KMZT (AM)
City of license | Beverly Hills, California |
---|---|
Broadcast area | Los Angeles, California |
Branding | K-Mozart |
Frequency | 1260 kHz |
Repeaters |
105.1-2 KKGO-HD2 97.9 KMZT-FM (Monterey Bay) |
First air date | 1947 (as KGIL) |
Format | Classical music |
Power |
20,000 watts (Day) 7,500 watts (Night) |
Class | B |
Facility ID | 43937 |
Former callsigns |
KGIL (1947-1993) KJQI (1993-1995) KNNS (1995-1997) KGIL (1997-2000) KJAZ (2000-2002) KSUR (2002-2005) KKGO (2005-2007) KMZT (2/2007-10/2007) KGIL (2007-2011) |
Owner | Mount Wilson Broadcasting |
Sister stations |
KKGO (Also programs KKJZ for California State University, Long Beach) |
Webcast | Listen Live |
Website | kmozart.com |
KMZT (1260 AM) is a radio station licensed to Beverly Hills, California, and broadcasting to the Los Angeles Metro area from a transmitter in Mission Hills. KMZT airs classical music.
Station history
KGIL signed on in 1947 airing a big band music format. KGIL aired other formats including talk until 1993.
From 1993 to 1995, it had the call letters KJQI, playing adult standards music. In 1995, it became K-NEWS, simulcasting with XESURF (then with call letters XETIN) and now-defunct KNNZ in Costa Mesa. K-NEWS was an all-news radio service with content from the Associated Press and local announcers Peter Arbogast, Jim Roope, and H.K. Malay. K-NEWS was also the home of the Los Angeles Clippers and had an unprecedented 8 traffic reports an hour, causing competitors KNX and KFWB to add more traffic reports to its lineup. In 1997, the station reverted to the KGIL call letters and hosted an all-Beatles lineup for seven months. The station then went All Broadway Show tunes in August 1997 to Sometime in 1998.[1] The station then switched to Music of Your Life[2] before going to a mainstream jazz format, with the call letters KJAZ, in 2000. Then, in 2002, it took on the call letters KSUR and began broadcasting an adult standards format, changing its call letters to KKGO in 2005. From August 2004 to June 2005 the station played an oldies format playing music from the 1950s and 1960s.[1]
On December 1, 2006, KKGO changed to a country music format, filling the void left behind when KZLA became rhythmic adult contemporary as KMVN earlier in 2006. On February 26, 2007, KKGO swapped callsigns and formats with FM sister station KMZT, moving the country music format to 105.1 FM, and the classical format known as "K-Mozart" to 1260 AM and to a new HD channel at 105.1 HD2. On October 29, 2007, KMZT changed its calls back to KGIL and flipped formats from classical to talk radio, with Michael Jackson as the headline host. Jackson was laid off from the station about a year later and replaced by John Ziegler, who left after a few months. Aside from Jackson and Ziegler, the bulk of KGIL's programming was syndicated, mostly of second-tier programs left over from what KFI, KRLA and KABC did not want.
On November 27, 2007, KGIL started simulcasting on XESURF 540AM, which flipped from classic country music.[3]
Owner Saul Levine decided to return KGIL to a music format after the debut of a similar talk radio format on KFWB, which took place in September 2009. On August 27, 2009, the station switched to a mix of oldies and adult standards as "Retro 1260." Mornings had John Regan (formerly with the station), Middays had Gary Hollis, afternoons had Kimber Murphy, followed by Chuck Southcott, who had worked at KGIL from 1962 to 1975. Retro 1260 emphasized vocals and played Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, The Beatles, and The Beach Boys, as well as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Steve Tyrell, and Michael Feinstein. On March 28, 2011, the Los Angeles Times reported that the station will begin airing classical music on April 4.[4] The final song on Retro 1260 was "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" by Keely Smith at 11:58 p.m. on April 3, 2011.[5] Retro 1260 now is available as an Internet stream at Retro105.com and on KKGO 105.1 HD3.
In addition to the music, KGIL is the Los Angeles-area affiliate for California Golden Bears football and has aired games of the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Kings in the past to resolve time conflicts with other stations.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 REC Broadcast Query
- ↑ Judith Gross, "Music of Your Life Gets a Second Wind," Billboard, 08/08/98, Vol. 110 Issue 32, p. 67.
- ↑ [http://www.ocregister.com/column/radio-station-nov-1928016-audience-drive. "On the radio: Dr. Drew Pinsky adds KGIL to his practice"], Orange County Register, November 22, 2007
- ↑ "Classical music to get a second radio outlet in L.A. area". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ "On Air Playlist -- Retro 1260 AM playlist for April 3, 2011". TuneGenie.
External links
- KMZT official website
- FCC History Cards for KMZT
- Query the FCC's AM station database for KMZT
- Radio-Locator Information on KMZT
- Query Nielsen Audio's AM station database for KMZT
- [http://www.ocregister.com/column/radio-station-nov-1928016-audience-drive. Changes to KGIL line-up from November 27, 2007.]
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Coordinates: 34°14′57″N 118°27′14″W / 34.24917°N 118.45389°W