WGEE

Infobox Radio station
name = WGEE


city = Superior, Wisconsin
area = Duluth-Superior
branding = Music of Your Life
slogan =
airdate = May 9, 1964
frequency = 970 AM (kHz)
format = Commercial; Adult Standards
power = 1,000 watts (day)
26 watts (night)
erp =
class = D
callsign_meaning =
former_callsigns = WQMN (1964-1966), WAKX (1966-1982), KXTP (1982-1997)
owner = Midwest Communications
webcast =
sister_stations = KDAL, KDAL-FM, KHQG, KTCO, WDSM, WGEE
website =
affiliations = Music of Your Life

WGEE (970 AM) is a radio station licensed in Superior, Wisconsin. The station is owned and operated by Midwest Communications, which owns six stations in Duluth, Minnesota.

WGEE airs programming from the Music of Your Life radio network. The station adopted its present format in September 2008. Prior to that, WGEE aired ESPN Radio programming, as well as "The Jim Rome Show" and "Loveline". It was also the local home of NASCAR races and ESPN Sunday Night Baseball.

WGEE's main competition is WKLK-AM in Cloquet, Minnesota, coincidentally a former Music of Your Life affiliate station until format distributor Jones Radio Networks dropped MoYL in favor of its own standards format which is now aired on WKLK.

History

At noon on May 9, 1964, WQMN, a 1,000 watt daytime-only station located at 1320kHz, became the first Duluth/Superior radio station to change its call letters when it became WAKX ("WAX"), playing a Top 40 format. Tac Hammer was WAKX's first program director.

WAKX moved to 970kHz, formerly the home of WIGL in Superior, on October 26, 1967. The 1320kHz frequency in the Duluth/Superior market is no longer in use.

Owner Lew Latto purchased the facilities of beautiful music station KPIR in September, 1974, and began simulcasting the format of WAKX on both 970 AM and the new 98.9 FM.

In 1982, the AM station changed its call letters to KXTP and switched to adult standards, airing the "Music of Your Life" syndicated format. WAKX-FM remained unchanged.

In 1994, Latto sold KXTP and WAKX to Ken Beuhler and Patty McNulty, the owners of WDSM and KZIO (currently KRBR). The FM station flipped from classic rock to country music and became KTCO. Later that decade, Buehler and McNulty sold their stations to Shockley Communications, which changed KXTP's format to country and then Radio Disney. It later changed to Hot Talk, and finally, to Sports. Today, the station is owned by Midwest Communications which also owns KDAL-AM, WDSM, KDAL-FM and KRBR-FM in Duluth. The WGEE calls were formerly used by Midwest sister station WTAQ in Green Bay from 1977 to 2003.

AM 970 regained the Music of Your Life format in September 2008, dropping ESPN Radio and returning the Music of Your Life to the Duluth/Superior airwaves.

External links

* [http://www.espnradio.com/ ESPN Radio]
* [http://wgee.com/ Website for Midwest Communications]
* [http://www.twinportsbroadcasting.com/WAKXAM-FMTimeline.html WAKX history]
* [http://www.las-solanas.com/arsa/surveys_item.php?svid=360 WAKX survey from July 28, 1967]
*AMQ|WGEE
*AML|WGEE
*AMARB|WGEE