PRESERVING RADIO HISTORY ACROSS COLORADO

Archives: People

  • Robert D. Telmosse

    Robert D. “Bob” Telmosse was a Colorado Springs businessman, ad executive, philanthropist and radio owner who helped build KILO‘s album-rock identity. If you remember the Denver Warehouse furniture ads or the Christmas giveaway, you know his name.

    Owning KILO

    Bob was a principal in KILO Broadcasting when the former KPIK-FM was sold separately from KPIK AM in 1978. FCC coverage at the time described him as the majority owner of KILO Broadcasting, which bought 93.9 FM for $302,074, and later KILO histories name him among the local businessmen behind the new operation. He and partner Charlie Brown sold KILO to Bahakel Communications in 1984.

    Denver Warehouse and giving back

    Outside radio, Bob was widely known in Colorado Springs for the Denver Warehouse furniture business and its very visible local advertising. His marketing career included Tel-Moore Marketing, and he was deeply involved in local charities and civic groups. He also founded the charitable effort that grew into the Bob Telmosse Christmas Giveaway, which was still going strong in The Gazette’s 2024 roundup of holiday events across Colorado Springs.

    Remembered

    His Gazette obituary remembered him as a partner in KILO Broadcasting and noted that the station rose to national prominence in album-oriented rock. Bob died on May 23, 2006, in California after a long illness. He was 64.

    Sources

  • Al Perry

    Alvan S. “Al” Perry started in radio in Pueblo and moved from the microphone into station sales and management. If you tuned in to KOSI in Denver from the early ’70s into the early ’80s, he was the general manager behind it.

    KOSI and beyond

    Al was general manager of KOSI AM and FM from 1973 to 1983. Satterfield & Perry, the national media-brokerage firm he co-founded after that, had him as both chairman and CEO. He also served in the U.S. Army Reserve, where he was promoted to full colonel in 1974.

    Early years in Pueblo and Denver

    In 1948 he started as an announcer at KDZA in Pueblo, then quickly moved on to KCSJ. Later he was on the air at KMYR and on camera for KKTV in Colorado Springs in 1953. In 1955 he joined the sales staff at KLZ, and in 1958 he was general sales manager of KTLN.

    He built KTUX in Pueblo and managed it from 1959 to 1961. KOA-TV had him in sales from 1962 to 1973, and he managed KLAK as well.

    Honors and remembrance

    He died in February 2012, at age 83.

    Sources

  • Rush Evans

    Rush Evans was a Southern Colorado broadcasting executive who ran KKFM 96.5 in Colorado Springs in the mid-1960s. If your family had an FM radio in Colorado Springs back then, KKFM was one of the early stations on that dial, and Rush was the one in charge.

    General manager at KKFM

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Rush as KKFM’s general manager. The management team around him included station manager Sterling Campbell, commercial manager George Jeffrey, news director Hal Kennedy and chief engineer H. Cozine Strang. KKFM had signed on May 2, 1959, on 96.5 MHz.

    Rush is also connected to KKAM 1350 in Pueblo, which stretched his role across Southern Colorado broadcasting.

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

    Sources

  • James Glusick

    James Glusick was chief engineer at KAPI 690 in Pueblo in 1966. If you tuned in to KAPI in the mid-1960s, James was the one keeping the signal on the air.

    Engineering at KAPI

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists James as chief engineer, working alongside general manager George Sandoval at a time when KAPI scheduled a lot of Spanish-language programming.

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

    Sources

  • Henry Reyes

    Henry Reyes was a Pueblo radio newsman and personality. If you’ve ever gone to Fiesta Day at the Colorado State Fair, you can thank the work he did at KAPI.

    On the air at KAPI

    Henry was news director of KAPI 690 in the mid-1960s, and he also hosted Spanish-language programming for Pueblo’s Hispanic community.

    The man behind Fiesta Day

    Henry was a driving force behind Fiesta Day at the Colorado State Fair. He persuaded fair manager Don Svedman to give a day to Hispanic culture, and with KAPI manager George Sandoval he booked Antonio Aguilar and Flor Silvestre for a Thanksgiving Day 1966 show that won Svedman over. Henry chaired the first Fiesta Day at the State Fair in 1967, and it has been an annual tradition ever since.

    Sources

  • George Sandoval

    George Sandoval was a Pueblo radio manager and programmer tied to KAPI 690. If you grew up in Pueblo tuning in for Spanish-language radio, this is the kind of station leader who helped put it on your dial.

    Running KAPI

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Sandoval in nearly every top job at KAPI: president, general manager, commercial manager, promotions manager and program director. The station gave a lot of airtime to Spanish-language programming and became an important voice for Pueblo’s Hispanic community.

    Fiesta Day

    Sandoval worked alongside Henry Reyes on the cultural programming that grew into the Colorado State Fair’s Fiesta Day. As KAPI manager, he booked Mexican stars Antonio Aguilar and Flor Silvestre for Thanksgiving Day 1966, a big performance that helped establish the annual celebration.

    Later years

    In the mid-1970s Sandoval sold his interest in KAPI and moved to Denver, where he became general manager of Spanish-language KFSC and hosted a bilingual-bicultural program.

    Sources

  • Ed Wood

    Ed Wood was chief engineer at KDZA 1230 in Pueblo in 1966. If you grew up on rock and roll in Pueblo in the 1960s, Ed was the one keeping the signal humming.

    Engineering at KDZA

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Ed as chief engineer under owner and general manager Dee B. Crouch. That put Ed in charge of the technical side of one of Pueblo’s popular-music stations of the decade.

    This is a short page built from one directory listing, so we don’t have exact start and end dates. If you worked with Ed or have more to add, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • Fred Abernathy

    Fred Abernathy was a Pueblo radio programmer and newsman at KDZA 1230. If you were a Pueblo teenager listening to KDZA in the mid-60s, Fred was in charge of both the music and the news.

    Programming and news

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Fred as both program director and news director, working under KDZA founder Dee B. Crouch. That put him over the entertainment programming and the newsroom at a time when the station was moving toward rock and roll and Top 40. The listing confirms his dual role in 1966 but doesn’t say how long he held it.

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

    Sources

  • William M. White Jr.

    William M. White Jr. was a Pueblo broadcasting executive tied to KCSJ 590. If you grew up in Pueblo in the mid-60s with KCSJ on in the kitchen, the company behind it was led by William.

    Sangre de Cristo Broadcasting

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists William as president of Sangre de Cristo Broadcasting Corporation, which owned KCSJ. The same entry names Cliff Hendrix as general manager and describes a full-service station with a mix of news, music, sports and community programming. The listing confirms his corporate role in 1966 but doesn’t say how long he held it.

    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

  • Bob Walker

    Bob Walker was chief engineer at Pueblo’s KCSJ 590 AM in 1966. If you listened to KCSJ in the mid-1960s, Bob was one of the people keeping it on the air.

    Engineering at KCSJ

    The 1966 Broadcasting Yearbook lists Bob on the KCSJ staff alongside management and programming personnel. KCSJ is listed as a 1,000-watt directional AM operation, which is the equipment Bob’s engineering work supported in the Pueblo market.

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

    Sources