WNOR

Infobox Radio station
name = WNOR


city = Norfolk, Virginia
area = Hampton Roads
branding = "FM99 WNOR"
slogan = "Everything That Rocks"
airdate = 1961
frequency = 98.7 MHz
HD Radio
format = Active Rock
power = 46,000 Watts
erp =
haat = 158 Meters
class = B
facility_id =
coordinates = coord|36|50|4.0|N|76|16|11.0|W|type:landmark
callsign_meaning = W NORfolk
former_callsigns =
owner = Saga Communications
licensee =
sister_stations = WAFX, WJOI
webcast = [http://wnor-fm.sagainteractive.com/ WNOR Webstream]
website = [http://www.fm99.com WNOR Online]
affiliations =

WNOR, commonly referred to as FM99, is a radio station operating in southeastern Virginia which plays rock music. Its transmitter is located in Norfolk, and its studios are in Chesapeake. The station serves an area of over 1.5 million people that includes the cities of Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Hampton, and Newport News. WNOR is currently owned by Detroit-based Saga Communications.

History

During the 60s WNOR-FM was an easy listening station, and at one point employed an all-female air staff, a revolutionary move at the time. In 1969 the station began airing a progressive rock format from 9pm-6am. They abandoned the "split-format" approach in 1974 and began playing rock full time. The station’s Arbitron ratings quickly took off, culminating in the station’s rise to #1 – the first time an FM station in the Norfolk market had achieved #1 status.

Henry "The Bull" Del Toro

The station was, for many years, home to the late shock jock Henry "The Bull" Del Toro, who became a legend in Norfolk radio in the 80s. Del Toro, was co-host of the "Reeger and The Bull Show" and later "Tommy and The Bull" morning show. Del Toro, along with Tommy Griffiths (who is still at WNOR), created havoc on April Fools Day in 1992 by warning listeners that a large build-up of methane gas was about to cause a fiery explosion at Mount Trashmore, a landfill-turned-park in Virginia Beach. Residents were warned to evacuate the area, causing the local 911 to be flooded with calls. ^{[http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?story=102387&ran=110635] [http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/worstaprilfools.html]}

Del Toro was also known for his charity work with the many organizations in the Hampton Roads area.

He would later go on to work at WROX-FM, WKLR and finally WOBR before he died in 2002. He was 44 years old. ^{[http://www.knotheadradio.com/bull/bull.htm]}

Programming

The station's morning programming is dominated by the radio show Tommy & Rumble, which broadcasts from 5:30AM to 10:00AM. Afterwards, the programming is composed of classic and contemporary rock music.

The current program director of FM99 is Harvey "Big Bird" Kojan.

External links

* [http://www.fm99.com FM99 WNOR Online]
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