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June 24 2009 at 17:13:58
Name: Scott Linder
Topic: Resume request
Comments
: This week, I was asked to send a resume to a 27-year old "producer". Heck, I was mixing network television ten years before he was born!! Maybe I should have asked him for his resume...




June 24 2009 at 03:16:23
Name: Wilhelm Murg
Topic: Joe Christ R.I.P.
Email: wilhelmurg @ yahoo dot com
Comments: After all the death that's been mentioned on the site lately, I was hoping to have some cheerful thing to write in about, but one of the cornerstones of the Tulsa punk scene, Joe Christ, died in his sleep over the weekend.

Here's a good overview of his life: http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/cribnotes/2009/06/23/rip-shock-artist-joe-christ-linhart-1957-2009/

The Roy in the article is frequent TTM contributor Roy Lee.

Joe Christ was both loved and hated, often by the same people. There was a definite likability about the man, but he could sure talk about himself. What most folks failed to understand was that the hype was actually his medium, whether the film or music was good was a secondary consideration, that it offended people was his main concern, like the old Oscar Wilde quote (that most of us learned from Monty Python) "The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about."

I first met Joe at The Dance Café (I think that was the name of the place) in 1983 (or somewhere around there.) At that point the was still calling himself "Joe Danger," and had just broken up his seminal Tulsa punk band, Los Reactors, so he could move to Dallas. He was putting out a magazine about himself called "Pure Hype," in which he interviewed himself, reviewed his own records, and announced his up coming shows. It was Joe at his purest form.

At some point in the 1980s he was living in New Orleans and SOMEHOW tracked down Pewee Trahan, a.k.a. Johnny Rebel. Under the guise of "Johnny Rebel," Trahan cut out an infamous niche for himself in music history where he released a series of pro-segregationist singles in the 1960s, nearly all of which have the "N-word" in their title, except for the most common one that shows up from time to time, "Lookin' For a Handout." Joe was able to get a whole run of the series and within weeks it ran like wildfire through the punk underground, samizdata style (people were recording it and passing it on.) Listening to the tape was like getting a face full of hate with every play. Now these songs can be downloaded from most p2p sites, like Limewire, but at the time it like unleashing an unpleasant genie from our shameful past. Once again, pure Joe; outrageous, shocking, and at the same time, not without its historical interest. The first time I formally interviewed Joe it was about the "release." I was asked to write something for the local "underground" paper at the time, Uptown Tulsa, but they ended up not wanting the story - they ran a review of a Madonna record instead.

While in New Orleans Joe saw various avant-garde film retrospectives and decided he was a filmmaker. Communion in Room 410 was his first effort, a silent 8mm affair where he sat in bed with two huge topless women (Joe liked big girls) who cut some of their very tender button, soaked up the blood in bread, and ate it - and keep in mind that this was not a special effect. The soundtrack was a mix of Joe's music and a montage of noise with a sample of Robert Tilton repeating (at different speeds) "I found God and I went crazy!"

Joe was briefly married to the horror and comic book writer Nancy Collins who showed him that he could sell his films at sci-fi conventions. That's when the film making started really got going. With titles like Acid is Groovy, Kill The Pigs (a phrase that Green Beret Captain Jeffrey MacDonald claimed was yelled by a Manson-like gang while they murdered his wife - MacDonald was later convicted of the crime) or My Struggle (taken from Hitler) they sounded like twisted visions, yet they were really black gross-out comedies, as funny for their incompetence as they were for their content.

In 2006 Joe came back to Tulsa for a reunion show with Los Reactors. He and his wife stayed at my house; I felt it was easier to just have the younger pups I hang out with to have "The Joe Christ Experience" rather than try to explain it. It was a week of Joe talking about himself. One high point was watching the commentary track of his DVD with Joe talking over the commentary. At one point Joe was simulating sex in the film with his butt showing while he described the scene to us in person. Drew Smith, now a DJ on the Edge, yelled out "Does anyone else find this creepy?" Joe didn't, it was like he was talking about his car.

I always liked the duality of Joe's personality - in the middle of his crazy persona, he had a real soft spot for dogs. Mine loved him to death. For the concert a good chunk of the old punk scene came together for the show.

Joe was a true Oklahoma original who helped to define the Tulsa scene during the punk days, whether anyone liked it or not. I'm sorry he's not still out there creating chaos. It's a thankless job, but Joe took to it on with gusto.




