WKLR

Infobox Radio station
name = WKLR


city = Fort Lee, Virginia
area = Richmond, Virginia
branding = "96.5 KLR"
slogan = "Richmond's Only Classic Rock Station"
airdate =
frequency = 96.5 MHz HD Radio
format = Classic rock
power =
erp = 50,000 watts
haat = 138 meters
class = B
facility_id = 71330
coordinates = coord|37|20|22|N|77|24|31|W
callsign_meaning =
former_callsigns = WBCI, WQKS, WQSF, WDCK, WLEE-FM
owner = Cox Radio
licensee =
sister_stations = WDYL, WKHK, WMXB
webcast = [http://uni3.cox.streamaudio.com/WKLR_FM Listen Live]
website = [http://965klr.com/ 965klr.com]
affiliations =

WKLR (96.5 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Classic rock format. Licensed to Fort Lee, Virginia, United States, it serves the Richmond area. The station is currently owned by Cox Radio.

The WBCI Era

The station's beginnings can be traced back to 1970, when the station signed on as WBCI-FM, licensed to, located in, and serving Williamsburg Virginia, simulcasting an Middle of the road ( MOR ) music format with sister station WBCI-AM , which later changed calls to WMBG-AM , when they went Top 40 and the FM became an automated Beautiful Music format. In 1977, the station switched to an automated adult contemporary format.

The station for many years was the anchor station for William and Mary football and basketball.

In 1980, the station became a live adult contemporary format. Popular Norfolk based talk show host Tony Macrini's first radio job in Virginia was mornings at WBCI. In 1981, the station went to a syndicated adult contemporary format. Some of the other personalities on WBCI's Live A/C format were Tim Grogan, Jim Payne, and Chris Dennell.

Kiss 96

In 1982, the station was purchased by African-American owned Northeastern Mutual Insurance Company and became a CHR/Urban hybrid station called WQKS, "Kiss 96" and attempted to serve both the Richmond and Norfolk markets. Kiss 96 did a little better in Richmond than in Norfolk and almost overtook established Urban WPLZ in the ratings. In late 1984, the station was knocked off the air for several weeks due to a hunter running into one of the station guy wires with his SUV and snapping the guy wire and toppling the transmitter tower.The station was off the air for several days before signing back on with equipment donated by various competitors.

oft 96

By early 1985, the Churban format on Kiss 96 was rapidly losing listeners. This was probably resulted from both changes in programming on WPLZ, and the renewed Mainstream Top 40 approach of Top 40 station WRVQ, which had previously leaned toward "Rock 40", and the owners decided to sell. In mid-1985, the station was purchased by a group of investors that included radio executive Don Cuthrall, who decided that the station should only target the Richmond market, and in the summer of 1985, the station changed formats to Beautiful Music as WQSF, "Soft 96" (it was said that the 1982 format flips of two former beautiful music stations in Richmond, WEZS to Adult Contemporary and WTVR-FM to Country, left a hole for the format in the market). In 1988, WTVR-FM returned to its former beautiful music format, which prompted WQSF to adjust their own format to a soft adult comtemporary format as "Soft Rock 96". Notable air personalities included long-time WRVA announcer Chris Dennison on afternoons, WRNL and WDYL personality Denis Reidy on mid-days, and former WRNL Program Director Dick Grant in the morning drive. Later on-air personalities included Doug Langston, Don Sebara, Pat Henry and Jay Carneal.

Soft Rock 96 and 96.5 The Duck

By 1988, the station had sold sister WMBG-AM, and moved the FM's tower to a clsoer location in Lenaxa Va , and the studios and offices to a small strip mall in Quinton Va , just offf I-64 in New Kent County. In 1989, the station was sold to Keymarket Communications, who continued the Soft Rock format but in 1990 changed to an Oldies format as WDCK, "The Duck".

Keymarket's "Real" intentions

It has been rumoured that Keymarket's real intentions in buying WQSF were both to upgrade the station's signal by requesting a change in the city of license from Williamsburg to Fort Lee, just 25 miles from Richmond and have a full blown aggressive CHR format against established WRVQ in much the same manner that Jacor's "upstart" CHR station in Tampa, WFLZ, had taken down WRVQ's sister station, longtime Top 40 WRBQ. However, they were unable to get approval for the change due to legal challenges from the other broadcasters in Richmond and decided, perhaps as a result of their failure to get the approval for the move-in, to sell the station to Benchmark Communications, who already owned AAA WVGO, in 1992. In 1993 the station's studios and offices were moved into the Boulders Office Complex in Richmond with WVGO.

WLEE-FM

In early 1995, the station switched to an all seventies format as WLEE-FM , adopting the call letters of once popular AM Top 40 station WLEE-AM, brought back popular former WLEE-AM personality Shane into Morning drive. But the seventies format was unsuccessful and the station eventually evolved into a classic rock format, and Shane was replaced by the syndicated "John Boy & Billy Show" several months later. Mike Rivers, formerly of WRVQ-FM, was also a DJ at 96.5 during this period. Dick Hungate returned to the Richmond airwaves as a weekender, later Middays, after being off the air for a few years around this same time. Prior to coming to Richmond, Hungatehad created the nation's first classic rock station at WYSP in Philadelphia.

The Planet

In June 1995, both WVGO & WLEE-FM were sold to Richmond-based ABS Communications, who already owned Country leader WKHK, and Alternative WBZU. The call letters were later changed to WKLR and the station became known as "96.5 The Planet". Best remembered DJs at The Planet over the years have included Dick Hungate, Lark Logan, Gary Micheals, and Sheri Blanks.

In 1996, ABS merged with SFX Broadcasting. The company underwent two mergers in the next four years, first as Capstar, then finally AMFM.

A New Richmond signal

In 1999, the station's last link to its beginnings as a local Williamsburg station were severed, when the long-held request for a change of city of license to Fort Lee was approved and the station began broadcasting from a tower formerly used by WKHK in Chester, Virginia. That same year, all of the AMFM-owned stations were moved to the Moorefield Office Complex in Midlothian where WMXB had been since 1985.

In early 2000, the station made some unexpected headlines when part time jock, former Norfolk "shock" Morning jock Henry "The Bull" Del Toro, in what some have said was a malfunctioning EAS (Emergency Action Notification) alerting device, during a local ice storm, issued a series of false "evacuation notices" that had local police descending on the station a short time later. Del Toro was later terminated for the incident.

Cox Radio era

In 2000, AMFM merged with Clear Channel Communications. To satisfy local ownership limitations, several stations owned by both Clear Channel and AMFM had to be divested. Cox Radio ended up purchasing not only WKLR, but also WKHK, WMXB, and Clear Channel-owned WTVR-AM.

In 2005, the station let go ten-year veteran Dick Hungate due to budget cuts.

In 2008, the station changed its positioner from "96.5 The Planet" to "96.5 KLR, The Planet". On Sunday August 31st, the station has completely dropped "The Planet" and refers to itself as "96.5 KLR" or just "KLR".

External links

* [http://965klr.com/ 965klr.com]
*
*
*