WKSS (95.7
FM) is a radio station operated by
iHeartMedia
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 ...
, Inc. in the
Greater Hartford
Greater Hartford is a region located in the U.S. state of Connecticut, centered on the state's capital of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. It represents the only combined statistical area in Connecticut defined by a city within the state, being b ...
area. It broadcasts from its original transmitter site in
Meriden, and has a rare dual
city of license
In U.S., Canadian, and Mexican broadcasting, a city of license or community of license is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.
In North American broadcast ...
of
Hartford
Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
–Meriden.
Airing a
mainstream top 40
Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/contemporary hit radio, CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played o ...
format, the station is currently branded as
KISS 95-7 with the slogan "All The Hits". Its studios and offices are located on Columbus Boulevard in Hartford.
WKSS broadcasts in the
HD Radio
HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. HD radio generally simulcast, simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD R ...
format.
History
Early years as WMMW-FM (1945–1960)
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the Silver City Crystal Co., the first licensee of the station that would become WKSS, was one of at least 150 American enterprises that designed and manufactured
quartz crystal oscillating devices that use the mechanical
resonance
Resonance is a phenomenon that occurs when an object or system is subjected to an external force or vibration whose frequency matches a resonant frequency (or resonance frequency) of the system, defined as a frequency that generates a maximu ...
of a vibrating
crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...
of
piezoelectric material such as
quartz
Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...
to create an electrical signal with a very precise
frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. Frequency is an important parameter used in science and engineering to specify the rate of oscillatory and vibratory phenomena, such as mechanical vibrations, audio ...
, making the timing of a clock or watch as well as the tuning of broadcast transmitters and receivers consistent and reliable. Since
tuned circuits, the predecessor to the oscillating crystal, would allow frequencies to drift by as much as 4 kHz, crystal devices and the broadcast equipment in which they were installed became essential components of the military build-up during the war because they could maintain constant communication and coordination in the field.
The principal owner of the Silver City companies was Carl A. Schultz, a native of
Oslo, Norway
Oslo ( or ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of towns and cities in Norway, most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a Counties of Norway, county and a Municipalities of Norway, municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a populat ...
, and a veteran of
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. His son Carl W. "Buzz" Schultz managed the stations.
As the wartime ban on licensing new stations was lifted, the Silver City Crystal Co. applied to the
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...
for construction permits for
AM (amplitude modulation) and FM radio licenses in Meriden. The FCC authorized the station that would become
WMMW (AM) on October 8, 1945. During the week of December 31, 1945 – January 4, 1946, it authorized WMMW-FM, the station that would become WKSS 25 years later.
The launch of WMMW, which is assigned to operate at 1470 kHz, was delayed by hearings before the FCC involving companies that also held licenses for nearby stations that operate on that same regional frequency: a construction permit for
WLAM
WLAM (1470 AM) is a radio station broadcasting an adult standards and oldies format. Licensed to Lewiston, Maine, United States, the station serves the Lewiston- Auburn area. Established in 1947, the station is owned by the estate of Robert Bi ...
in
Lewiston, Maine
Lewiston (; ) is the List of municipalities in Maine, second most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine, with the city's population at 37,121 as of the 2020 United States census. The city lies halfway between Augusta, Maine, Augusta, the sta ...
, held by the Lewiston-
Auburn Broadcasting Corporation and an existing station,
WSAN in
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, it is the List o ...
, owned and operated by the
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...
Broadcasting Co. Ultimately WMMW began broadcasting on June 8, 1947.
It appealed immediately to advertisers, reporting that it was already operating highly profitably with its first monthly billing reaching $135,000, all from local businesses. Within a few weeks, it was busy producing a series of tributes to
Connie Mack
Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. Mack holds records for the most wins (3,731), losses (3,948), ties (76), and ga ...
(1862–1956), the celebrated
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
manager, as he and his
Philadelphia Athletics
The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...
descended on Meriden to honor the 63rd anniversary of "The Grand Old Man of Baseball" stepping to home plate in his first game as a professional player there (on July 1, 1884) with a parade, banquet, and exhibition game against the Insilcos, the city's semi-pro club.
