Broadcast area | Central Oregon Coast |
---|---|
Frequency | 1030 kHz |
Branding | Dune Radio |
Programming | |
Format | Oldies |
Affiliations | Premiere Networks Seattle Seahawks Radio Network |
Ownership | |
Owner |
|
History | |
First air date | June 2, 1961 (as KRAF at 1470) |
Former call signs | KRDP (1961–1961) KRAF (1961–1970) [1] KDUN (1970–1997) KLLU (1997–2002) [1] |
Former frequencies | 1470 kHz (1961–1998) |
Call sign meaning | KDUNe "Oregon Dunes" |
Technical information [2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 33779 |
Class | B |
Power | 50,000 watts days 630 watts nights |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°44′17″N124°4′30″W / 43.73806°N 124.07500°W |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Webcast | Listen Live |
Website | kdunradio.com |
KDUN (1030 AM, "Dune Radio") is a commercial radio station in Reedsport, Oregon, airing an oldies radio format. It is owned by Big Shoes Productions, a company headed by nationally-syndicated radio personality Delilah Rene, who hosts the nightly music and call-in show Delilah. The studios are on North 7th Street in Reedsport. The station plays hits from the 1960s, 70s & 80s. It also carries Seattle Seahawks football games.
By day, KDUN is powered at 50,000 watts, the maximum output permitted by the FCC for AM stations. But to avoid interference to other stations on 1030 AM at night, it greatly reduces power at sunset to 630 watts. KDUN serves Winchester Bay, Coos Bay, Florence, Gardiner and other communities on the Central Oregon Coast.
A construction permit was filed in September 1958 by Oregon Coast Broadcasters for a new radio station licensed to Reedsport, Oregon. Its transmitter and studios would be located on Bolon Island. The permit was granted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in March 1960 for a new daytime-only AM station, assigned the call letters KRDP. It would broadcast with 5,000 watts of power on a frequency of 1470 kHz. [3] A request was made and granted in April 1961 to change the call sign to KRAF.
KRAF signed on the air on June 2, 1961 . Walter J. Kraus was the president and owner of Oregon Coast Broadcasters and Gless Connoy was the station's general manager. [4] The KRAF call sign represented the "Reedsport and Florence" coverage area of the station. [5] The station was marketed with the slogan, "Listening is heavenly on 1470". [5] The KRAF call letters were first filed for in 1936 by Edwin A. Kraft and had been licensed to KRAF in Fairbanks, Alaska.
In 1966, Gless Connoy purchased the station from Kraus. [6] Wayne A. Moreland bought KRAF from the Connoy family on July 1, 1968. [7]
Wayne A. Moreland filed for and was granted a call letter change to KDUN in September 1969. Then Moreland's ownership of KRAF would prove short-lived. [7] Brothers Steve and Jerome Kenagy's and J. Westley Morgan of Communications Broadcasting, Inc. were granted transfer of control on February 11, 1972. [8] The new owners implemented a "middle of the road" (MOR) music format, with news and sports.
The KDUN call letters have a rich history as they were first assigned in 1921 as the radiotelegraph call sign aboard the ship "Ripple" owned by James T. McAllister.(Radio Service Bulletin, Volume 11). The Kenagy brothers shifted ownership of KDUN in March 1972 to a new company named KDUN Radio, Inc. [9] The brothers maintained the middle of the road music format through the rest of the 1970s.
In August 1973, KDUN was granted a construction permit to move the studio and transmitter site from Bolon Island (located on the site of a former drive-in movie theater) to Lower Smith River Road, its current transmitter location. The studios moved from the transmitter site into town in the early 1980s.
