Everyone enjoys "Classic CAT" from our 101 Audio Vault! Here's Claude Tomlinson, Mr. Schultz and longtime morning newsman Mike Hammond...



101 heard from contributor "500MegaWatt"...

"Back in the early to mid 1970 WNOX had a DJ – J. Worthington Smith. He left WNOX and went to Greenville, SC. Real name was Stanley M. Smith I think. After a few years I lost track of him. Ken Mynatt was at WNOX around the same time. Came from Corbin, KY but left and never heard from again."

Before he added the moniker "Disco Dick", Dick Winstead was the smooth sounding midday DJ at WNOX 990. Here's an aircheck from Dick, circa '73-'74, with quite a few jingles included...

Happy Weekend!

From the early 70's here is Chris Hampton on WKGN~

Happy Memorial Day weekend! Have fun and stay safe!

Back in 1974 WATO 1290 Oak Ridge was serving the Atomic City and also beaming its sound into Ktown! Here was their DJ line up-

530 Allen Crockett
10 Gary Stone (PD)
2 Tony Taylor
7 Bob Gaylord

Jim Wescott was the News Director at WATO and Hugh Newsom and Buddy Martin were also on the air!

More from '74...In the spring WETE disc jockey Jim Humphries set the Guinness World Record for being on the air the most consecutive hours (209) and around that same time Mike Beach joined the station. Here's Mike Beach~

101 wants to hear from you...we are a 101% interactive history site, send your photographs and memories!

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101 found Chuck Edwards, he's the afternoon DJ at WYCD Detroit!

Looking back, the life span of "62 WRJZ" seems short but sweet. The station had a major market sound and many great personalities passed thru those airwaves...CP and Walker, Adele Arakawa, John Boy Isely, Mark Thompson, JJ Scott, Tim Edwards, Mark McCain, Fred Story, and the list goes on. Five years into their run, the Top 40 format had run its course and a new country sound was on the way. The 101 Audio Vault travels to 1979~



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"Hi George- just found your blog...Great work." (Gene Patterson)

PS...Great hearing from Gene, he has been a steady voice in Ktown's broadcast world for decades!

Back in 1977 Foster Arnett was a DJ at WBIR~



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101 has joined the world of Twitter...you can follow me at~twitter.com

101 heard from Gary Drake and we want to hear from you too. Send your photographs and memories!

"Just wanted to thank you for the air check. It has been so long ago!!! I left 'KGN and went to WIXY in Cleveland and then to 13Q in Pittsburgh, then to WIFE in Indy. I spend my DECLINING years here in Huntsville, Alabama where Bob Baron hired me at WAAY. I love Huntsville and am retiring here. Thanks for the Knoxville blog, I love it." (Gary Drake)

The 101 Audio Vault features more sounds from WKGN when the station was playing disco...

The 101 Audio Vault travels back 30 years today to Dan Bell and "The Sunday Survey". Dan, a wonderful orator, tells the story of Ktown teacher Worley McKinney aka Worley Max~

When you think Ktown you think Big Orange Country! The local media has always embraced the Vols as athletic supporters (pun intended).

Here's Ed Brantley from the 70's plus a fun "Beat Auburn" moment featuring Claude the Cat~



101 heard from Ron Campbell...

"Hi...ENJOY YOUR STORIES ABOUT KNOXVILLE RADIO. BRINGS BACK MANY MEMORIES OF THE YEARS THAT I WAS AT WIVK FROM 68 TO 72, WORKING THE 7 TO MIDNIGHT SHIFT, FOLLOWING BOBBY DENTON'S SHOW. ALSO WORKED THE MORNING SHOW AT WBIR IN 1975 AND 76...KNOXVILLE RADIO IS ALWAYS CLOSE TO MY HEART. WAS INDUCTED INTO THE DJ ROCKABILLY HALL OF FAME IN JACKSON LAST YEAR. NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD SEE ANY HONOR LIKE THAT FOR AN OLD COUNTRY BOY. THANKS" (RON CAMPBELL)

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

101 goes way back today...1972 and WKGN "The Famous 1340". As the new year began the DJ line up featured-

6 Bobby Rivers
9 Bob Baron
12 Sonny Knight
3 Wayne Bernard
7 Brother John
12 Frank Erwin

In mid January Allen Dennis joined the station as the new morning DJ!