As typical for the time, finalization of the FM signal lagged behind the priority of getting its AM counterpart up and running. It did not actually sign-on to broadcast until sometime in November or December. But over the years, the first broadcast date of the FM station has been conflated with the June 8, 1947, birth date of the WMMW Radio enterprise as a whole, perhaps partly because the precise late autumn date for the launch of WMMW-FM itself has apparently been lost to history.
By the start of 1948, however, WMMW-FM was simulcasting the programming on WMMW (AM) with an ERP of 7,000 watts. The stations' schedule had a variety of programs. One was the daily half-hour ''
Polka
Polka is a dance style and genre of dance music in originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though generally associated with Czech and Central European culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the ...
Time'' hosted by Jim Dunham, who insisted that the residents of "PT Ville" submit their mailed record requests in rhyming verse. (Three letters would entitle the sender to membership in the "Polka Club".) Setting the example, he would open each show with the salutation, "Greetings, mates! Let's congregate. It's time to polka-palpitate."
Another program was ''Swap Shop.'' Monroe "Bill" Benton, moderating the show as the shop's "proprietor", would connect listeners who phoned into the program to exchange offers for trades. The show unexpectedly created a sensational story on June 2, 1948, when a woman named Nellie Wolan called to swap her $14,000 six-bedroom house at 125 Pearl Street in Middletown, Connecticut for marriage to a man who must "earn
t least
T, or t, is the twentieth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''.
It is d ...
$5,000 a year,
etall, dark, and good looking, and be very affectionate 'because I like a lot of loving.'" Speaking from the studio on June 4, she provided more detailed expectations for her "dream man" and opened two of the letters expressing interest since she first proffered matrimony to eligible bachelors. Benton continued to share further updates with his audience over subsequent days. A
United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...
(UPI) report transformed the unemployed typist into an international human interest story, inundating Wolan with over 400 letters, telegrams, and phone calls from suitors across the United States and Canada as well as from Australia, England, France, and Spain.
She dated several of the men who contacted her after they passed an interview over the phone. "And I'm on a
party line," she told the UPI. "The neighbors all listen in. It's embarrassing." Nonetheless, one
New London candidate whom she quickly began to favor turned out to be already married to someone else. In fact, none of the applicants would ever receive a proposal. Immediately after her son Howard (1950–2001) was born on November 13, 1950, with
cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, spasticity, stiff muscles, Paresis, weak muscles, and tremors. There may b ...
, she filed a paternity lawsuit against a traveling salesman from
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...
. By that time, she had determined that offering to swap her house for a husband had been a poor decision. "A girl can't find the right man that way," she told the
Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...
''Sunday Herald''. Her persistent lack of income was also forcing her to consider selling the house itself. In the end, she would never marry anyone.
The stations also participated in the radio industry's annual campaign to drive contributions to the
March of Dimes
March of Dimes is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies. The organization was founded by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, to co ...
charity. During one afternoon in 1949 for example, items donated by local merchants were auctioned by telephone to the audience for a total of $1,000. They estimated they received 500 bids.
Together with WMMW (AM), WMMW-FM's first main studios and offices occupied the entire fifth (top) floor of the landmark 1870 Palace Block building at 8 W. Main Street (at the intersection with Hanover Street) in Meriden, Connecticut. They also had a studio at 505 Main Street in Middletown, Connecticut. After the Palace Block burned to the ground on February 26, 1957, the stations were temporarily removed to facilities at the FM transmitter site.
New studios were built in Meriden, Connecticut inside a former pump house at 122 Charles Street at a four-acre industrial site that runs along Parker Avenue. Listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
as the Meriden Curtain Fixture Company Factory since 1986, the pump house and the adjoining factory buildings were built in 1892 by the Charles Parker Co. When WMMW and WMMW-FM were there, however, the complex was home to the Silver City Glass Co. and its offspring, the Silver City Crystal Co.
Functional music format
Over the course of 1948 the stations' engineers worked to increase the ERP of WMMW-FM to 20 kW, receiving a few construction permit extensions along the way. At the same time, many other authorized operators were returning their FM licenses to the FCC citing the poor post-war economy and the slow sales of FM receivers to consumers, due partly to the new demand for television sets among the public. But the Silver City Crystal Company was making arrangements to use WMMW-FM for a commercial purpose that would define the station throughout the 1950s.
