jaxradio.net

OLD TIME RADIO

CHINA BEACH RADIO & ROCKET CITY

WJAX RADIO

VERSATILE ENGINEERS

MORE WJAX

LATE THIRTIES WJAX REWIND: WE'RE MOVING ON UP

1948 WJAX BUDGET

1961 WJAX PROJECTED BUDGET

WJAX 1964

RADIO-RELATED STREET NAMES

BROADCAST PLACE

WJAX AM MASTER CONTROL IN THE 1940s

WJAX ROSTER: STATION MANAGERS, CHIEF ENGINEERS

OLD TIME RADIO

Pre-1960 OTR is mostly spoken word though variety shows include popular music of the time. Also, talk, drama, comedy, detective yarns, westerns, adventure, science fiction, etc. Many consider OTR as quaint fare compared to modern entertainment alternatives but the price is right and it provides a unique look back into earlier times.

Archive.org includes many pre-1960 OTR shows that are available for free download. Load some of these on a portable mp3 player or a flash drive and you are set. Most shows on this site are public domain with no restrictions. Many entrepreneurs sell DVDs packed with OTR shows and series at reasonable prices.

With the rise of "top 40" music formats and spinoffs during the later '50s, music shows eventually predominated. Pop/Rock, Country & Western, Rhythm & Blues, and so-called Middle of the Road (MOR)--usually integrated with national network affiliation and heavy emphasis on news, sports,etc.--became the most popular broadcast radio formats.

Pop music shows, mostly from the 1960s forward, are found on reelradio.com Copyright agreements prevent downloading but most programs can be streamed on demand. Comments posted with each exhibit are open to be read by everyone.

The American Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) Archive site http://afrtsarchive.blogspot.com maintained by Thomas Whetston is another source of free entertainment. Vinyl LPs distributed to AFRTS stations worldwide for broadcast included performances by many well-known entertainers. Programs are diverse and date as far back as WWII with reasonable audio fidelity.

Because of copyrights, contractual agreements led to many of these AFRTS discs being destroyed when stations closed or if storage space became limited. Fortunately, some survived.

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CHINA BEACH RADIO & ROCKET CITY

During the Vietnam War, China Beach was a relatively luxurious R&R destination for battle-weary military. Adjacent to the big American Danang airbase, China Beach also provided the title and setting for a popular television series during the late 1980s and early '90s.

Often called "Rocket City" because of the nightly barrage of incoming aimed at the airbase by communists, Danang was in the primary coverage area of an American military AM broadcast station--AFVN. The station transmitted from Red Beach with studios on nearby Monkey Mountain. AFVN Danang also offered television programming and mostly-automated FM radio. But AM radio was the medium that mattered the most and drew the largest audience.

Look closely for Thom's December 1, 2015 AFRTS Archive. Starting on the left side of the main page, scroll down, follow the link(s), turn up your speaker volume and you might hear a voice that sounds vaguely familiar hosting the April 7, 1972 American Forces Vietnam Network Danang Dawnbuster show. Try saying that five times quickly.

With the Officer in Charge (and usual DDB host) out of signal range 350 miles away in Saigon, it was time for a bit of radio fun on 850 KHz from a 10kW station with studios carved into the side of a mountain, staffed by ad hoc DJs.

In addition, AFVN Danang had a top-of-the-line Collins KWM-2 and linear amplifier to communicate on +/- 7250 KHz with network HQ in Saigon. It also sizzled on 20 meters using an improvised dipole sloped down into sort of a jungle along the side of Monkey Mountain. 

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AFVN VIETNAM RADIO SOUND MONTAGE

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WJAX RADIO

via www.floridamemory.com

This pre-1940 scene looks northwestward from Main St. Today, Downtown Campus sits off to the left. The two-story WJAX studio building is the red structure between the two towers. I remember it as mostly cream-colored or white. The upper floor included studios and administrative offices. The bottom story was mainly storage space by the 1960s.

Broadcast Place runs at an angle behind the studio building. Hogan's Creek flowed near the edge of Broadcast Place. It was notorious for temporary flooding after heavy rainfall. Broadcast Place was little more than a widened alley from Laura St. to the building. The main WJAX entrance from Broadcast Place was near the northeast corner of the building. Entering the building led directly to a stairwell rising to the second story entrance to WJAX studios and offices.

