WKNR

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This article is about the Cleveland radio station which has identified as WKNR since 2001. For other uses, see WKNR (disambiguation).
WKNR
ESPN Cleveland logo.png
CityCleveland, Ohio
Broadcast areaGreater Cleveland
Frequency850 kHz
Branding850 ESPN Cleveland
Programming
Language(s)English
FormatSports radio
AffiliationsESPN Radio
Ownership
OwnerGood Karma Brands
(Good Karma Broadcasting, LLC)
WWGK
History
First air date
December 31, 1926
(94 years ago) (1926-12-31)
Former call signs
  • WLBV (1926–29)
  • WJW (1929–85)
  • WRMR (1985–2001)
Former frequencies
  • 1300 kHz (1926–27)
  • 1450 kHz (1927–28)
  • 1210 kHz (1928–41)
  • 1240 kHz (1941–44)
Call sign meaning
Previously used on the current WHKW
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID28509
ClassB
Power
  • 50,000 watts (daytime)
  • 4,700 watts (nighttime)
Transmitter coordinates
41°19′0.00″N 81°43′51.00″W / 41.3166667°N 81.7308333°W / 41.3166667; -81.7308333
Links
Public license information
Profile
LMS
WebcastListen live
Website

WKNR (850 AM) – branded 850 ESPN Cleveland – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland. Owned by Good Karma Brands, WKNR is jointly operated with co-owned WWGK (1540 AM) as the market affiliates for ESPN Radio, with the duopoly commonly branded as ESPN Cleveland.

WKNR serves as the AM flagship station for the Cleveland Browns Radio Network; the Cleveland affiliate for the Ohio State Sports Network; and the radio home of Je'Rod Cherry and Tony Grossi. The WKNR studios are located in the Galleria at Erieview in Downtown Cleveland, while the station transmitter resides in the Cleveland suburb of North Royalton. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WKNR is available online.

Historically, the station is perhaps best known by its former WJW call letters. During the early 1950s, Cleveland disc jockey Alan Freed began to popularize the term "rock and roll" as a name for the music genre both through his late night WJW radio show, and by what is often considered the first major rock and roll concert: the WJW-sponsored Moondog Coronation Ball.[1]

History[]

WJW (AM)[]

Not to be confused with Cleveland television station WJW.

New Years' birth in Mansfield[]

What is today known as WKNR launched at midnight on December 31, 1926 from the Southern Hotel in Mansfield, Ohio under the WLBV call sign.[2] Founded by John F. Weimer,[3] WLBV was the first radio station to operate in Mansfield, transmitting with 50 watts at 1300 kHz.[2] Weimer established his first wireless station in 1911 and progressed to aural transmissions by 1913, ceasing operations of those stations during World War I, but resumed hobbyist work after the war.[3] The station quickly progressed under Weimer's watch, which also saw a frequency shift to 1450 kHz on May 1, 1927.[4] Initially criticized for a "tin-pan" air sound, the fidelity improved near the end of 1927 and earned the praise of Westinghouse Broadcasting executives as "an unusual station" for such a small city.[5]

WLBV briefly found itself in jeopardy after Weimer struggled to raise money to renew a music tax license with the Composers, Authors and Publishers Association at the end of March 1928, prompting the station to announce a forthcoming closedown,[6] but found enough financial support from area businesses to remain operational.[7] The station initially operated without a chain broadcasting link, but was admitted into the Federated Broadcasting System upon that network's 1929 launch.[8] Listener reception for WLBV was overwhelmingly positive, with thousands of complementary letters by April 1928 and no complaints.[9] The station received phone calls from New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and Chicago, and one long-distance reception report as far west as Des Moines.[5]

The Federal Radio Commission (FRC) General Order 40 saw WLBV reassigned again to 1210 kHz on November 11, 1928, with a power increase to 100 watts by December 14.[4] In order to better identify with Mansfield, WLBV management applied for a call sign change request to WMO, which was granted by the FRC on May 14, 1929.[10] Two days later, the FRC abruptly changed the station's calls again to WJW after a clerical error by the agency failed to account for the WMO letters existing usage on another station,[11] the rename to WJW was made retroactive to May 9.[4] Despite the random selection by the FCC, the WJW calls also ended up reflecting John Weimer's initials.[12]

Shifting to the Rubber City[]

John F. Weimer—d/b/a the Mansfield Broadcasting Association[13]—filed a request with the FRC on February 12, 1932, to relocate WJW to Akron maintaining the same frequency and power output.[14] In testimony before FRC examiner R. H. Hyde, the operators for both Zanesville's WALR and Columbus's WSEN supported the move as it would reduce interference for their stations, while Weimer promised to have multiple Akron civic organizations on WJW and emphasized the benefits of moving to a larger city (Akron's 1930 population was 300,000 compared to Mansfield's 30,000).[15] WADC was Akron's lone radio station licensed to serve the city, and had been as such after WFJC was consolidated with a Springfield station to form WGAR on December 15, 1930, and moved out of Akron to sign on in Cleveland.[16] Examiner Hyde recommended denying the application, citing a lack of evidence to support another Akron radio station, but the FRC reversed his findings and gave full approval on September 8, 1930.[13]

