KCND-TV

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For the existing public radio station in Bismarck, North Dakota, please see KCND.

KCND-TV
Pembina, North Dakota
Branding	KCND 12
Channels	12 analog
Affiliations	ABC NBC (secondary)
Owner	Gordon McLendon
Founded	1959-1975 (as KCND) 1975-present (as CKND)
Call letters meaning	K Canada North Dakota (Pembina is located near the United States–Canada border)
Former callsigns	currently CKND in Winnipeg and used for KCND-FM in Bismarck

KCND was the call letters of a television station in Pembina, North Dakota, announced on February 20, 1959^[1], and signed on November 7, 1960^[2] on channel 12. The station was established by Gordon McLendon, a Texas broadcaster who was in the habit of writing editorials which were read on-air by personalities at his station.

The FCC approved construction of the station, in March 1959, which the spokesman (Community Radio Corporation's) Robert Lukkason said would cost $150,000 to build. It would be a "branch" of currently defunct KNOX-TV in Grand Forks, but would have its own studios.^[3]

At the origial announcement of the station in 1959, the plan was to errect the antenna atop a 300 foot mast. However, this plan changed and one of the tallest broadcast transmitters in North America would be constructed — 1400 feet — 100' short of the height of the Empire State Building in New York.

KCND operated as a semi-independent station. It was affiliated with both NBC and ABC for periods but never showed all of either network's schedule. It carried The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson until 1967 when Fargo NBC affiliate WDAY opened a satellite statoin, WDAZ, in Devils Lake-Grand Forks serving the northern part of the Red River Valley.

Soon after WDAZ went on air, KCND lost its NBC affiliation. Thereafter, it carried about half of the ABC primetime lineup (which was in those days the number 3 and usually ignominious network) and showed very low budget syndicated programming (e.g., series like "Felony Squad" that had run for one or two seasons years earlier) and movies the rest of the time.

KCND was purchased by Winnipeg, Manitoba lawyer Israel Asper in 1974 with plans to relocate to Winnipeg; the Canadian government approved an additional frequency for Winnipeg because they favoured the elimination of KCND as a border station that broadcast American programming into Manitoba without regard for Canadian regulations.

The station signed off as KCND for the final time on Sunday August 31st, 1975 at 8:30 p.m., and CKND signed on for the first time at 9:00 p.m. on over-the-air channel 9 and cable channel 12 with the program "Introducing CKND."

This was the beginning of Asper's career as a media mogul, which culminated in his owning most of the large daily newspapers in Canada and TV stations in nearly every province.

The first official broadcast on CKND was the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon, which began at 9:30 p.m. on August 31st and was shown until Monday at 5:30 p.m. on September 1st.

Ten years after CKND replaced KCND, another channel 12 station from Pembina, KNRR 12 announced its intention to broadcast, signed on in 1986 and became afffiated with the Fox television network and a satellite of KVRR 15 in Fargo.^[4]

[edit] References

1. ^ "Outside aerial needed", Winnipeg Tribune, February 20, 1959.
2. ^ "Pembina on the air", Winnipeg Tribune, November 7, 1960.
3. ^ "TV Shows Soon From Across Border", Winnipeg Tribune, March 13, 1959, pp. 1.
4. ^ "New U.S. station riles CKND", Winnipeg Free Press, July 20, 1985.