Guide to Chris Spreier Collection of KFDI Radio Materials

Collection Summary

Title: Chris Spreier Collection of KFDI Radio Materials
Call Number: MS 2006-5
Size: 4.0 linear feet
Acquisition: Donation of Chris Spreier.
Processed by: JLY, 6/2006

Literary Rights

Literary rights were not granted to Wichita State University. When permission is granted to examine manuscripts, it is not an authorization to publish them. Manuscripts cannot be used for publication without regard for common law literary rights, copyright laws and the laws of libel. It is the responsibility of the researcher and his/her publisher to obtain permission to publish. Scholars and students who eventually plan to have their work published are urged to make inquiry regarding overall restrictions on publication before initial research.

Content Note

The collection includes materials that document aspects of Wichita, Kansas, radio station KFDI from 1962 to 1997. Advertising rate cards and working files of the Sales Department show advertising costs and marketing packages available between 1962 and 1994, and event programs, schedules, ticket stubs, contest and promotions pieces, and station-produced publications chronicle the activities of the station from 1971 to1997. The collection also includes a file of ephemeral pieces concerning other radio stations owned by Great Empire Broadcasting, Inc. and a file of Mike Oatman clippings. The materials were collected by station employee Chris Spreier.

Administrative History

In 1962 Frank Lynch and his son Mike purchased radio station KIRL from silent movie stars Mary Pickford and Buddy Rogers. They changed the name to KFDI and the flagship station of Great Empire Broadcasting Inc. was born. In 1964 Mike Oatman arrived and became program director and on air personality for the station. Soon after, Mike Lynch partnered with Oatman and the two became co-owners of Great Empire Broadcasting Inc., the parent company of KFDI AM and FM radio. Despite the sale of Great Empire Broadcasting in 1999 to the Journal Broadcast Group, KFDI, devoted to news, weather, and country-western music, remains to this day, a fixture within Wichita and the greater listening area.

Series Listing

Series 1 Box 1 FFs1 - 5 Events. The series includes programs, promotional materials, and schedules of events that document events and activities sponsored by KFDI. These include the Annual Amateur Rodeo, Anniversary Party, Appreciation Show, Bridal Fair, Charlie Daniels Celebrity Golf Classic, Country Fair, and Kansas State Fair. The materials range in date from 1972 - 1997.
Series 2 Box 1 FFs 6 - 12 Contests & Promotions. This series documents contests and promotions presented by KFDI, including Community Club Awards, Country Bingo, and the Lucky Day Calendar. The materials range in date from 1971 - 1999.
Series 3 Box 1 FFs 13 - Box 2 FF2 Publications. The series includes the publications Ranch Hand Roundup, Storm/Weather Alert Map, and Through the Years with KFDI. Materials range in date from 1974 - 1997.
Series 4 Box 2 FFs 3 - 8 Marketing & Sales. The series includes advertising packages and promotional information, coverage maps that show the range of KFDI's AM & FM signals, advertising rate cards, reports, and a promotional video for potential advertisers. Materials range in date from 1962 - 1994.
Series 5 Boxes 2 and 3 Artifacts & Ephemera. The series includes logos, coverage maps, and rate cards that document the other stations within Great Empire Broadcasting, Inc., newspaper clippings about Mike Oatman, tickets and ticket stubs for various events sponsored by KFDI radio, and artifacts including wooden printing blocks with letters KFDI, computer printed logos, Great Empire Broadcasting pinback buttons, a Charlie Daniels Celebrity Golf Classic jacket, and a poster congratulating Mike Oatman as the winner of Wichita’s Favorite DJ Contest. The materials range in date from 1977 - 1997.

Box and Folder Listing

Series 1 -- Events
     
Box 1 FF 1 Amateur Rodeo-- Programs for the Annual Amateur Rodeo presented by KFDI Radio Ranch Hands, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985 - 1989, and a promotional flyer advertising 1995 rodeo.
Box 1 FF 2 Anniversary Party-- Schedule of Events for KFDI's Anniversary Party held at Joyland Park, 1978 - 1989, 1996, and promotional flyers for 1983 and 1992 parties.
Box 1 FF 3 Appreciation Show-- Souvenir Program for KFDI's Annual Appreciation Show, 1977, 1978, and publicity pamphlets and flyers for various shows, 1978, 1980, 1986, 1991, and unknown dates.
Box 1 FF 4 Bridal Fair-- Programs for KFDI Bridal Fair, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1988. Bridal Fair Schedule of Events, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, and an invitation for the 1988 Fair.
Box 1 FF 5 Charlie Daniels Celebrity Golf Classic-- Booklets, 1992 - 1994, 1996, 1997. Participants List 1991 - 1997 [may have manuscript corrections]. The folder also includes promotional materials.
 
Series 2 -- Contests & Promotions
     
Box 1 FF 6 Country Fair-- photocopied brochures and newspaper clippings, 1990s.
Box 1 FF 7 Kansas State Fair-- KFDI Souvenir Program, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978.
Box 1 FF 8 Community Club Awards-- Buyers Guide, 1971, 1973 - 1979. Guides are listings of participating sponsors offering points for purchases made. Points are accumulated and cash prizes are rewarded to community organizations based on point totals.
Box 1 FF 9 Community Club Awards-- Buyers Guide, 1980 - 1987. Guides are listings of participating sponsors offering points for purchases made. Points are accumulated and cash prizes are rewarded to community organizations based on point totals.
Box 1 FF 10 Community Club Awards-- Buyers Guide, 1989, 1990, 1991. Guides are listings of participating sponsors offering points for purchases made. Points are accumulated and cash prizes are rewarded to community organizations based on point totals.
Box 1 FF 11 Country Bingo-- Playing cards.
Box 1 FF 12 Lucky Day Calendar-- Yearly calendars, 1992 - 1999. Each calendar was printed with a Lucky Number; when the number was heard on the air, the listener had ten minutes to call to claim the cash prize.
 
