Oklahoma Musicians and The Broadcast Frontier

Chapter 4.2: Radio Takes a Dive

After enjoying its greatest profits in the immediate post-World War II period, radio experienced a crisis shortly after the advent of television. Dramatic changes for the broadcast industry occurred in 1951 as emphasis shifted from radio to television. Radio revenues significantly declined, and the radio networks struggled to maintain viability in the face of the changing industry. Over the next three years, the major radio networks reorganized their staffs, rate schedules, and programming numerous times in attempt to remain profitable. The local affiliates generally suffered under the multitude of changes imposed by the networks and actively protested their unfairness.[2]

In 1952, the FCC issued the "Sixth Report and Order" that lifted the freeze on new television stations and granted 617 new licenses nationwide, making television available throughout the U.S. Many radio networks, such as the Liberty Broadcasting System, were no longer profitable and ceased doing business, while others, like the Mutual Broadcasting System, were forced to file bankruptcy. By 1954, the major radio networks had shortened their broadcast days and within a few years, many radio affiliates cut their network ties completely. All radio networks had ended their entertainment shows and limited their programming to sports and news (the only types of network radio programming that remained profitable) by the early 1960s.[3]

As television gained in popularity, radio stations struggled to keep not only listeners, but also staff and talent. Many radio stations faced a mass exodus of their personnel to television because television was known as the most prestigious medium of the industry. For those at WKY, there was an easy transition from radio to television because, in its early days, the radio station's staff was mixed with that of the television station. Radio performers who were unable or unwilling to make the transition to television often found their careers stagnating.[4]

The Rise of the DJ

As television's popularity grew, there was vigorous debate in the trade journals over radio's place in the broadcast industry and many individuals questioned whether radio could survive. It did. Radio survived the advent of television by identifying and catering to a new market--teenagers. As most Americans were foregoing radio in favor of television for their primary source of entertainment, disc-jockey shows made a rapid rise in popularity with teens.[5]

The disc-jockey shows appealed to a radio audience that was increasingly teenage and seemed to prefer music over other types of radio programs. Although long a staple of radio, disc-jockey shows became popular and profitable only after the decline in network participation in radio left a programming vacuum that stations struggled to fill. For lack of any other programming, stations turned to the stand by of playing records. At first, most stations' musical selections varied wildly from hour to hour, with the sponsor often choosing the type of music played (sometimes the actual musical selections), while others merely alternated musical styles from hour to hour. [6]

In the early 1950s, Tod Storz, the owner of a chain of midwestern and southern radio stations, began to experiment with a limited-play-list format. Storz developed a formula in which the station's play list was limited to the 40 most popular songs during any given week. The "Top 40" style developed by Storz specified which types of songs would be played at various times during the hour and how many minutes of commercials would be broadcast per hour. Storz' Top 40 format was very successful and widely imitated by stations across the country. In 1958, WKY finally abandoned network programming that it had once selected over local programming in favor of the Top 40 format. As a result of the change, WKY immediately went to number one in the local radio ratings.[7]

Although network radio died a slow and painful death during the 1950s, and Top 40 replaced it as the most popular type of programming, many radio stations in Oklahoma continued to feature live music programs. However, most live music radio programs were limited to morning shows that generally featured a comic emcee; a live band with a variety of singers; and news, weather, and sports reports. WKY's "Wiley and Gene Show", KCHE's "Canadian Valley Boys," KNOR's "Sloppy's Corral," and KLPR's "Jack Beasley's Morning Show" are examples of such radio shows that were popular during the 1950s in Oklahoma.[8]

Although most of the larger radio stations abandoned their network radio format, switching to mostly recorded music, many smaller stations, such as KLPR, continued to create original programs. KLPR was owned and operated by Jack Beasley throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Beasley was a musician and apparently was dedicated to promoting the careers of many local performers. Aside from playing an important role in the careers of non-Oklahoma artists like Hank Thompson and Conway Twitty, Beasley also created many opportunities for Oklahoma performers like Harlow Wilcox, Henson Cargill, and Wanda Jackson.[9]

