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| Broadcast area | Lehigh Valley,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Frequency | 1100kHz |
| Branding | Sunny 1100 |
| Programming | |
| Format | Ameripolitan,oldies |
| Affiliations | SRN News |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | CC Broadcasting, LLC |
| WMGH-FM,WLSH | |
| History | |
First air date | February 16, 1946 (79 years ago) (1946-02-16) |
Call sign meaning | WGlobePublishingAuthority |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 67137 |
| Class | D |
| Power | 250watts (daytimer) |
| Translator(s) | 98.5 W253CC (Bethlehem) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | Sunny1100.com |
WGPA (1100kHz) is aClass Ddaytimerradio station,licensed toBethlehem, Pennsylvania, serving theLehigh Valley region of easternPennsylvania. The station is owned by CC Broadcasting, LLC, and airs aradio format called Ameripolitan, includingrockabilly, 1950s and 1960soldies,classic country, andpolka music.[2] World and national news is supplied bySRN News. WGPA'sradio studios and offices are at 2311 Easton Avenue in Bethlehem.
BecauseAM 1100 is aclear channel frequency, WGPA mustsign off at night to protectWTAM inCleveland, theClass A station on 1100 kHz. (Radio waves travel farther at night.) Thetransmitter is at 1080 Win Drive.[3] WGPA is heard around the clock on 250-wattFM translatorW253CE at 98.5MHz.[4]
WGPA was originally a part of the Bethlehem Globe Publishing Authority, from which thecall sign was derived. Both WGPA and itssister station, WGPA-FM (nowWZZO), began broadcasting on February 16, 1946.[5] The studios were located at 426 Brodhead Avenue, next to theGlobe-Times daily newspaper building. At the time, WGPA-AM and FM weresimulcast. The FCC license stated ownership as A-B-E Broadcasting, a division of the Bethlehem Globe Times Newspapers, signifyingAllentown-Bethlehem-Easton as the coverage area.
WGPA AM 1100 originally broadcast popular music from that time period. The original musical lineup primarily consisted ofbig bands featuring artists such asPerry Como,Frank Sinatra,Artie Shaw,Glenn Miller, andDoris Day. In the early 1950s, Bob Wolken, a recent graduate ofLiberty High School, started at the station performing odd jobs. He eventually became an on-air announcer, who would remain through changes in ownership and formats into the 1990s. Wolken's smooth style was the wake up voice for generations of Bethlehem-area residents for many years. His program was called "In the Book" and it aired from sign on time to 9:30 am Monday through Saturdays.
WGPA AM has always been adaytimer station. Its broadcast hours are limited to a dawn to dusk operation. Because of this limitation, WGPA-FM would carry local live sports coverage after sunset. This included high schoolbasketball andhigh school football. By the 1960s, the FM station's daytime programming was featuringbeautiful music, includingMantovani,Ferrante & Teicher,Ray Conniff, andHenry Mancini. On the FM side, the station broadcastThe Velvet Touch, hosted by Bob Deacon.
In 1973, Bethlehem Globe Publishing Authority began to divest itself of its radio holdings. WGPA AM and FM were sold to Holt Broadcasting for approximately $125,000. The FM station became WEZV, "Easy 95", playingeasy listening music in stereo. By the late 1970s, the FM station's call letters switched toWZZO, "Z-95", playingalbum-oriented rock, and has remained in a rock music format since. WZZO's headquarters were established at the Westgate Mall inBethlehem, and later moved toWhitehall Township.
In 1978, Holt sold WGPA 1100 to Henry Chadwick for approximately $400,000. The offices and studios were moved to the Dodson Building at 528 North New Street. Soon after, the station adopted the moniker "Sunny 1100," playing a mix ofadult standards andsoft adult contemporary music, with local news, weather and traffic. Among the notable WGPA alumni from this period was Bill Zimpfer, who played music and provided play-by-play forLehigh University football before moving on tosports radio jobs withPennsylvania State University and theMiami Dolphins.
In 1991, Joe Timmer acquired WGPA AM 1100 from Chadwick Broadcasting for $125,000. In addition to nostalgia and oldies music, the station included a variety of locally hosted specialty programming, includingThe Lehigh Valley Means Business, hosted by Bethlehem Attorney Bruce Davis, which aired for over a decade. Other programs includeParenting Matters with Francine Bianco Tax,Kisslinger & Company, hosted by Larry Kisslinger and sponsored byService Electric, and sports talk showJack, Joe & Company, with co-hosts Jack Logic and Joe Craig. WGPA kept to its roots, airingpolka music three times daily, including the station's flagship program, theJolly Joe Timmer Polka Show, middays, Monday through Friday.
In January 2013, WGPA announced that due to the sale of the Dodson Building, studios would be moving. In May 2013, WGPA began broadcasting from new studios at 429 East Broad Street inBethlehem.
In March 2015, due to his declining health, Timmer's family sold the station to CC Broadcasting, LLC for $95,000. The purchase was consummated on May 29, 2015.
The station format change to "Ameripolitan" was introduced in May 2015. This format features music not otherwise heard on the airwaves in theLehigh Valley, includingrockabilly, 1950s and 60soldies,classic country andpolka music.SRN news and traffic fromWFMZ-TV 69 News are included in the daily programming. WGPA also broadcastshigh school football and other sports.
On September 16, 2015, WGPA hosted a four-hour reunion of former station employees. The program, hosted by Robin Miller and broadcast live, celebrated much of the station's history through story-telling and remembrances from the likes of Miller, Gil Ackroyd, Jerry Dean, Mario Markozzi, and 1950s local singing stars, the JAN Sisters.
A selection of local programs are archived at the station's website and may be accessed any time. The station offers live streaming from the website. Programs can be accessed via an app which then allows tablet and smart phone users to listen anytime overTuneIn, a music app.
TheFCC issued aconstruction permit for low-powerFM translator W256BQ, which was purchased by CC Broadcasting LLC from a station inOlean, New York, at a reported $75,000. Plans were for the translator to operate on 93.3 FM with a power of 250 watts and would be mounted on the existing AM tower with a directional signal toward the center of Bethlehem. This would allow listeners to hear WGPA 24 hours a day.
The translator was licensed on April 19, 2017, as W227DE, however, the grant was rescinded on May 5, 2017. A new construction permit was issued for 98.5 W253CC on August 10, 2017, also with an effective radiated power of 250 watts. The translator's antenna points towardSouth Bethlehem andHellertown, operating around the clock.