WMKC
Encyclopedia
WMKC is a radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...

 licensed to Indian River, Michigan
Indian River, Michigan
Indian River is an unincorporated community in Cheboygan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a census-designated place for statistical purposes and is not legally recognized as a municipality. The population was 2,008 at the 2000 census....

. It airs a country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 format called Big Country 102.9. WMKD 105.5 in Pickford airs mostly the same programming as WMKC, but IDs separately as "Big Country 105.5." These stations are all owned by Northern Star Broadcasting.

Beginnings

WMKC ("MacKinaC"), owned by Mighty-Mac Broadcasting Corp., signed on in January 1982 by a Lansing
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...

 dentist, Donald "Doc" Benson. Benson loved country music and wanted northern Michigan to have a WITL
WITL-FM
WITL-FM is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Lansing, Michigan, and serving Ingham, Easton and Clinton Counties in Michigan. It first began broadcasting in 1961 . The station took the WITL-FM call sign in 1966, and adopted a full-time country music format in 1967...

 clone for when he traveled up north. He already owned an AM in St. Ignace, WIDG
WIDG
WIDG is a radio station licensed to St. Ignace, Michigan, broadcasting a Catholic religious format. Until October 2008, the station was owned and operated by Northern Star Broadcasting and had aired ESPN Radio under the brand name AM 940 The Fan...

 ("Widge By The (Mackinac) Bridge") 940. WIDG aired various formats, but usually was MOR. In December 1979 Doc Benson closed WIDG with a "dark" license until April 12, 1981. He had to bring WIDG-AM back on in order to continue the CP for WIDG-FM. Initially the station was to be WIDG-FM and be automated and be called "Big Country-102 FM." TM Programming was hired to consult the station; they felt that the "Big Country" name was too "hickish" and insisted on something "slicker." General Manager Rick Stone held a "name the FM" contest in which the winner would win a Big Mac
Big Mac
The Big Mac is a hamburger sold by McDonald's, an international fast food restaurant chain. It is one of the company's signature products...

 sandwich from McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...

. Joe Raica came up with WMKC, for "MacKinaC", the county of license. The station went on the air in February 1982 with Steve Cook as morning host, Chuck LaTour as News Director, Greg Salo mid-days, Tim O'Brien (Ahlborn) (also Program Director and assistant manager - later General Manager several times) afternoons and Joe Raica evenings.

WMKC in the 1980s

When WMKC signed on, they were known as "103-WMKC", playing an automated country format (TM Country). Mornings were live with the rest of the day voicetracked. Legend has it that Benson, although a huge country fan, hated songs that dealt with immoral issues. It has been reported, for example, that Benson would order his staff to edit "Dueling Banjos
Dueling Banjos
"Dueling Banjos" is an instrumental composition by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith. The song was composed in 1955 by Smith as a banjo instrumental he called "Feudin' Banjos", which contained riffs from "Yankee Doodle". Smith recorded it playing a four-string plectrum banjo and accompanied by...

" by Eric Weissberg
Eric Weissberg
Eric Weissberg is an American banjo player, best known for the theme from the movie Deliverance.-Biography:Eric Weissberg went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison, then the Juilliard School of Music. He joined an early version of the Greenbriar Boys , but left before they made any recordings....

 and Steve Mandell out of the TM reels with a razor blade and a marker because of the song's association with a movie (1972's Deliverance
Deliverance
Deliverance is a 1972 American thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman. Principal cast members include Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ronny Cox and Ned Beatty in his film debut. The film is based on a 1970 novel of the same name by American author James Dickey, who has a small role in the...

) featuring sodomy
Sodomy
Sodomy is an anal or other copulation-like act, especially between male persons or between a man and animal, and one who practices sodomy is a "sodomite"...

; however, the staffers sometimes reportedly slipped the song in anyway just for laughs.

In 1985, the station's logo changed to "KC-103." Doc attempted to capitalize on his love for WITL and tried to get the staff to say "KCing while you work" since WITL said "Witl ["Whittle", like "Whistle"] while you work
Whistle While You Work
Whistle While You Work is a song with music written by Frank Churchill and lyrics written by Larry Morey for the 1937 animated Disney movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It was performed in the movie, at least unofficially, by voice actress Adriana Caselotti...

  The "KC-ing while you work" was never used on the air unless done sarcastically."

In 1987 the station dropped voice-tracking and added live announcers, but still used reel-to-reel music (TM had become TM-Century, then bought Drake-Chenault, so a variety of program consultants and services were used). WIDG changed to WLVM "We Love Michigan" and TM Programming's TM-OR middle of the road and nostalgia
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...

 format. In 1985, the format, which Doc Benson reportedly hated, was dropped, and WIDG calls returned.

