KLOO (1340

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...

) is an AM

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting 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 rad ...

broadcasting 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. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...

format. It is licensed to

Corvallis, Oregon Corvallis ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Benton County, Oregon, Benton County in central western Oregon, United States. It is the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton Co ...

, and is owned by Bicoastal Media, via subsidiary Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC. The studios and offices are on South Marion Street in Albany. KLOO is powered at 1,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), 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 quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

s as a Class C radio station. Programming is also heard on

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater ( two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tr ...

K243CW at 96.5

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

in Corvallis.

History

KRUL

On Oct. 31, 1946, the Pacific States Radio Company obtained a

construction permit Planning permission or building permit refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. House building permits, for example, are subject to bu ...

for a new full-time radio station. The

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...

was KRUL, broadcasting on 1340

kilocycle The cycle per second is a once-common English name for the unit of frequency now known as the ''hertz'' (Hz). Cycles per second may be denoted by c.p.s., c/s, or, ambiguously, just "cycles" (Cyc., Cy., C, or c). The term comes from repetitive ph ...

s at 250 watts. ( Guide to reading History Cards) The station would be the first commercial outlet to serve Corvallis. The president of the company was J. C. Haley, head of the Brown & Haley Co., a candy manufacturer in

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

. (note: station sign-on was delayed two weeks) The station

signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...

the air on . Its offices and studios were located at 1221 S. 15th Street in Corvallis. Three months after signing on, Haley bought all of the shares he did not already own in Pacific States Radio from various Corvallis-area investors. He cited differences of opinion in the station's operation. Haley died in 1954. That prompted changes and caused a trio of men involved with KJR in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

to take an option on the Corvalis station. No transaction panned out with that group, but Pacific States Radio was sold in 1956 to Portland appliance dealer John G. Severtson.

KLOO

A year later, Severtson sold KRUL to Benton Broadcasters, Inc., a group of three men involved with other Oregon radio stations. After taking control, Benton Broadcasters changed KRUL's call sign to its present KLOO, for "locally owned and operated". The new owners filed for and received federal approval to increase power to 1,000 watts on 1350 kHz. The change never came to pass, and instead Benton sold KLOO to the Paul H. Raymer Company of Chicago in 1960. KLOO would get another new owner when KLOO, Inc., run by the Houglum family of Eugene, completed its purchase of the station in 1964. It was the second attempt by Raymer to sell: a previous deal with the Mur-Rand-A Broadcasting Corporation had fallen apart. The new owners were able to increase the station's power to 1,000 watts after the FCC approved a two-year-old application in 1964. Houglum established himself as an on-air presence as well with his daily "Toast and Coffee" show. He also made an offer of $10,000 to anyone who could bring an extraterrestrial lifeform to the station, as he wanted "to bring all the UFO talk down to earth". In January 1973, an FM station was added, KLOO-FM at 106.1 MHz. KLOO-FM initially

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...

the AM programming. (Today, KLOO-FM broadcasts at 106.3 MHz and carries a

classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

format.) In late 1977, Houglum concluded arrangements to sell KLOO-AM-FM to Medford–based California–Oregon Broadcasting Inc., remaining on air to host his "Toast and Coffee" program. The show continued until he retired in 1987. During its ownership, California–Oregon pursued a new tower site and power increase for the FM station to maximize its facility. However, a split within the controlling Smullin family led to Donald E. Smullin becoming owner of the KLOO stations plus KPRB near Bend and KOTI television in Klamath Falls in 1981. By that time, KLOO AM was airing a full service format, featuring middle of the road music with news, sports and talk. KLOO-FM changed its call letters to KFAT and began separate programming.

Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura and Art Bell

Smullin owned KLOO and KFAT until he sold the pair in 1995 to Oregon Trail Productions of

Broomfield, Colorado Broomfield is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county located in the United States, U.S. Colorado, state of Colorado. It has a consolidated government which operates under Article XX, Sect ...

. Under Oregon Trail, KLOO adopted a

sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sport, sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-low comed ...

format. It shifted to the present talk format in 1998 when it was bought by Jacor, a large owner of radio stations. Under Jacor, KLOO added popular nationally syndicated talk programs such '' The Rush Limbaugh Show'', ''The Dr. Laura Show'' with Laura Schlesinger and ''

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 198 ...

'' with

Art Bell Arthur William Bell III (June 17, 1945 – April 13, 2018) was an American broadcaster and author. He was the founder and the original host of the paranormal-themed radio program '' Coast to Coast AM'', which is syndicated on hundreds ...

. Eventually, Jacor became part of

Clear Channel Communications iHeartMedia, Inc., or 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 founded by ...

, a forerunner to today's iHeartMedia. Bicoastal Media bought KLOO from Clear Channel in 2007. It was part of the purchase of the former Clear Channel clusters in Medford, Eugene and Corvallis.

References

External links

{{News/Talk Radio Stations in Oregon LOO News and talk radio stations in the United States Corvallis, Oregon Radio stations established in 1947 1947 establishments in Oregon