KOME

For the 1957 Japanese film known as Kome, see The Rice People.
KOME
City San Jose, California
Frequency 98.5 MHz
Format Rock
Former callsigns KRPM (1959–1971)
KOME (1971–1998)

KOME was a radio station in San Jose, California, heard at 98.5 FM from 1971 through 1998.[1][2] Currently, the 98.5 FM frequency is home to KUFX ("K-Fox").

History

Beginnings

In 1959, Edward W. Meece, one of the founders of Pacifica Radio, formed The Audio House, Inc and started a new radio station, KRPM at 98.5 FM in San Jose, California. KRPM's format was classical music.

1970s

Meece sold The Audio House, Inc, with KRPM, for roughly $300,000 in February 1971 to Mel Gollub of Pennsylvania and Ron Cutler.[3] The station's call letters were changed to KOME, and the format became free-form rock. KOME first originated from studios in the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell in the Tower building on the 13th floor. Later, it moved to an old house on The Alameda in San Jose. DJs included Cese McGowan, Uncle Jack Tossman, J. William Weed, Gary T., Phil Charles, Victor Boc, Wolf, Wapaho Joe, Joe Kelly, Captain Reif/Jim Reifschnieder, Mark Sherry, and Mother Deal. In 1973 a group of New Yorkers led by former Metromedia executives Michael A. Wiener and Gerald Carrus, who later assumed themselves as Infinity Broadcasting acquired KOME as the first of many stations to come. They hired radio veteran Bob Simmons to become their Program Director and moved the station to a location on Winchester Blvd near Payne Avenue in San Jose.

KOME attracted a loyal South Bay rock audience throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, against original San Jose FM rock rival KSJO. Both stations managed to attract listeners within neighboring San Francisco against Tom Donahue's well-known KSAN.

KOME's diamond shaped stickers were a common sight on vehicles and high school lockers around the area. Several on-air slogans suggested the sexual connotations of its call letters, probably the most memorable being "Don't touch that dial, it's got "KOME" on it!" as well as others saying things like "K-O-M-E all over your radio dial," "You've got KOME... oozing out of your speakers," "Wake up with KOME in your ear," and "The KOME spot on your radio dial." Not surprisingly, Playboy magazine found this newsworthy enough to mention the station.

The station's original free-form rock music allowed disc jockeys to choose their music. In 1974, program director Ed Romig from ABC's WDAI-FM in Chicago, tightened up the format by adding a file of index cards with songs to be played. He brought in Peter B. Collins from Chicago, and hired Jona Denz, Dana Jang, and Gene Mitchell. In August 1977, Mikel Herrington (aka Mikel Hunter, Lefty, Oil Can Harry, and earlier as "Captain Mikey") was made Program Director and discarded the card catalog playlist in favor of allowing jocks to select "playable" tracks from an eclectic library of art rock, punk, new wave, country rock, heavy metal, oldies, and comedy. . Local bands such as Hush and Cornell Hurd often got airplay. Mikel did the morning show and hired Barry Corkery, Dennis Erectus, Laurie Roberts, Mark Goldberg, Kelly Cox, Larry Jacobs, and Joe Regelski.

One of the yellow-on-black editions of the patch, with thumbtack for size comparison.

The KOME black-on-yellow diamond stickers were designed in 1972 and became an instant hit. For a short time in 1974, a round zig-zaggy design was tried but failed quickly. As an alternative the diamond was brought back with reverse colors. The famous KOME diamond stickers have been spotted all around the world! Listeners soon became highly creative, cutting up the decals to read new phrases; the most notorious was likely "KOKE 99.9% Pure." The "Our Decal" slogan on the stickers lent itself to other "KOME Paraphernalia" such as pinbacks, patches, nightlights, glass, T-shirts, and even the payroll checks said "Our Checks" on them. The later "Rock Radio" era eliminated the "Our Decal" and replaced it with "FM," as well as producing some with a digital typeface. Both eras produced limited edition decals promoting bands of the day such as The Rolling Stones, The Who and Bruce Springsteen.

News at the "come" era of KOME was taken seriously, but allowed for room to expand to clever parodies of news events of the day. Early reporters included Lynn Ryder and Victor Boc, who also hosted The Expressway talk show on Sunday mornings. Victor became well known for his interviews with over-the-top guests like "Squeaky" Fromme, Sylvia Browne, Mae Brussel, and "The Two".

In the early '80s, news often turned hilarious as current events were transformed into skits that rivaled those of popular comedy troupe, The Credibility Gap The Credibility Gap through the efforts of Production Director Jack Perry and News staffers Rob Singleton, Joe Regelski, and Mark Goldberg.

In the latter years, the morning team of Blazy and Bob integrated news into mornings, since Bob Lilley was both reporter and side-kick.

1980s–1990s

THE HUNTER YEARS: KOME's reputation for irreverence, raunchy fun, and a broad music format continued into the 1980s. Mikel Hunter and his crew became known for oddball station promotions like the Chicken-Fly and the KOME Party Crashers. Ratings soared all around the Bay Area during this era.

