CKCO-TV

Encyclopedia : C : CK : CKC : CKCO-TV

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CKCO (CTV)
Slogan: "Your Community First"
Kitchener, Ontario
Channel 13 / Cable 12
Owner	Bell Globemedia
Founded	1954
Joined CTV	1964
Signal Radius	Western Ontario, Georgian Bay, and western portion of GTA
Callsign Meaning	C Kitchener, Central Ontario
Former Affiliations	CBC 1954-1964
CTV Network
CKNY (North Bay)	CKCO (Kitchener)	CFTO (Toronto)

CKCO (operating as CTV Southwestern Ontario since 2005) is a television station based in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It is an affiliate of the CTV television network.

History

Broadcasts began on March 1, 1954 from a transmitter on Baden Hill, near Baden, just west of Kitchener. The transmitter has become one of the most identifiable landmarks for those who live in the area. Originally, like all private television stations in Canada from 1953 to 1959, CKCO was an affiliate of the CBC. It changed its affiliation to CTV in 1964. It still broadcasts, on channel 13, from the Baden tower, although it increased signal power in the early 1960s to reach London (from which Kitchener then received CBC affiliate programs on CFPL-TV).

The station's founder was Carl Arthur Pollock. At one time CKCO was owned by CAP Communications (named after Pollock's initials).

As of October 3 2005, CKCO no longer identifies by its call letters, and its newscasts are branded as "CTV News".

Viewing area and transmitters

CKCO's viewing area covers most of Southwestern Ontario with some exceptions such as Essex County and Windsor, where it is available on Cogeco on Cable Channel 13.

In addition to the Baden tower, the station broadcasts to Sarnia on channel 42 from the CKCO-TV-3 transmitter, which has operated since 1975. CTV in Kitchener produces a separate, pre-taped newscast for Sarnia. CTV also broadcasts to the Georgian Bay region on channel 2 from the CKCO-TV-2 transmitter, which has operated since 1971 in the town of Wiarton, Ontario. Its terrestrial footprint reaches as far east as Toronto.

Prior to 1999, the station also broadcast on channel 11 to the Muskoka and Parry Sound districts of Ontario from the CKCO-TV-4 transmitter near Huntsville. That year, that transmitter was changed to a rebroadcaster of CKNY in North Bay. (It has since become a rebroadcaster of Sudbury's CICI.)

The station also had a news office in Windsor, at the corner of Park Street and Victoria Avenue, at the ground floor of the Victoria Park Place apartments, but closed up in 1994, shortly after the launch of Independent station/Semi-BBS affiliate, CHWI-TV. The spot was abandoned for several years, still showing the faded "CKCO TV 42" banners atop its storefront for a few years. It is now a convenience store.

The station also has a news bureau in Chatham, Ontario.

Ownership

CKCO was originally owned by Central Ontario Television, a consortium that included the Famous Players theatre chain (today owned by Cineplex Entertainment) and television manufacturer Electrohome.

Electrohome gained whole control of CKCO in 1970. Canadian broadcasting laws required domestic ownership of stations, thereby ending the involvement of American-owned Famous Players.

In the 1990s, Baton Broadcasting had owned competing local stations in southwestern Ontario (CFPL-TV London, CHWI-TV Windsor, CKNX-TV Wingham). A deal between Electrohome and Baton in 1996 resulted each company owning half of these stations, plus CKCO-TV, among other Canadian stations.

The following year, another deal gave Baton control over CKCO-TV, while CHUM took control over the other southwestern Ontario stations (today operating under the A-Channel brand).

Baton became CTV, replacing the decades of co-operative ownership of the network. In 2000, BCE (Bell Globemedia) purchased CTV.

Programs

At present the flagship newscast is called CTV News, replacing CKCO News. Prior to 1998, when Baton Broadcasting rebranded all the CTV stations identically, CKCO's newscast was called CKCO Action News. In the past, newscasts titles on CKCO included Scan NewsHour and Ontario Report.

The station continues to produce a limited amount of local programming in addition to its local newscasts. On Saturday evenings at 6:30 p.m., they broadcast a program called Final Round, which features a four-member panel debating current issues, and is hosted by Brent Hanson. CKCO also broadcasts a current affairs program called ProvinceWide (hosted by Diaene Vernile) on Sundays at 6:30 p.m.

Before CKCO was a CTV owned-and-operated station, the station produced considerably more local non-news programming:

• Canadian Bandstand (1958-?)
• Bowling for Dollars (1970s?–1992)
• Camp Cariboo (1988–1990)
• Romper Room, a children's program, was broadcast nationally on CTV from the mid-1960s to 1992
• Polka Time (originally Gemütlichkeit), hosted by Grammy Award winning polka musician Walter Ostanek
• Sunday AM
• Tree House (children's program)
• several programs hosted by Big Al, including the noon-time Big Al's Cartoon Showcase, Big Al's Talent Showcase, and Big Al's Ranch Party in the late afternoon

CKCO was known for many years for the red jackets worn by news anchors on their newscasts, a practice that began in 1967 with the emergence of colour television and continued until 1989.

Personalities

News veterans who had their start at the station include Jeff Hutcheson, Lisa LaFlamme and Ron Johnston.

Bill Inkol was a long-time sportscaster for not only the station, but often for CTV's national sports broadcasts. He was also a host of Bowling for Dollars.

"Big Al" (Al Jones) was the long-time host of Big Al's Talent Showcase, Big Al's Cartoon Showcase, Big Al and the Flintstones, as well as other children's programs at the station.

Oopsy the Clown, a children's performer portrayed by Bob McNea (1929-2005), moved to CKCO after appearing for several years on Detroit, Michigan NBC affiliate WWJ-TV (now WDIV-TV).

Gary McLaren worked in the news department for 39 years (1957-1996), spending most of that time in an on-air role, and also hosted Canadian Bandstand in the 1960s.

Other personalities in the station's history included local daytime show hosts such as Elaine Cole, Betty Thompson and Johnnie Walters. Thompson was also a long-time host of Romper Room.

Present-day 6:00 o'clock newscasters Brent Hanson and Janine Grespan, weatherman Dave MacDonald and sportscaster Randy Steinman have a combined 90+ years experience working for CTV.

Slogans

• 1988 - The Best Place to Be!
• Early 90s - Great Things are Happening
• Early 90s - Everyday
• 1996 - Here for You
• 2004 - Your Community First

1960s station cards showed a Conestoga wagon.

See also

• List of local television stations in North and Central America

External links

• [CTV Southwestern Ontario] (New name and address as of October 2005)
• [Exchange Magazine article on CKCO's 50th anniversary] (Jul/Aug 2004)
• [Nelson Media]

 

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