WABR-AM
1440
Winter Park
Original Call Letters: WABR
Originally Licensed: Sep
1954
Original City of License: Winter
Park
Original Frequency: 1440
Origin of Call Letters:
Original Power: 5,000
watts-Daytime
Original Location: 222
Hazard St., Orlando 
Original Format: Country
Network
Affiliation(s):
Owner(s): 1954-
1975-Rounsaville
Broadcasting, Atlanta (Co-owned
with WBJW-FM 105.1)
1982-Nationwide
Communications (Purchase
price for WBJW-FM 105.1 and WLOF-AM
950, $6.5 million)
1986-Alleluia
Broadcasting Corp
1987-Alleluia Broadcasting Corp
1987-Metroplex
Communications of Orlando Inc.
1993-Paxson
Communications
($5.6 million with WMGF-FM
107.7)
1994-J
& V Communications, Inc.($300,000)
History Of Call
Letters and Formats: WABR-1954-Country
WBJW-1973-Oldies/Lite
Rock "The
Entertainer"
WNBE-1976-NBC
24 Hour News
WAJL-1987-Christian
ministry (Station sold. WAJL
moves to 1190)
WPRD-1987-Classics
of the '40s, '50s and '60s "Pride-1440"
WAJL-1987-Religion
WPRD-1990-Children "The
Imagination Station" (Kids'
Choice Broadcasting Network)
WPRD-1991-CNN
Headline News
WWZN-1993-Talk
WWZN-1993-Sports
WPRD-1994-Talk
WPRD-1995-Spanish
History of WABR
Steve
Schiffman helps fill in the history of WABR
From an email from Steve; "...WABR (Top Gun,
Orlando, bang bang, W-ABR!)...WABR...was sold
and call letters and format changed by 1973 (...I was working for them on air at
the time; I did overnights, Jim Boynton was the PD, and Clive
Thomas (who I knew from his days in Indianapolis and WFBM-AM)
was doing morning drive...We aired the CBS
Mystery Theatre, nightly at 10pm, although we were an ABC
affiliate! WDBO(-AM 580) chose not
to take it at the time.
Steve
Kennedy has supplied some great stuff.
Here's more. Here's a sweepstakes booklet
from 1967 that was mailed out to area residents.
The Ray and Andy Show was Ray Beale and Andy Wilson.
Click the photo for a full
view
WABR
"Top 40 Tunes"
courtesy of Dick
Camnitz
WABR
Personalities
From Dennis Snyder;
"In 1968 I visited the WABR country
music station in the middle of Dubsdread Country Club. Pictured is Jim
Jereau, a US Navy recruiter during the week and a weekend DJ"
Courtesy
of Dennis Snyder
Bob
Andrews "at the controls" of WFIV-AM 1972
Thanks to Gabe Burton
for the photo of Bob
Our frequent contributor Dave Edwards
tells us;
"...Bob Andrews was a friend and mentor to
many. Including Frank Reed who
worked at
WABR and would go on to become
"Captain"
Frank Reed in New York City.
Gabe Burton at
WABR in 1970
Photo courtesy of Gabe Burton
From Dave Edwards; "...Gabe has
many fond memories of Bob, both at that station (WABR)
and WVGT(AM 1580),
"The Voice
of the Golden Triangle", 1580 in Mount Dora.
From Dick Camnitz; "Another of the WABR
staff in 1970, during my short stay as Dick Shannon, was Rick
Taylor. Rick was a super nice guy. I was saddened to hear recently from
Bob Andrews that Rick passed away.
Rick Taylor-1970
Pete Lazar (Pete
Forgione) Biography
Frank Reed-Biography
Bob
Andrews-Biography
Dick Shannon (Dick
Camnitz)-1970
Clive
Thomas-1973-morning drive Biography
Jim Boynton-1973-Program director
Steve
Rutledge-6PM-12M
weekends/fill ins Biography
Ray Beale-"The
Ray and Andy Show"-6-9AM
Andy Wilson-"The
Ray and Andy Show"-6-9AM
Rick Taylor
Jim Boynton-1974
Dave Edwards Biography
Jim Jereau
Gabe
Burton Biography
Tom
Haley-Biography
Art
Spector-1966
Biography
Steve
Schiffman Biography
Dutch Edwards-1971
Greg
Galloway-1966-1968
Biography
What's
New Biographies
In Memory Sounds
Misc. Links
Chronology What's News?