After a "swan song" final broadcast from Mansfield on October 5, 1932,[17] WJW's transmitter was dismantled and transported to Akron for an October 15 sign-on; all on- and off-air personnel were retained.[18] A Mansfield News piece on the station after the move noted Mansfield listeners were now unable to receive WJW due to interference from WSEN.[19] Still broadcasting at 1210 kHz with 100 watts, WJW's transmitter and studios[20] were located at 41 South High Street in downtown Akron.[14][21] Weimer incorporated WJW on January 31, 1933,[4] becoming the station's president.[19] Among the stakeholders for WJW, Inc. were William F. Jones, who founded WADC in 1925[22] and owned WFJC from 1927[23] until 1930,[24] while Weimer held a 20 percent stake.[25]: 197  Sam L. Townsend, a former manager for WFJC, also assumed the same position at WJW.[26]

Along with three associates, Weimer founded the "WMAN Broadcasting Company" in early 1935 and applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a replacement station in Mansfield.[27] During the hearings, Weimer disclosed that he held stock in WALR and a gold mine, and claimed to have no immediate cash on hand, having relied on family to provide the money for his investments.[25]: 197  The FCC rejected the application on October 23, 1935, citing uncertainty with the group's financial viability[28] in addition to objections raised by Fort Wayne's WGL.[29]

William M. O'Neil, Jr. purchased majority control of WJW on June 25, 1940 for $41,500.[30] This followed Weimer and Townsend divesting their shares in the station[31] while Jones sold his shares directly to O'Neil, with one of the two other remaining shareholders being M. F. Rubin, who also held a stake in WMAN.[32] O'Neil was the son of William F. O'Neil, president of Akron-based General Tire and Rubber Co.—which also entered broadcasting in 1943 with the purchase of a station group in New England—but operated WJW independently from the tire manufacturer.[33][34] WJW changed its frequency on March 29, 1941, with implementation of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA), moving to 1240 kHz[35] while retaining 250 watt output.[36]

Move to Cleveland[]

O'Neil applied with the FCC in late October 1942 to move WJW's operations and transmitter facility to Cleveland, utilizing an existing construction permit for a full-time station in Cleveland at 850 kHz with 5,000 watts fulltime.[37] By June 1943, O'Neil also applied for a replacement station in Akron using WJW's existing 1240 kHz facilities and the call letters WAJV concurrent with a proposed sale to a third party, that request was denied that December.[38][34][39] WJW formally moved to Cleveland on November 13, 1943, operating at 850 kHz; it became an affiliate of the Blue Network—soon to be the ABC Radio Network—two days later.[40] Marvin Cade signed on the station that Saturday and was the evening news announcer.[41] Competing station WGAR collaborated with WJW for a special broadcast on both stations the day of the move, WGAR also took out advertisements in Cleveland's three daily newspapers "welcoming" the station into Cleveland.[42]

With facilities in the Guardian Building (now the National City–East 6th Building at 619 Euclid), WJW became Cleveland's fifth radio station after co-owned WHK and WCLE, WTAM and WGAR; the number of stations would be reduced back to four in May 1945 when WCLE moved their station operations to Akron as WHKK.[43] With its Blue Network affiliation, WJW also brought the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts, a staple of the Blue Network/ABC's lineup, to Cleveland. The station also featured news commentary by Dorothy Fuldheim prior to her long tenure at WEWS-TV;[44][45] and from May 1951 to early 1953, was home to a disc jockey called Soupy Hines, later known as Soupy Sales.[46][47][48]

WJW opened an FM outlet, WJW-FM (104.1), in 1948.[49] The new FM station went on the air just as the Cleveland Indians began their world championship season. WJW was the flagship of a six-station Ohio network that carried the games in 1947 and 1948, a precursor to the current Cleveland Indians Radio Network. However, the full games were often carried on WJW-FM, since the AM outlet did not have available air time due to its ABC network commitments. As a result, Cleveland became an FM hot bed, and more FM radio sets sold in Cleveland than in any other market in the country in 1948;[50] a 14-station extension of the Indians Radio Network, The Standard Network, was soon established with WJW-FM as its flagship.[51]

O'Neil sold WJW and WJW-FM to Storer Broadcasting on November 17, 1954. Storer also purchased television station WXEL and changed the call letters to WJW-TV. Within two years, radio and television operations were consolidated at new studios at 1630 Euclid Avenue, near Playhouse Square, in a remodeled Georgian building that formerly housed the Esquire Theater. WJW dropped its ABC Radio Network affiliation at the end of 1957 and became an independent station,[52] although the station later had a brief affiliation with NBC before becoming independent again. By 1959, WJW broadcast with 10,000 watts daytime and 5,000 watts at night, which would last for the next forty years.

Leo Mintz and the "Moondog"[]

Alan was a cocky kid; a real go-getter. Leo saw his talent and he figured Alan, with some guidance, could make it big in Cleveland.

Betty Mintz, Leo Mintz's widow, recalling Leo's impression of Alan Freed[53]

One of WJW's most influential personalities was a young disc jockey named Alan Freed. Freed had already achieved fame at WAKR hosting a daytime music program[54] along with the nightly Wax Works[55] and Request Review,[56] but his February 1950 departure for WADC prompted a lawsuit by WAKR ownership to enforce a one-year non-compete clause.[57] Freed repeatedly lost in court and the non-compete—which extended for a radius of 75 miles (121 km) from Akron[58]—barred him from radio work for a full calendar year, although he was able to host an afternoon program on WXEL (channel 9).[59] The non-compete expired on February 11, 1951, allowing Freed to join WADC for the midnight program Dreamville,[60] in a more subdued presentation than his "Ol' Knucklehead" persona at WAKR.[61] The expenses incurred by the year-long legal fight drove Freed to file for bankruptcy on May 9, 1951.[62]