June 23 2009 at 23:40:59
Name: LeeLee Woodward
Topic: Job Description
Email: oickonedotcom
Comments: Everyone in early television was assigned to be what the management wanted them to be, in certain situations.

When I first came to KOTV, Cy Tuma was THE news anchor. The real newsman on staff at that time was Don Norton. They did have bona fide weather people in Bob Thomas and his wife, but I believe they were the last real meteorologists until Jim Giles replaced me. In my case, I became an educated amateur, accumulating an extensive library and attending numerous seminars...but still, not a meteorologist...a professional "vent."

I worked with many news people who were people that just came up in the business after being put in the job. Ask the guys who went on to the networks if they considered themselves real newsmen when they were breaking into the business at KOTV. Jim Hartz, Bob Brown, etc.

Again, in the early days, I read news, sports and did weather. I also ran floor cameras, boom mikes. Ran the audio board and edited film, hosted all kinds of shows. In other words, you did what you had to do in Abilene, Texas. By the time you got to a bigger market, you might be more focused, but KOTV in the late fifties was not all that different. Jim Ruddle was Zeta and then got to be Dr. Jim Ruddle, news anchor in Chicago.

As a great opera singer (Jean Madeira) once told me; "So many are called, so few are chosen."

Mike also asked in an earlier post, "Who could fill Walter Cronkite's shoes for believability?" I offer you the Max Headroom of the millenium, Shepard Smith. Complete with pinball sound effects for every breaking story, while around every frame of the screen, a whirling dervish of distraction to the entire enterprise.

Where's Charlie St. John when we need him?




June 23 2009 at 19:40:48
Name: Mike MillerMike Miller
Topic: Readers vs newsmen
Comments: I certainly didn't mean to slight Bob Hower in any way. In fact, I liked the fact that Bob didn't pretend to be an experienced news hound. He didn't talk to me about working at KOTV. He occasionally mentioned working at a San Diego station with Regis Philbin. In fact he consulted Philbin before taking on the anchor role at 8. Regis urged him to try it out, figuring he could always return to management if the anchor job didn't work out. And, of course, it did and his news judgment excelled.

Several anchors I worked with considered themselves newsmen. But the only news gathering they did was rearranging the Sunday paper. Of course, even then, the comics were on top. One was in Little Rock and he wouldn't recognize a news story with a teleprompter. I was repeatedly instructed by the station's president to send him on stories so that viewers might begin to "think" he knew what he was doing. Every time it was a disaster. Bob Hower was no such type and grew enormously on the job. In my view, Bob became an excellent newsman!

When I was at Ch-5 in DC, there was a story going around the Washington Press Corps that a certain local anchor would read a newscast on the air but when finished, couldn't tell you any of its content. He was a good reader, but didn't have any clue to what he was reading. The story goes that one night the floor crew changed his closing tag line on the teleprompter to read: "Good night. I'm Peter Rabbit." Of course, the anchor read it verbatim.




June 23 2009 at 18:50:33
Name: Erick
Topic: Bob Hower
Comments
: I think in the early days of television news, the actual "newsmen" came over from newspaper and radio. Everyone else was just a jack of all trades. I think the webmaster is correct - just because Bob Hower anchored the first television newscast in Tulsa doesn't mean he had any news background. Heck, it may have been the only newscast he anchored until the "gamble" mentioned by Mike Miller below. Let's not forget that David Letterman used to be a weathercaster in Indiana, and I'm pretty sure he has no meteorology background.

Then again, I'm not aware of whether or not Mr. Hower's resume included any news background prior to KOTV.




June 23 2009 at 15:48:46
Name: Greg
Topic: Bob Hower
Comments: Regarding Mike Miller's comments on Bob Hower, I seem to recall once reading that Hower was a news anchor on KOTV, Channel 6, during the early 1950's. So, that would have given him a certain "news background" would it not? Is my information correct or am I mistaken about Bob's early days in Tulsa television? Just wanted to clarify the facts!


Greg, I believe you're right. From the Cleartone site:
Bob Hower got his start in television in 1949 at KOTV, Channel 6, which was Tulsa's first television station. Bob was their first chief announcer and Tulsa's first television "anchorman."

In fact, he is credited with delivering the very first newscast seen on Tulsa TV in 1949. Perhaps Bob was more newsreader than newsman at that early stage of his career?




