellite, or broadcast television, and both ...
station for the western U.S. region).
The station returned to full 50,000 watt power on September 25, 2008, at 5:00 p.m. The tower has been dedicated to the memory of John Paoli, KFI Chief Engineer from 2000 to 2008, who died suddenly from a previously unknown genetic heart condition soon after overseeing the construction of the new tower. A plaque bearing the words "John A. Paoli, 1958-2008, Memorial Tower. Dedicated on this day, November 18, 2008 to our friend and colleague whose passion and talent brought KFI AM 640 to millions of listeners." and his likeness now graces the wall around the tower's base."KFI Replacement Tower #2 8/14/2008"
(sakrison.com)
Former hosts and on-air alumni
*Jack Angel
Jack Angel (October 24, 1930 – October 18, 2021) was an American voice actor, comedian, and radio personality. He provided voice-overs for animation and video games. Angel had voiced characters in shows by Hasbro and Hanna-Barbera such as ''Su ...
- the former KMPC overnight man and cartoon voiceover hosted primarily afternoon shows 1970-76.
* Jerry Bishop - announcer for the Judge Judy
''Judge Judy'' is an American Court show#Arbitration-based reality court show, arbitration-based reality court show presided over by former Manhattan Family Court Judge Judy Sheindlin, Judith Sheindlin. The show featured Sheindlin as she adjudi ...
program and worked for the Disney Channel. Afternoon drive in 1973.
*Tammy Bruce
Tammy K. Bruce (born August 20, 1962) is an American Conservatism, conservative radio host, author, and political commentator. Earlier she had been president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Organization for Women. She is currently a ...
- hosted weekend talk show from 1993 to 1998. Bruce was fired for making unflattering comments about Bill Cosby
William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...
and his wife Camille, who had recently lost their son Ennis in a murder. Bruce is now syndicated on 153 stations including KABC in Los Angeles.
* Bill Carroll – Monday–Friday 10am–1pm; also hosts an edition of his show from Los Angeles for Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
radio station CFMJ
CFIQ (640 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Richmond Hill, Ontario, and serving Greater Toronto. The station airs a talk format and is known as ''640 Toronto''. It is owned by Corus Entertainment with radio studios and offices i ...
*Michael Castner
Michael Castner is an American journalist, television host and radio personality. He is the morning national news anchor for NBC News Radio. He formerly hosted ''The Michael Castner Show'' on KEX (AM), KEX in Portland, Oregon, Portland and The Dai ...
- news reporter, now hosts ''The Daily Wrap'' from the Wall Street Journal. The syndicated show is heard in Los Angeles on KEIB
KEIB (1150 AM) is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California. Owned by iHeartMedia, the station brands itself as ''The Patriot'', and broadcasts a talk radio format. The station's studios are on West Olive Avenue in Burbank.
By day, ...
.
*Chuck Cecil
Charles Douglas "Chuck" Cecil (born November 8, 1964) is an American football coach and former player in the National Football League (NFL). He is currently the safeties coach at the University of Arizona in Tucson, his alma mater. He previously ...
- hosted "The Swingin' Years", focusing on big-band music, from 1956 until the early 1970s. Program was nationally syndicated more than 25 years. Show moved to KKJZ
KKJZ (88.1 MHz FM, "K-Jazz 88.1") is a non-commercial public radio station in Southern California broadcasting from the Long Beach State campus. The station is one of several public radio stations in Southern California presenting jazz and blue ...
Long Beach until February 8, 2014.
*Joe Crummey
Joe Crummey is a conservative American talk show host. He hosted a local political talk show on WABC radio in New York City, in the 10 a.m. to noon slot between the syndicated Imus in the Morning and Rush Limbaugh programs, from October 11, 201 ...
- hosted evening talk show from 1988 to 1994.