At the same time, record shop owner Leo Mintz was sponsoring a late-night program of classical music on WJW.[63] Mintz's Record Rendezvous had acquired a reputation in the music industry for selling rhythm and blues music and allowing customers to play records prior to purchase, and had heavily advertised on radio stations.[53] After listening to airchecks of Freed's past work after he inquired about job opportunities in Cleveland,[53] Mintz scrapped the classical program and picked Freed to host a new show playing current R&B recordings personally selected by Mintz.[63] Freed adopted the nickname "The King of the Moondoggers" purportedly after listening to Louis "Moondog" Hardin's 1947 "Moondog Symphony", using that piece as his program's theme song.[64] Largely inspired by WLAC's nighttime programming, Mintz set up The Moondog House Party to feature R&B recordings by black artists instead of covers by white artists, and doing so for a predominantly white audience.[65] Freed initially objected to this, considering those recordings as race records,[63] but soon conceded to Mintz's insistence.[65] While Freed started using "rock and roll" on-air to describe the music, Mintz conceived of the phrase in 1948 while watching customers seemingly "rocking and rolling" into Record Rendezvous instead of just walking in,[53] and suggested the phrase to Freed.[66]

If anyone… had told us that some 20 or 25,000 people would try to get into a dance—I suppose you would have been just like me. You would have laughed and said they were crazy.

Alan Freed, in an on-air apology the night after the Moondog Coronation Ball[67]

As Freed's popularity grew, he and Mintz decided to organize live events that showcased some of the musicians on The Moondog House Party.[53] With assistance from concert promoter Lew Platt, the first such event—the Moondog Coronation Ball—was booked for March 21, 1952, at the Cleveland Arena, with Paul Williams, Tiny Grimes, The Dominoes, Varetta Dillard and Danny Cobb among the featured performers,[68] with a ticket price of $1.50.[69] While the Arena normally could host 15,000 people, both the Cleveland Division of Fire and Division of Police started receiving warnings about the event potentially being significantly oversold.[70] Mintz had intended for a second concert due to overwhelming ticket sales, but a printing error forgot to include the concert date,[69] which was further exacerbated by counterfeit tickets.[67] Mintz and Platt had hired 25 security guards for the Arena's entrance, but the overflow crowd of approximately 6,000 people crashed the gate at 9:30 p.m.[71] and charged into the Arena, prompting 40 policemen and 30 fireman to be called in.[70] Whiskey bottles were smashed on the Arena floor, four panel doors were destroyed, and two people were stabbed.[71] Compounding matters was the shock of black people in the audience seeing Alan Freed for the first time in person, resulting in a uproar.[69]

Fire officials and riot police entered the Arena and ended the event after only one song was played,[68] but the song was inaudible due to the large crowd noise of 25,000 attendees.[70] Mintz and his wife were in Florida that night; when notified about the riot, Mintz immediately flew back to Cleveland and rode a taxi to the arena.[53] Witnessing the large group of people walking around outside the arena, and seeing the fire department hosing rioters inside the arena,[69] Mintz directed the cab driver to take him back to the airport.[53] Freed was located by officials in a radio booth, with the city's fire chief threatening to arrest him on deliberately overselling the event.[70] The next night, Freed apologized on-air for the melee, even admitting that he could not fathom a music event having such a massive attendance.[68][67] An Associated Press wire story summed up the event as being "such a success (that) it failed".[71] In a more contemporary analysis, Plain Dealer music critic John Soeder considered it the "Big Bang of rock 'n' roll" and is now generally recognized within popular culture as the first rock concert.[69]

Freed signed a contract with New York City's WINS in July 1954 in what was one of the largest talent contracts for an air personality,[72] including an annual $75,000 salary and a syndication deal.[73] While this necessitated his departure from WJW on August 14, 1954, the station was one of nine that agreed to carry his syndicated show in the same timeslot.[74] Prior to the deal, a similarly-titled "Moondog Coronation Ball" at the Newark Armory on May 8, 1954, staged by WNJR attracted a crowd of 20,000, filling the Armory to capacity and preventing those in attendance from being able to dance.[75] The move to New York would cost Freed the "Moondog" nickname when Louis Hardin sued for $100,000 in damages and copyright infringement,[76] and the judge enjoined Freed.[64] Freed's involvement in the genesis of "rock and roll" has largely taken precedence over Mintz's behind-the-scenes role, particularly after the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame committed to a location in Cleveland.[53] Freed was a member of the Rock Hall's initial induction class,[77] while Mintz is a mention within the museum's Freed exhibit.[65]

Pete "Mad Daddy" Myers[]

In January 1958, Pete "Mad Daddy" Myers joined the station from WHKK 640 AM in Akron. His "Mad Daddy" persona was later adapted by Ernie Anderson for his "Ghoulardi" character on sister station WJW-TV in 1963. Myers's show was heard nightly from 8 pm to 12:30 am. Myers had a brief but meteoric career at WJW, lasting only until May 13, 1958, when he resigned to go to Metromedia's WHK which was establishing itself as the new Top 40 powerhouse in Cleveland.

WJW enforced a 90-day noncompete clause, and "Mad Daddy" could not be heard on WHK until August 10. To keep his name in front of the public while he was off the air, Myers concocted a publicity stunt on June 14, 1958, parachuting from a Piper Cub 2200 feet over Lake Erie, and composing a poem on his way down.

