WDAT-AM 1380 Ormond Beach

WDAT-AM 1380
Ormond Beach

Original Call Letters: WQXQ

Originally Licensed: Aug 1, 1957

Original City of License: Ormond Beach

Original Frequency: 1380

Origin of Call Letters: City: DAyTona

Original Power: 1,000 watts

Original Location:

Original Format: Top 40

Network Affiliation(s):

NBC

Owner(s):	1957-Volusia County Broadcasting Corp.
	1963-Volusia County Broadcasting Corp. (New Ownership)
	1969-Morris Broadcasting Co.
	1972-WELE Radio, Inc.
	1977-Hunter Industries
	1980-Hunter-Knight Daytona, Inc.
	1981-Barnett Bank of Ormond Beach, N.A. (repossession from Hunter-Knight Daytona, Inc.)
	1983-Hale Communications
	1990-Wings Communications, Inc ($175,000)
	2009-Goliath Radio, LLC. (LMA)
	2011-F. Douglas Wilhite (Debtor In Possession)
	2011-Lori Patton, Trustee
	2014-Bethune-Cookman University

History Of Call Letters and Formats:	WQXQ-1957-Classical
	WDAT-1969-Top 40
	WDAT-1981-Big Bands/Swing
	WDAT-1982-Adult Contemporary/Country Crossover Mix
	WDAT-1983-Country "1380 WDAT"
	WELE-1985-Country
	WELE-1990-Religious
	WELE-1992-Talk
	WELE-2010-Talk "Goliath Radio" "Big 1380"
	WELE-2015-Talk "The Cat, Community Action Talk Radio"

WDAT History
From Don Williamson "...WDAT and WQXQ both broadcast from time to time from the Riviera Country Club..." I recall that WDAT was originally licensed to South Daytona...and I believe it went on the air in 1957 as the first black programmed station in the Daytona Beach area. There was a fellow who did an air shift and, I believe, was also an engineer. His last name was Bennett. First name, I think, was either Bill or Bob (Memory does funny things over the years.) His brother, Boyd, was semi-famous at the time for having a very early rock and roll hit record. The group was Boyd Bennett and the Rockets, and the song was "Seventeen," which was in the style of the Bill Haley hits of that era. I recall the early studios were in a concrete block building with very little, if any, soundproofing, and the audio had its own distinctive echo when the mic was on.

From Marc Tyll, more history of WDAT.
WDAT-AM 1380 ended Top 40 in 1981 making room to briefly program a big band/swing format in 1981 before flipping to adult contemporary with a cross over country mix in 1982. The flip to total country was implemented in January 1983 when channel 6 meteorologist Tom Hale (Hale Communications, Inc.) acquired WDAT from Barnett Bank of Ormond Beach, N.A (Barnett Bank had repossessed WDAT from the previous owner Phillip Knight and Hunter-Knight Daytona, Inc. Barnett owned WDAT from 1981 until Hale Communications finalized its acquisition in early 1983). Ocala resident and former WVOJ-AM 1320 Jacksonville program director, Ken Cameron was hired to become WDAT's operations manager an program director. Ken also hosted PM drive. The flip to WELE happened in 1986 when WELE-FM 105.9 dropped those calls to become adult contemporary formatted WOCL-FM 105.9 "Class 105.9".

From K.P. Manning
Tom Hale (of Hale Communications) flipped the calls from WDAT to WELE when WELE-AM in South Daytona went to WZIP. Hale was playing country, he wanted those calls and got them. Hale had to give up the station due to money and other problems, it went into receivership and former WELE-AM GM Eugene McMahon took it over until it went on the auction block and (Doug Wilhite) Wings Communications bought it for $125,000.

WDAT Personalities

Lynn Younger-1969-6AM-9AM-(Original Program Director when the calls flipped to WDAT)-Morris Broadcasting Co.

Jonathon Hart-1969-10AM-3PM-Morris Broadcasting Co.

Mark Scott-1969-3PM-8:30PM-Morris Broadcasting Co.

William Prinz-1969-News Director-Morris Broadcasting Co.

Jeff Campbell-1970-Morris Broadcasting Co. Biography

JoJo Kincaid-1970-Morris Broadcasting Co.

Kris Earl Phillips-1970-Morris Broadcasting Co. Biography In Memory

Robert Allyn-1971-Program Director-Morris Broadcasting Co.

Mark Windsor-1971-1976-Music Director-National Communications Industries, Inc. Biography

Brent Alberts-1971-National Communications Industries, Inc. Biography

Rick Lewis-1971-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Tom Walker-1971-1974-Music Director-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Dick Lange-1971-1975-Chief Engineer/1972-1973-Program Director-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Michael Jay (Michael Helminsky)-1971-News Director/1974-Program Director/1975-1978-Middays-"The Housewife Hustler" / Mornings/ Program Director-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Rob Thomas-1972-1973-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Jim Dunaway (William Brent Gibbs)-1971-1974-Production Director-National Communications Industries, Inc.

Jack Stevens (John Wilcha)-1973-National Communications Industries, Inc.