The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / Remembering Some Favourite Music Radio Contests

**Posted by RadioActive** October 23, 2024 3:41 pm

This article mentions The Last Contest, which CFTR used to help parlay itself to the top of the ratings. (It featured the best promos, promising millions and millions of dollars of giveaways, without actually giving away almost anything.) It was brilliant.

I've heard of a number of these, but not all.

Remembering Some Favourite Music Radio Contests

Still, none seem to have tried what could be Toronto's most famous radio contest, which was also one of its most simple - "I Listen To CHUM."

**Posted by mace** October 23, 2024 4:44 pm

Back in the 70's, WGR had a simple cash give away called Hi-Lo. Each hour a caller would guess the amount and be told whether the amount was too high or too low. Listening all day allowed you to zero in on the correct amount. The amount given away each time was usually less than $500 but the contest ran for a number of years.

**Posted by haydenmatthews14** October 23, 2024 7:15 pm

I remember when Virgin had their "Say It Win" contest where you had 10 seconds to say: "99.9 Virgin Radio Toronto's #1 Hit Music Station" as many times as you can before time is up and would win $100. But today some of these contests are text-in or going on the station website to enter a draw.

**Posted by Dale Patterson** October 24, 2024 10:46 pm

Some more details on "The Last Contest" and some interesting comments.

https://reelradio.com/ricky/lastcon.html#lastcon

**Posted by mace** October 25, 2024 5:22 am

I remember CFTR bought the rights to the Last Contest and ran it in 1972. It took them about 10 minutes to read all the rules and disclaimers before the secret phone number was given out. Have no idea who and what they won.

**Posted by paterson1** October 25, 2024 9:46 am

I always remember "your basic Red Knight" on CFTR would extro EVERY music set with "CFTR $30,000 button time.." CHUM had the very popular CHUM Starsign that ran for a few years. Another promotion which was a little before my time listening to radio was the CHUM Walking Man. Announcers gave clues where the walking man in Toronto was and the first person to spot him and go up to the CHUM Walking Man would win a prize. I understand a few times traffic was jammed up downtown since hundreds if not thousands of people would gather around the walking man when his location was found out.

The "Break The Bank" contests by various stations have been on for decades (during ratings) and are still popular.

**Posted by mace** October 25, 2024 12:12 pm

paterson1 wrote:
I always remember "your basic Red Knight" on CFTR would extro EVERY music set with "CFTR $30,000 button time.." CHUM had the very popular CHUM Starsign that ran for a few years. Another promotion which was a little before my time listening to radio was the CHUM Walking Man. Announcers gave clues where the walking man in Toronto was and the first person to spot him and go up to the CHUM Walking Man would win a prize. I understand a few times traffic was jammed up downtown since hundreds if not thousands of people would gather around the walking man when his location was found out.

The "Break The Bank" contests by various stations have been on for decades (during ratings) and are still popular.

I believe the Walking Man contest was done in 1960 and CHUM had to do an on air apology for the huge traffic congestion at Queen and Yonge.

**Posted by Doug Thompson** October 25, 2024 1:32 pm

CHUM's Walking Man contest was held in the late summer of 1959. The initial prize was $1000., but listeners never found him, so the prize money kept going down to $500 and finally station management wanted to end the contest and at that time, the prize money was $250. Program Director Allan Slaight sent all the CHUM DJs down to Yonge & Queen at noon on a announced day, dressed exactly as the station said on-the-air that the Walking Man would be wearing. There was indeed a major traffic jam at Yonge & Queen. Toronto police were not amused. CHUM aired an editorial apologizing for the problems the contest caused.

Last edited by Doug Thompson (October 26, 2024 5:44 pm)

**Posted by turkeytop** October 25, 2024 6:48 pm

Years ago, CKLW had a contest where they would call a random number in Windsor or Detroit and ask if the person knew the amount in the jackpot. If they got it right, they won the jackpot.

It always started out at $80. Every time someone failed to get it, they would add another $8.

Sometimes they would call someone who wasn't even a CKLW listener and had no idea what it was about.