He was fished out the waters shortly thereafter, and handed out copies of the 45 record "Zorro" to hundreds of fans who greeted him when he got to shore. Some initial reports of the stunt incorrectly stated that Myers did not survive the jump, but they were quickly revised.

"Mad Daddy" reached the peak of his popularity at WHK, hosting record hops and live after-midnight shows dressed in a Dracula costume. In July 1959 he moved to WHK's sister station in New York, WNEW 1130 AM, where "Mad Daddy" was not well received. He played it straight as Pete Myers there until 1963, when he moved to WINS and resumed the "Mad Daddy Show." This show was syndicated to other stations until WINS changed format to all-news in 1965.

As again just Pete Myers, he returned to WNEW once more. Myers lived until October 4, 1968, when he took his own life in New York City, shortly after he had been informed that his show was to be moved from afternoons to evenings at WNEW.[78][79]

Later years[]

After losing both Freed and Myers in successive fashion, WJW turned to a young Casey Kasem, then known on-air as "Casey at the Mike", for the evening shift. With both WHK and KYW on the rise, however, WJW abandoned its rock and roll format in the spring of 1960, settling into a format featuring news, talk and middle-of-the-road music.[80] Among the personalities heard on WJW during this time was longtime morning host Ed Fisher, in addition to Carl Reese, Ted Lux and David Mark.[81] Between 1973 and 1974, WJW also featured an afternoon drive music and talk show hosted by a young Ronn Owens, who would later find success at KGO (AM) in San Francisco.[81][82]

In 1968, Storer changed WJW-FM's call letters to become WCJW,[83] then spun off that station in 1971 as WQAL, which it continues to operate as to this day.[84]

Early 1980s logo as WJW

Storer sold WJW radio in early September 1976 to Lake Erie Broadcasting for $2.5 million;[85] the deal was consummated in July 1977.[86] Lake Erie Broadcasting was headed primarily by Cleveland Browns owners Art Modell and Al Lerner, with WEWS sportscaster Gib Shanley as minority owner.[87] Storer retained WJW-TV, whose calls were changed to WJKW the following April 22.[88] The new ownership group, under General Manager Richard Bremkamp and Program Director Dick Conrad, continued the format – then known on-air as JW Radio 85 – highlighting talk shows and adult popular music.[89] The middle-of-the-road format would be abandoned entirely in favor of news/talk on June 1982.[90]

Lake Erie Broadcasting sold WJW to Booth American for $2.1 million in early 1985,[91] while simultaneously purchasing WWWE and WDOK from Gannett for $9.5 million.[92] In the process, Lake Erie reassigned all on and off-air personnel to WWWE, and changed WWWE's format to the news/talk format previously heard on WJW, while inheriting WWWE's existing sports play-by-play and Pete Franklin's Sportsline[92] and acquiring the Browns radio rights from WHK.[93] Booth elected to change WJW's call sign to WRMR at 11:00 a.m. on June 11, 1985, as the transaction was consummated;[91][94] Marvin Cade was invited to sign off WJW for the final time before the callsign change, thus giving him the distinction of being both the first - and last - voice heard on WJW during its time in Cleveland.[41] This move allowed WJKW to change its call letters back to WJW-TV on September 16, 1985.[95]

WRMR[]

For the Cleveland radio station which identified as WRMR from 2003 to 2005, see WHK (AM).

Evolving to the big band[]

Station logo as WRMR; also includes the Music of Your Life logo

WRMR's format at launch was middle of the road with an airstaff of multiple Cleveland broadcast veterans.[94] WWWE program director Ray Marshall assumed the same position at WRMR, in addition to hosting afternoons; Marshall was joined by Ted Alexander of WBBG and Johnny Douglas of WHK, while WLTF's program director Dave Popovich became operations manager for both stations.[91] Transtar Radio Networks's "Formula 41" satellite service aired in the evenings and overnights.[96] WRMR's older-sounding format was aimed at the 40–49 age group,[94] a counterpart to WLTF's "lite rock" format, and a second-story addition was built at WLTF's downtown studios.[91] Ratings for WRMR during this period were low, typically attributed to the station's 5,000 watt signal, seen as weak by comparison to other stations.[97] WRMR also broadcast in AM stereo, one of several in the Cleveland and Akron markets to do so.[98]

WRMR took advantage of WBBG's October 1987 abandonment of adult standards[99] by adding a syndicated show hosted by Ray Otis for Sunday mornings which had previously been heard on WBBG.[100] That move was a quick precursor to WRMR switching to the Music of Your Life (MOYL) full-time on January 1, 1988, headed up by former WBBG programmer Jim Davis, who also hosted the midday shift.[101] Davis was joined by two other radio veterans, "Tall Ted" (Alfred) Hallaman[102] and Carl Reese, fixtures in the market since 1960[103] and 1953,[104] respectively. The station added flagship rights to the Cleveland Cavaliers Radio Network starting with the 1988–89 season,[97] a move made by Joe Tait, who had assumed responsibilities for Cavaliers broadcast production. The team selected WRMR due to WWWE's Indians commitments repeatedly taking priority over the Cavs, with multiple games during the team's 1988 playoff run airing on WRMR due to scheduling conflicts, prompting Tait to ask, "why are we leaving WWWE when our most important games weren't even on WWWE?"[105]