The WJAX nerve center, the AM radio master control room, was in the center part of the southern end of the building on the top story. The only other exit from the top floor was a fire escape adjacent to the master control room. Obscured by a small tree, it faced the front in this sketch.

WJAX also transmitted, presumably from the lower floor, at this location until the late 1938 when a new 5 kW WJAX transmitter site opened at the Hyde Park Golf Course in west Jacksonville.

One tower remained to be used by various city agencies. The longwire antenna and second tower were removed after the transmitter moved to Hyde Park.

Major interior upgrades in 1940 included a new master control console and an enlarged studio for live orchestras. The studio building was demolished in 1972 after WJAX moved to the waterfront Civic Auditorium.

Other WJAX scenes include a miniature golf course in the grassy foreground area.

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From Broadcasting April 15, 1933


VERSATILE ENGINEERS

Jacksonville City Station Reaps Profit in Unique Setup

STAFFED entirely by engineers, selling no local time directly for revenue and yet earning a substantial profit annually - such is the unique story of WJAX, Jacksonville, Fla. The station is owned and operated by the City of Jacksonville and derives most of its revenue from its NBC connection, according to John T. Hopkins, III, manager and chief engineer.

Under its NBC arrangement, it gets accounts both from the WEAF and WJZ networks. All local time is allocated to a selling organization operated by local musicians, who pay the copyright royalties, purchase program listings in the newspapers and otherwise bear all expenses of local programming, according to Mr. Hopkins.

National spot accounts, like the network accounts, are handled by the station management, profits going to the city treasury. Mr. Hopkins joined WJAX in 1925, coming from the old A. T.& T. Station WCAP, Washington.

His engineering assistant is Gifford Grange, University of Florida graduate and radio amateur who won distinction in handling communications during the 1926 Miami hurricane. The other engineers, all of whom are also amateurs and all of whom double in announcing, are local products. They are John Canepa, Robert Reid, Kenneth Brock and William Waldo. 

Gifford Grange was W4HZ, Robert Reid was W4TK and John Canepa was (W)4IY. Calls for Brock, Waldo and possibly Hopkins III unknown.

Majordomo Hopkins III, a bespectacled towering engineer, 6 ft. 6 inches tall, led the station(s) for 30 years until retiring in 1955 to become VP of a Jacksonville advertising agency.

Hopkins came to Florida in early 1925 to plan Miami station WIOD and then moved to Jacksonville to supervise the construction of WJAX

One of Hopkins III's last projects at WJAX was petitioning FCC to grant a television license for channel 12 to the City of Jacksonville. There were numerous competing applications for what became WFGA and the City's bid came up short.

Several years later, evidence of improprieties and undue influence in the initial license grant surfaced which caused FCC to revoke the grant to Florida-Georgia Television and eventually re-award the license to a different entity. Channel 12's callsign became WTLV in 1971.

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MORE WJAX

City-owned WJAX was Jacksonville's first permanent broadcast station. Established in 1925 and an integral part of Jacksonville's history, WJAX provided an important contribution to the fabric of life here for our parents and grandparents.

With many more entertainment alternatives available now, the role of WJAX and broadcast radio is hard for most to appreciate today. No cable television, relatively few over-the-air radio-television alternatives, no VCRs, no Ipods, no handheld phones, no texts, no spacebook and of course, no internet.

WJAX garnered high ratings and brought in large amounts of revenue to the city treasury. It was one of the last municipal stations in the U.S. before being sold to private interests.

WJAX AM signed on in late November 1925 and added FM service on 95.1 MHz in 1949. WJAX transmitted from the Hyde Park Golf Course in west Jacksonville with studios downtown across from where Downtown Campus sits today. Numerous hams and NOFARS members worked there spanning a half-century.

Jacksonville Braves/Suns baseball, Georgia Bulldog and FSU football, "Big Jim" on the air, NBC News on the Hour and other network programs, long weather forecasts by meteorologists from the "weather bureau" at Imeson Airport, local news, etc.--WJAX was a "old line, full service" outlet.

Recordings of WJAX from the time that it was a municipal station are very rare. If you have any, let me know.

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LATE THIRTIES WJAX REWIND: WE'RE MOVING ON UP

1937 was a big year for WJAX. John Hopkins applied for an FCC Construction Permit to increase power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts. To accommodate the larger transmitter and nighttime directional antenna system, more space was necessary.