June 23 2009 at 09:57:52
Name: Mike MillerMike Miller
Topic: Bob Hower
Comments: When I came back to Tulsa as News Director at Channel 8 in the early 70's, Bob Hower and I had an unusual relationship.

Hower was operations manager but soon was named to anchor the six and ten p.m. newscasts. Suddenly, a member of the station’s management was one of my employees. The late Sam Stewart (a very competent and funny individual) had been holding down the anchor chair after Jack Morris left for Channel 2. The brass (Jimmy Leake, Bob Doubleday and Bob Gregory) decided to gamble on Hower who had no news background, as I recall. He agreed, but retained his title and duties. It was a long day for Bob but I never heard any complaints.

Another gamble that soon paid off was adding Susan Silver, Tulsa’s first female co-anchor, to the mix.

Bob Hower off screen was the same as he was on screen. With his very likable and easy going demeanor, the new anchor (and Susan Silver) helped improve KTUL-TV's ratings, dramatically!





June 22 2009 at 02:51:24
Name: Wesley Horton
Topic: 8 is the place question
Email: whorton4@cox.net
Comments: Hey Mike,

Quick question, I noticed on RTN's retro commercial, the name "Bob Howard" popped up a few times as being part of the 8's the place news team.

Is this the same Bob Howard that is now a major car dealership owner in OKC?

Kindest Regards,
Wesley Horton


Wesley, Bob Hower is the 8'sThe Place newsman. I'm sure liking that RTV.




June 19 2009 at 19:57:35
Name: Webmaster
Topic: Mr. Zing, Uncle Zeb music
Comments:

From Boing Boing: A documentary about Jean-Jacques Perrey.




June 19 2009 at 19:17:05
Name: Mike MillerMike Miller
Topic: Cronkite update
Comments: The Vietnam War had widespread popular support until the Tet Offensive of 1968 when, after a visit,) Walter Cronkite declared the war was unwinnable. After that, LBJ acknowledged he'd lost middle America. Clayton Vaughn and I were in Vietnam for KOTV during the same period and I had personally come to the conclusion that we were involved in a primarily civil war.

Little known fact: Cronkite started his broadcast career in 1935 at WKY in Oklahoma City.

Although CBS News is reporting that Cronkite is gravely ill, The Chicago Sun-Times and The Boston Globe are now quoting an assistant as saying he's home recuperating. The newspapers say Cronkite's grave condition may have been exaggerated.

So I'm pleased to report that's the way it (hopefully) is.




June 19 2009 at 15:00:01
Name: Mike Miller
Topic: And That's the News
Comments: I see where 92-year old Walter Cronkite is gravely ill and near death. It seems so long ago when Cronkite anchored the CBS Evening News and every major event....and tragedy like the JFK assassination. And it was 1981. I wonder what he thought of today's cable news outlets that mainly repeat political talking points and try to embarrass and ridicule.
Although he occasionally showed his emotional side, as he did on some space shots and on November 22nd, you never got a clue where he stood politically. He had a unique quality; a style that raised the bar of credibility to an unequaled high. Since he left the anchor desk no network has come close.




June 18 2009 at 09:22:24
Name: Les Barrett
Comments: Sorry to hear of your Dad's passing.


Thank you, Les.




June 18 2009 at 08:37:36
Name: Dennis McAtee
Topic: Another passing
Comments
: Sad to note yet another passing: Bob Bogle, Ventures guitarist (Walk, Don't Run, Hawaii 5-O, etc.) and a Wagoner, Oklahoma native, died June 14 in Vancouver, WA. He was 73.


I'm sorry to hear it. I didn't realize Bob was an Oklahoman. I listened to their "Telstar" album a lot as a kid.




June 17 2009 at 22:15:32
Name: Webmaster
Topic: New Tulsa history blog
Comments:

Nancy, a Tulsa Historical Society volunteer and second generation Tulsan, has started Tulsa Gal's Blog. She's off to a good start with entries about Brookside, the Belvedere, and old Tulsa doors.

I was able to solve one minor mystery for her; maybe she will be able to return the favor on this site's B Girl Mystery. Maybe you can identify one of her doors.




June 17 2009 at 21:02:58
Name: Karen Brakefield
Topic: Mike's Dad
Comments: So sorry to hear of your loss, Mike. It's hard to lose a parent, our Prayers are with you.


Karen, Jim, Erick, Mitch, and John, thank you, I appreciate your kind words.