1989 ended with a two-station exchange between Booth American and the Independent Group Ltd., which had purchased WWWE in 1987.[106] Announced on December 22, 1989, Booth American purchased WWWE from Independent Group—controlled by Tom Embrescia, Tom Wilson and Larry Pollock—and concurrently sold WRMR to Independent Group.[107][108] Booth retained the Cavaliers radio rights and transferred them back to WWWE,[109] while also purchasing the production rights to the Indians and Browns networks from Wilson's Sports Marketing firm.[110] Embrescia, Wilson and Pollock retained the ability to hire Herb Score's WWWE broadcast partner for the 1990 Indians season with Booth's blessing,[111] selecting Tom Hamilton.[112] Consummation was delayed for several months due to obscenity charges levied against former WWWE host Gary Dee, whose firing prompted the exchange.[113] When the deal did close on June 25, 1990, some on- and off-air personnel were reassigned between the two stations.[114] Jim Davis and Carl Reese were retained, but Ted Hallaman was not,[113] resulting in Reese and Davis temporarily hosting six-hour airshifts.[115] Once referred to as "Cleveland's first radio personality",[102] Hallaman subsequently worked at Willoughby's WELW prior to rejoining WRMR in 1994.[116]

"Bringing class to Cleveland radio"[]

This music is not archaic, and it has enormous validity. It's current; it has that hot sting of immediacy. This stuff is always on the cutting edge. All someone has to do is play it. That's what I do, and it's a blast.

Bill Randle[117]

The station added Bill Randle for afternoon drive and Sunday afternoons on August 16, 1992.[118] Proclaimed as "the most influential DJ in America" by Time in 1955, and regarded as a "rock and roll trailblazer"[119] in the same vein as Alan Freed, Randle was a market veteran at multiple stations since his 1949 arrival in Cleveland.[120] Most notably, Randle was the first radio personality in the northern United States to play Elvis Presley while at both WERE and New York's WCBS[121]: 143  in 1955, working seven days a week at both stations in the mid-1950s.[122] Additionally dabbling as a lawyer, college professor and writer,[123] Randle refused to adhere to a playlist upon joining WRMR and objected to the term "nostalgia",[124] bringing a dynamism rarely seen in the adult standards format.[117] His arrival at WRMR coincided with the sale of rights for the unfinished short film The Pied Piper of Cleveland to PolyGram Filmed Entertainment,[125] purportedly containing footage of Elvis's October 20, 1955, concert at Brooklyn High School, his first appearance "north of the Mason–Dixon line";[126][127] after the concert, Randle predicted Elvis was "going to be the biggest star in America".[122] Echoing his past glory as a "hitmaker," when approached by WRMR's Irish Hour host Gerry Quinn about Irish trumpeter Johnny Carroll, Randle requested a Carroll record and played it on his show to enthusiastic reception.[128]

Ronnie Barrett was hired after the Independent Group takeover for weekend work,[113] helming big band-oriented Swinging Saturday Night,[129] the endcap to a career which spanned a dozen stations.[130] Wayne Mack, a radio announcer since 1931, onetime sidekick to Jack Paar at WGAR and co-founder of WDOK (1260 AM),[131] joined WRMR in 1993 to host a Friday night ballroom dance program titled The Palace Ballroom Fantasy Show.[132] The program itself was a revival of a similar "theatre of the mind" program Mack presided over at WDOK in the 1950s.[133] Tom Embrescia's father, Fred Embrescia, served as WRMR's public relations director and also became a regular guest on both Randle and Reese's programs.[134] Along with the tenured airstaff, WRMR boasted two younger announcers, Frank Macek and engineer Anthony Parker, who did weekend and fill-in duties.[117] Plain Dealer columnist Mary Strassmeyer put Macek—who also was the station's assistant program director[135]—on the same footing as Randle, Reese and Barrett, once complementing all four in her newspaper column "for bringing class to Cleveland radio."[125]

The station repeatedly drew respectable ratings but was perceived as an "underperformer" because it approached older demographics less attractive to ad agencies; as a result, WRMR had less commercials than the competition, but Randle's bankruptcy law firm was a frequent advertiser.[136] Jim Davis was credited for "opening up the format" by allowing the air talent to select their own music like Randle, making the format palatable to younger listeners but also respecting the core audience.[117] Enjoying alternative rock and jazz as much as big bands,[124] Randle frequently wove contemporary music from acts like Shania Twain, Jewel and *NSYNC into his airshift[122] and was one of the first to play 13-year-old LeAnn Rimes on the air.[121]: 141  Davis held an affinity for big bands, stating that the genre's enduring popularity into the mid-1990s was because "most if it is really good music".[137] Despite the older demographics, WRMR overachieved in the format with twice the audience share of most standards stations[117] and became the top-rated AM station in the Cleveland market.[137] Davis also served as the operations director for Al Ham's MOYL satellite service concurrent with his WRMR programming duties.[138]

50,000 watts and corporate radio[]

On May 15, 1999, WRMR upgraded its daytime signal to 50,000 watts with a new transmitter pattern built at the old WJW/WRMR site in North Royalton. The station's daytime signal remains present in much of northern Ohio, though the station must protect the signal of WKGE 850-AM in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, impairing the signal to the south and as close in as Cuyahoga Falls and Akron.[139]

On August 12, 1998, Chancellor Media Corporation of Texas announced the purchase of WRMR and WDOK from Independent Group Ltd., along with five other Cleveland radio stations – WZJM, WZAK, WQAL, WJMO (1490 AM) – all for $275 million. This was, at the time, the largest deal in Cleveland radio history.[140] On July 13, 1999, Chancellor Media merged with WKNR (1220 AM) owner Capstar Broadcasting to form AMFM, Inc.; the new company was, for a time, the nation's largest owner of radio stations with 465. On July 20, 2000, as part of a required divestiture following AMFM, Inc.'s merger with Clear Channel Communications, WRMR and WKNR (1220 AM) were sold to Salem Communications; and WDOK was sold to Infinity Broadcasting Corporation (now CBS Radio).[141]

Under Salem ownership, Jim Davis returned to WRMR to head programming, as well as an on-air shift. WRMR started to segue into playing more contemporary ballads, billed as "easy-listening oldies." WRMR also started to air long blocks of brokered talk shows in the evenings and weekends, most of which were carried over from brokered talk station WERE (1300 AM).

