April 3, 2023

Seventy years ago today— April 3, 1953 —NABET (now NABET-CWA) signed its first contract with Channel 10 (then KFSD-TV) and our members began months of hard work installing and testing television equipment. That work culminated on September 13, 1953, when Channel 10 signed-on for the first time, an affiliate of the NBC Television Network. The TV station was located at 3642 Enterprise Street (now occupied by Walter Anderson Nursery).

Channel 10 covered local parades and other events, produced live and filmed commercials and established a newscast that was branded KFSD-TV News. The very next year, original owner Airfan Radio Corporation sold all 3 stations to the investment firm of Fox, Wells & Rogers.

The station quickly outgrew its Enterprise St. facilities, so it bought 7 acres of land on a knoll 4 miles east of downtown in the "suburbs." The 47th St. parcel was conveniently located next to the "new" 6-lane Highway 94 freeway and bordered on the west by city-owned land reserved for a "future crosstown freeway" (now Interstate 805).

The 43,000 square foot, million-dollar Broadcast City was dedicated on May 25, 1958 and brought KFSD-TV-AM-FM under the same roof for the first time. News coverage at the time boasted of the construction: "Architects Herluf Brydegard and Lloyd Ruoco chose a California modern styling for the exterior of KFSD studios. The exterior is of rough brick and plaster, in complimentary shades of green, accented with glass facade panels and white louvered wood verticals. Semi-tropical plantings and full-grown olive trees set the mood for the landscaping done by Harriet Wimer. Olive trees flank the walk that leads to the glass-paneled entrance. Outdoor lighting adds dramatic appeal to the structure as seen both from the parking area and Highway 94 at night. The station was built by M.H. Golden Construction Company."

The state-of-the-art facility boasted 3 television studios (one outdoors), 2 control rooms, 2 audio rooms, a booth for a live announcer, a scenic shop, paint shop, film processing and editing facilities, a huge film projection room, makeup and green rooms and was built to handle future technologies like color television and videotape.

Ceding to the times (radio was the most popular source to get instant breaking news), the newsroom was located in the area of the building housing the radio stations (currently the home of traffic and sales).

One of the most popular local programs at the time was The Johnny Downs Show. Targeted at children coming home after school, Downs entertained and informed audiences in between reruns of cartoons and The Little Rascals.

There was a huge waiting list for kids wanting to attend the live broadcast and it was a popular place to go on birthdays, as kids were invited to play games and get toys and candy after the show. Golden Arrow Dairy was a regular sponsor and in live commercials Downs was featured as a superimposed miniature dancer on top of an old-style milk bottle.

The Johnny Downs show aired from 1953 to 1968.

It was nearly a requisite in the 60's that every station have a horror movie host and KOGO was no exception. Lisa Clark played Moona Lisa on Science Fiction Theatre from 1963-70. Broadcast from the surface of the moon amidst a mound of boulders and billowing smoke, Moona Lisa sported long black hair, tight jeans and sex appeal.

Moona Lisa welcomed viewers to the show with a seductively inviting "Hello earthlings" and concluded each show saying, "Happy Hallucinations, Honeys." Clark's husband Jeff was a long-time account executive in the KOGO sales department. After a stint in Los Angeles, Lisa Clark would return to host the Perspectives public affairs show in the 1980's.

After serving as a news anchor for the station, Regis Philbin honed his "host chat" skills from 1961 to 1965 with The Regis Philbin Show airing live from Channel 10's Studio 1. For budget reasons, he had no writing staff, so he began each show with what became his hallmark, the "host chat" segment, where he engaged his audience (and later his co-host) in discussions about his life and the day's events.

As NABET members stayed busy with local production including live, filmed and now taped commercials and programs, KOGO jumped on a popular trend and in 1965, rebranded its newscasts as Eyewitness News.

Tapping into its educational roots, McGraw-Hill hired radio personality Shotgun Tom Kelly to host a new syndicated game show for kids. Produced at KGTV, Words-A-Poppin' began a 5-year run in 1974, picking up multiple Emmy awards along the way.