In March 1982, the station applied to the FCC for authorization to change from 1470 kHz to 1030 kHz. That was coupled with an increase in daytime signal power to 10,000 watts. A few technical changes would also be made to the antenna system. [10] The FCC granted the station the construction permit to make those changes on May 7, 1987. [10] KDUN began broadcasting at the lower frequency and higher power in February 1998 and received a license to cover the upgrades on April 18, 1998. [11]
In April 1982, the Kenagy brothers applied to the FCC to transfer ownership of KDUN Radio, Inc., to their now-larger software company, Custom Business System, Inc. The transfer was approved by the FCC on April 23, 1982. [12] In November 1985, CBSI announced that it was selling KDUN Radio, Inc., to Lyle and Eleanor A. Irons so that it could focus on the traffic and billing business. [13] The deal was approved by the FCC on February 11, 1986, and the transaction was consummated on April 23, 1986. [14]
After a quarter-century of continuous corporate ownership, KDUN Radio, Inc., reached an agreement in June 1997 to sell the station to Shae Partners, LLC. The deal was approved by the FCC on August 5, 1997, and the transaction was consummated on September 15, 1997. [15] The station's call sign was changed to KLLU on November 21, 1997. [1]
In July 1999, Shae Partners, LLC, reached an agreement to sell the station to the F & L Broadcast Development Corporation for $200,000. [16] The deal was approved by the FCC on August 24, 1999, and the transaction was consummated on August 29, 1999. [17] Less than two weeks later, in early September 1999, F & L Broadcast Development Corporation reached an agreement to sell this station to Pamplin Communications Corporation subsidiary Pamplin Broadcasting-Oregon, Inc., for $350,000. [18] The deal was approved by the FCC on October 29, 1999, and the transaction was consummated on November 1, 1999. [19]
The station was granted a new construction permit in August 2000, this time to increase the daytime signal to 50,000 watts. [20] KLLU began broadcasting at the higher power in March 2001 and the station received its license to cover the changes on June 18, 2001. [21] The station was reassigned its heritage KDUN call letters by the Federal Communications Commission on September 25, 2002. [1]
In January 2006, Pamplin Broadcasting-Oregon, Inc., CEO Robert Boisseau Pamplin Jr. reached an agreement to sell this station to Bill Schweitzer, doing business as WKS Broadcasting, Inc., for a cash price of $220,000. [22] [23] The deal was approved by the FCC on June 5, 2006, and the transaction was consummated on August 29, 2006. [24] At the time of the sale, KDUN was broadcasting a country music format. [22]
KDUN went temporarily silent on November 27, 2007, when the station's owners were unable to pay their electricity bill due to "financial problems with its operations". [25] According to their April 2008 filing with the FCC, new owners for KDUN were being sought. [25]
In May 2008, WKS Broadcasting, Inc., reached an agreement to sell the station to Sand & Sea Broadcasting, LLC. [26] The deal was approved by the FCC on June 23, 2008, and the transaction was consummated on August 6, 2008. On September 1, 2013, KDUN was sold to Post Rock Communications, LLC.
On May 3, 2021, Big Shoes Productions, a company owned by station alumnus and nationally-syndicated personality Delilah Rene, acquired KDUN from Post Rock Communications. The purchase was consummated on June 23, 2021. KDUN announced that it would return to air on September 6, 2021, with an oldies format and focusing on local news and information. [27] A Reedsport native, Rene had originally worked at KDUN in the 1970s as her first job in radio, [28] and saw the purchase as an opportunity to "give back to the community where I grew up". New studios were built in her former fifth grade classroom at what is now the "Oregon Coast School of Arts" in Gardner, Oregon. [27] [29]
KDUN carries "Classic Hits"…Top 40 hits from the 60s, 70s, 80’s and the early 90s which is overseen by Bob Larson, who has been in Radio & Television since 1973. Larson got his start at KYES in Roseburg as a Top 40 Disc Jockey and Broadcast Engineer. KDUN has added the original “YOU” series of jingles that were popular in the mid 70’s. Those jingles were created for the “RKO” Radio Ststions, KJR Los Angeles, KFRC San Francisco. Other West Coast Stations that used those jingles include KYJC Medford, OR, KYNG Coos Bay, OR, KGW Portland, OR and KING Seattle. KDUN streams on five services including I-Heart Radio Aop, Alexis, Tune In, Streama and Audacy. Other programming that was added includes “Rick Dees and his Daily Dees”, “Seattle Seahawks Football” and “Larson’s” Nationally Syndicated “The 80’s Meltdown” on Sunday Afternoon’s. In the evenings, the station carries Delilah's adult contemporary program seven days a week. [30]
In 1975, KDUN's owners were frustrated by the volume of paperwork then required for scheduling advertising, billing advertisers, and producing each day's commercial lineup, they purchased a Wang Laboratories minicomputer and, along with engineer Wes Lockard, invented software to handle these traffic and billing tasks. [31] As the brothers took on these tasks for other stations in the area, they realized that a market for computerized traffic and billing existed and, in 1978, they founded Custom Business Systems, Inc. [31] At its peak in the mid-1990s, CBSI software was in use by roughly one-third of the commercial radio stations in the United States and by broadcasters in 24 other countries. [31] In 1999, it was described as the "world's largest supplier of business software for the radio broadcast industry". [13] CBSI and the Kenagy brothers sold their interest in KDUN in 1985. Later the Kenagy brothers sold off CBSI to retire. CBSI itself is now a part of Marketron Broadcast Solutions.