2001 "frequency swap"[]

For more information on the July 3, 2001 exchange involving seven Northeast Ohio radio stations, see 2001 in radio.

On July 3, 2001, WRMR was one of seven Northeast Ohio radio stations involved in a complex exchange between three radio companies. Although generally reported as a "frequency swap", in reality these seven radio stations mostly traded callsigns along with their respective formats and staffs – all to facilitate the transfers of ownership of four of the seven stations. As part of this complex exchange, Salem Communications changed the WRMR callsign to WKNR; changed the station's format to sports radio; rebranded the station SportsTalk 850 AM; and reassigned on- and off-air staff. In effect, this new WKNR (850 AM) licensed to Cleveland became the successor to the previous WKNR (1220 AM) licensed to Cleveland.[142]

WKNR[]

For information on WKNR at 1220 AM prior to 2001, see WHKW.

The Truth, then budget cutbacks[]

WKNR might best be described as a tribute to the radio industry's upheaval... The station's studios, located in a shoebox in Broadview Heights, speak to its nomadic existence. The mint-green paint on the front desk is peeling. Ceiling tiles look as if they haven't been touched since 1978. One half-expects to hear the theme from WKRP in Cincinnati and see Les Nessman round the corner.

Andrew Putz, Cleveland Scene[143]

The "new" WKNR at 850 AM inherited the airstaff from the previous WKNR, including Greg Brinda, Kendall Lewis, Kenny Roda, Bruce Drennan and Ken Silverstein, along with the market's ESPN Radio affiliation and local carriage of The Jim Rome Show.[144] Brinda, Lewis and Roda had all been veterans at the previous station: Brinda joined WKNR in 1991,[145] Lewis in 1998[146] and Roda in 1992.[147] A former WTAM host, Drennan was initially hired to host the previous WKNR's 10th Inning Indians postgame show at the start of the team's 2001 season.[148] Originally solo hosts, Brinda and Lewis were paired in mid-mornings after an inherited brokered show from WRMR that Drennan contributed to[149] was temporarily placed in Brinda's prior time slot[150] with Drennan ultimately going solo.

Adopting the "Truth About Cleveland Sports" moniker,[151] the station took on guerrilla-style tactics against WTAM, which held broadcast rights to all three professional sports teams.[143] Drennan specifically engaged in on-air verbal confrontations against WTAM host Mike Trivisonno for perceived favoritism.[143] Drennan's show was largely unconventional as he also focused on movie trivia and Broadway theatre, even singing a theme song for his show to the tune of "Springtime for Hitler".[152] The station's program director was Steve Legerski, who had joined the previous WKNR in 1999 under that same capacity.[153] WKNR's studios were at the 1220 AM transmitter facilities in Broadview Heights, which were also used by the previous WKNR.[154] A Cleveland Scene profile noted the building's neglect as a verbal metaphor for WKNR's repeated ownership changes and overall disinvestment after the Telecommunications Act of 1996.[143]

Bruce Drennan's combative personality and unconventional morning show made him a WKNR fixture from the station's 2001 move to 850 AM until his 2004 implication in an illegal sports betting operation.

As the new year started on January 5, 2004, Brinda, Lewis, Silverstein, Legerski and one show producer were all fired in budget-related cutbacks.[151] Michael Luczak took over as program director,[155] Bruce Drennan was reassigned to the midday slot, and ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning took Drennan's place.[151] Lewis did not take the firing personally despite it happening after his return from medical leave to fight a viral infection, saying "it's just the way this business goes".[156] Brinda, however, returned to the station at the end of the month as a fill-in host and sports director[157] later adding 10th Inning duties.[158] A brokered hour-long taped sports show hosted by Dan Coughlin and Les Levine aired in the 6pm hour for two months until its' cancellation after the show's producer had a falling out with Salem management.[159] Likewise, a weekly program hosted by athletic trainer Eric Lichter ended prematurely on Lichter's part when a series of on-air technical difficulties plagued production.[160] Rumors of WKNR dropping sports for conservative talk—which had existed since the frequency change[150]—ended when Salem repurchased WRMR (1420 AM) on July 6, 2004, and relaunched it as a talk station branded "WHK";[161] general manager Errol Dengler saw the purchase as a way to dispel the format change rumors even as it remained only one of three sports stations in the company's portfolio.[162]