Wanda Jackson

During her heyday, Wanda Jackson was known as the "Female Elvis" for her wild singing style. Jackson, born in Maud, Oklahoma, grew up largely in Los Angeles where her father worked in the war industry. Western swing bands were very popular on the West Coast and Jackson, after seeing the female singers in the bands that performed there, knew she wanted to be a singer. After the war, Jackson's family moved to Oklahoma City where, at age 13, she was singing on a daily radio show on KLPR.[10]

Beasley asked his friend, singer Hank Thompson, a regular performer on Beasley's morning radio show, to hear Jackson sing. Thompson liked what he heard and made some recordings with Jackson. In 1954, KLPR's airplay helped Jackson achieve a regional hit record with "You Can't Have My Love," which she sang with a member of Thompson's band, Billy Grey. Jackson's success with "You Can't Have My Love" earned her a regular spot on Red Foley's ABC-TV show "Ozark Jubilee" and attracted the attention of Capitol Records, which signed her to an exclusive recording contract that year.[11]

Jackson was touring with her own band by 1955 and was one of the first country singers to appear regularly in Las Vegas and Reno casinos. Upon the advice of Elvis Presley, Jackson recorded her first rock and roll songs in 1956 and enjoyed modest success with, "Hot Dog! That Made Him Mad," "Honey Bop," and "Mean, Mean Man," but it was not until 1960 that she scored her first major rock and roll hit. A disk jockey in Des Moines, Iowa, discovered Jackson's version of "Let's Have a Party" on one of her albums and began playing it. Other stations caught on, and Jackson enjoyed her first Top 40 pop hit.[12]

Despite Jackson's success with her rock and roll records, she sustained the majority of her success as a country and western singer, achieving a dozen Top 40 country hits between 1974 and 1971. Throughout this time, Jackson continued to use performances on Oklahoma City radio and television to promote her records and concert appearances. Jackson was a regular guest on KLPR radio and such Oklahoma City television shows as as the Mathis Brothers' "Country Social," and the "Jude and Jody Show." In 1971, Jackson retired from popular music for a career as a born-again Christian singer and evangelist. Although Jackson has performed mostly in churches since the mid-1970s, she continues to perform her rockabilly and country songs in Europe, where she has remained popular.[13]

Public Reaction to Early Television

While radio was struggling to find its place in the now television-dominated broadcast industry, television was experiencing enormous success. The first decade of television is often referred to as its Golden Age, considered special because most television stations were filled with a kind of creativity that has not been exhibited since. Adding to the spirit of creativity was the public reaction to the new technology. Although radio and movies made stars of their performers, neither could compare with the instant celebrity experienced by many early television performers.

Long-time Oklahoma radio and television personality Danny Williams described the reaction many Oklahoma City residents had to the early television performers this way:


This experience is echoed by many other performers. Joe Webster, staff vocalist at WKY for many years, was not very excited about performing on television and, at first, was convinced that no one was watching. However, within two months of being on television, he was mobbed in public for autographs.[15]

Advertisers also were surprised at the public's reaction to television. Although initially hesitant to divert much of their radio budgets to television, advertisers quickly learned about the power of television to sell products. While working as the weather reporter at Lawton's KSWO, announcer Tom Gilmore experienced the surprising influence of television on the public's buying habits. The KSWO news sponsor, Town's Men's Store, one day asked Gilmore to wear a pair of Bermuda shorts during his weather report. At the time, Bermuda-style shorts were new and the public had not been enthusiastic about them. However, within one day of Gilmore's Bermuda shorts telecast, the sponsor sold out the entire stock.[16]

It is important to understand not only the effect that broadcasting has had on the public and the most prominent Oklahoma performers, but also the profound effect it had on the less prominent performers. Many local musicians saw their careers explode after appearances on Oklahoma television, and, while not every local television performer was able to make the transition to a national audience, access to radio and television created many opportunities for local performers, such as Oklahoma City's Jude Northcutt and Jody Taylor.

