PRESERVING RADIO HISTORY ACROSS COLORADO

Archives: People

  • Jim Herron

    Jim Herron is a radio programmer and air personality who was on the air at Denver’s KIMN in the 1970s. If you were a Top 40 fan in Denver in the mid-’70s, you may remember him on the late shift and then at midday.

    KIMN in the 1970s

    Jim was part of KIMN’s lineup in 1975, during the station’s Top 40 era. In October 1976 he moved from the 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. shift to middays. A separate station-history profile also lists him at KIMN-FM in 1975, alongside his shift change at KIMN-AM.

    Later career

    Jim’s later work included WAVA in Washington, D.C., WXTR, KLTR in Houston, WCLR in Chicago and WBOS-FM in Boston, followed by programming and management roles. In a 2007 update, he said he was running Herron Media in Rockport, Maine, providing voice-over services.

    Sources

  • Jack Merker

    Jack Merker, known on the air as “Smilin’ Jack,” was a Denver DJ and program director. If you listened to KIMN in the ’50s, you may remember waking up to J.M. in the A.M.

    KIMN’s Fabulous Five

    A Colorado radio chronology lists Jack among KIMN‘s “Fabulous Five” in 1955 and says he hosted the station’s morning show by 1959. A local radio-history feature also identifies him as a KIMN DJ and program director.

    Program director at KAAT

    Jack later programmed at Denver’s KAAT. Peter Boyles has said Jack was the one who invited him to try weekend disc-jockey work. In a 2017 interview, Peter recalled sitting in with Jack before being asked to take the microphone, and in a 2014 first-person column he remembered Jack asking him to become a weekend DJ. Neither account gives an exact date for the hiring.

    Sources

  • Jack Donahue

    Jack Donahue ran Colorado Springs college radio station KEPC in its early years, and later taught broadcasting at Pikes Peak Community College. If you got your start in radio at Pikes Peak in the 70s or after, he may well have been one of your instructors.

    KEPC and broadcasting education

    KEPC 90.5 signed on in 1973. By 1975 the station had boosted its power, with Jack as station manager and George Shaiffer as chief engineer. Years later, Colorado Springs broadcaster Tron Simpson remembered Jack and Curt Grow as his broadcasting instructors at Pikes Peak.

    This is a short page built from college and newspaper records. If you studied under Jack or worked at KEPC, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Donna Jo Spurling

    Donna Jo Spurling is a former KKCS-FM staff member in Colorado Springs. If you were part of the KKCS family, you may well have worked with Donna Jo.

    The KKCS reunion

    Donna Jo turns up in a photo from the July 2022 reunion of former KKCS staff members and their spouses, which ties Donna Jo to the station. We don’t yet have a role or dates of employment.

    This is a short page built from one archive photo. If you worked with Donna Jo or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Bobbie Lemieux

    Bobbie Lemieux was part of the morning “Q-Zoo” at Colorado Springs’ KBIQ-FM in 2001. If you started your day with Q-Zoo around then, Bobbie was one of the voices in the mix.

    The Q-Zoo

    An August 2001 station report lists Bobbie with Marty Smith and Parris Foxworthy on the morning show. We don’t know when Bobbie joined or left.

    This is a short page built from one trade-paper item. If you worked with Bobbie or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Big Dad Carson Cornell

    Big Dad Carson Cornell was on the KKCS-FM morning show in Colorado Springs during the late 1990s. If you woke up to country in the Springs back then, Big Dad was in the mix.

    Mornings on KKCS

    Archive photos place Big Dad with the station’s morning team at the 1998 Colorado Broadcasters Association awards ceremony, and in a separate 1998 shot alongside co-host Uncle Steve Etheridge. Uncle Steve logged 14 years on Springs airwaves, among them a KKCS stretch that ran from 1992 through 1999.

    This is a short page built from limited records, so we don’t have exact hire or departure dates. If you worked with Big Dad or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Betsy Middleton

    Betsy Middleton is a former KKCS-FM staff member in Colorado Springs. If you were part of the KKCS family, you may well have worked with Betsy.

    The KKCS reunion

    Betsy turns up in a photo from the July 2022 reunion of former KKCS staff members and their spouses, which ties Betsy to the station. We don’t yet have a role or dates of employment.

    This is a short page built from one archive photo. If you worked with Betsy or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Al Jefferson

    Al Jefferson was a KIMN-AM personality in Denver in the early 1970s. If you were on the KIMN dial in 1973, you may have heard Al.

    Caught on a DX report

    A February 10, 1973 listener reception report, published in a DX hobbyist newsletter, names Al as the KIMN personality on the air when a far-away listener picked up the Denver station. That puts Al on KIMN that day, but we don’t know when Al joined or left. Our archive has a related KIMN recording too: Al Jefferson on Denver’s KIMN.

    This is a short page built from limited records. If you worked with Al or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Eugene Powers

    Eugene Powers was a co-owner of the Colorado Springs radio operation behind KVOR-AM, KVOR-FM and later KSPZ-FM. If you grew up tuning in KVOR in the Springs in the 1970s, he was one of the people who owned the place.

    Wolverine Broadcasting

    Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Powers owned Wolverine Broadcasting Corp. alongside company president and general manager James W. Vinall. Wolverine controlled the KVOR/KSPZ AM-FM combination until the late-1970s sale process.

    This is a short page built from published ownership records and contributor memories. If you worked at KVOR or KSPZ in those years and have more to share, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Bill Struck

    Bill Struck was a Colorado Springs radio manager tied to the KSSS/KVUU operation in the mid-1980s. If you listened to either station back then, Bill was the person running the shop.

    General manager in Colorado Springs

    When morning host Tony Lynn arrived at KSSS-AM in 1984, Bill was the general manager of the station operation. KSSS and KVUU-FM were closely linked then and worked out of the same Colorado Springs facility.

    This is a short page built from one first-hand recollection. If you worked with Bill or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

    • Tony Lynn: first-person oral-history contribution to the Colorado Radio Archive (October 2026)