= Muzak Origins of Functional Music
=
As radio broadcasting got underway in the 1920s, an entrepreneur named
George Owen Squier
George Owen Squier (March 21, 1865 – March 24, 1934) was an American general, scientist, and inventor best known for inventing and popularizing what today is called Muzak.
Life and military career
Squier was born in Dryden, Michigan. He g ...
(1865–1934), a major general in charge of the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...
Signal Corps
A signal corps is a military branch, responsible for military communications (''signals''). Many countries maintain a signal corps, which is typically subordinate to a country's army.
Military communication usually consists of radio, telephone, ...
, invented a method to deliver music over
leased telephone lines on a subscription basis. Founding "Wired Radio, Inc." in 1922 in conjunction with the
North American Company
The North American Company was a holding company incorporated in New Jersey on June 14, 1890, and controlled by Henry Villard, to succeed to the assets and property of the Oregon and Transcontinental Company. It owned public utilities and publ ...
, then the country's largest utility company, Squier changed the name to "
Muzak
Muzak is an American brand of background music played in retail stores and other public establishments owned by Mood Media.
The name ''Muzak'', a blend of music and the popular camera brand name Kodak, has been in use since 1934 and has been ...
" in 1934 shortly before his death. (The name was retired in 2013 when the organization was assimilated by its holding company,
Mood Media
Mood Media Corporation is an international in-store provider of music, digital signage, hold music, on-hold messaging, scent, integrated audio/video, and interactive mobile marketing products. It was founded in 2004, and is based in Austin, Te ...
.) After struggling to find a market in consumers' homes, Muzak eventually determined that its service was better suited for retail, manufacturing, and similar business environments.
Muzak developed its own recording standards that they began to characterize as "functional music". Functional music was designed for environments such as
assembly line
An assembly line, often called ''progressive assembly'', is a manufacturing process where the unfinished product moves in a direct line from workstation to workstation, with parts added in sequence until the final product is completed. By mechan ...
s to stimulate and maximize productivity with increases in tempo as well as deliberate periods of silence that would help to keep the workers aware of the music and their rhythms when they returned. Many American factories making equipment for the war effort used the Muzak service in their facilities.
Using telephone lines gave Muzak the freedom to indulge in these pauses and play music without any announcements or other interruptions. They regarded this as a key differentiator from their radio broadcasting counterparts which were obligated by FCC regulations to have licensed operators on duty during all broadcasting hours and air proper legal identification. Furthermore, since radio could not limit its service to paid subscribers, carrying advertising was essential for any station's financial viability. Radio simply could not match the model that Muzak was able to exploit.
= Storecasting Corporation of America
=
By 1945, an attorney and advertising executive named Stanley Joseloff had become fascinated with the retail operations of
grocery store
A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop or grocer's shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a retail store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday US usage, however, "grocery store" is a synon ...
s. In fact, as the concept of the supermarket was introduced and continued to evolve, Joseloff would patent several methods for product displays and checkout processes. He also possessed a deep background in theatrical and radio entertainment, having worked as a lawyer for brothers
Lee and
Jacob J. Shubert, the founders of
Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
's
Broadway district, and as a producer for the popular radio shows ''
The Life of Riley
''The Life of Riley'' is an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, as well as two different television series, and a comic book.
Radio series
The radio program initially aired on the B ...
'' on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
and ''Time to Smile'' starring
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. Cantor was one of the prominent entertainers of his era.
Some of h ...
on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
. He was also a successful songwriter, sharing authorship with
Sidney Lippman for the "girl back home number" ''Dear Arabella,'' a minor hit for
The Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1941.
Joseloff envisioned using Muzak to provide functional music to grocery stores. But unlike the music-only concept in which Muzak had invested itself, he believed in carrying spoken-word announcements to advertise brands and broaden product awareness during the shopping experience. He founded his own business, Storecasting Corporation of America, around this concept.
In 1945, the Storecast service debuted to fifteen
First National grocery stores (later renamed "Finast") in greater Hartford through the local Muzak franchise. Although not without some initial technical difficulties, the service soon expanded to grocery store chains in other major American population centers.
Libby's
Libby's (Libby, McNeill & Libby) was an American company that produced canned food and beverages. The firm was established in 1869 in Chicago, Illinois. The Libby's trademark is currently owned by Libby's Brand Holding based in Geneva, Switzerlan ...