June 17 2009 at 18:33:49
Name: Jim HartzJim Hartz
Topic: Mike's Dad
Comments
: Just heard about your Dad, Mike. I never got to meet him, but he had unanimous approval from everyone I knew. Alex and I send our condolences.










June 17 2009 at 13:09:30
Name: Erick
Comments: I'm very sad to hear of the recent passings of Noel Confer, Josef Peter Hardt, and Jim Ransom. My thoughts, like everyone else, are with their families. I've never met any of them, but they all contributed to this site in their own way, and it has benefitted us all.




June 16 2009 at 19:28:10
Name: Mitch Gray
Topic: Fathers
Email: North Of You
Comments: Mike, So sorry to hear of your father's passing. My father left us 11 years ago. One of his offerings of sage advice was "If you're repairing anything mechanical, it's not fixed unless you cut yourself while making the repair". I have found this to be true more often than not.

As a young boy I recall telling my dad "I wish I had all the money in the world".
His reply.."Then you couldn't get change". I hope your father left you with some favorite quip or tongue in cheek advice that you can fondly recall. I wish you well during this difficult time.




June 16 2009 at 18:46:31
Name: John HillisJohn Hillis
Topic: Condolences / Balops
Comments: Condolences to you and your family, Mike. I know from experience how tough this process is to get through. The only thing I can add is just "one day at a time."

Meanwhile, Jim Ruddle uses the term "balops." Whew, I haven't heard that word in a dog's age. Jim recalls the great times when everybody flew by the seat of their pants and did what felt right, rather than some focus-grouped copy of the next thing down the street.

I think it was Fred Friendly who was supposed to have said that television makes so much money doing its worst that it can never do its best. It's no longer making that huge money, but the statement seems even moreso now.




June 16 2009 at 00:43:46
Name: Webmaster
Topic: Poem
Comments:

From the remarkable blog of famed science fiction writer Frederik Pohl, this poem by a past close associate of his:

Gym Class

One, two, three, four,
Clap your hands and prance
In stinky shirt and stinky shoes
And stinky little pants.

---C.M. Kornbluth




June 15 2009 at 20:14:00
Name: Beverly
Comments: Mike,

My thoughts and certainly my prayers are with you.


Beverly, Charles, Sonny, Scott, Mike B and Mike M, thank you.




June 15 2009 at 19:20:18
Name: Jim Ruddle at WGN in 1965Jim Ruddle
Topic: Noel Confer
Comments
: Noel Confer's passing is another mark of the period immediately following the birth of television in Tulsa. We graduated from Central in 1949, both worked in radio before turning to television in the fifties. He was at Channel 2, then, later, worked at Channel 6, where I was.
We worked in a period of no videotape, all live, balops, studio cards, memorized scripts, and do-it-yourself special effects.

I've seen some remarks over the years about this and that personality who was in a position of some authority in those--and subsequent--days in which one would have thought malice was the operating technique. But it was a challenging time and nobody knew all the rules, besides the rules were changing as we went.

Noel worked in Mexico and California in the period from the late fifties to the nineties, then, after retiring from a radio station in Brawley, CA, he returned to Tulsa.


I'm sad to hear this news. I met and chatted with Noel at the Tulsa TV Icons presentations. His many contributions here are valued. His Uncle Hiram stories link Tulsa TV all the way back to the days of vaudeville. Our sincere condolences to his family and friends.

A biography of Noel on the Tulsa Radio: Central High alumni page.




June 15 2009 at 19:10:50
Name: Mike Bruchas
Topic: Mike Ransom's dad
Comments
: So sorry for your loss. He meant a lot to you. Hang in there...




June 15 2009 at 16:05:54
Name: Mike MillerMike Miller
Topic: Condolences
Comments: Mike:

Very sorry to hear of the death of your dad. I'd like to join the others and extending my condolences. You are in our thoughts and prayers.







June 15 2009 at 10:22:23
Name: Charles
Comments: Mike. I'm so sorry for your loss. Thoughts and prayers are coming your way from Fargo.




June 15 2009 at 09:57:54
Name: Sonny Hollingshead
Topic: Noel Confer
Comments: Mike,
My condolences on the loss of your father. I know this is a tough time for you and we appreciate all that you do to bring us back together on this site.

Seems that every time I open the Tulsa World there's another loss. Today it's Noel Confer, a frequent contributor to this site, who passed away Sunday at 78.