*Mark Denis - worked the KFI Traffic Center from 1986 until his death in April 2000; was the imaging voice of "KFI, More Stimulating Talk Radio"
*Dave Diamond
Sidney Ivan Davison Jr. (August 7, 1936 – May 5, 2014), known professionally as Dave Diamond, was an American radio DJ whose programs in the late 1960s and early 1970s helped popularise many psychedelic and acid rock bands. He was also an ac ...
hosted over nights on KFI's top-40 format in the late 1970s. Diamond died May 5, 2014.
*Matt Drudge
Matthew Nathan Drudge (born October 27, 1966) is an American journalist and the creator/editor of the Drudge Report, an American news aggregator. Drudge is also an author and a former radio and television show host.
Early life and education
Drud ...
- syndicated Internet news personality who ran on KFI Sunday nights 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm the end of September 2007.
*Dale Dye
Dale Adam Dye Jr. (born October 8, 1944) is an American actor, technical advisor, radio personality and writer. A decorated Marine veteran of the Vietnam War, Dye is the founder and head of Warriors, Inc., a technical advisory company specializ ...
- During the Iraq War, Dye was hired as a military commentator by KFI and given a two-hour radio show.
*Scott Ellsworth
Scott Ellsworth (''née'' Harvey Charles Ellsworth, January 4, 1927) is an American radio personality, news presenter, and actor. The host of ''Scott's Place'', a jazz radio broadcast that came to prominence in the late 1960s, he has been on the ...
- creator and on-air host of the popular radio program, "Scott's Place" that aired on KFI-AM in Los Angeles from 1969 through 1972. It was on from midnight until 4:00 AM and featured jazz and big band music, interspersed with live interviews with musicians.
*Terri-Rae Elmer
Terri-Rae Elmer (born 1956) is a Los Angeles based radio personality. Elmer was a radio news announcer for KFI AM 640 from 1983-2011. Following KFI Terri-rae became the co-host of the morning show on KABC 790 with Doug McIntyre. Cumulus Media did ...
- former news anchor from 1983-2011. Hosted ''TNT in the Morning'' with Tracey Miller Tracey Miller (July 21, 1954 – October 7, 2005) was a radio personality, editorial writer, and newspaper editor, who worked for much of her radio career on stations in the Los Angeles area. From 1990 to 1993 Miller and Terri-Rae Elmer co-host ...
from 1990-1993. Spent her last 18 years with the station as the in studio news anchor during the John and Ken Show. Now on morning drive at KABC with Doug McIntyre
Douglas John McIntyre (born November 11, 1957) is the former host of ''McIntyre In The Morning'' on KABC 790 Los Angeles. He retired after 22 years in broadcasting on December 14, 2018. McIntyre is a long-time columnist for the Southern Califo ...
*Charlie Fox hosted late nights on KFI's top forty format in the late 1970s.
*Ken Gallacher — former news anchor for the ''Bill Handel Show''
*Daryl Gates
Daryl Gates (born Darrel Francis Gates; August 30, 1926 – April 16, 2010) was the Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) from 1978 to 1992. His length of tenure in this position was second only to that of William H. Parker. As Chief ...
—the former Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...
chief replaced Tom Leykis as part of the station's shift toward conservative politics. Died in 2010.
*Phil Hendrie
Philip Stephen Hendrie (born September 1, 1952) is an American radio personality and actor. He is widely known for his voiceover talent throughout the radio and film industry. He came to prominence in the 1990s hosting ''The Phil Hendrie Show'', a ...
- hosted an evening issue-oriented talk show from 1989 to 1990 (sometimes alternating with Joe Crummey), and his syndicated comedy show ''The Phil Hendrie Show
''The World of Phil Hendrie'' is a comedy talk radio program. The show is syndicated throughout North America on Westwood One. It is known for outrageous guests, the majority of whom are fictional and voiced live by the host, Phil Hendrie. Though ...
'' from 1996 to 2006.
* Mikel Hunter Herrington - worked as a disc jockey at KFI in 1969.
*Dave Hull
Dave Hull (January 20, 1934 – October 15, 2020), known as "The Hullabalooer", was an American radio personality voted one of the top ten Los Angeles radio personalities of all time.