,
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
,
Swift
Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to:
* SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks
** SWIFT code
* Swift (programming language)
* Swift (bird), a family of birds
It may also refer to:
Organizations
* SWIF ...
,
General Foods
General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the United States by C. W. Post, Charles William (C. W.) Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895.
The company changed its name to "General Foods" in 1929, a ...
, and reportedly sixty other national and regional accounts became satisfied Storecast advertisers. "Our record of advertising renewals is excellent," Joseloff crowed to the FM Association convention in Chicago on September 28, 1948. "We have increased average sales of all of our accounts by at least 60%."
Nonetheless, Storecast's limitation to point-of-sale messaging could not fulfill its advertisers' needs for reach and frequency. To solve this, Storecast partnered with stations such as ''
The Hartford Times
''The Hartford Times'' was a daily afternoon newspaper serving the Hartford, Connecticut, community from 1817 to 1976. It was owned for decades by the Gannett Company which sold the financially struggling paper in 1973 to the owners of the ''New ...
'' simulcast of
WTHT
WTHT (99.9 FM; "The Wolf") is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Auburn, Maine, the station serves Greater Portland. It is owned by Binnie Media, with studios on Thomas Drive in Westbrook. Programming was simulc ...
(merged with WONS in 1954 to form WGTH, today
WPOP
WPOP (1410 AM) is a commercial radio station in Hartford, Connecticut, broadcasting a news/talk and sports radio format, owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The station's studios and offices are located on Columbus Boulevard in Hartford.
WPOP broadcas ...
) and WTHT-FM (dark since 1950) and Seaboard Radio Broadcasting's
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
simulcast of
WIBG and
WIBG-FM to carry some of its advertisers' commercials. By this time, Storecast had added the
American Stores Co. and the
National Tea Co. to its grocery empire of wired sound, reputedly 235 stores in all.
Still, Storecast was frustrated with the Muzak franchise delivery system. Leased lines were expensive, prone to disruption, and not available in all locations. Joseloff had concluded that Storecast should conclude its Muzak operation and migrate to a radio broadcasting model instead.
Joseloff addressed the convention of the FM Association to announce that he had concluded an agreement with WHFC, Inc. to start broadcasting the Storecasting service over its FM station,
WEHS. Beginning in October, approximately 100 National (Tea) Food stores around Chicago would access the service using receivers fixed to the 97.9 MHz frequency for WEHS although any listener with a standard FM receiver would, of course, be able to tune it in as well.
= Storecast affiliation
=
Even as WTHT-AM-FM was carrying some of the Storecasting advertising schedules in Connecticut, by December 1948 Joseloff was finalizing arrangements with the
Silver City Crystal Company to broadcast the Storecast service over WMMW-FM. By January 1949, Monroe Benton was promoted from news director for the WMMW Radio simulcast to be the first program director of the programmatically independent FM station, coinciding with the power increase to 20 kW on January 10.
As WBMI (1960–1971)
As part of a process of dissolving the Silver City Crystal Company which would be completed in 1961, starting in 1960 changes were made to both WMMW stations, primarily to keep the FM station within control of the Schultz family. During the week June 16–22, 1960, the FCC authorized the company's request to change the call letters from WMMW-FM to WBMI. On August 30, 1960, Silver City sold WMMW (AM) to Meriden – Wallingford Radio, Inc. And on July 27, 1961, ownership of WBMI was formally transferred to Business Music, Inc. (not to be confused with
Broadcast Music, Inc.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 22.4 milli ...
, the music licensing company that commonly uses the acronym BMI), a new firm led by Buzz Schultz.
On May 1, 1962, WBMI became one of the first stations to broadcast in stereo after the FCC standardized the multiplex system.
On March 21, 1963, Business Music, Inc. applied to the FCC for permission to change the city of license for WBMI from Meriden to the combination of Hartford Meriden. When the commission granted this unusual request on October 30, 1963, it also waived the requirement that the station's main studio be maintained in Meriden, Connecticut.
