WBUK
Encyclopedia
WBUK "106.3 The Fox" is a commercial classic rock
FM station at 106.3 MHz licensed to Ottawa, Ohio
with studios in Lima
and transmitter located near Pandora
in southeastern Putnam County north of Bluffton
which borders in Allen
and Hancock
counties.
Until January 2008, as "The Big Buck," the station aired a satellite-fed oldies
format spotlighting the 1960s/early 70s Top 40 era. In January 2008 the station became the new home of the "Fox" rock format formerly featured on WPFX 107.7 FM North Baltimore, Ohio
, which flipped to an adult contemporary format (and has since gone silent), thus marking the end of "The Big Buck." WBUK is a former sister station of WIMA (AM)
and WIMT
-FM located on West Market Street in Lima.
WBUK launched in 1991 under the ownership of the late Charles Hutchinson's CHH Corporation, and under the direction of Jake Phillips as General Manager and Michael Waite as program director. Phillips was also the General Manager that launched 92Zoo in the same market in the mid 80's.
Over the years, The Big Buck played home to many well known Lima radio personalities. The Breakfast Bunch with Steve McCoy and Todd Walker, Michael Waite(Now OM of WJBR Wilmington, Delaware), Adam Wright, Mike Edwards, Phil Austin, Renee Scott, Betsy Winget, Dave (Mark) Ryan, Spark Simon, "The Roger Ride" Roger Foreman, Eric Hansen, Cori Paige, Jim Edwards, Tony Day, Bobby Cole, and many others.
WBUK "The Big Buck" originally broadcast from 1991 to 2002 at 107.5 in the city of license of Ft. Shawnee
with studios located on South Metcalf Street near the Ottawa River. It became part of the Lima cluster of Clear Channel Communications
in the late 1990s. The 107.5 frequency is now occupied by active rock
WZRX-FM
.
The 106.3 frequency originally was home to WPNM (with the calls standing for Putnam, the station's county of license) and was founded in 1977 by Bellefontaine
-based Triplett Broadasting which owned the former WTOO AM & FM (now WBLL(AM) and WPKO-FM
respectively) and WYNT
when it was still in Upper Sandusky. Financial difficulties forced Triplett to sell its properties in the 1980s. WPNM's studios were originally located in its city of license of Ottawa which at first tried a contemporary hit
format, then for many years employed a jazz format until 1986 when it became WQTL. The WBUK calls and format moved to 106.3 in 2002.
The "WPNM" calls have been revived for a micropower AM station broadcasting at 1620 kHz in Ottawa, which plays oldies
and nostalgia music as well as old-time radio shows and local high school sports. (1))
' Good Time Oldies format. Renee Scott was previously an air personality.
As part of a divesture among Clear Channel's small-market radio stations, WBUK was initially sold to Florida based GoodRadio.TV LLC
in May 2007, but the deal soon collapsed prior to FCC approval. In September 2008, Clear Channel Communications sold WBUK to the Blanchard River Broadcasting subsidiary of Findlay Publishing Company, which owns and operates WFIN
AM and WKXA-FM
. Blanchard's purchase of WBUK has since earned FCC approval.
As WBUK's format is a competitor to the classic hits
format of WKXA, WKXA has since softened its format to a more pop hit-oriented mix of classic hits.
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
FM station at 106.3 MHz licensed to Ottawa, Ohio
Ottawa, Ohio
Ottawa is a village in and the county seat of Putnam County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,460 at the 2010 census.-History:In 1792 Major Alexander Truman, his servant William Lynch and guide/interpreter William Smalley were sent by George Washington on a peace mission...
with studios in Lima
Lima, Ohio
Lima is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northwestern Ohio along Interstate 75 approximately north of Dayton and south-southwest of Toledo....
and transmitter located near Pandora
Pandora, Ohio
Pandora is a village in Putnam County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,188 at the 2000 census. Pandora was originally named Columbia and later changed to Pendleton in 1850...
in southeastern Putnam County north of Bluffton
Bluffton, Ohio
Bluffton is a village in Allen and Hancock counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. It had a population of 3,896 at the 2000 census. Bluffton is home to Bluffton University, a four-year educational institution affiliated with Mennonite Church USA. Bluffton is served by the Bluffton general aviation...
which borders in Allen
Allen County, Ohio
Allen County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. Its population was 106,331 as of the 2010 census. It is included in the Lima, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the Lima–Van Wert–Wapakoneta Combined Statistical Area....
and Hancock
Hancock County, Ohio
Hancock County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 74,782. Its county seat is Findlay and was named for John Hancock, the first signer of the Declaration of Independence...
counties.
Until January 2008, as "The Big Buck," the station aired a satellite-fed oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
format spotlighting the 1960s/early 70s Top 40 era. In January 2008 the station became the new home of the "Fox" rock format formerly featured on WPFX 107.7 FM North Baltimore, Ohio
North Baltimore, Ohio
North Baltimore is a village in Wood County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,361 at the 2000 census.North Baltimore is south of Toledo.-Geography:North Baltimore is located at ....