The city-owned Hyde Park Golf Course near San Juan Ave. and Lane Avenue in west Jacksonville provided adequate space. The city placed a new building to house the 5,000 watt unit in the middle of the course.

The city spent $23,417.61 for the new transmitter, financed by notes bearing 5% interest. The city redeemed these bonds with three annual payments.

Operating the new set-up at the Golf Course also required a remote control unit priced at $2,500.

To announce the new, beefed-up WJAX, $5,000 was allocated to rent billboard space. And to better commute between the WJAX studio downtown at 1 Broadcast Place and the Hyde Park Golf Course, the city spent $700 for a station panel truck.

FCC approved the upgrades and in 1938, the new transmitter site fired up. And additional "hazards" abutted some course fairways. Fore!

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1948 WJAX RADIO BUDGET

The Jacksonville City Budget provides a glimpse of WJAX then. The City produced annual budget booklets. John Hollister, W4FWZ served as Jacksonville City Auditor for many years. Before passing away, John gave me a set of these booklets. Here are some selected items that were budgeted for WJAX as described in the 1948 budget booklet:

SALARIES

Station Manager & Chief Engineer (John T. Hopkins)--$5,895**

Assistant Chief Engineer-------------------------------------$4,305

4 Senior Operators-------------------------------------------$14,910

Studio Operators-Part Time----------------------------------$8,516

Studio Production Manager----------------------------------$3,730

Program Director----------------------------------------------$3,780

Announcers-Part Time----------------------------------------$9,407

Traffic Clerk (Commercials)----------------------------------$2,430

Secretary--------------------------------------------------------$2,760

Watchman-------------------------------------------------------$2,540

Janitor-----------------------------------------------------------$1,530

MATERIAL & SUPPLIES

Office Supplies-------------------------------------------------$2,415

Technical----------------------------------------------------------$225

MAINTENANCE & OPERATION

Antenna-----------------------------------------------------------$407.50

Studio Equipment------------------------------------------------$420

Transmitter--------------------------------------------------------$900

Vacuum Tubes---------------------------------------------------$2,127.25

Studios & Galleries----------------------------------------------$287.50

Building------------------------------------------------------------$1,750

CONTRACTUAL SERVICES

Electricity----------------------------------------------------------$4,060

Piano Rental--------------------------------------------------------$300

NBC Thesaurus---------------------------------------------------$1,800

Associated Program Service-----------------------------------$1,500

Staff Musicians---------------------------------------------------$7,600

Telephone----------------------------------------------------------$185

Broadcast Transmitter Site Loop (Hyde Park Golf Course)--$900

Remote Broadcast Circuit (Local)-----------------------------$1,200

Cost of News------------------------------------------------------$4,410

Music Royalties (ASCAP, BMI, etc.)--------------------------$8,300

Listener Surveys (Hooper, BMB)------------------------------$2,000

Sales Commissions----------------------------------------------$18,049

Legal & Engineering Fees--------------------------------------$4,000

Insurance----------------------------------------------------------$1,900

Technical Auto Expense (Ford Car for Station Engineer)--$350 ##

Administrative Car Expense------------------------------------$350 ##

TRANSFER TO GENERAL FUND (PROFIT TO CITY)-----$143,309.50

FM STATION%%

Salaries----------------------------------------------------------$9,000

Supervision------------------------------------------------------$3,000

Antenna----------------------------------------------------------$407.50

Transmitter-------------------------------------------------------$900

Tubes-------------------------------------------------------------$2,127.50

Buildings---------------------------------------------------------$1,000

Electricity--------------------------------------------------------$2,436

Telephone--------------------------------------------------------$185

Insurance--------------------------------------------------------$1,200

TOTAL BUDGET

WJAX---------------------------------------------------------$294,744.25

WJAX-FM-----------------------------------------------------$20,255.75

TOTAL----------------------------------------------------------$315,000

=====================================================

FOOTNOTES & COMMENTS BY N4UF

** = The WJAX Station Manager/Chief Engineer's (John T. Hopkins) salary was allocated as $1,965 X 3 representing Technical Expense, Selling Expense and General Administrative Expense.

## = City regulations did not allow advertising "trade-outs" that were common at most other radio stations. These trade-outs usually included gasoline, car service and even rental charge forgiveness from auto dealerships. At some stations, even bar (liquor) tabs were traded out.

