WBRD AM & FM - A History
WBRD-AM 1420 & WBRD-FM 103.3 Bradenton – WBRD was known as “The Bird” – a one kilowatt AM daytimer licensed to the city of BRaDenton when it signed on the air in 1957. For more than 30 years, it was owned by Sunshine State Broadcasting (Robert R. Nelson, president & GM).
In September 1963, Nelson put 26,000 watt WBRD-FM on the air with separate programming (in stereo) at 103.3. A decade later, the station evolved into “The Dove,” and became beautiful music WDUV.
WBRD broadcasted from Bradenton studios at 26th Avenue E and First Street W (U.S. 41) with a two tower directional array. Later, the station moved to a three-tower directional site west of U.S. 41 off 33rd Street W in Palmetto which enabled it to go 24-hours and increase power to 2500 watts day and one kilowatt night. This required the station to be licensed to Palmetto. One of the two towers at the old transmitter site was dismantled and the other left for use as a non-directional backup.
WBRD-AM programmed various music formats – some Top 40 in the 60’s when the station played bingo on the air each day and published its “Fab 50 Tunedex” music survey, MOR, “Your Kind of Country,” in the late 70’s, adult contemporary, news/talk, and even southern gospel (“Tampa Bay’s Solid Gospel”).
In 1995, the Nelsons sold WBRD-AM and WDUV-FM to Jacor (soon to be aborbed into Clear Channel) for $14 million. The AM was spun off to the Metropolitan Radio Group and the FM to Cox when Clear Channel was forced to divest itself of some of its Tampa Bay stations. WDUV moved to 103.5 and then to 105.5 in a frequency switch with classic rock WTBT. Its tower was relocated from Riverview to New Port Richey (the new city of license) and then to Holiday.
Today (2008), WBRD-AM is owned by Birach Broadcasting who bought the facility for $850,000 in 2007. It broadcasts from studios in Ellenton at 3912 U.S. Highway 301 North and is branded “La Nueva Radio Lider.” Its target audience is Hispanics seeking Spanish music (Mexican, Tex-Mex, Latin hits, Tropical, and International), news and information.
Other names from WBRD’s history include Hal Meyer (sales manager-1958), Marlen Hager (chief engineer-1958) Kenny Vincert (PD-1960), Tom Gillies (news director-1960), Richard Weatherbee (chief engineer-1960), Gil Butler (news director-1962), Paul Kelly (sales manager-1964), Robert N. “Bobby” Nelson (host of Sunday afternoon’s “A-Go-Go Show” in 1965), Frank McGlynn (sales manager-1965), Lee Edwards (mid 1960’s), Richard D. Lundy (station manager/sales manager-1967), Art Schofield (sales manager-1969), W.W. Chaplin (news director-1969), R.W. Nelson (chief engineer-1969), Dave McKeever (news), Willie (Early) Williams (1970’s), Barry Rumler (sales manager-1975), Ron Jackson (PD-1975), Mike Simons (news director-1975), David K. Jahn (sales manager-1979), Maggie Chance (1979), Dave McKeever (news director-1979), Bob Barnes (PD-1979), Don Butterfield, Lary Crews (PD & afternoons), Bob Keehn, Bill Bailey (station manager & PD), Jim Genovese, and T. Michael Craft (engineering),
(Thanks to Bob Barnes who helped with this history. Please contact us if you have additional information to share about the history of WBRD AM & FM.)
Station History
1957 - 2008 Other Tampa Bay Area Stations (History)
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