June 14 2009 at 18:41:30
Name: George Tomek at KTVY, Channel 4, OKC, 1976George Tomek
Topic: Analog versus Digital
Email: mr anchor at cox dot net
Comments: I started in TV news in 1960 at KOTV -- a station with a rich heritage and reputation which it deserves to this day. TV has come a long way over the years and so has the news business - but that's a separate story. Although the shift from analog to digital broadcasting is certainly a paradigm moment, the fact of the matter is that the heart and soul of the medium (picture and sound) are still the key elements. We're seeing the stuff thanks to other means - satellites, Ipods, laptops, Blackberry, computer towers and the TV set sans rabbit ears.

Some people with whom I worked for or with back then never got a chance to witness June 12, 2009 - George Stevens, Dale Hart, Ken Vandever, Art Elliot, Mack Creager, Bob Mills, Cy Tuma, Dave Davis, Roger Sharp, Sid Lasher, Gene Jackson. Bruce Hinson, George Jacobs, Ralph Bardgett among them. Others like Lee Woodward, Betty Boyd, Pat O'Dell, and Bill Hyden are still around to have witnessed the event.

I don't know about the rest of you, but as far as I'm concerned (special effects, other bells and whistles, computer-generated this and that aside) the more things have changed technology-wise, the more they seem to have stayed the same. We're certainly entertained and informed when we see sports, news events, nature programs, and movies. We like to see people interacting with each other, and we still really like to see them talking to us. That was the basic draw of analog TV in the first place. It was such a personal medium -- digitally, it still is today.




June 14 2009 at 16:16:56
Name: Scott Linder
Topic: My condolences
Comments
: Mike, please accept my condolences and sympathy for your loss. I send my prayers and good thoughts to you and your family.




June 14 2009 at 13:08:35
Name: Bill Hensley (via email to webmaster)
Topic: Gusty lost then found
Email: billhensley aht earthlink daht net
Comments: I posted back in 1999 about getting a couple Gustys back in the early 70s. I had misplaced them, but last night I found one of them. It's posted at:

http://billhensley.wordpress.com/2009/06/14/a-childhood-memory




June 13 2009 at 19:35:19
Name: K. Bolen
Topic: Condolences
Email: bojoker@att.net
Comments: Very sorry to hear the passing of your father and the host of one of my very favorite memories, Fantastic Theater's Peter Hardt.

I still remember sitting on the couch with my Grandpa, listening to the intro, eating homemade ice cream or popcorn, thinking how can it get any better? Since discovering this wonderful site, each day when I fire up the laptop, I get to listen to the into of the Fantastic Theater theme... makes me wish I was five again...


To both Kennys, thank you.




June 13 2009 at 17:53:28
Name: Kenny Quinn
Topic: Condolences
Comments
: So sorry to hear about Josef Hardt's passing. I have so many good memories from our old TV days.

Also my condolences to you Mike, and to your family, on your recent loss. Thinking of you during this sad time.




June 13 2009 at 06:29:03
Name: David Bagsby
Topic: Tulsa Greats
Comments
: Mike

My thoughts are with you and your Brother. I never got to meet your Dad but you guys are a reflection of his dedication, compassion and intellect. I know I speak for a lot of folks here when I say you guys are a stellar legacy.


Thank you, David and JW. My dad was a big fan of Western Swing and liked to play the ukelele. In the service, we plan to play a couple of tunes from Steve Bagsby's Tahahina Hula CD, "Dad Tune" and "Pookalily Rag", to stand for those sides of my dad's personality.




June 13 2009 at 02:41:34
Name: JW
Topic: Sorry for your loss
Comments: Mike, I am very sorry you lost your father.

I don't believe I've ever met you face to face, but I've read this site practically since you put it up.

Again, very sorry to hear of his passing. My condolences to your family.




June 12 2009 at 23:52:26
Name: Wilhelm Murg
Topic: Missing RADIO KOTV
Email: wilhelmurg at yahoo dot com
Comments: KOTV went off analogue months ago. I discovered it because while cruising around Tulsa, I used to enjoy listening to the local news, the national news, or Letterman, depending on what time of day I was driving, on 88 FM.

During the 2006 ice storm that knocked out power in most of the city, I kept up with what was happening by listing to Channel Six news on a small FM radio, while laying in bed with my two large dogs (i.e.- heat sources).