According to an article in Metro, KOME's freeform ethic ended around 1982, when Infinity Broadcasting cut back the station's playlist and enlisted radio programming consultant, Jeff Pollack.[1][4] Mikel Hunter, who earlier had great success programming KMET in Los Angeles, left the station in protest. He spent the next few years doing radio in Las Vegas, Philadelphia (WIP), and finally back in Northern California at Napa's KVYN.

In 1983, PD Les Tracy hardened the format to a mostly heavy metal playlist. Hard rock and Tracy lasted slightly less than a year before dismal ratings released Tracy, and new PD Pat Evans reverted KOME to its previous approach.

THE MIDDLE YEARS: The era between 1984 and 1994 were also ratings winners with personalities such as Blazy & Bob, Stephen Page, "Weird Old Uncle Frank" Bennett, Scott Lewis and the return of Dennis Erectus. KOME won the Rolling Stone Readers' Poll as Station of the Year in both 1988 and 1990, landing them on the cover of the music magazine. Local, national and international live broadcasts and innovative promotions kept the station in the forefront of rock radio.

THE NEW SOUND: KOME went to alternative rock and new wave music in May 1994. Syndicated programming such as The Howard Stern Show and Loveline[5] supplanted some local DJs.

Closure

THE LAST DAYS: In 1997, Infinity Broadcasting, which had recently merged with CBS,[6] purchased KITS "Live 105," San Francisco from Entercom, and ran both stations with identical formats for a short time. In May 1998 the company acquired American Radio Systems and was legally required to sell one station. They opted to sell the 98.5 frequency to Jacor, owners of longtime rival KSJO. Jacor transferred their classic rock station KUFX and its callsign to their newly acquired frequency, thus ending KOME.

CBS/Infinity transferred two members of KOME's air staff, Ally Storm and No Name, plus the Stern Loveline[5] syndicated shows, to KITS as "The New Live 105".[1][7] The KOME call letters were retired from the Bay Area, resurfacing briefly on a small co-owned AM station outside the market. At this writing, the KOME call letters are used in Meridian TX at 95.3.

KOME was inducted into the Rock Radio Hall of Fame in 2014.

Ratings history vs. KSJO and KSAN

The following tables compare KOME's Arbitron average share with those of KSJO and KSAN, over five two-month periods. The data is valid for listerners 12 years and older, from 06:00 until midnight, for seven days. In both tables, it appears that KOME began to overtake KSJO significantly in January and February 1979. In the San Francisco nine-county area, KOME actually overtook KSAN slightly in April and May 1979.

Santa Clara county only
Apr/May 78 Jul/Aug 78 Oct/Nov 78 Jan/Feb 79 Apr/May 79
KOME 2.7 – 2.8 4.4 5.2
KSJO 2.6 – 2.4 3.2 4
KSAN 1.3 – 0.7 0.7 0.7
San Francisco nine-county, including Santa Clara county
Apr/May 78 Jul/Aug 78 Oct/Nov 78 Jan/Feb 79 Apr/May 79
KOME 0.8 0.9 0.8 1.6 1.9
KSJO 0.8 1.8 1.0 1.1 1.2
KSAN 1.9 2.1 1.8 1.9 1.8

Notable Disc Jockeys

Alphabetical by air name (aka)

Several former KOME jocks can still be heard on the air at various stations in the area including Blazy & Bob, Dana Jang, Laurie Roberts, Jona Denz-Hamilton, Marla Davies, No Name, and Karin Nakamura.

KOME Personalities

Alphabetical by air name (current positions held are within parentheses)

References

  1. 1 2 3 Metroactive.com
  2. ↑ Bay Area Radio
  3. ↑ Lost Stations Of The Bay Area: KSFR from Google Groups
  4. ↑ Sfgate.com
  5. 1 2 Sfgate.com
  6. ↑ Sfgate.com
  7. ↑ Sfgate.com
  8. ↑ Bayarearadio.org
  9. ↑ Kava, Brad (November 30, 2006). "Benefits to help ailing deejay". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 15 Sep 2013.
  10. ↑ Lil Mike (March 12, 2007). "Wrestling With A Rock & Roll Heart Attack…". San Francisco Metblogs. Retrieved 15 Sep 2013.
  11. ↑ Singh, Gary (June 27, 2012). "Dennis Erectus Memorial". Metro Newspapers, Metro Silicon Valley. Retrieved 15 Sep 2013.
  12. ↑ (No byline) (August 17, 2012). "Dennis Netto Obituary". San Jose Mercury News obit on Legacy.com. Retrieved 15 Sep 2013.
  13. ↑ Palopoli, Steve (June 16, 2012). "R.I.P. Dennis Erectus, South Bay Radio Legend". Metro Silicon Valley. Retrieved 15 Sep 2013.

External links

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