Jude and Jody

Jude Northcutt and Harold D. "Jody" Taylor were fixtures on Oklahoma television for almost 40 years. Although today Jude and Jody are known mostly for their furniture store's regular television advertisements ("Jude and Jody Furniture--Where We Love Folks"), many people remember their popularity as country and western entertainers in a variety of television programs from the 1950s to the 1970s.[17]

Jude and Jody were boyhood friends in Slaughterville, Oklahoma, where they played guitar and sang for tips at Burkett's Grocery Store. The Korean War separated the duo, but upon Northcutt's return from service, he and Taylor teamed up again and dubbed their act "Jude and Jody." A career as a professional musician did not occur to Northcutt, who had begun college to pursue his life-long ambition to be a lawyer. Jude and Jody's first performances were at church pie suppers and high school talent shows; as their reputation grew, they received offers to perform for money. Their first paying job was at the American Legion Hall in Lexington, Oklahoma, where they earned $20.[18]

In 1954, KTEN-TV in Ada, Oklahoma, began holding auditions for performers for a program sponsored by the B.L Owens Furniture store in Ardmore. Jude and Jody auditioned and were hired for the 30-minute weekly show at $50 per week. KTEN's signal covered most of southeastern Oklahoma and also reached large parts of Arkansas and northeast Texas; it was the only television station for most of the region. Because of this exclusive coverage, Jude and Jody experienced an immediate surge of popularity and received numerous offers to perform at sock hops, rodeos, and county fairs.[19]

Jude and Jody's success on KTEN led Jack Beasley to hire them in 1956 for a regular guest spot on his WKY-TV variety show. Two years later, Hank Thompson hired them to appear on his television show and perform in his traveling country music show. Jude and Jody's popularity forced them to keep up a grueling pace of television and personal appearances. For many years, they appeared on three live television shows per week, made personal appearances the remainder of the week, and attended classes at the University of Oklahoma. The combination of television and personal appearances was incredibly profitable for Jude and Jody. By the late 1950s, Jude and Jody were making several thousand dollars a week between their television programs and personal appearances. Their music career was so successful that Northcutt, after finishing law school, decided to forego his bar exams and focus all of his time and attention on his music career.[20]

Jude and Jody got an opportunity that added an interesting and profitable twist to their career in 1958. Don and Bud Mathis, who owned a small furniture and appliance store, asked Jude and Jody to host their new music program--"The Mathis Brothers Country Social." In exchange for Jude and Jody's exclusive services as performers, the Mathis brothers offered them $2,000 per month, their own band (they had performed only as a duo or with other singers' bands up to this point), and 10 percent ownership of the furniture store. Although this was an attractive offer, Jude and Jody were hesitant to leave their other television shows and prestigious spot with the Hank Thompson organization. Ultimately, they decided that having their own show was an important step forward in their careers and accepted the offer.[21]

The arrangement with the Mathis brothers worked quite well, and soon Jude and Jody were adding to their incomes by selling furniture at the store. By 1965, the Mathis brothers store had outgrown its original site and a new store was planned at 3434 West Reno. A dispute over the exclusion of Jude and Jody's names in the new store's title led to a falling out with Mathis brothers. In the end, the Mathis Brothers bought out Jude and Jody's share of the furniture store and began to feature the syndicated "Buck Owens Ranch Show" for their local advertising. Jude and Jody's experience with the Mathis brothers taught them enough about the furniture business that they decided to start their own store--Jude and Jody Furniture. To promote their new business, they began to produce their own weekly television program.[22]

"The Jude and Jody Show" followed the patterns of many of the syndicated country and western programs of the time like the popular "Porter Wagoner Show." It featured not only Jude and Jody, but also other singers like Red Zellner, Winkie Ware, and Wilton O'Neil; female vocalists like Norma Jean Beasler (formerly Miss Norma Jean of "The Porter Wagoner Show" and wife of Jody Taylor); and comic performances by acts like the Hokum Sisters. "The Jude and Jody Show" also included guest appearances by touring acts that appeared in the area. Jude and Jody had an agreement with Springlake Amusement Park that stipulated that all the artists who appeared at the park's Saturday night concerts and dances would first appear on Jude and Jody's Friday night television show. This arrangement allowed the "The Jude and Jody Show" to feature most of the period's big country music stars. Over the years, Bob Wills, Conway Twitty, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Hank Thompson, Loretta Lynn, Mel Tellis, Johnny Cash, and many other notable performers appeared on "The Jude and Jody Show."[23]