I really feel like we lost something by not having KOTV on FM. Now when we go out of town we take comedy CDs and downloads, since we can't listen to Letterman on the way back. I never thought I would see the day when I would miss listening to television on the radio. I guess those old TV-radios are totally worthless now.




June 12 2009 at 13:14:54
Name: Sonny Hollingshead
Topic: Josef Hardt
Comments: Just saw on the Tulsa World website that former Channel 2 director Josef Hardt passed away yesterday at 82.


I'm so sorry we lost Mr. Hardt. He was a true Tulsa TV icon for his unforgettable work as host of "Fantastic Theater". In January 2008, I and Kenny Quinn visited him at his house. He was a delightful gentleman.

Today, I lost my dad, Jim Ransom. I must apologize to several readers who have sent interesting materials for the site recently. But I have found working on the site to be therapeutic, so I hope to get those great things out here soon.




June 12 2009 at 12:02:38
Name: Webmaster
Topic: Tulsa broadcast TV timeline
Comments:

November 30, 1949:

KOTV, Tulsa's first television station, began its first broadcast day with a Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Tulsa Club. Helen Alvarez, the ambitious 27-year-old station manager, was the driving force behind the new station with the backing of oilman George Cameron.

March 13, 1954:

KCEB Channel 23 signed on. In the 1950s, television sets required an external converter box to view the UHF channels (those above 13). This requirement was a major factor in the demise of KCEB in December of that same year. The call letters were owner and oilman Elfred Beck's last name spelled backwards.

September 18, 1954:

KTVX Channel 8 in Muskogee aired an OU football game as their first broadcast. In 1955, John T. Griffin and son-in-law James C. Leake opened an auxiliary studio at the former KCEB site on Lookout Mountain. The call letters were changed to KTUL when the entire operation transferred to Tulsa in 1957. The first program from the Tulsa location was the "Lewis Meyer Bookshelf". Today, the Griffin family owns KOTV and KQCW in Tulsa.

December 5, 1954:

KVOO-TV Channel 2 broadcast a dedication ceremony from their temporary studio at the Akdar Shrine Building at 4th and Denver, followed by NBC's Sunday "Meet the Press". Oklahoma lawyer Harold Stuart played a pivotal role in starting up the station. Stuart was married to Joan Skelly, daughter of oilman and Tulsa radio pioneer W. G. Skelly. KVOO later changed call letters to KTEW, then KJRH.

January 12, 1959:

KOED Channel 11 came on the air. Originally affiliated with National Educational Television (NET), the station offered PBS network programming beginning in 1970. Charles C. Mason, then superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools, worked to bring the station online.

October 26, 1980:

KOKI independent Channel 23 arrived on the airwaves. By this time, television sets were designed to receive UHF stations, but required a loop antenna. These were made available for a dollar at QuikTrip stores. KOKI was the first local station to use computer and live action graphics. KOKI affiliated with the Fox network in 1987.

March 18, 1981:

KGCT Channel 41 (Green Country Television) began broadcasting from their storefront studio on Main Mall. News and local programming such as "Erling on the Mall" were presented in the daytime, switching to subscription TV (requiring an unscrambler box) in the evenings. In 1987, an ice storm knocked down their tower. Channel 41 was dark until it returned as KTFO in 1991. KTFO affiliated with UPN in 1995. Now under the letters KMYT, affiliated with MyNetworkTV.

December 29, 1981:

KBJH Channel 47 (named for evangelist Billy James Hargis) was allocated, but was first on the air as KTCT (Tulsa Christian Television) in 1985. It became KWHB under religious broadcaster LeSEA in 1986.

June 9, 1987:

KGLB Channel 44 was allocated. The call letters were changed to KTPX in 1998, when it affiliated with Bud Paxson's PAX TV network, now known as ION.

July 1, 1987:

KXON Channel 35 signed on as an educational channel in Claremore. In 1992, the call letters changed to KRSC (for Rogers State College, now Rogers State University).

February 12, 1993:

KWMJ Channel 53 was allocated. The call letters became KGEB (Golden Eagle Broadcasting) under the auspices of Oral Roberts University in late 1999.

September 12, 1999:

KWBT Channel 19 was the Tulsa WB (Warner Brothers) affiliate. Later, CBS, having acquired UPN, merged it with WB to form the CW, hence the call letter change to KQCW. Now a sister station to KOTV.

February 17, 2009:

Some stations made the transition to digital, but the final date was pushed out by President Obama to:

June 12, 2009:

Tulsa analog TV signals leave the air, except, as Sonny noted below, KJRH plans to keep a "nightlight" on until Jun 26.