, which flipped to an adult contemporary format (and has since gone silent), thus marking the end of "The Big Buck." WBUK is a former sister station of WIMA (AM)
WIMA (AM)
WIMA "The Talk Station" is a commercial AM broadcasting station operating at 1150 kHz in Lima, Ohio owned and operated by Clear Channel Communications which also operates FM sister stations WIMT, WLWD, WZRX-FM and WMLX from its studio and office location on West Market Street. Its transmitter...
and WIMT
WIMT
WIMT is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Lima, Ohio, operating at 102.1 MHz with a Country format. Its studios and offices are located on West Market Street in Lima, with its transmitter located just outside of Buckland, between Wapakoneta and Lima.-Early history:Originally WIMA-FM was a...
-FM located on West Market Street in Lima.
History
Over the years, The Big Buck played home to many well known Lima radio personalities. The Breakfast Bunch with Steve McCoy and Todd Walker, Michael Waite(Now OM of WJBR Wilmington, Delaware), Adam Wright, Mike Edwards, Phil Austin, Renee Scott, Betsy Winget, Dave (Mark) Ryan, Spark Simon, "The Roger Ride" Roger Foreman, Eric Hansen, Cori Paige, Jim Edwards, Tony Day, Bobby Cole, and many others.
WBUK "The Big Buck" originally broadcast from 1991 to 2002 at 107.5 in the city of license of Ft. Shawnee
Fort Shawnee, Ohio
Fort Shawnee is a village in Allen County, Ohio, United States with a population of 3,855 as of the 2000 U.S. census. It is included in the Lima, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area...
with studios located on South Metcalf Street near the Ottawa River. It became part of the Lima cluster of Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
in the late 1990s. The 107.5 frequency is now occupied by active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
WZRX-FM
WZRX-FM
WZRX-FM is a commercial radio station broadcasting an active rock format. Licensed to Fort Shawnee, Ohio, USA, the station serves the Lima area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
.
The 106.3 frequency originally was home to WPNM (with the calls standing for Putnam, the station's county of license) and was founded in 1977 by Bellefontaine
Bellefontaine, Ohio
Bellefontaine is a city in and the county seat of Logan County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,069 at the 2000 census. It is the center of the Bellefontaine Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau in 2003...
-based Triplett Broadasting which owned the former WTOO AM & FM (now WBLL(AM) and WPKO-FM
WPKO-FM
WPKO-FM is an American radio station in Bellefontaine, Ohio. It is programmed in a Hot AC radio format, and is almost entirely locally produced...
respectively) and WYNT
WYNT
WYNT is a Hot AC station formerly located in Upper Sandusky, Ohio now located with its studios in Marion, Ohio and its transmitter and city of license moved to Caledonia, Ohio. It broadcasts music from the 80s through today as "Majic 95.9" and is part of the Clear Channel Marion cluster which...
when it was still in Upper Sandusky. Financial difficulties forced Triplett to sell its properties in the 1980s. WPNM's studios were originally located in its city of license of Ottawa which at first tried a contemporary hit
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
format, then for many years employed a jazz format until 1986 when it became WQTL. The WBUK calls and format moved to 106.3 in 2002.
The "WPNM" calls have been revived for a micropower AM station broadcasting at 1620 kHz in Ottawa, which plays oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
and nostalgia music as well as old-time radio shows and local high school sports. (1))
WBUK Today
Until 106.3 became the new home of "The Fox", long time Lima area broadcast veteran Spark Simon was the morning personality on "The Big Buck"; the rest of the on-air broadcasts was provided by Jones Radio NetworksJones Radio Networks
Jones Radio Networks & Jones Media Group were branches of Jones International before being sold to Triton Media Group. JRN and JMN provide local radio stations with satellite-delivered formats. They also offer other services to local radio such as news and talk programs, syndicated radio shows,...
' Good Time Oldies format. Renee Scott was previously an air personality.
As part of a divesture among Clear Channel's small-market radio stations, WBUK was initially sold to Florida based GoodRadio.TV LLC
GoodRadio.TV LLC
Good Radio Networks LLC is a West Palm Beach, Florida based radio ownership group headed by former Pax president Dean Goodman. Partners in this venture include former NAB Chairman Eddie Fritz, and former founder of NextMedia, Carl Hirsch.GoodRadio was established in late 2006 with the purchase of...
in May 2007, but the deal soon collapsed prior to FCC approval. In September 2008, Clear Channel Communications sold WBUK to the Blanchard River Broadcasting subsidiary of Findlay Publishing Company, which owns and operates WFIN
WFIN
WFIN is a radio station broadcasting a Talk radio format. Licensed to Findlay, Ohio, USA, the station is currently owned by Blanchard River Broadcasting Company....
AM and WKXA-FM
WKXA-FM
WKXA-FM is a radio station licensed to Findlay, Ohio, USA. The station is currently owned by Blanchard River Broadcasting Company.- History :...
. Blanchard's purchase of WBUK has since earned FCC approval.
As WBUK's format is a competitor to the classic hits
Classic hits
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format...
format of WKXA, WKXA has since softened its format to a more pop hit-oriented mix of classic hits.
External links
- Official WBUK site (with streaming audio)
- "WPNM"-AM 1620 site (with streaming audio)