%% = 1948 was the year that WJAX-FM was slated to go on the air. The FM budget figures probably were mostly bookkeeping entries.

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WJAX 1961 PROJECTED BUDGET

SALARIES

Chief Engineer------------$6,708 Radio Operator----------$5,568

Announcers-Salesmen--$57,000 Steno-Secretary---------$4,740

General Manager-----------$8,040

EXPENSES

Supplies---------------------$6,000 Maintenance------------$5,000

Building Repairs, Tower Painting--$2,000 Electricity-------------$4,500

Broadcast Loop to Xmtr---$1,250 UPI News---------------$5,000

Remote Broadcast Circ.--$2,000 Telephone, Telegraph--$4,000

ASCAP, BMI, Royalties--$7,000 Sales Commissions---$25,000

Listener Surveys----------$3,500 Promotional-------------$3,000

Newspaper Program Listings--$3,650 Legal, Engineering---$3,000

NBC News Costs---------$1,500 Operation & Maint.----$1,000

GM Travel Expenses-----$3,000 Insurance---------------$5,100

FM Transmitter & Accessories (partial cost)------------------------$10,000

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WJAX 1964

Summary from the City of Jacksonville Annual Financial Report For The Year Ended December 31, 1964

MUNICIPAL RADIO STATION WJAX

Radio Station, WJAX, has been municipally-owned and operated since 1926 (should read 1925--N4UF). The station is an NBC Affiliate on 930-kc. and 95.1-Mc. The listening population is estimated to be about 700,000.

For the Year 1964, the Broadcast Revenue was $269,280.34, after commissions and discounts, which was an increase of 33,555.06, or 14.2%, as compared with 1963. Net Income for 1964 in the amount of $111,354.42 was 24.6% over 1963 Net Income of $89,387.94.

Network revenues increased $1,788.82 in 1964. National spot revenue increased $44,295.87. There was an increase of $12,261.96 in Broadcast expense in 1964.

Prior to 1954, Radio Station WJAX consistently contributed net profits to the General Fund of the City (a total 1929-1954 of $1,500,000). Public acceptance of television brought advertiser resistance and declining revenue to radio. To correct this new position in which the City found itself with respect to T V competition, a local sales staff was established and advertising solicited locally.

Since June, 1955, WJAX has enjoyed excellent public advertiser acceptance, has improved its share of audience, and in common with the majority of the other Regional Radio Stations in Jacksonville, is utilizing a single rate structure, the price approach that television has found beneficial.

Therefore, the station transferred $15,000 to the General Fund in 1957, $40,000 in 1958, $49,401 in 1959, $17,659 in 1960, $81,000 in 1961, $46,450 in 1962, $69,450 in 1963 and $71,728 in 1964. In 1965, the transfer is estimated to be about $42,898.

1964 Book Value--$234,154 1964 Total Broadcast Revenue--$269,780

Filed By William H. Baker, WJAX Station Manager

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RADIO RELATED STREET NAMES

Many stations were/are located on streets with names reflecting radio communications. In Gainesville, Tower Road, a stretch of SW 75th Street, runs on the west side of the four-tower AM 850 array in what’s now a suburban area just west of I-75. There's also Radio Road near the University of Florida campus which referred to the location of an earlier incarnation of WRUF AM.

And these roads sometimes move! Here in town when I worked at city-owned WJAX AM/FM, the studios were at 1 Broadcast Place--a short, narrow dead-end street near First and Laura across from where Downtown Campus is today.

Running along a bank of Hogan Creek, Broadcast Place was a bad place to be after a heavy rain! Late one afternoon, WJAX News Director Tandy Swink shrieked "Oh poor Angel!" Her voice penetrated supposedly soundproof master control room walls and the music in my headphones.

I dashed to look out a window from the second-floor news bullpen area. Tandy gasped as she pointed to have me look. Angel, her white Volkswagen bug, was floating like a boat around the parking lot.

And my yellow VW bug was randomly drifting around too! Fortunately, both bugs proved to be watertight. Most of the water receded by the end of my shift at midnight. I started the VW and drove away after only two or three sputters.

After WJAX studios moved to the Civic Auditorium in 1972, Broadcast Place apparently took a magic carpet ride across the river to wind up adjacent to the big overland bridge on I-95. WJXT-TV 4 is now located at 4 Broadcast Place. The original Broadcast Place is now Cuna Way.

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