KOOL-FM
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| City | Phoenix, Arizona |
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| Broadcast area | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Branding | 94.5 KOOL-FM |
| Frequency | 94.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) 94.5-HD2 All 70s "Your '70s Playlist" 94.5-HD3 Radio Disney |
| First air date | 1956 |
| Format | Classic hits |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 504 meters (1,654 ft) |
| Class | C |
| Facility ID | 13506 |
| Callsign meaning | COOL Note; taken from TV station now KSAZ-TV (also see KOLD-TV) |
| Owner |
CBS Radio (sale to Entercom pending) (CBS Radio Stations Inc.) |
| Sister stations | KMLE, KALV-FM |
| Webcast |
KOOL Webstream KOOL-HD2 Webstream |
| Website | kool.cbslocal.com |
KOOL-FM is a commercial Classic Hits music radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, broadcasting on 94.5 FM. The station is owned by CBS Radio. The station features the hits of the late 1970s and the 1980s (as well as several hits from the 1990s) and is one of the top performing stations in Phoenix. The focus is 1976 to 1990. Its studios are located in downtown Phoenix, and its transmitter is in South Mountain Park.
KOOL-FM began programming oldies music in 1971, the first radio station ever to carry the format, as a format brought to the station by Jerry Osborne, who used the air name Dan Coffey. Since the station did not have an oldies library, Osborne supplied all of the music from his own collection. The Dan Coffey Show, which aired on Saturday and Sunday nights, from 6:00 to midnight, immediately became the most popular program on KOOL-FM — so much so that they hired a woman (Pam MacKenzie) whose only job it was to answer the flood of calls and music requests for the Dan Coffey Show. At the time, no other station in the Phoenix market had an oldies format, and Osborne was given the freedom by KOOL-FM (then owned by Gene Autry) to play anything he wanted.
Now the door to success was opened and by the end of 1971 the entire station followed. They switched to an all-oldies format. In 1975, Osborne left radio to start his own publishing company. Before he left, he recorded thousands of oldies for the KOOL-FM music library.
By about 1986, KOOL was playing a small amount of 1980s music as well. Still, they focused on the music of the late 1960s. The station was co-owned with KOOL/960. In December 1985, Adams Radio Group bought both KOOL-AM/FM from Tom Chauncey and Partners. As Adams radio took ownership, KOOL-AM under the tutelage of GM, Jim Seemiller, changed format to a 1950s/1960s early rock and roll Oldies format on January 7, 1987. The music had a concentration of the early hits but also injected a large dose of Doo-wop. This new format caught on and not only became a rating s success but also syndicated itself 24 hours a day, first radio station to do so. The stations were both owned by Adams Communications, and KOOL format was installed at many of other Adams radio stations.
KOOL with its marketing savvy became the leader of Oldies in US. KOOL had its own Radio store, physical shop located in Phoenix with radio paraphernalia, record, music, and other Oldies items and had a tremendous retail operation. At the same time, KOOL opened its own version of a real bar, KOOL CAFE. With the Cafe KOOL did music and live promotions every day of the week. The Cafe became one of Phoenix's hot spots for years. These marketing tactics paid off with the winning of the Marconi award in 1991/92.
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Wikipedia