Career
Hull began his radio career in Armed Forces Radio i ...
- 1960s, 1970s. The "Hullaballooer" was heard primarily 9 pm-12 am weekday evenings. Spent more than 15 years at KWXY(FM) Cathedral City-Palm Springs. Began a syndicated weekend talk show in 2013.
*Geoff Edwards
Geoffrey Bruce Owen Edwards (February 13, 1931 – March 5, 2014) was an American television actor, game show host, and radio personality. Starting in the early 2000s, he was also a writer and broadcaster on the subject of travel.
Background
P ...
- first heard as a KFI music host in 1966. Hosted early drive 1987(?) to 1989. Resigned as a protest to Tom Leykis crushing of listener donated Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam records, following Stevens call for fatwa
A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...
on Salman Rushdie
Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British-American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and Wes ...
.
*Tim Kelly - hosted mid-days with his wife Evelyn during the 1977-78 top forty format, he would move to KIIS-fm and be founder of Premiere Radio, the nation's largest radio syndication company.
*Tom Leykis
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
- hosted a talk show from 1988 until 1992, which was more political issue-oriented than his later syndicated show would be.
* Hudson And Landry - the radio and vinyl comedy team hosted afternoon drive 1974-75.
*Rabbi Mentz - hosted a show from 1997 to 2002. From 10 to midnight, and filled in often for Bill Handel on morning drive. From politics to family life, sports to matchmaking, the show provided an entertaining perspective. Guests such as Governor Davis
Davis may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Mount Davis (Antarctica)
* Davis Island (Palmer Archipelago)
* Davis Valley, Queen Elizabeth Land
Canada
* Davis, Saskatchewan, an unincorporated community
* Davis Strait, between Nunavut and Gre ...
, Laura Bush, Paula Abdul, Bill O'Reilly, were just some of the names that dropped by the show.
*Tracey Miller Tracey Miller (July 21, 1954 – October 7, 2005) was a radio personality, editorial writer, and newspaper editor, who worked for much of her radio career on stations in the Los Angeles area. From 1990 to 1993 Miller and Terri-Rae Elmer co-host ...
- co-hosted ''TNT in the Morning'' with KFI News' Terri-Rae Elmer
Terri-Rae Elmer (born 1956) is a Los Angeles based radio personality. Elmer was a radio news announcer for KFI AM 640 from 1983-2011. Following KFI Terri-rae became the co-host of the morning show on KABC 790 with Doug McIntyre. Cumulus Media did ...
from 1990 to 1993. The show was the first morning-drive show in a major market to feature two women in the lead roles. Miller died in 2005
*Kevin Mitnick
Kevin David Mitnick (born August 6, 1963) is an American computer security consultant, author, and convicted hacker. He is best known for his high-profile 1995 arrest and five years in prison for various computer and communications-related crim ...
- infamous computer hacker who co-hosted a two-hour show early Sunday mornings titled 'The Dark Side of the Internet' with Alex Kasper from 2000 to 2001.
* Karel & Andrew - "Karel and Andrew", Karel Bouley and Andrew Howard were the first openly gay radio talk-show hosts on a U.S. major-market radio station in 1998. 1Hired for the afternoon drive slot at Los Angeles' KFI, the duo replaced KFI mainstays John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou. 2"I'm sure there are a million gay adio Adio may refer to:
Business
*Adio (company), the former skateboard footwear and apparel company
Music Songs
* "Adio" (song), a song by Montenegrin recording artist Knez that represented Montenegro at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015
*"Adio", a 19 ...
hosts, but not many of them are open, and no one had ever appeared on the air as a gay couple," said Ron Rodrigues, editor-in-chief of Radio & Records magazine. " The backbone of their on-air banter was their contrasting world views. Bouley, who dominated the conversation, could be stopped in his tracks with one, well-placed word from Howard". 3Al Peterson, an editor at Radio & Records magazine said, "They didn't feel like it was their job to be the poster boys for the gay community or to effect social change, just because they were the first openly gay hosts who were partners off the air.
