14K For A Day

[hello4]

Just so we don't have another two-year-long thread, I thought I would start a new one, since this seems to be a perennially-discussed topic which will probably continue to live on!

[NightAire]

Heh...  I thought I was doing people a favor by not starting new threads every year, so they could avoid the topic if they wanted...  my bad.   

[hello4]

I guess it depends on how you have your threads display...in my case, it keeps rising to the top with every new post and can't be avoided.  I suppose I shouldn't complain...another board I go to has threads with 99 pages, which maxes them out and they have to start a new topic.  Better 6 than 99! 

[Tower Lights]

I was looking at the old thread.  The signoff was at noon on Friday, I was in the building.

Another interesting twist occurred at noon. When the "Crew" signed off the final payment for the sale had not been transferred.  The owner of Signal standing next to me would not allow the switch to be thrown to allow programming from 71st & Sheridan to hit the air.  He told Mel to continue on until the switch had been made, Mel said no they were done and would not continue the format.  I don't recall who, since I was away from the studios in the tech center, but one of them started gathering up old carted music they could find in the storage racks and started playing it, I'm sure it was an interesting mix and I'm fairly sure no one talked.

One of the new owners was on the phone screaming at the top of his lungs.  The Signal owner was holding the phone away from him and everyone in the room could hear the screaming.  The drama continued for about 35 to 40 minutes until the bank called and said the transfer was complete and the switch was thrown.

[NightAire]

Tower, you're 100% correct.  I wasn't there, but at home, listening (and trying to figure out what was going on).

Tim Glass (air name) came on after Mel's "beam us up!", the transporter sfx, and an sfx of a walk to a door and it closing behind them.  All Tim said, at straight up noon, was "This is KELI, Tulsa, and KELI-FM, Broken Arrow."

I thought it was about the next 20 minutes, but either way: the songs that began to play were things like "Thank You For Being A Friend," "Bluer Than Blue," "Empty Garden," etc., and as a fan of the station, it felt like the new owners were patronizing me.   

(Little did I know at the time, it was actually the old K-Crew, saying "goodbye" again... this time through old carts from the Sunny 92 / KSNE days!)

The first real audio from the new studios was an (initially over-driven) mic opened with someone saying something about it being "a going away weekend!"  OUCH again.  (They may have meant summer vacation or something...  but everything at that point was personal to me.)

The story told to me last year by Jeff Buckley (R.I.P.) was of being on the "other end."  He said he was supposed to read that opening liner, but the engineer (? I think) saw he was getting cold feet and said, "you want me to do it?" and Jeff said OK.   

The first song on what would become KQ92 (although Jeff said EVERYBODY still called it 92K, despite the staff's protests!) was Van Halen's "Dance The Night Away."

(You're right: my memory is not that good.  Cassette recorders are wonderful things.)   

I'd love to hear more about your experiences with KELI AM & FM!  Anyone who heard it and all who worked there seem to agree it was a unique and wonderful time in Tulsa radio.

[Tower Lights]

If there is a tape that says it was 20 minutes I will go with that, it seemed longer but the memory of exact timing fades after 25 plus years.

Yes it was a blast to work there and it was a very sad day for more than just the on-air crew, there were many support staff that also lost their jobs that day or within the following week.  The business manager lasted a bit longer and was the last to go.