In 1985 Doc obtained the CP (Construction Permit) for a new FM in Cadillac at 107.1 Cadillac, MI. Cadillac previously had a WITW
WLXV
WLXV is a radio station licensed to Cadillac, Michigan broadcasting a hot adult contemporary format.The station, which began broadcasting on July 7, 1974, has previously programmed easy listening and adult contemporary music as WITW, beautiful music as WEZV, and CHR as WWLZ...

 and Doc reportedly believed he could capitalize on the "good will" of the other station's calls and came up with WYTW. It was called Y-107 and ran satellite adult contemporary music for a short period, but the station was unable to make enough money to pay its expenses. In 1989 WYTW changed to WCKC ("Cadillac KC Country") and simulcast with WMKC and WIDG (which he wouldn't allow to be changed to WMKC-AM).

The 1990s to Today

In 1990 a new tower location for WMKC was obtained, moving the stick from Saint Ignace to north of Harbor Springs. The new signal covered much more territory, but lost Sault Ste. Marie (hence the later purchase by Northern Star of WMKD), and because of the new counties added, lost ABC News and Paul Harvey from the station.

In the 1990s, Benson retired, selling WMKC to Straits area broadcast legend Del Reynolds. He would maintain KC Country, although he would change the Cadillac station to a simulcast of his classic rock station, WGFM/WGFN
WGFN
WGFN is one of four radio stations in the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan that simulcast a classic rock format, with The Bob & Tom Show & Nights with Alice Cooper, called "The Bear"...

. Benson died on May 27, 2005.

In 1998, Reynolds sold his assets to Calibre Communications, which had big plans for their newly-acquired stations. WGFN became The Bear, retaining their classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...

 format but adding Bob and Tom for mornings, smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....

 WJZJ
WJZJ
WJZJ in Glen Arbor, Michigan is an American radio station, which airs a mainstream rock format branded as Real Rock 105.1/95.5...

 became The Zone, playing watered-down automated alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...

, and KC Country gave way to K-Garth, stunting with all Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...

 music.

Shortly after the K-Garth stunt, 102.9 brought back its regular country format, only as Big Country 102.9. The station's airstaff was canned, only allowing for one DJ, a morning man. Eventually, WMKC brought back a full-time airstaff, though mornings (Young & Verna) and nights (Lia) are syndicated.

The KC Country name did live on for a while as WIDG flipped from satellite-fed oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....

 "Cool 940" to satellite-fed classic country
Classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country hits from past decades.This genre generally follows one of two formats: those specializing in hits from the 1920s through the early 1970s, and focus primarily on innovators and artists from country music's Golden...

 as "Classic KC Country". After just over one year, the station flipped to Sporting News Radio
Sporting News Radio
Yahoo! Sports Radio, formerly Sporting News Radio is a United States sports radio network that broadcasts sports news, talk, scores, and highlights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. On August 1, 2011, it was announced the network would change its name to Yahoo! Sports Radio, effective...

 (formerly One-on-One Sports) as "The Fan".

In 1998, the sale between Calibre and Reynolds failed, and a new company, Northern Star, was formed to take over the stations.

In early 2008, WMKC changed its city of license from St. Ignace to the small Cheboygan County
Cheboygan County, Michigan
-Commercial Airline:There are no commercial airline airports in Cheboygan County but the nearest ones are Alpena County Regional Airport, Chippewa County International Airport , and Cherry Capital Airport...

 community of Indian River. Some have suggested that an Upper Peninsula city of license made the station unpalatable to listeners and advertisers in the northern Lower Peninsula, and that the change in city of license takes WMKC one step closer to being a "Traverse City" station. WIDG-AM remains licensed to St. Ignace but is no longer co-owned, now airing Catholic programming.

WMKC has also recently reimaged itself as "102.9 Big Country Hits," a reference to sister station WLJZ
WLJZ
WLJZ, "The Bear," is an FM radio station at 94.5 MHz based in Mackinaw City, Michigan, which features a Classic rock format simulcast from WGFN 98.1 FM "The Bear" in the Traverse City area. The station aired a Classic Country format, satellite-fed from Dial Global Local, until April 2010, when the...

 94.5 FM's format change to classic country
Classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country hits from past decades.This genre generally follows one of two formats: those specializing in hits from the 1920s through the early 1970s, and focus primarily on innovators and artists from country music's Golden...

 as "Big Country Gold." "Big Country Gold" programming is now heard on WCBY
WCBY
WCBY is a radio station in Cheboygan, Michigan, broadcasting a classic country format delivered by Dial Global Local known as "Big Country Gold".The station began broadcasting in 1954 as a 250-watt station under the ownership of Straits Broadcasting...

 1240 AM, while WLJZ now plays classic rock.

WAVC

From 2001 to April of 2010, WMKC programming was also simulcast on WAVC 93.9 FM licensed to Mio, Michigan
Mio, Michigan
Mio is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Oscoda County and is situated along the boundary between Mentor Township on the east and Big Creek Township on the west....

. That station is now a simulcast of classic-rock formatted sister station WGFN
WGFN
WGFN is one of four radio stations in the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan that simulcast a classic rock format, with The Bob & Tom Show & Nights with Alice Cooper, called "The Bear"...

98.1 FM ("The Bear"), leaving WMKC as the sole "Big Country" outlet.

Sources

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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