The station attracted unwanted attention on September 27, 2004, when Bruce Drennan's home was raided by FBI and IRS agents as part of a wide-ranging investigation into illegal sports gambling,[163] a problem compounded by Salem's reputation as a "family-friendly" broadcaster.[164] Drennan was removed from the air for several days by WKNR management in an attempt to downplay the news,[165] his return did not include any mention of the raid or the allegations against him. After further coverage in The Plain Dealer detailed the sports gambling ring[152] and included taped conversations with Drennan,[166] WKNR placed him on indefinite administrative leave[167] with Greg Brinda taking Drennan's time slot. Salem's continued practice of clearing brokered programming and infomercials on WKNR[168] prevented the station from broadcasting ESPN's MLB play-by-play throughout this era,[169] including the entirety of the 2004 World Series.[170] The station hosted a third "tour stop" for Jim Rome on October 9, 2004, after successful live events in 1999 and 2000;[171] WKNR agreed to it after Rome's normal appearance fee was waived.[172]

ESPN Radio abruptly gave WKNR a 90-day cancellation notice effective on October 8, 2006; Luczak both publicly confirmed the move and that an upcoming transaction would result in a new ESPN outlet airing the programming 24 hours a day.[173] Shortly thereafter, Good Karma Broadcasting purchased WABQ (1540 AM)—a 1,000 watt station based in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood—for $2.5 million,[174] agreeing to a new ESPN affiliation deal.[175] Owing to WABQ's daytime-only status, the change meant ESPN programming at night couldn't be carried,[176] rumors of a nighttime purchase of airtime on WERE emerged[169] but never were consummated. Good Karma's founder and president Craig Karmazin moved to Cleveland to help relaunch WABQ as WWGK "ESPN Radio 1540",[177] a practice he had previously done with other station launches in Milwaukee and West Palm Beach.[178] WKNR concurrently replaced ESPN programming by becoming the market's Fox Sports Radio affiliate.[179]

Arrival of Good Karma[]

I was in Glidden House [the upscale inn near University Circle] the other day. There were two older women there having tea... if you saw them in New York, they'd be talking politics or something very high brow. They're talking Mangini and Holmgren! In the Glidden House! It's the only town in America that's like that.

Aaron Goldhammer, on the passionate nature of Cleveland sports fans[180]

From left to right, Tony Rizzo, Aaron Goldhammer, Michael Reghi and Je'Rod Cherry in a 2011 remote broadcast featuring former "ESPN 850 WKNR" and "1540 KNR2" branding.

Mere weeks after WWGK's launch, Salem sold WKNR to Good Karma for $7 million on December 4, 2006.[176][181] Craig Karmazin saw WKNR as "a dream scenario"[177] and a "sleeping giant" that still had a loyal audience despite the many ownership and programming changes, and didn't even anticipate owning both stations until Salem agreed to the sale.[182] A local marketing agreement immediately began for WKNR, with Karmazin assuming the role of general manager[177] and pledging to reinvest into local programming and coverage of area teams.[183] Veteran radio programmer and consultant Mike McVay saw the new ownership as a way to breathe new life into a station that failed to properly market the "move" from 1220 AM and thus fell into obscurity.[182] As a sign of things to come, WKNR carried 24 straight hours of local pregame leading into Ohio State Sports Network coverage of the 2007 BCS National Championship Game, with WJW sports anchor Tony Rizzo joining Brinda and Roda among the on-air hosts.[184]

A steady series of management, personnel and programming shakeups resulted from Good Karma's takeover of WKNR. The biggest moves took place on February 23, 2007, when ESPN Radio programming moved back to WKNR and WWGK added Fox Sports Radio programming dubbed "1540 KNR2".[185] The same day, The Really Big Show—a late-morning show featuring Rizzo—debuted, moving Greg Brinda to a new evening slot.[186] Karmazin considered Rizzo a linchpin of the revamped station, saying, "he is as Cleveland as you can get... he's a regular guy."[185] The following month, WMMS/WMJI personality Mark "Munch" Bishop was hired for afternoon drive and former Cavaliers TV play-by-play voice Michael Reghi took over as host for a local Cavs post-game call in show, moving Kenny Roda to early evenings.[187] Play-by-play of Lake Erie Monsters AHL hockey and Cleveland Gladiators AFL football was added as a supplement to ESPN's play-by-play and Ohio State affiliation.[188] Karamzin's investment into the duopoly included a $50,000 combined studio space[189] at the Galleria at Erieview that opened later in 2007.[190] The former Broadview Heights facilities for WKNR, which remain as the transmitter site for WHKW, have since been used for engineering space and storage.[191]

Competing with a Fan[]

2000s logo for WKNR before being consolidated under the ESPN Cleveland banner

Atypical of most radio stations, Good Karma de-emphasizes Nielsen Audio ratings in favor of revenue and cash flow and has done so for both stations; Karmazin has argued that Nielsen's system is "the product of 'a telemarketing agency'".[192] The Really Big Show co-host Aaron Goldhammer's antagonistic on-air persona quickly polarized listeners, with one Plain Dealer profile labeling him "the most hated man in sports radio", a villainous role he admitted to relishing.[180] Chris Fedor, who joined the station in 2002 as a third shift board operator, also polarized to Really Big Show listeners with his pessimistic persona,[193] prompting Rizzo to call him "Negative Ned" in jest.[194] A Really Big Show contest where listeners called in to identify the source of a short audio clip went awry after the clip picked was unidentifiable and ended after two years with no winner; WKNR was fined $4,000 by the FCC after discrepancies emerged with the station's contest rules online and over-the-air.[195] One particularly weak spot among critics was the lack of any minority on-air hosts since the 2004 dismissal of Kendall Lewis[186] which was addressed with X's and O's with The Pros on WWGK, hosted by LeCharles Bentley and Je'Rod Cherry.[196] X's and O's was ultimately moved to evenings on WKNR on July 6, 2010, adding Dustin Fox as a contributor,[197] while Reghi and Roda were concurrently paired up in afternoons, and Brinda and Fedor paired in evenings.[198]