"The Jude and Jody Show" also figured prominently in the careers of many notable Oklahoma performers. Wanda Jackson made regular appearances on "The Jude and Jody Show" throughout her career, often debuting new songs on the program. Singer Red Zellner, who enjoyed several hit records for Capitol Records during the early 1960s, got his start with Jude and Jody and was discovered on the program by Capitol Records producer Bobby Boyd. "The Jude and Jody Show" was instrumental in the promotion of Harlow Wilcox and the Oakies' hit single, "Groovy Grubworm."[24]

Over the years, "The Jude and Jody Show" appeared on all three Oklahoma City network stations. Because Northcutt and Taylor produced their own shows and purchased the air time to broadcast them, they were free to go from one channel to the other, based on favorable advertising rates and available program times. By the mid-1970s, however, producing the show had become so expensive and the changing local television management had become so restrictive that Northcutt and Taylor had to discontinue their long-running television program.[25]

Upon learning that Jude and Jody were discontinuing their program, Bob Mills, another Oklahoma City furniture dealer, decided to sponsor a country and western program for his store and offered Jude and Jody the job of hosting his new program. Although Mills was a competitor in the furniture business, Northcutt and Taylor decided that appearing on the program would both promote their store and give them the opportunity for personal appearances, which continued to be a significant source of revenue for them. In 1980, rising air time and production costs forced Mills to discontinue his country and western program, thus ending a 40-year tradition of Oklahoma television.[26]

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Copyright (c) Kelly Raines1995

Notes: Chapter 4.2

[1] Ibid.

[2] Broadcasting Television Advertising Yearbook 1953, 12, Broadcasting and Cable Marketplace, 1992, xxiv-xii.

[3] Ibid; Broadcasting and Cable Marketplace, 1992, xii-xix.

[4] Gene Allen, speech to Oklahoma Heritage Association; P. A. Sugg interview, interview by Ed Dunham, tape recording transcript, November 30, 1965, Oral History Collection, Oklahoma Historical Society.

[5] David T. MacFarland, "Up From Middle America: The Development of Top 40" in Lichty and Topping, eds., American Broadcasting: A Source Book on the History of Radio and Television, (New York: Hastings House, 1975), 399-403.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid; Lee Allen Smith, interview by author, September 19, 1991, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, tape recording.

[8] Tom Gilmore, interview by Rodger Harris, November 13, 1990, Oklahoma City, tape recording transcript, Living Legends Series, Oral History Collection, Oklahoma Historical Society; Bobby Warren, interview by Author, September 22, 1992, Norman, Oklahoma, tape recording; Red Zellner, interview by Author, July 3, 1992, Norman, Oklahoma, tape recording.

[9] Bufwack and Oermann, Finding Her Voice: The Saga of Women in Country Music, 156-157; Bobby Warren interview; Bob Woods, interview by author, October 24, 1991, Del City, Oklahoma, tape recording.

[10] Robert Sandall, "The Wild Bunch," Sunday Times, Times Newspapers limited, July 7, 1991; Bufwack and Oermann, Finding Her Voice, 156-157.

[11] Bobby Warren Interview; Bufwack and Oermann, Finding Her Voice, 234-235.

[12] Ibid, 236.

[13] Ibid; Robert Hilburn, "Wanda Jackson: Influences From Elvis," Los Angeles Times, 28 September, 1990, Part F. 19.

[14] Danny Williams interview.

[15] Joe Webster, interview by Rodger Harris, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, January 19, 1994, tape recording, Living Legends Series, Oral History Collection, Oklahoma Historical Society.

[16] Tom Gilmore, interview by Rodger Harris, November 13, 1990, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, tape recording, Living Legends Series, Oral History Collection, Oklahoma Historical Society.

[17] Jude Northcutt, interview by Author, July 19, 1992, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, tape recording.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Ibid.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Ibid.

[22] Ibid. Syndicated nationally, "The Buck Owens Ranch Show," was video taped at WKY-TV.

[23] Ibid, Red Zellner interview.

[24] Ibid, Bobby Warren interview.

[25] Jude Northcutt interview, Red Zellner interview.

[26] Ibid. ÿÿÿ