WXQW is a news/talk radio station licensed to Fairhope, Alabama, and serving the Mobile metropolitan area. The station is owned by Cumulus Media and the broadcast license is held by Cumulus Licensing LLC. The radio studios and offices are on Dauphin Street in Midtown Mobile.
WKSJ-FM is a radio station licensed to serve Mobile, Alabama, United States. The station is owned by San Antonio–based iHeartMedia and the broadcast license is held by iHM Licenses, LLC. Its studios are located inside the building of unrelated television station WKRG-TV on Broadcast Drive in Mobile, and the transmitter is near Robertsdale, Alabama.
KBKR is a radio station licensed to serve Baker City, in the U.S. state of Oregon. The station is owned by the Pacific Empire Radio Corporation.
WIXI is a radio station licensed to serve the community of Jasper, Alabama, United States. The station, established in 1946 as WWWB, is currently owned and operated by Gary Richardson, through licensee Richardson Broadcasting Corporation.
WNGL is a radio station licensed to serve Mobile, Alabama, United States. Since September 2009, the station has been owned by Fairhope-based Archangel Communications, Inc.
WKKR is a radio station licensed to Auburn, Alabama, United States. The station, established in 1968, is currently owned by San Antonio–based iHeartMedia, through licensee iHM Licenses, LLC. In 1988, WKKR became the first Alabama radio station to earn the National Association of Broadcasters Crystal Radio Award for outstanding commitment to community service.
WKZJ is a radio station licensed to serve Eufaula, Alabama, United States. The station is owned by Davis Broadcasting, Inc. Its studios are co-located with four other sister stations on Wynnton Road in Columbus, Georgia east of downtown, and its transmitter is located north of Eufaula.
WHBB is a radio station licensed to serve Selma, Alabama, United States. The station is owned by Broadsouth Communications, Inc. WHBB serves the greater Central Alabama region with a 1,000 watt signal at 1490 kHz.
WNWF is a radio station licensed to serve Evergreen, Alabama, United States. The station, established in 1957, is currently owned by John G. Ralls, Jr., through licensee Andala Enterprises, Inc.
WTOF is an American radio station licensed to serve Bay Minette, Alabama. The station is owned by Dave Minard, through licensee UM Enterprise, LLC. It previously aired a Christian radio format including syndicated Christian talk and Christian ministry plus Southern Gospel music.
KBCH was a radio station licensed to serve Lincoln City, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in 1955, was owned by Yaquina Bay Communications and the broadcast license is held by Pacific West Broadcasting, Inc. The station ceased operations in 2023.
KZHC is a radio station licensed to serve Burns, Oregon, United States. The station, established in 1957, is owned by Randolph and Debra McKone, through licensee KJDY, LLC. KZHC and sister station KZHC-FM are the two of only four radio stations with Burns as their community of license.
KEJO is a commercial radio station licensed to Corvallis, Oregon, airing a sports radio format. It is owned by Bicoastal Media with the broadcast license held by Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC. The studios are on Marion Street SE in Albany.
KHSN is a radio station licensed to serve Coos Bay, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in March 1928, is currently owned by W7 Broadcasting, LLC.
KQIK was an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Lakeview, Oregon. The station, which began broadcasting in 1956, was owned by Joseph E. Kalisek.
KJDY is a radio station licensed to serve John Day, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in 1963, is currently owned by Randolph and Debra McKone, through licensee KJDY, LLC.
KLAD is a radio station licensed to serve Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in 1955, is currently owned by Basin Mediactive, LLC.
KKOR is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Astoria, Oregon. The station, which began broadcasting in 1950, is currently owned by the Ohana Media Group and the broadcast license is held by OMG FCC Licenses, LLC.
KSWB is an American radio station licensed to serve Seaside, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in 1968, is currently owned and operated by John Chapman while the broadcast license is held by KSWB Productions, LLC.
KTHH is a radio station licensed to serve Albany, Oregon, United States. The station, which began broadcasting in 1959, is currently owned by Bicoastal Media and the broadcast license is held by Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC.
Back in Oregon, the flooded-and-still-silent remains of KDUN 1030 Reedsport have been sold by Pamplin Broadcasting to WKS Broadcasting of Palo Alto, CA, for $220k. The station ran at 50 kW days, ND
She got her start in radio in junior high, thanks to a speech contest judged by two guys who owned the station in Reedsport. Delilah, then Delilah Luke, reported on school sports and news for "KSUN 1470, the voice of the Oregon dunes, 5000 watts of crystal clear air power!"