Chapter 1
Celebrating 75 years of CKNW with Frosty, Grohmann, Cox, and Metcalfe
We are kicking off CKNW’s 75th Anniversary Special on the Simi Sara Show with some of the stations most memorable personalities….
For most of our listeners, our next guests need no introduction…
GUESTS
Brian ‘Frosty’ Forst - Former CKNW broadcaster (spent 40 years on air as the highest-rated radio personality in western Canada)
Norm Grohmann - Former CKNW weatherman (1961-1999)
Wayne Cox - Former CKNW broadcaster
Chapter 2
Come join the fun at the Anvil Centre today!
We have some special guests joining us at the Anvil Centre today! Nin Rai is the President and Founder of Truffles Fine Foods, and they will be doing tastings throughout the day here at the Anvil Centre.
Trevor Batstone is the Community Events Coordinator with the Transit Museum Society Of BC, and they brought down a restored 1954 fishbowl bus from Translink! We really encourage our listeners to come down and join us on location to check out the bus and sample some food from Truffles Fine Foods!
GUEST: Trevor Batstone
Community Events Coordinator with the Transit Museum Society Of BC
GUEST: Nin Rai
Founder & President of Truffles Fine Foods
Chapter 3
CKNW’s history in New Westminster
We are live on location at the New Westminster Anvil Centre celebrating our 75th anniversary! A little bit of background for you: CKNW began in New Westminster on August 15, 1944 at its original frequency of 1230 AM, under the ownership of Bill Rea's International Broadcasting Company. It was Vancouver's first country music station, the first in the region to provide hourly newscasts (between 6:00 a.m. and midnight) and the first in the province to broadcast 24 hours a day, beginning in 1947.
On November 17, 1958, the station switched to its present frequency of 980 AM. On February 22, 1960, its transmission power was increased to 10,000 watts, and it was further increased to 50,000 watts in 1965. On January 15, 1969, CKNW moved into larger studio space in a former Safeway store in New Westminster. Parent company Western Broadcasting put FM sister station CFMI on the air on March 22, 1970.
In the 1990’s CKNW left New Westminster and moved into our current location in the TD Tower in downtown Vancouver. It was a big move for the station (no pun intended) and it was covered by BCTV…
Peter Julian is the MP for New Westminster-Burnaby, and he joins us at the Anvil Centre to discuss CKNW’s history in the city of New Westminster.
GUEST: Peter Julian
NDP MP representing New Westminster-Burnaby
Chapter 4
Jennifer Burke looks back at her time at CKNW
If you were listening to CKNW in the early 2000’s , you most likely heard our next guest during the afternoons! Jennifer Burke, then known as Jennifer Mather, hosted the The Jennifer Mather Show on CKNW until 2005. Here’s a clip from one of Jennifer’s editorials…
Jennifer’s career at CKNW didn’t begin with her talk show. Before she was behind the mic, Burke sat behind the board as a sound engineer when she was only 19 years old! What was it like climbing the ranks at CKNW? What are some of her favorite memories from her time at CKNW?
GUEST: Jennifer Burke
Host of CKNW’s Jennifer Mather Show
Chapter 5
A look back on behind the scenes at CKNW with former Program Director Tom Plasteras
Tom became the Program Director of CKNW while he was in his late 20s. What was it like to be program director of a station with such a lauded history and such powerful hosts? What is Tom most proud of during his time as Program Director at CKNW?
Fun fact: Tom Plasteras hired Simi to be the host of CKNW’s midday program in 2011. At that time, Simi was on the air from 12:30pm - 3:00pm. Here is a promo from Simi’s first few days on CKNW…
GUEST: Tom Plasteras
Former CKNW Program Director
Chapter 6
The pioneering women of CKNW radio
Before you heard the voices of Simi Sara, Lynda Steele and Jill Bennett on the CKNW airwaves, there was a group of women who were breaking broadcast barriers on CKNW radio.
GUESTS:
Shirley Stocker - Former CKNW talk show host & producer
Doriana Temolo - Former news reporter on CKNW
Shawn Webster - Former CKNW host for 10 years
Chapter 7
How the CKNW newsroom tells the stories of our city
GUESTS:
Gord Macdonald - CKNW News Anchor (recently celebrated 30 years with ‘NW)
Janet Brown - CKNW Senior Reporter
Chapter 8
Bill Good looks back at his 26 year career at CKNW
The voice of our next guest was heard on the CKNW airwaves for 26 years. During that time, he interviewed over 40,000 guests from all walks of life, and engaged with listeners as part of his popular call in segments. Of course, we are talking about Bill Good, host of the award winning Bill Good Show that aired on CKNW from 1988 until 2014.
BIll initially held the afternoon slot then shifted into the 8:30 a.m. slot when Rafe Mair's show ended in 2003. Throughout his run, Bill had a prominent B.C. platform for interviewing prime ministers and premiers, and weighing in on other issues. He also hosted provincial-election leaders' debates, including one in the 2013 campaign.
GUEST: Bill Good
Host of the award winning Bill Good Show that aired on CKNW from 1988 until 2014
Chapter 9
Introducing BC’s Top Dog!
Guest: Carol Wilde
Maggie’s owner
GUEST: Claire Allen
Simi Sara Show Contributor
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