In late March Chris Hampton left his WKGN news position and became a fulltime DJ.

On May 15 Allen Dennis exited for sister station WMAK Nashville and Eddie Beacon returned to 'KGN...(Brother John also left as he joined W-149)~

6 Bobby Rivers
9 Bob Baron
11 Chris Hampton
3 Wayne Bernard
7 Eddie Beacon
12 Frank Erwin

Shortly...Eddie Beacon exited again and Frank Erwin went to 7p-12 and was replaced on the overnight show by Monte Morgan.

The WKGN news team in 1972 featured Jim Goodman, Walker Johnson, and Joe Anderson...

The door continued to swing open that year, on July 3 Gary Drake and Jerry Steele joined WKGN...

6 Bob Baron
9 Gary Drake
12 Chris Hampton
3 Wayne Bernard
7 Frank Erwin
12 Jerry Steele

...And that DJ line up stayed in tact for the remainder of 1972.

The 101 Audio Vault features Gary Drake~

"This is me behind the mike at WROL....aka W149. Cool to see the carts on the wall where I remember them...This was taken, I believe, in 1975 or '76" (Chris Grabenstein)

ChrisGrabenstein.com
THE CROSSROADS paperback May 12th
HELL HOLE paperback May 26th
MIND SCRAMBLER June 23rd
THE HANGING HILL Aug 11th

From the 101 inbox~

"Didn’t you leave out Anne Alexander in your list of DJs and News Person(s)? She was really Estelle K. Shelton, a very nice lady. No telling where she is now." (500 Mega Watt)

"Fred Story is a media composer, in Charlotte NC. He just built a fantastic new recording studio, check out Concentrix Music and Sound Design, on the WEB." YOUR FAN, (SS)!

"I remember Knoxville radio when I was a teenager in the mid to late 70's The WOKI airchecks brought back memories as that was the cool station on FM, even in the automation stage. WNOX used to sign off Sat or Fri night around midnight for transmitter maintenance. WKGN went disco about '78 or '79, then I left the area and moved back to Wash State. Good Times! Keep up the archives." (Chris Stubblefield)

Can you believe that Jeff Jarnigan has been on the Ktown airwaves for over 30 years! Here's Jeff back in 1979...

WRJZ was sounding great in 1979. They started the year with-

6 CP and Walker
10 Rick Kirk
2 JJ Scott
6 John Boy Isley
10 Adele
2 Mark Thompson

Jim Ridings was GM, Bob Kaghan PD, JJ Scott Assistant PD, and Mark Thompson was MD...Jeff Jarnigan was on the air on the weekends! The WRJZ news department featured News Director Ernie Baker, David Henley, Lisa McNeil and Pete Michaels covered traffic.

Their DJ line up stayed intact until fall when Eric Kelly became afternoon DJ from WLAP Lexington. Jeff Jarnigan became full time working the 2a-6 overnight show. New weekenders from Charlotte were Carrington Thompson and Jay Jarvis.

6 CP and Walker
10 Rick Kirk
2 Eric Kelly
6 John Boy Isley
10 Adele
2 Jeff Jarnigan (Replaced Mark Thompson who went to WERC Birmingham)

Kelly didn't stay too long...his air check will be on 101 down the road! In Octbor Mark McCane had been brought in as afternoon DJ...

By the end of 1979 their everyday line up featured-

6 CP and Walker
10 Adele
2 Mark McCain
6 John Boy Isley
10 Fred Story
2 Jeff jarnigan

There you have it...a look back at 62 WRJZ from 30 years ago!

From the 101 Audio Vault, here's John Boy~

For almost 30 years WIVK-FM's 10a-3p show has been hosted by only two DJs...Bob Thomas then Colleen Addair. For a brief period before Bob, Celeste Gourdin was the midday host. Here she is in 1979...

"Studios of 1340 Cookin' 'KGN on Alcoa Highway, circa 1974. Offices and studios occupied the second story, while a bank was conveniently located on the ground floor, so we could immediately cash our parsimonious paychecks to get beer money before heading to Big Daddy's."

Robert Murphy (fka Smokey Burns)