*Mr. KFI - Marc Germain
Marc Germain (born May 28, 1967) is an American radio talk show host. He was previously known as ''Mr. KFI'' and ''Mr. KABC'' on account of his radio shows on their respective stations. He currently hosts his own internet radio show, ''The Marc ...
hosted a question-and-answer talk show from 1993 to 1996. He was fired from KFI in 1996 and then hired by competitor KABC. Germain hosted a similar show as Mr. KABC
Marc Germain (born May 28, 1967) is an American radio talk show host. He was previously known as ''Mr. KFI'' and ''Mr. KABC'' on account of his radio shows on their respective stations. He currently hosts his own internet radio show, ''The Marc ...
for ten years before leaving KABC for KTLK
KTLK (1130 kHz) – branded ''News/Talk AM 1130'' – is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota. It broadcasts a conservative talk radio format to the Twin Cities radio market and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. Th ...
(AM 1150), then created, hosts and produces for online network talkradioone.com.
*Scott and Casey - a live call-in talk show, hosted by Scott Hasick and Casey Bartholomew, aired from 1994 to 1997, and again from 1998 to 1999. Scott Hasick was involved in ''The Stephanie Miller Show'' during her time on KFI, performing many of the character voices heard on the broadcasts, as well as serving as production guy, and board operator. Casey Bartholomew was involved in the ''John and Ken Show'' as their board operator, as well as writing and performing many popular "updates", and imaging for KFI. The pair exited KFI in 1999, for weekday afternoons on New Jersey 101.5
WKXW (101.5 FM, "New Jersey 101.5") is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve Trenton, New Jersey. It is owned by Townsquare Media. Its studios and offices are located in Ewing and its broadcast tower, which is shared with WPRB, is l ...
. After leaving New Jersey, Scott and Casey served stints in Detroit, St. Louis and San Francisco. Casey spent some time on the airwaves in Charleston before the duo re-united in St. Louis. Scott recently resurfaced at Bonneville's WMVN/WARH
WARH (106.5 Hertz, MHz "106.5 The Arch") is a commercial FM broadcasting, FM radio station city of license, licensed to Granite City, Illinois and serving Greater St. Louis including sections of Illinois and Missouri. WARH is owned by Hubbard Br ...
in St. Louis. Casey recently resurfaced at New Jersey 101.5 as the afternoon replacement for Craig Carton. Carton and Boomer Esiason replaced Don Imus on WFAN in New York.
*''The Tim & Neil Show'' - Tim Kelly and Neil Saavedra hosted a weekend show, then replaced Tammy Bruce on weeknights. From 1997 to 2001, Tim and Neil hosted various shifts and often filled in for Bill Handel. Tim Kelly was a longtime contributor to the Bill Handel Program, penning and recording the bits and parodies that the show featured under the moniker "Dick Cabeza." Neil Saavedra is currently still with KFI as Marketing Director and on air with the Jesus Christ Show on Sundays.
*Mike Nolan - Known as KFI in the Sky and also employed by sister station KOST 103.5 to do airborne traffic reports in the morning and evening drive times was let go after 20 years with the station due to a restructuring on November 30, 2007. As of January 14, 2008 he was back on air with KFI and KOST as a ground-based traffic reporter with an occasional KFI in the Sky from his own plane. He also serves as a subject matter expert for aviation related topics and news stories.
*Big Ron O'Brien hosted nights on KFI during its top forty format period of the late 1970s. He would move on to top ratings at KIIS-fm and WOGL-fm in Philadelphia. O'Brien died April 27, 2008 at age 56 of complications of pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
.
*Ted Rall
Frederick Theodore Rall III (born August 26, 1963) is an American columnist, syndicated editorial cartoonist, and author. His political cartoons often appear in a multi-panel comic strip, comic-strip format and frequently blend comic-strip and e ...
