KGO (AM)

'KGO' 810 kHz on the AM band, is a news-talk format radio station based in San Francisco, California. For over 25 years, KGO radio has received the number one ranking (via Arbitron) in the Bay Area, a rare feat in broadcasting. Operating with 50,000 watts of power as a clear channel station, it can be heard throughout the western United States and beyond. It is one of the West Coast flagship radio stations of ABC.

History

KGO signed on the air in 1924 from General Electric's Oakland electrical facility, as part of a planned three-station network comprising WGY in Schenectady, New York, and KOA in Denver, Colorado. Due to GE's involvement in RCA and RCA's launch of the NBC radio network, KGO was soon operated by NBC management as part of the NBC network. See the KNBR entry for a fuller discussion of NBC's San Francisco radio operations.

1940s-1950s

In 1943, the Federal Communications Commission forced NBC to sell off one of its two networks and the stations it owned which were affiliated with it. The NBC "" became ABC, and KGO went its separate way.
In the postwar period, KGO originated many live music programs, including that of Western Swing bandleader Bob Wills, a popular staple of the period. KGO was also instrumental in bringing the first exercise show to broadcasting, hosted by Jack LaLanne, a fitness instructor and gym operator in Oakland. LaLanne conducted his radio fitness show for many years on KGO, and moved in the late 1950s to KGO-TV and a successful TV syndication career.
By the late 1950s, KGO had suffered a malaise and poor ratings. In 1962, ABC management brought in new management and a new program director, Jim Dunbar, who revamped the station into one of the country's first news/talk stations. While initially unsuccessful, Dunbar stressed the live and local aspect of the programming by running the talkshows every day from locations such as Johnny Kan's Chinese restaurant, Senor Pico's Restaurant, and the legendary Hungry i nightclub. This higher profile caused KGO's ratings to begin a steady climb. Among the personalities hired during that time at KGO was future Radio Hall of Fame member J.P. McCarthy, who hosted mornings on the station in the early 1960s.

1960s-1980s

After trying various formats, KGO eventually shifted to news and talk shows. It relied heavily on the ABC radio network for its news programs, carrying Paul Harvey's twice-daily programs, but it also began to develop a strong local news staff that produced extended morning and afternoon newscasts. The local talk show hosts included Owen Spann and Jim Eason, who often interviewed visiting celebrities in the studios. Owen Spann even originated special broadcasts from Europe and Africa, interviewing various government officials. Local director-actor Jack Brooks hosted a Saturday morning entertainment program until his sudden death in June 1984, after directing a production of ''Kismet'' for the Capuchino Community Theatre that featured Jim Eason as the poet Omar Khayam. Dr. Dean Edell began his regular medical programs at KGO, leading to nationally-syndicated broadcasts.

Ratings and signal strength

Today, KGO has had over 27 years (rated quarterly by Arbitron) as consistently the #1 rated station in the Bay Area, a feat unheard of in broadcasting. The KGO signal also registers in surrounding metropolitan areas as a station listened to. Due to the nature of the signal, KGO broadcasts essentially on a north-south axis, which protects from interference with WGY at night. This makes KGO easy to listen to at night in places like Seattle and San Diego, but difficult to receive in Reno and points east of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Hosts

KGO Helicopter.

Unlike many other talk radio stations in the United States, 'KGO' originates nearly all of its own programming, with very limited syndicated programming. The majority of its programs are hosted by broadcasters who are local to the San Francisco Bay Area.
In addition to politics, the station carries a number of informational programs. John Hamilton (broadcaster) discusses travel and leisure, Gene Burns covers fine food and dining, and Joanie Greggains hosts a health and fitness program. KGO runs news during the morning and afternoon drive. KGO also ran an hour of news at noon, but that has been cancelled following the move of the KGO radio Lawyer, Len Tillem to weekday broadcasts on November 27, 2006. Its news coverage tends to have more anchor banter, longer stories, and lighter stories than the hard news format of KCBS.

Sports

KGO was the radio broadcast home for the San Francisco 49ers football team from 1987 to 2005. It has broadcast the college football games of the University of California, Berkeley Golden Bears since 1974.

Annual Cure-a-Thon

Every year, KGO hosts an annual fundraiser named the KGO Cure-a-Thon to help raise money for the The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. All of the station's regular programming is preempted for an entire day for the event. Listeners are encouraged to call in donate money to help fight cancer. An auction is also held to help raise money. Notable items have included a trip with Gene Burns on a private jet to various destinations such as Las Vegas or Italy.
At the end of the Cure-a-Thon, Ray Taliaferro generally encourages more donations by shouting his signature phrase that "It is not enough." The Cure-a-Thon then continues past the designated 24 hour mark (with encouragement from Ray), causing the station management to have a fit because advertisers have paid for advertising that isn't being broadcast. However, this long-running joke was spoofed in 2006 when the Cure-a-Thon was planned to run a bit over 24 hours.

Daily hosts

★ Ronn Owens

★ Gene Burns

★ Gil Gross - announced by KGO that he will permanently host the 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. slot formerly hosted by the late Pete Wilson, starting on 17 September 2007.

★ Bernie Ward

★ Ray Taliaferro

Weekend hosts

★ Len Tillem - ''Radio Lawyer of the Air''

★ Brian Copeland

★ John Rothmann

★ John Hamilton (broadcaster)

★ Jim Wieder

★ Joanie Greggains

★ Gene Burns - ''Dining Around, with Gene Burns''

★ Karel

★ Rich Walcoff

★ Bernie Ward - ''God Talk''

★ Dr. Bill Wattenburg

★ David Lazarus

Newscasters/reporters

★ Jennifer Jones

★ Bret Burkhart

★ Ed Baxter

★ Rosie Allen

★ Greg Jarrett

★ Jon Bristow

★ Lloyd Lindsay Young

★ Stan Burford

★ Michaelynn Meyers

Substitute hosts

★ Greg Jarrett

★ Christine Craft

★ Edie Sellers

★ James Gabbert

Former regular and guest hosts

★ Ira Blue

★ Chris Clarke

★ Al "Jazzbo" Collins

★ Russ Coughlan

★ Joe Dolan

★ Jim Eason

★ Dwayne Garrett

★ Christine Kraft

★ J.P. McCarthy

★ Shann Nix

★ Michael Savage

★ Owen Spann

★ Joe Starkey

★ Michael Krasny

★ Mel Ventor

★ Pete Wilson - died July 20, 2007 after suffering a massive heart attack during hip replacement surgery at Stanford Medical Center, Palo Alto, California.

Syndicated hosts

★ Dr. Dean Edell

★ Paul Harvey

★ Bob Brinker

★ Leo Laporte

External links

★ KGO 810 AM - offers live internet streaming feeds

★ KGO History - Some Events of the Past Decade (Unauthorized)

★ Dining Around with Gene Burns

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