WFMZ-TV (channel 67)

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WFMZ-TV
Channels
Programming
AffiliationsIndependent
Ownership
OwnerPenn-Allen Broadcasting Company, Inc.
WFMZ (FM)
History
First air date
December 4, 1954 (1954-12-04)
Last air date
April 15, 1955 (1955-04-15)
(132 days)
Technical information
ERP79.4 kW
HAAT970 ft (300 m)[1]
Transmitter coordinates40°33′59″N 75°26′03″W / 40.56639°N 75.43417°W / 40.56639; -75.43417

WFMZ-TV, UHF analog channel 67, was an independent television station licensed to Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States, which broadcast from December 4, 1954, to April 15, 1955. Owned by the Penn-Allen Broadcasting Company, it was sister to radio station WFMZ (100.7 FM). WFMZ-TV failed due to economic issues inherent in early UHF broadcasting and the availability of network-affiliated stations from Philadelphia.

Two decades after WFMZ-TV's short existence, WFMZ radio's new owners started another television station using the same call letters in 1976, which still operates.

History[edit]

The owners of FM radio outlet WFMZ received a construction permit for a new channel 67 television station in Allentown on July 16, 1953; the grant came after radio station WHOL withdrew its competing application for the channel.[2] The station's studios, located along North 7th Street Pike at Grape Street,[3] were the third-largest in Pennsylvania.[4] When the 500-foot (150 m) tower was completed, officials climbed it and smashed a bottle of champagne against the top of the mast, christening it "Miss Ultra High".[5]

The station began broadcasting December 4, 1954; it relied on live and local programming as its primary attraction, though it also aired some syndicated shows. The station's local productions included a version of the franchised Romper Room children's program, teenage dance program Bandstand 67, and a live Saturday Nite Hoedown.[4] However, few watched. Its inability to secure network affiliation was costly at a time when viewers felt they were already well served by network affiliates from Philadelphia.[6] Additionally, Penn-Allen was in a dispute over unpaid money from some of its stockholders, who had not invested promised amounts in the firm. As a result, Penn-Allen announced the "temporary" suspension of operations of WFMZ-TV, to take place on April 15, 1955; it hoped to return the station to the air when the disputes were settled.[7]

After the station failed, Penn-Allen Broadcasting Company made a push at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow the station to serve as a trial outlet for one of several competing subscription television systems, an idea that met opposition from fellow Lehigh Valley UHF outlet WLEV-TV, the National Association of Broadcasters and CBS.[8] As a result, the FCC rejected the idea in March 1956, stating that it wanted to study the "whole question" of subscription television.[9] The FCC's denial did not deter Kohn, who testified in front of a United States Senate committee in April 1956, advocating for a subscription television authorization in order to allow WFMZ-TV as a whole to return to service.[10] As late as 1958, Kohn was still advocating for such demonstrations and called their opponents the "same interests who choked off FM and UHF".[11] The construction permit was not canceled until November 1964.[12]

The channel 67 building was sold in 1958 and converted to other commercial uses.[3][13] However, it almost was returned to its original purpose nearly a decade later. Mack Trucks, which was headquartered in Allentown, filed in March 1967 for a construction permit for a station on channel 69[14]—the FCC UHF table of allotments having been overhauled two years prior—and was granted the permit in mid-July.[15] Mack then expressed interest in the former WFMZ-TV studios.[13] The station, which Mack claimed would have been affiliated with a major network,[12] was eventually tabled in 1968, after Mack determined it could not secure an affiliation.[16][17]

Kohn would buy full ownership of WFMZ radio in 1958;[18] the station was sold two more times in the next decade.[19] More than a decade after Maranatha Broadcasting Company had acquired WFMZ in 1964—and more than 20 years after the first WFMZ-TV closed down—the company filed to build a new WFMZ-TV, pointing out that Allentown had not had a TV station since channel 67's demise.[20] The new station signed on November 25, 1976.[21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "WFMZ-TV" (PDF). Television Factbook. Spring 1955. p. 182. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  2. ^ "Four Initial TV Grants Finalized; Two Get CPs In Non-Hearing Cases" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 20, 1953. p. 52. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Former WFMZ Building Being Sold for $90,000". The Morning Call. December 22, 1958. p. 25. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "TV in Allentown Becomes Reality with WFMZ-TV Opening". The Morning Call. December 4, 1954. p. 23. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  5. ^ "Antenna Antics". Philadelphia Inquirer Magazine. September 12, 1954. p. 23. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  6. ^ "Prospects of All-Channel-Set Law" (PDF). Television Digest. February 26, 1962. p. 2. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  7. ^ "WFMZ-TV Suspending 'Temporarily' on Friday". The Morning Call. April 12, 1955. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  8. ^ "WFMZ-TV Hits Objections To Pay-as-You-See Plan: 'Not in Public Interest'". The Morning Call. September 17, 1955. p. 4. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  9. ^ "FCC Rejection Kills WFMZ-TV Pay-See Plans". The Morning Call. March 9, 1956. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  10. ^ "WFMZ Urges Senate Unit Support Subscription TV". The Morning Call. April 24, 1956. p. 8. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  11. ^ "Harris Prods Pay TV Decision" (PDF). Broadcasting. January 27, 1958. pp. 70–77. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Mack Trucks Announces Plans To Operate TV Station In L.V." The Morning Call. February 8, 1967. p. 6. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  13. ^ a b "Agreement Near On Mack TV Location". The Morning Call. March 28, 1967. p. 19. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  14. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. March 20, 1967. p. 88. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  15. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 31, 1967. p. 104. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  16. ^ "Plan to Run TV Station Hits Snag". The Morning Call. December 23, 1967. p. 18. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  17. ^ "Mack Abandons Television Plans". The Morning Call. August 10, 1968. p. 11. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  18. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. June 16, 1958. p. 95. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  19. ^ FCC History Cards for WLEV (WFMZ(FM))
  20. ^ "Two L.V. commercial TV licenses are sought". The Morning Call. June 14, 1975. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  21. ^ "TV station in the L.V. goes on air". The Morning Call. November 26, 1976. p. 14. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
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