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The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
In a few recent threads, some here were lamenting the lack of radio coverage in all four of the city's daily newspapers. Unless there's a mass firing or something unique going on at the CBC, the medium itself is almost never mentioned.
That wasn't the case back in the early 1980s. I came upon these listings, which took up almost an entire page, from the Toronto Star back on Feb. 28th, 1981, roughly four decades ago. It won't likely come as any surprise that most of the FM listings are from the CBC and CJRT, which at the time was still the Ryerson educational station.
AMers primarily feature CBL, although CKFH with its hockey and CFRB with its variety programming, get attention as well. CHUM-AM only makes one dent in the listings as far as I can see. It comes at 10:30 PM on a Saturday night, something called "CHUM Report" which purports to go on until midnight. I have absolutely no idea what this was.
A few other interesting changes - there are three Buffalo stations featured in the list of stations, although they aren't highlighted in the listings themselves. By this time, 790 was going as CKMW, CJMR was still at 1190 and was not ethnic, the Oakville station at 1250 had the call letters CHNO and CFGM had already made the switch to 1320.
On the FM side, three Buffalo stations make the list, CKO was still around, what came to be known as CHRE was then CHSC-FM, and while the outlet at 107.9 is called CINQ, I suspect that's a misprint. I'm pretty sure it was CING back then.
Anyway, a time machine of sorts back to the market a long time ago. 
- MJ Vancouver
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
Looking at CBL, some things haven’t changed in 40 years - on weekdays, Metro Morning in the morning, The World at Six, and As It Happens, and on weekends, The House, Quirks & Quarks, and Cross Country Checkup.
I notice Valerie Pringle had a show on CFRB back then.
Last edited by MJ Vancouver (December 27, 2020 1:26 pm)
- mike marshall
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
RadioActive wrote:
A few other interesting changes - there are three Buffalo stations featured in the list of stations, although they aren't highlighted in the listings themselves. By this time, 790 was going as CKMW, CJMR was still at 1190 and was not ethnic, the Oakville station at 1250 had the call letters CHNO
Oakville was CHWO.
- RadioActive
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
That makes more sense, since I remember "White Oaks" radio (hence the "WO".) Perhaps it was another typo in the Star?
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Thread Starter- Radiowiz
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
That makes more sense, since I remember "White Oaks" radio (hence the "WO".) Perhaps it was another typo in the Star?
They had typos back then? What was their excuse? lol
CHIN 110.7 also a bad typo.
RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person.
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.
- Fitz
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
Aside from typos these listings and others that I remember from the time paid very little attention to what was going on at the experimental and rock orientated stations. 98.5 is still listed as WHLD FM but it had changed formats and call letters to a free form station in June 1980. That format only lasted about 1 year and by the fall of 1981 it was classic rock Z 98:
You can hear bits from both stations below. The first part featuring the late John Farrell on Wizard radio's first anniversary from June 1981 and that includes an interesting ad for the program Signals from Space with Dr Lobotomy. The second bit is a station ID for Z 98 recorded during the playing of Neil Young's Reactor album which came out in Oct 1981. I have longer pieces of both air checks on the web site:
WZIR FM June & Oct 1981
Cool Airchecks and More:
- RadioActive
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
I've published this before, but in case you missed it, here's a look at the Toronto radio dial in 1958 - a very different example from the one above. (That and there are fewer typos!)
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Thread Starter- NW
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
I've published this before, but in case you missed it, here's a look at the Toronto radio dial in 1958 - a very different example from the one above. (That and there are fewer typos!)
The 1958 radio log is interesting. Wonder why they had a St. Thomas station (CHLO), but nothing from London? And Brockville on 1450 is interesting. There were closer stations to Toronto from the east, like the other Kingston station (CKWS), although I think Belleville was still on a graveyard channel back then. And CHEX in Peterborough had not moved to 980 yet.
- RadioActive
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Re: The Toronto Radio Dial 40 Years Ago
There's lots to chew on in that 1958 listing.
CKEY was still at 580, CKTB appears at 620 and CKFH had yet to move from 1400. I find it interesting that they also listed WJR, but that may be because the Star reached some farther away areas that could get the Detroit powerhouse. That may explain CHLO, but it also could be there because it was on 680 at the time, and perhaps could have reached some of the Toronto area.
I believe CFJB eventually moved from 1090 to 790 and became CHIC. CKGR birthed CFTJ in Galt, Ont. and is now Dave-FM in Cambridge. And CHVC would morph into CJRN and eventually move to 710. Hard to imagine CHUM being nearly the only rock station back then, although CHML has a 7 PM listing for a "Top Forty Show," if indeed that meant playing the hits.
Oh, and CJBC was still in English.
I complained earlier this week that there was nothing on the radio between Christmas and New Year's. But really, the offerings here would be deadly dull all the time for the most part, with the exception of CHUM. Still, not really fair comparing now to then, since so much of the biz has changed in 60 years, mostly for the better.
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