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KBEQ-FM
KBEQ-FM (104.3 FM, "Q104") is a commercial radio station in Kansas City, Missouri, serving the Kansas City metropolitan area market. It is owned by Steel City Media and airs a country music format. The station's studios and offices are located on Mill Street at Westport Center in Midtown Kansas City.
The transmitter site is on the East Side of Kansas City, off Stark Avenue and 23rd Street South. KBEQ has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 99,000 watts (100,000 with beam tilt).
In November 1960, the station signed on the air as KBEY, the FM counterpart to AM station KBEA (1480 AM, now KCZZ) in nearby Mission, Kansas. It had an effective radiated power of 17,500 watts. KBEY played big band and easy listening music, running a no-announcer broadcast automation system.
In 1970, KBEY was acquired by Intermedia, Inc., a division of Interstate Securities Corp. The division was managed by Mark Wodlinger, former manager of KMBC-TV, where he convinced Len Dawson to do TV sports. In 1972, Intermedia decided to divest itself from the radio business and keep only its main asset, KQTV in St. Joseph. Bob Ingram bought KBEA, while KBEY was purchased by Mark and Connie Wodlinger.
KBEY switched to "underground" rock in August 1970, playing cuts from albums including blues music, folk music and rock, with some classical music and jazz. Another FM station, KUDL's sister FM KCJC, had recently ended its underground format, so KBEY decided to fill the void. One of KCJC's longtime DJs, "Little Willie", was part of the first KBEY air staff. KBEY's progressive rock format began with 20 hours of music played on the old automation system, and four hours live each evening with Bill Scott, until an air staff could be assembled. Unfortunately, in Scott's previous job, he was a DJ using the name "Robert W. Walker" ("El Walkero") on KUDL and he had a non-compete clause in his previous contract. He assumed this restriction was for the character while KUDL asserted it was for him, personally. Within a few weeks, KUDL sued and he was forced to leave the job on KBEY.
KBEY became an ABC FM network affiliate to fulfill most of its news obligation, but devoted minimum time to news and talk, focusing on new, unique, and classic music. In 1971, KBEY devoted the midnight to 6 am time slot to jazz, hosted by Bobby Kline, which developed a sizable following over the next couple of years. The progressive format was more successful than is often assumed. There was networking among similar stations, like KSHE St. Louis, and KSAN San Francisco, sharing programming content. The "format" evolved over three years and consistently claimed 8-12% of the KC audience, a respectable share in a market with around thirty stations. Eventually, though, progressive radio found itself fading at the same moment that San Diego's "Super Q" format was sweeping the country. Mark Wodlinger knew it would hit Kansas City soon, and whatever station adopted the format would likely be #1 in the ratings for at least a couple of years. He arranged the deal, made the announcement, and began a two-month KBEY-KBEQ transition process to bring in the new format with its new air staff, with the progressive rock/jazz experiment ending in August, like it started.
On August 15, 1973, with the growing popularity of FM radio, KBEY ended the progressive rock format and switched to contemporary hit radio as "Super-Q, Q-104". It was modeled after San Diego Top 40 station KCBQ's "Super Q" format, a format that was growing across the country at the time. KBEY's call sign changed to KBEQ, and adopted the slogan "Super-Q Plays Favorites". Q-104 gradually chipped away at Kansas City's powerhouse AM Top 40 station, WHB. Public service announcements were called "Q Tips".
A "Super-Q" phone-in contest had become popular in San Diego, tying up the city's telephone network (a dangerous problem the station publicized wildly). It was replicated on a smaller scale in Kansas City. The large number of listeners hurriedly dialing the station's number for the contest would create many wrong numbers. That prompted Southwestern Bell in Kansas City to respond in the same way as other cities, by creating a new phone exchange just for radio, TV and other entities that might suddenly get large numbers of calls. The three-number exchange was unique, so there would be few or no wrong numbers. KBEQ jammed the lines with its "Treasure Hunt" contest. So Southwestern Bell assigned KBEQ Kansas City's first 576-7xxx number. It was (816) 576-7104, but the 576-7xxx system worked in the 913 area code too, covering both Missouri and Kansas-based stations in the Kansas City metro area.