"As a child I grew up watching Johnny Downs on his children's show on Channel 10," Shotgun Tom said. "Almost from the start I had a desire to host a children's show such as his. So when the opportunity arose for me to audition for Words-A-Poppin' I jumped at the chance."

Taped in front of a studio audience, the show featured a panel of six kids attempting to unscramble words grouped in a category (like kinds of birds or foods), racking up points and prizes for correct answers. A decade later, KGTV would try to repeat its success with the short-lived Scholastic SuperStars hosted by Mike Ambrose.

Tired of lagging in the ratings, KGTV made the decision to crank up its competitive edge in the late 70's. It dumped the NBC network for top-rated ABC, rebranded its newscasts as The News, added InstaCam units that could transmit live news from the field and leased a helicopter with live capability. SKY10 would be the only live newschopper in the market for the next 2 decades.

While commercial and program production would always remain, this began a shift to news as the primary programming effort. With the news department working in cramped quarters (most recently used as corporate offices), KGTV decided to build an addition to the building while also cutting the scenic shop and prop storage area in half and eliminating the paint shop.

The new newsroom was dedicated in July 1981 and the newscasts were rebranded as 10News. The ratings rose and the station remained top-rated for the next two-and-a-half decades.

KGTV made history that year by being the first station in San Diego with a female anchor team on its 11 p.m. newscast, featuring Carol LeBeau and Bree Walker. After Walker left in 1987, Kimberly Hunt would team with LeBeau and form the city's longest-running anchor duo.

With the solid commitment to news and information, local programs in the 80's and 90's included the long-running Sunday morning Newsmakers with John Beatty, the weekly Eye on San Diego with Bill Griffith and a series of topical specials (10News Signature Series) and town hall meetings including one with President Clinton in 1994.

In June 1988, KGTV launched Inside San Diego, an ambitious midday talk show with Bill Griffith and Laura Buxton. The show ran 5 years and was replaced in 1993 with 10News Midday.

Meanwhile, technology led the way. For news, film gave way to tape; 3/4" Umatic, then BetaCam, DVCPro and memory cards. For operations, film and 2" videotape gave way to 1" tape, then BetaCam, DVCPro and servers.

In 1993, studio camera operators gave way to robotic cameras and in 2002, control room automation replaced some production technicians. Staff reductions were handled through voluntary buyouts. With consolidation occurring within the broadcast industry, NABET merged with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) in 1994 and became known as NABET-CWA.

Through the decades, Local 54 took pride in partnering with management to benefit our members. That relationship – which never saw a major dispute – took a big hit in 2006 as McGraw-Hill and local management began a 5-year battle to try and bust the Union. Local 54 members received outstanding solidarity from the 200,000 working families of the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council and the 2.1 million union members who are part of the California Labor Federation and financial and logistical support from NABET-CWA and CWA. In March 2011, employees voted overwhelmingly to keep their Union in a vote conducted by the National Labor Relations Board. Two months later, McGraw-Hill decided to exit the TV business, putting all its stations up for sale.

On October 3, 2011, Cincinnati-based E.W. Scripps Company purchased the stations for $212 million. The deal was completed on December 30, 2011 and Scripps negotiated an agreement with Local 54 members and invested in the station.

One of the first changes was local coverage of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Scripps took over the National Spelling Bee in 1941.

The Bee’s purpose is to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives. It reaches an estimated 11 million students globally each year, providing them with the words they need for success. Local 54 members bring the San Diego Regional Challenge to KGTV viewers.

Today Scripps is one of the nation’s largest local TV broadcasters, "serving communities with quality, objective local journalism." They also reach nearly every American through their national networks including news outlets Court TV and Scripps News and entertainment brands ION, Bounce, Grit, Laff and ION Mystery.

Audiences can find all the brands over the air, on cable TV and satellite and through digital platforms.

KGTV is now branded as ABC 10News and presents "stories that matter" including 10News Investigates, Positively San Diego, Exploring San Diego and Making It In San Diego.

The station leads the way in community outreach with projects such as the Leadership Award, Month of a Million Meals and Project Literacy.

One thing that hasn't changed since 1953: The station is still creating custom advertising campaigns that work for local businesses.