- Saturday evenings on KFI briefly; can still be heard on the Bill Handel
William Wolf Handel (born August 25, 1951) is a Brazilian-born American radio host and attorney.
Handel currently hosts two radio programs on KFI in Los Angeles, California. First is KFI's local morning drive time show, in which he comments on ...
Show occasionally.
*Deborah Rich - hosted a weekend, topic-driven show on Saturday evenings.
*Hilly Rose
Hilly Rose was an American radio personality and a pioneer of the talk radio format. His professional career has spanned seven decades. He was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame as a "Living Legend" pioneer broadcaster in 2016.
Early ...
- from 1972 to 1979, Rose hosted an early morning show on KFI (midnight to 6 am) titled ''The Hilly Rose Night Owl Show'' where he, and his listeners, conversed on the air about various subjects. As a child actor, Rose appeared on such radio programs as "Ma Perkins
''Ma Perkins'' (sometimes called ''Oxydol's Own Ma Perkins'') is an American radio soap opera that was heard on NBC from 1933 to 1949 and on CBS from 1942 to 1960. It was also broadcast in Canada, and Radio Luxembourg carried it in Europe.
The ...
," and "The First Nighter Program
''The First Nighter Program'' was a long-running radio anthology comedy-drama series broadcast from November 27, 1930, to September 27, 1953. The host was Mr. First Nighter (Charles P. Hughes, Macdonald Carey, Bret Morrison, Marvin Miller, Don Br ...
." Hilly Rose Los Angeles broadcast history: KABC, 1970–72; KFI, 1972–79; KMPC, 1979–82; KABC, 1982-84. Hilly is now hosting a program on the Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings.
Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis, Sirius ...
SciFi Channel.
*Turi Ryder - hosted a weekend show for KFI in the late 1990s.
*Laura Schlessinger
Laura Catherine Schlessinger (born January 16, 1947) is an American talk radio host and author. ''The Dr. Laura Program'', heard weekdays for three hours on Sirius XM Radio, consists mainly of her responses to callers' requests for personal adv ...
- hosted the Dr. Laura Show from 1988 to 2009. Moved to KFWB
KFWB (980 AM) is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California. It airs a classic Regional Mexican music format. KFWB is owned by Lotus Communications. The station has a colorful history, being the radio voice of Warner Bros. Studios i ...
on September 8, 2009.
* Bob Shannon - afternoon drive personality who survived the format change to top forty
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...
in 1977 and later went on to having a successful film/television acting career as well as a well known film acting coach in Los Angeles.
*Paul T Wall - former board operator for the Bill Handel show and on-air contributor to Handel on the News. Wall left KFI in February 2008.
*April Winchell
April Terri Winchell (born January 4, 1960) is an American actress, writer, and radio host. She is prehaps best known as the second and current voice of Clarabelle Cow, having voiced the character since 1996.
Early life
Winchell was born in 1 ...
- hosted a variety talk show from 2000 until 2002.
*Bruce Wayne (Bruce F. Talford) - "KFI in the Sky" traffic reporter. He was killed on June 4, 1986 in a crash just after take-off from Fullerton Airport in a KFI airplane.
* John Ziegler - hosted a political talk show from (10:00 pm PST to 1:00 am PST) From 2004 until 2005. And from (7:00 pm PST to 10:00 pm PST) from 2005 until November 13, 2007. The show ended each time with a remembrance of the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
.
References
External links
*
* (covering 1927-1980)
"John Ziegler fires at 'John & Ken'"
by Kevin Roderick, January 10, 2008 (LAObserved.com)
(oldradio.com)
* ttp://www.earthsignals.com/images/kfi/ KFI's Main Tower is Destroyed by a Private Aircraft December 19, 2004Photos and Descriptions by Marvin Collins, some additional text by Bob Gonsett (earthsignals.com)
KFI Tower Completed in 14 Days August 14, 2008
(sakrison.com)
{{Clear Channel AM
FI
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