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KBEQ-FM
KBEQ-FM (104.3 FM, "Q104") is a commercial radio station in Kansas City, Missouri, serving the Kansas City metropolitan area market. It is owned by Steel City Media and airs a country music format. The station's studios and offices are located on Mill Street at Westport Center in Midtown Kansas City.
The transmitter site is on the East Side of Kansas City, off Stark Avenue and 23rd Street South. KBEQ has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 99,000 watts (100,000 with beam tilt).
In November 1960, the station signed on the air as KBEY, the FM counterpart to AM station KBEA (1480 AM, now KCZZ) in nearby Mission, Kansas. It had an effective radiated power of 17,500 watts. KBEY played big band and easy listening music, running a no-announcer broadcast automation system.
In 1970, KBEY was acquired by Intermedia, Inc., a division of Interstate Securities Corp. The division was managed by Mark Wodlinger, former manager of KMBC-TV, where he convinced Len Dawson to do TV sports. In 1972, Intermedia decided to divest itself from the radio business and keep only its main asset, KQTV in St. Joseph. Bob Ingram bought KBEA, while KBEY was purchased by Mark and Connie Wodlinger.
KBEY switched to "underground" rock in August 1970, playing cuts from albums including blues music, folk music and rock, with some classical music and jazz. Another FM station, KUDL's sister FM KCJC, had recently ended its underground format, so KBEY decided to fill the void. One of KCJC's longtime DJs, "Little Willie", was part of the first KBEY air staff. KBEY's progressive rock format began with 20 hours of music played on the old automation system, and four hours live each evening with Bill Scott, until an air staff could be assembled. Unfortunately, in Scott's previous job, he was a DJ using the name "Robert W. Walker" ("El Walkero") on KUDL and he had a non-compete clause in his previous contract. He assumed this restriction was for the character while KUDL asserted it was for him, personally. Within a few weeks, KUDL sued and he was forced to leave the job on KBEY.
KBEY became an ABC FM network affiliate to fulfill most of its news obligation, but devoted minimum time to news and talk, focusing on new, unique, and classic music. In 1971, KBEY devoted the midnight to 6 am time slot to jazz, hosted by Bobby Kline, which developed a sizable following over the next couple of years. The progressive format was more successful than is often assumed. There was networking among similar stations, like KSHE St. Louis, and KSAN San Francisco, sharing programming content. The "format" evolved over three years and consistently claimed 8-12% of the KC audience, a respectable share in a market with around thirty stations. Eventually, though, progressive radio found itself fading at the same moment that San Diego's "Super Q" format was sweeping the country. Mark Wodlinger knew it would hit Kansas City soon, and whatever station adopted the format would likely be #1 in the ratings for at least a couple of years. He arranged the deal, made the announcement, and began a two-month KBEY-KBEQ transition process to bring in the new format with its new air staff, with the progressive rock/jazz experiment ending in August, like it started.
On August 15, 1973, with the growing popularity of FM radio, KBEY ended the progressive rock format and switched to contemporary hit radio as "Super-Q, Q-104". It was modeled after San Diego Top 40 station KCBQ's "Super Q" format, a format that was growing across the country at the time. KBEY's call sign changed to KBEQ, and adopted the slogan "Super-Q Plays Favorites". Q-104 gradually chipped away at Kansas City's powerhouse AM Top 40 station, WHB. Public service announcements were called "Q Tips".
A "Super-Q" phone-in contest had become popular in San Diego, tying up the city's telephone network (a dangerous problem the station publicized wildly). It was replicated on a smaller scale in Kansas City. The large number of listeners hurriedly dialing the station's number for the contest would create many wrong numbers. That prompted Southwestern Bell in Kansas City to respond in the same way as other cities, by creating a new phone exchange just for radio, TV and other entities that might suddenly get large numbers of calls. The three-number exchange was unique, so there would be few or no wrong numbers. KBEQ jammed the lines with its "Treasure Hunt" contest. So Southwestern Bell assigned KBEQ Kansas City's first 576-7xxx number. It was (816) 576-7104, but the 576-7xxx system worked in the 913 area code too, covering both Missouri and Kansas-based stations in the Kansas City metro area.