|
|
|
by Alex Cosper see also American Radio History STATION HISTORY: KABC KBBQ KBIG KBLA KDAY KEZY KFAC KFOX KFWB KGBS KGFJ KGIL KHJ KIEV KIIS KIQQ KKBT KKDJ KLAC KLOS KLSX KMET KMPC KNAC KNX KOST KPOL KPPC KPWR KQLZ KRLA KROQ KRTH KSRF KTNQ KTWV KUTE KWST KZLA XPRS KBIG has remained the call letters at 104.3 FM for many years, but it originally appeared at 740 AM. The call letters were named after a station DJ who went by Carl "Mr. Big" Bailey. The original KBIG was based on Catalina Island and launched in 1952 by by John H. Poole. This signal covered Southern California from Santa Barbara to San Diego. The station picked up its sister FM at 104.3 when it first signed on the air in 1959. The FM became a simulcast of the AM with the beautiful music/instrumental format. Occasionally the station played vocal recordings. The jingles were sung by the station staff. In 1980 the AM station was sold to a religious broadcasting organization and went on to adopt the call letters KBRT. In 1987 the FM station moved away from instrumentals and flipped to soft adult contemporary. In the early 1990s KBIG updated its playlist to be more current, dropping its sixties music. By 1992 the station leaned toward Hot AC. The station aired positioning statements in 1994 that it did not play Barry Manilow music, which led the artist to threaten a $28 million lawsuit until a few days later when the station agreed to stop airing the 30-second promo. In 1998 ownership changed from Bonneville to Chancellor, which went on to merge into AM/FM then Clear Channel by 2000. In the 2000s legendary L.A. radio personality Charlie Tuna did the morning show until a format flip on September 8, 2007. The format became "contemporary adult hits" as the name changed to "104.3 MY FM." KBIG Personnel 1972-1972 Mike Evans 1978-1993 Rob Edwards 1998-1998 Delilah (also 2007) 2000-2007 Charlie Tuna (mornings) 2009-2009 Sean "Hollywood" Hamilton (afternoons) 2009-2009 Dawson McAllister (evenings) |
© Playlist Research. All rights reserved.
