PRESERVING RADIO HISTORY ACROSS COLORADO

Archives: People

  • Donald L. Tucker

    Donald L. Tucker was station manager of KRYT 1530 in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you tuned in to KRYT in the late 1960s, Donald was the one handling the day-to-day running of the station.

    Managing KRYT

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Donald as station manager, working under William S. Cook, who was station president, general manager and chief engineer. Sue Barton was promotion manager and Ed Stabler was program director.

    This is a short page built from one directory listing, so we don’t have the full length of Donald’s time at the station. If you worked with Donald or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • William S. Cook

    William S. Cook was an owner, manager and engineer tied to KRYT 1530 and KRYT-FM 101.9 in Colorado Springs. If you tuned in to KRYT in the late 60s, William was the person who both signed the checks and kept the transmitter humming.

    Running KRYT

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists William as president, general manager and chief engineer of KRYT. The FM side was simulcasting the AM station’s programming at the time, which put him over both operations.

    The same listing names Donald L. Tucker as station manager, Sue Barton as promotion manager and Ed Stabler as program director.

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

    Sources

  • Charles Upton

    Charles H. “Charlie” Upton was the engineer who kept KRDO on the air for more than half a century. If you ever tuned in to KRDO radio or TV in Colorado Springs, his work was behind the signal.

    A career at KRDO

    Charlie moved to Colorado Springs in 1950 as an engineer at KRDO Radio. He became chief engineer in 1960 and worked across KRDO AM, FM and TV, plus stations in Grand Junction. His projects included building KRDO-FM, creating a microwave link between KRDO-TV and Denver’s KBTV, and modernizing transmission and production systems, through the move to digital broadcasting. The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists him as KRDO’s chief engineer.

    He also worked on the TV side at KRDO-TV in Colorado Springs and KJCT-TV in Grand Junction.

    Remembering Charlie

    Charlie died on May 6, 2019, at age 89. His obituary noted that he had been an engineer at KRDO for 54 years.

    Sources

  • Bill Yeager

    Bill Yeager was news director at KRDO in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you got your local news from KRDO in the late 1960s, Bill was leading the newsroom.

    Leading the KRDO newsroom

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Bill as news director. The same listing shows Dan Eads as program director and Charles Upton as chief engineer, which rounds out the leadership team at the AM station.

    This is a short page built from one directory listing, so we don’t have the full length of Bill’s time at the station. If you worked with Bill or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Dan Eads

    Dan Eads was program director at KRDO in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you tuned in to KRDO in the late 1960s, Dan was the person shaping what you heard.

    Running the sound of KRDO

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Dan as KRDO’s program director. The same listing names Bill Yeager as news director and Charles Upton as chief engineer.

    This is a short page built from one directory listing, so we don’t know how long Dan stayed. If you worked with Dan or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Al Thernes

    Al Thernes was KRDO‘s radio director in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you listened to KRDO in the late 60s, Al was part of the leadership team behind the station.

    KRDO’s 1969 leadership

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Al alongside program director Dan Eads, news director Bill Yeager and chief engineer Charles Upton.

    The same directory shows KRDO-FM 95.1 as not yet on the air, with a target launch date of January 1, 1969, so Al’s entry lands in a period of FM expansion. The listing doesn’t say what part, if any, he had in the planned FM service.

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

    Sources

  • Paul Dunn

    Paul Dunn was chief engineer for KVOR in Colorado Springs in 1969. You never heard Paul on the air, but if you listened to KVOR on AM 1300 or its FM companion, he was the one making sure the signal got to you.

    Keeping two stations on the air

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Paul as chief engineer for KVOR and its co-owned sister station KVOR-FM on 92.9. The two stations shared ownership and facilities, so Paul looked after the technical side of both. The yearbook doesn’t give his start or end dates.

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

    Sources

  • Burry Dolbare

    Burry Dolbare was news director at KVOR 1300 in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you got your local news from KVOR in the late 1960s, Burry was leading the newsroom.

    The KVOR newsroom

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Burry as news director under Wolverine Broadcasting. The same listing shows James W. Vinall as president and general manager and Jack Finlayson as program director.

    This is a short page built from one directory listing, so we don’t have the full length of Burry’s time at the station. If you worked with Burry or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Jack Finlayson

    Jack Finlayson was program director at KVOR 1300 in Colorado Springs in 1969. If you listened to KVOR back then, Jack was shaping the lineup.

    Programming a full-service station

    The 1969 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Jack at KVOR, a CBS and Intermountain affiliate, alongside general manager James W. Vinall and news director Burry Dolbare. It’s a dated staff record, so it doesn’t tell us how long Jack stayed or where he went next.

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

    Sources

  • James W. Vinall

    James W. Vinall was the man running the show at KVOR and Z93 for much of the ’60s and ’70s. If you listened to KVOR 1300 or Z93 in Colorado Springs back then, Jim was the boss behind the scenes.

    Wolverine Broadcasting

    The 1964 FM Radio Annual lists Jim Vinall as manager of KVOR-FM. By 1969 the Broadcasting Yearbook had him as president and general manager of Wolverine Broadcasting Company, owner of KVOR 1300 (with CBS and Intermountain affiliations) and its FM sister on 92.9, which duplicated the AM. In the 1970s he stayed president and general manager as 92.9 became KSPZ and took on the Z93 identity, and a former employee who worked there from 1973 to 1978 remembers Jim as general manager in that period.

    The sale

    Trade coverage names Jim as one of Wolverine’s owners alongside Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Powers. In 1978 Wolverine agreed to sell the KVOR/KSPZ combination, and FCC approval of a sale to Sunbelt Communications was reported in January 1979.

    Sources