| Frequency | 1400kHz |
|---|---|
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Silent |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| History | |
First air date | 1947 |
Last air date | July 16, 2022 |
Call sign meaning | KeepingEveryBodyEntertained (coined by original owner, William Dudley Waller) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 70741 |
| Class | C |
| Power | 1,000watts unlimited |
Transmitter coordinates | 31°58′11″N95°15′52″W / 31.96972°N 95.26444°W /31.96972; -95.26444 |
| Translator | See § Translator |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
KEBE (1400AM) is a terrestrial Americanradio station, paired with two FCC authorized and licensed FM translators.[2] The facility is licensed toJacksonville, Texas, United States, and is owned by Richard Witkovski, through licensee North Texas Radio Group, L.P.[3]
AM 1400 KEBE Jacksonville, was licensed in 1946 to Bill A. Laurie ofJacksonville, Texas. KEBE was branded "The KEBE Corral", and was one of the first country stations in theUnited States. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, KEBE became the career starter forEast Texas radio legend,Tom Perryman.
In 1957, Bill Laurie died in a fishing accident. Laurie's wife took over ownership briefly. Mrs. Laurie placed the station up for sale, and a TV Newscaster fromEl Dorado, Arkansas, Dudley Waller, put together the money to buy the station. Dudley and his wife Dorothy "Dot" Waller ran the station until 2014, when it was sold to Chuck Conrad's Chalk Hill Media.
KEBE was an affiliate of theABC radio network, and at one time began running the Jones satellite network's "Classic Country" format. Some of KEBE's famous alumni include: Tom Perryman, Dudley Waller, Rick Watson, Jim Lord, and Al Mather.
KEBE's success led to the Wallers filing for an initial construction permit for anFM station forEast Texas. KEBE-FM106.5 signed on the air in the early 1970s. KEBE-FM became the first class C 100 kW FMStereo station in East Texas. KEBE-FM was abeautiful music station that made the transition to easy listening/soft rock. In 1983, KEBE-FM changed toKOOI, with the moniker "Sunny 106.5 KOOI".
KEBE remained a full servicecountry station until 2007, when asimulcast of sister station103.1KDVE/KMPA began. Since 2012, it has been simulcastingKZQX (former sister station100.3), a big band and standards station based out ofChalk Hill, Texas. It has remained as a simulcast of KZQX through the latter years of Waller ownership, during Chalk Hill's ownership as owned and operated from 2014 to 2017, and now under the direction of North Texas Radio Group since.
On September 8, 2014, KEBE was sold to Chalk Hill Media, and thus continued the simulcast ofKZQX. The sale of KEBE ended the 57 year ownership of KEBE by the Waller family.
On January 24, 2017, Charles Conrad's Chalk Hill Media filed for license reassignment, as an agreement had been made with the North Texas Radio Group to sell the original Jacksonville radio station for $50,000. North Texas Radio Group ownedKMADMadill, Oklahoma andKSOCTipton, Oklahoma. Consummation of the sale was finalized on March 10, 2017, with KEBE remaining in a simulcast ofKZQX Tatum under the new ownership.
On April 17, 2019, a license reassignment was granted by theFCC, that would transfer the licenses of KEBE and its FM translator to East Texas Results Media, LLC, headed by Mike Huckabee and Paul Coates. Upon consummation, KEBE became a sister station toKTLU in nearbyRusk. Consummation of the sale occurred on June 1, 2019.
East Texas Results Media closed the offices in Jacksonville, and took all six stations licensed to them silent as of July 1, 2019.
KZXM,KFRO-FM,KLJT, andKMPA have all since been sold to the Educational Radio Foundation of East Texas, owner and operator of Christian stationsKVNE and KGLY. KEBE andKTLU remained silent, while awaiting sale of the facilities to new ownership. The facilities had until July 1, 2020 to return to broadcasting, or by law, the licenses for both would have been revoked, and the facilities deleted.
On June 18, 2020, KEBE and its related FM translator 104.7 K284CT returned to regular broadcasting. Both facilities received a grant to resume full operations on June 24, 2020. KEBE began simulcastingKOME-FM, aClassic Hits formatted radio station nearGlen Rose, Texas.
On December 23, 2020, East Texas Results Media applied to move 104.7 K284CT to the northern edge of KEBE's coverage area, dropping one channel to 283 (104.5 MHz), and changing the translator's COL toTyler.
Effective March 30, 2021, East Texas Results Media sold KEBE, KTLU, and two translators to KEBE's operator Chisolm Trail Communications, LLC.
On July 16, 2022, KEBE dropped its simulcast with KOME-FM and went silent ahead of a pending sale.[4]
Consummation of the sale from Chisholm Trail Communications LLC. to Richard Witkowski of North Texas Radio Group, L.P. was filed on January 10, 2023, the deal having closed on January 6. KEBE AM and FM, as well as translator K284CT remainsilent, under separateSpecial Temporary Authority filings granted by theFederal Communications Commission.
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | HAAT | Class | FCC info | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K284CT | 104.7FM | Jacksonville, Texas | 201161 | 250 | 51 m (167 ft) | D | LMS | First air date: February 21, 2018 |
| K280CL | 103.9FM | Rusk, Texas | 57214 | 250 | 54 m (177 ft) | D | LMS | First airdate: July 23, 1985 (inPalestine) |