The station gained an in-market competitor when CBS Radio's WKRK-FM adopted a sports format on August 29, 2011, but Karmazin welcomed the change, believing Cleveland could support as many as six sports stations.[199] The switch also came at the expense of WKNR's affiliation with the NFL on Westwood One Sports, which moved to WKRK-FM.[200] WKNR opted to go all-local in evenings, pairing up Brinda, Fedor and Bruce Hooley[201] for The Hooligans in afternoons,[194] a rebranded 3 Deep with Bentley and Cherry in early evenings, and Reghi and Roda in late nights.[202] Fox left for WKRK-FM[199] and Bentley resigned from the station,[193] prompting Cherry to team with Emmett Golden and Will Burge for 3 Deep,[202] while Fedor was replaced by T.J. Zuppe[147] early in 2013.[194] WKNR entered into a cooperative with the Cleveland Browns to broadcast Cleveland Browns Daily—a year-round one-hour program produced by the team—that debuted on July 29, 2011,[203] despite the team still under a long-term radio contract with WTAM and WMMS.[200] Following longtime Plain Dealer Browns beat writer Tony Grossi's dismissal from the newspaper after an errant tweet regarding Browns owner Randy Lerner,[204] WKNR hired him for the same position on March 12, 2012, supplanting Will Burge in the role.[147] Hooley also joined the station amid controversy, having been fired from Ohio State flagship WBNS-FM in March 2011 after openly criticizing Jim Tressel for failing to address a recruiting scandal with the Buckeyes football team,[201] purportedly angering the university.[205]

Entering a Browns "triple cast"[]

Tony Grossi has been with WKNR since 2012 at their Cleveland Browns beat reporter.

The most significant move made by WKNR under Good Karma ownership came on March 28, 2013, when the station—along with CBS Radio's WKRK-FM and WNCX—were awarded the flagship rights to the Cleveland Browns Radio Network.[206] The unusual partnership between rival sports stations was struck in mid-October 2012 at Craig Karmazin's urging, who compared it to CBS's co-op with Turner Sports for NCAA men's basketball tournament coverage and saw the Browns being such a strong community asset that it could be workable.[207] Browns president Alec Scheiner favored the CBS-Good Karma bid as neither station would have schedule conflicts with Indians games, which had been an issue with WTAM since Clear Channel was awarded the rights in 1999.[208] The "triple cast" deal also marked a return for the Browns to the WKNR nameplate; the previous WKNR was Browns flagship from 1994 to 1995 under a joint venture with WDOK.[209] As part of the new pact, Cleveland Browns Daily was expanded to a two-hour midday show as the centerpiece of over 1,000 annual hours of ancillary team-produced programming.[208] The expansion of Browns Daily also came at the expense of The Jim Rome Show, which was moved to WWGK outright,[210] the first hour had previously aired on WWGK only.[211] WKNR also added Matt Wilhelm as a football analyst for the 2013 NFL Draft.[212]

On October 10, 2014, WKNR announced that they had signed former Plain Dealer and Akron Beacon Journal Cavaliers beat reporter, and current ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst to be their Cavs beat reporter and analyst.[213]

Programming[]

Weekdays and weekends[]

Local weekday programming on WKNR includes The Really Big Show with Tony Rizzo and Aaron Goldhammer in late mornings, The Next Level with Je'Rod Cherry and Emmett Golden in early afternoons and ESPN Cleveland Tonight with Matt Fontana in late afternoons; Golden teams up with Rizzo and Goldhammer for The Really Big Show's fourth hour, dubbed RBS Next.[214] Cleveland Browns Daily with Nathan Zegura and Beau Bishop, a Browns Radio Network program exclusive to WKNR, airs in middays.[215]

WKNR additionally carries ESPN Radio's morning show Keyshawn, JWill and Max,[216] and ESPN programming throughout the evening and overnight hours.[217]

Seasonal[]

Local seasonal programming includes Buckeye Game Day with Michael Rizzo, Jordan Kilmack, and Nick Paulus Saturday mornings, and during Browns games, Opening Drive with Matt Fontana, Chris Oldach, and Danny Cunningham airs prior to network pregame coverage, and ESPN Cleveland Prime Time with Emmett Golden and Aaron Goldhammer airs following the game.

As the home of the Browns and the Buckeyes, WKNR also carries programming from the respective teams' radio networks, such as Buckeyes Roundtable Monday nights during football season, and the football and men's basketball coaches' shows from the Ohio State Sports Network.[218] And from the Browns Radio Network, WKNR (along with WNCX) carries the network pregame show, the year-round Cleveland Browns Daily, and a Saturday morning team produced high school football show. Along with WKRK-FM, ESPN 850 also airs a weekly preview show on Wednesday nights and a Thursday night coaches' show.[219]

Play-by-play[]

WKNR airs a range of play-by-play programming. It shares flagship duties for the Cleveland Browns with WKRK-FM and WNCX, and is the Cleveland affiliate for Ohio State football and men's basketball.[220] And along with sister station WWGK under the ESPN Cleveland banner, WKNR also carries ESPN Radio coverage of MLB, the NBA, the NFL, and NCAA football, as well as college football from Learfield Sports.[221]

In addition, WKNR airs coverage of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) men's and women's basketball tournaments and the High School Hysteria high school football game of the week Friday nights during the season.[222][223][224]

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