KFAS
Frequency1260 kHz
History
First air date
December 6, 1956 (1956-12-06)
Last air date
At least November 1995 (license cancelled February 9, 1997)
Former call signs
KPIN (1956–1989)
Call sign meaning
Francis Albert Sinatra[1]
Technical information
Facility ID2752
Power

KFAS was a radio station on 1260 kHz in Casa Grande, Arizona, United States, which operated from December 6, 1956, to at least November 1995. Its FCC license was canceled on February 9, 1997.

History

KPIN (call letters standing for Pinal County) signed on December 6, 1956, as the first radio station in Casa Grande.[3][4] It broadcast with 1,000 watts during the day on 1260 kHz and was owned by the ABC Service Company, named for its three proprietors: E. Glenn Abercrombie, Milton F. Brown, Jr., and N. L. Caperton. Within six months of signing on, ABC Service Company sold the station to John W. Parham and David A. Garee, who promptly exited the partnership. In 1966, Casa Grande Broadcasting bought the station; by the time of its sale to KPIN, Inc. at the end of 1970, it held an affiliation with the Mutual Broadcasting System.[4] In 1973, an application was made by new owner Santa Cruz Valley Communication Systems for an FM partner on 105.5 MHz;[5] Brett F. Eisele filed a mutually exclusive application[6] and won the frequency, which signed on as KBFE in 1976.

In 1989, a consortium of owners including Frank Sinatra bought the station, continuing a revolving door of owners. The call sign was changed to KFAS, and it was paired with KFAS-FM (the former KBFE) at 105.5 MHz, giving it the FM counterpart it had not been able to obtain 15 years prior.[7] The call sign was derived from Sinatra's initials.[1] KFAS broadcast country music, while KFAS-FM held an adult contemporary format. By 1990, KFAS had flipped to Spanish to fill a void created when station KXMK changed formats to classical music in a simulcast with Phoenix-area station KONC.[8] Ultimately, the two stations began simulcasting again. However, the combo soon became embroiled in a buyout, lawsuits, and in 1992, a suit filed by the Associated Press which sought $28,158 in unpaid wire service bills.[9]

In 1995, KFAS's FM counterpart (by now known as KKER), which had upgraded its facilities in order to become a rimshot into Phoenix, was bought by McDaniel and Callaham and began broadcasting the K-LOVE network, changing its calls to KLVA and later being sold directly to the Educational Media Foundation. One last go was made of 1260 AM late in 1995, when it returned to the air after an absence of more than two years and bearing a country format. It also sought to use the KKER call sign that had been used by 105.5 FM.[10] This final incarnation of the station was short-lived, disappearing quickly, and the license was canceled in February 1997 for failure to transmit in a 12-month period under Section 312(g) of the Communications Act.[11][12]

In May 2010, 1260 AM returned to Pinal County when KBSZ relocated from Wickenburg to Apache Junction, moving from 1250 kHz.[13]

References

  1. 1 2 "News/Talk PD Flux: 3WE, KTRH, WVON; Sinatra-Owned Ariz. Outlet Swings To AC" (PDF). Billboard. July 8, 1989. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  2. ↑ "KFAS" (PDF). National Radio Club AM Log (16 ed.). 1996. p. 147. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Chamber Welcomes KPIN". Casa Grande Dispatch. December 13, 1956.
  4. 1 2 "Arizona" (PDF). 1971 Broadcasting Yearbook. 1971. p. B-10.
  5. ↑ "KPIN Proposing FM Station for Casa Grande". Casa Grande Dispatch. July 13, 1973.
  6. ↑ "New FM stations – designated for hearing" (PDF). Broadcasting. May 27, 1974. p. 66. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Start spreading the news" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 3, 1989. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Surprise! Radio Rips Into Milli Vanilli; San Antonio Gets Its Third Oldies FM" (PDF). Billboard. December 1, 1990. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  9. ↑ Wallace, Steve (October 24, 1992). "CG Radio Station Changes Management and Format". Casa Grande Dispatch.
  10. ↑ "KFAS Returns to the Air". Casa Grande Dispatch. November 1, 1995.
  11. ↑ Federal Communications Commission (April 3, 1997). "DA 97-661: Expiration of Licenses for Radio Facilities" (PDF). Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Mesa Mike's List of Deleted AM Radio Stations". Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Host Says KBSZ to Flip to Talk". All Access. September 2, 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
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