As a beautiful music station (1971–1984)
On May 1, 1971, Communico, Inc. acquired WBMI from Business Music, Inc. for $426,500. Moving quickly, it changed the call letters to WKSS on May 23, 1971 and during the week June 20–26, 1971 relocated the station from 122 Charles Street in Meriden, Connecticut to the 1893 Queen Anne style Borden-Munsill mansion in Hartford, Connecticut which faces the South Green Historic District from 2 Wethersfield Avenue (at the intersection with Wyllys Street).
On February 17, 1977, Insilco Broadcasting purchased WKSS for $1,689,500 and in 1978 installed Tom Durney as general manager, his first such position. To oversee programming and operations, he recruited
Dick Bertel, a broadcaster well known in Connecticut after having worked on-air since 1956 for the formerly combined facilities of
WTIC Radio and Channel 3 (then WTIC-TV, now
WFSB
WFSB (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Hartford, Connecticut, United States, serving the Hartford–New Haven market as an affiliate of CBS. Owned by Gray Media, the station maintains studios on Denise D'Ascenzo Way in Rocky H ...
) in Hartford. Augmenting the instrumental
beautiful music with some light vocals, personality-driven engagement, and a news and sports department, Bertel hosted the weekday AM drive program "Good Morning, New England" and filled the schedule with other popular hosts including Jim Perry (also the chief engineer), Mike Ogden, Jon Stevens, Steve Vallensky, Greg Williams, Roxanne Dorey
landers Bob Ellsworth, Jim Austin, Douglas Richards, and Scott Vowinkle (known on-air as Scott Evans), a few of whom were also veterans of WTIC. While Durney and Bertel's strategy included attracting a significant share of the station's audience from market powerhouse WTIC (AM) (which was transitioning from a
Middle-of-the-Road (MOR), music and information format into pure
news/talk
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, interviews ...
), WKSS' chief rival then was
WRCH, another FM outlet playing beautiful music in Hartford, Connecticut.
On January 26, 1981, Insilco sold WKSS to Marlin Broadcasting for $2,200,000 and transferred Durney to
New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
to be the vice president and general manager of
WQUE-FM
WQUE-FM (93.3 MHz, ''"Q93.3"'') is a commercial radio station in New Orleans, Louisiana. It airs an urban contemporary radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It carries two nationally syndicated programs from co-owned Premiere Netw ...
,
WGSO, and the Insilco Sports Network (appointing him less than a year later to executive vice president of the company's entire FM division). In response, Marlin's president Howard "Woody" Tanger elevated Bertel to be vice president and general manager of WKSS, a position he held while continuing to host the morning drive program. Adopting the slogans "The Good Music Station with Personality" and "A Kiss is More Than Just a Kiss", WKSS performed well in the ratings and in revenue share while owned by Insilco and Marlin, making it possible in 1982 to move from the mansion to a fourteen-story office building located in
Downtown Hartford
Downtown Hartford, Connecticut is the primary business district of the city, and the center of Connecticut's state government. Because of the large number of insurance companies headquartered there, Hartford is known as the "Insurance Capital of ...
at 60 Washington Street (at the corner of Buckingham Street), occupying street-level offices and studios. (Built in 1966, the building was imploded by the State of Connecticut on January 28, 2001, due to an
asbestos
Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...
health hazard.)
As a top 40 station (1984–present)
In October 1984, concert promoter Don Law, Tim Montgomery, and Bob Mitchell, formed Precision Media to purchase WKSS for $3,430,000, and flipped its format to a
contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio (CHR, also known as contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top ...
as "95.7 The New Kiss FM". In the Fall of 1989, "95.7 Kiss FM" became "Kiss 95.7", and began shifting toward a dance-leaning CHR format.
In addition to
WKCI-FM "KC101" in New Haven, Connecticut, J.B. Wilde programmed WKSS through March 2015, when he was promoted by
iHeartMedia
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 ...
to assume the program director role for both
KDWB-FM
KDWB-FM (101.3 MHz) is an commercial radio station broadcasting in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces o ...
, and
KTCZ-FM
KTCZ-FM (97.1 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States cen ...
"Cities 97.1" in
Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi, Minnesota River, Minnesota, and St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota), ...
.
References
External links
*
* (
Guide to reading History Cards)
{{Kiss FM Radio stations
1947 establishments in Connecticut
Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States
IHeartMedia radio stations
Meriden, Connecticut
Radio stations established in 1947
KSS