More digital notes from Feb. 17 on TTM.

Scroll down to watch several Tulsa TV sign-offs.




June 12 2009 at 10:54:26
Name: Erick
Topic: DTV transition
Comments
: KTUL ended its analog broadcast at around 9:10 this morning during "Good Day Tulsa" with a reporter live at the transmitter. A 40+ year veteran of KTUL was given the opportunity to "push the button" to end the analog transmission.




June 12 2009 at 10:20:54
Name: Charlie Tooley
Topic: End of Analog TV: Signoffs
Email: charlie_tooley@wellsfargois.com
Comments: In a solemn salute to the sign-off of analog TV, I think they should end the sign-off with the familiar B&W version of the National Anthem and the popular "High Flight" epic poem and film... just like the "olden days".











June 11 2009 at 19:02:50
Name: Mike Bruchas
Topic: DTV in Chicago
Comments: I am cable and dish poor; had 2 converter boxes since last year from BestBuy.

Finally got off my butt and installed 1 today on my late Mom's 2004 Sam's Club vintage Chinese-cheapy Magnavox. The first b&w set that the Bruchas family had in 1948 was a Chicago-made Magnovox cabinet model which lasted till about 1960!

Have 2 more for elderly friends to install. They can't understand that after NOON tomorrow, no more analog TV.

I am still "mono sound" on the Magnavox and need to wire the other, which should receive stereo. It is Xmas 2005 vintage Sony, but my late Dad refused to buy a flat-screen with HD tuner built in.

Have to find my 20 year old NEC tv stereo amp and put larger speakers in the room with the smaller set for better sound!

WTTW/PBS has low audio output on it's channels. The Polish and Korean language stations have NO audio. Us "poor" Chicagoans have 18 full power stations on air.
The 4 Spanish stations are fine; ditto the net affils. ABC's WLS-TV has had audio problems on their analog audio path via the boxes but not in digital.

Whole new TV world tomorrow!




June 11 2009 at 13:12:38
Name: Jim Reid
Topic: End of Analog TV
Comments: Sonny, my station, KDFW is the Nightlight station from DFW. We have to keep our analog signal up for a month.

I'm sorry I'm missing all the fun. The Avid editor who fills in for me when I'm on vacation told me yesterday he's already done a ton of spots about this and had more to do today.

You're not at KTUL, are you? I thought about seeing if I could go get a tour of the building but I don't think I know anyone there anymore.




June 11 2009 at 12:43:43
Name: Sonny Hollingshead
Topic: June 12, 2009 - The End Of An Era
Comments: Starting tomorrow morning at 9 a.m., the final three analog television stations will be signing off. Here's the list of events, courtesy of David Shaffer of KTUL and Society of Broadcast Engineers Chapter 56:

9:05 am KTUL analog shut-off on channel 8
9:05 am KJRH analog programming ends (nightlight info spot airs for two weeks)*
9:05 am KJRH DTV channel moves from channel 56 to 8
1:00 pm KOTV DTV channel moves from channel 55 to 45
1:00 pm KOKI analog shut-off on channel 23

* Nightlight Info is a repeating instructional video walking the viewer through setting up a converter box to receive over-the-air digital television channels.

KJRH Channel will be the final television station to take it's analog to snow. That will be 2 weeks from tomorrow.

Much of the history remembered on this site was from moments in time on television station channels that will no longer exist. Here's my toast to analog!

SPECIAL NOTE...Everyone in the Tulsa area must re-scan their digital receivers and converter boxes tomorrow after 1:00 p.m. due to the digital channel swapping that will take place.




June 11 2009 at 10:19:43
Name: Jim Reid
Topic: KTUL Anniversary
Comments: Does anyone know if part of this anniversary might include a reunion of ex-Channel 8 employees? They had one a few years ago and I didn't find out about it till it was over.

I'm in Tulsa this week, reconnecting with the siblings. Already been to Coney I-Lander and loaded up my sister's freezer with Ike's Chili to take back to Texas.

Drove by the construction site for the new ballpark. It looks like it'll be nice. I hope it's as successful as Bricktown's been for OKC.

Having dinner tomorrow night some fellow ex-channel 8 folks.




June 11 2009 at 00:28:41
Name: Webmaster
Topic: Previous GroupBlog link
Comments:

Archived GroupBlog 293.




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