Series 3 -- Publications
     
Box 1 FF 13 Ranch Hand Roundup-- August, 1990. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest, and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 14 Ranch Hand Roundup-- April - September, 1991. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest, and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 15 Ranch Hand Roundup-- March - July, 1992. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest, and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 16 Ranch Hand Roundup-- September - December, 1992. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest, and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 17 Ranch Hand Roundup-- January - June, 1993. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest, and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 18 Ranch Hand Roundup-- July, August, October - December, 1993. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 19 Ranch Hand Roundup-- March and November, 1994. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 20 Ranch Hand Roundup-- November and December, 1995. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 21 Ranch Hand Roundup-- January - June, 1996. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 22 Ranch Hand Roundup-- July - September, November, December, 1996. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 1 FF 23 Ranch Hand Roundup-- January - June, 1997. Newspaper distributed by mail covering KFDI news, local items of interest and upcoming events with advertisements and coupons from local businesses.
Box 2 FF 1 Storm/Weather Alert Map-- 1984, 1986, 1987, 1994 - 1996, and unknown dates.
Box 2 FF 2 Through the Years with KFDI 10th Anniversary Souvenir Photo Album (1974) and Through the Years with KFDI 20th Anniversary Souvenir Photo Album (1984). Printed booklets of captioned black and white photographs.
 
Series 4 -- Marketing & Sales
     
Box 2 FF 3 Advertising packages and promotions information.
Box 2 FF 4 Advertising packages and promotions information.
Box 2 FF 5 Coverage Maps-- Maps show coverage areas of KFDI's AM & FM signals. The folder also includes photocopied map Nighttime Countours Based on Measurements (1959) and Nighttime Signal Intensities.
Box 2 FF 6 Rate Cards-- prices for advertising options, 1962, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1975, 1976 - 1988, 1990 - 1992, 1994.
Box 2 FF 7 Ratings Review (1991) The review is a complete look at Wichita radio listening based on the 1991 Spring TSA Birch Radio Ratings Report; Starch Readership Report of The Wichita Eagle-Beacon Sunday Edition/November 11, 1984 (1984).
Box 2 FF 8 Video produced by KFDI for potential advertisers.
 
Series 5 -- Artifacts & Ephemera
     
Box 2 FF 9 The file includes documents for other radio stations within Great Empire Broadcasting, Inc. These include KBRQ [Denver, Colorado] logos; WOW [Omaha, Nebraska] logos and coverage map; KWKH [Shreveport, Louisiana] logos, coverage map, and a 1995 edition of the station's newspaper, Round Up; KTTS [Springfield, Missouri] logos and coverage map; KVOO [Tulsa, Oklahoma] logos and coverage map; KICT-95 [Wichita, Kansas] coverage map and rate cards. The folder also includes brochures with a focus on the station's agriculture programming and a Great Empire Broadcasting coverage map (1993).
Box 2 FF 10 Newspaper clippings about Mike Oatman, the majority are from 2003 and look back at Oatman's life (1939 - 2003). The folder also includes a reservation form for "The Naked Truth" about Ol' Mike, a Roast and Toast (1993).
Box 2 FF 11 Tickets and ticket stubs [may include coupons and advertisements for area businesses, and/or names of performers]-- KFDI's Annual Anniversary Party (1982, 1983, 1985, 1987 - 1989, 1991, 1993 - 1996) and the Annual Appreciation Show (1977 - 1986, 1989 - 1997).
Box 2 FF 12 Tickets and ticket stubs [may include coupons and advertisements for area businesses, and/or names of performers]-- Country Fair Concert (1991); Derby Days (1990 and 1991); Kansas Farmers Union Farm Forum (1996); Kingman County Fair (1994 and 1996); Ol' Time Chisholm Trail Cowboy Gathering (1994); Old Time Family Sunday Singin' (1988).
Box 2 FF 13 Tickets and ticket stubs [may include coupons and advertisements for area businesses, and/or names of performers]-- Ranch Hands Rodeo (1986, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996); Sedgwick County Fair Association (1994 and 1996); Spring Stock Car Championship (1985); Sumner County Fair Association (1996); Stars for Starkey (1992, 1994, 1996).
Box 2 FF 14 "The Night Hank Williams Came to Town," performance invitation; postcard of the Stage Coach, KFDI's mobile studio; color card of the Cotillion with manuscript note on back "In the Early Years- KFDI brought in name country artists which played to full house dances"; KFDI Country Club Cards; three computer printed KFDI logos.
Box 3 FF 1 Wooden printing blocks with metal letters K, F, D, I.
Box 3 FF 2 Two Great Empire Broadcasting pinback buttons.
Box 3   KFDI Charlie Daniels Celebrity Golf jacket.
Box 3   Poster congratulating Mike Oatman as the winner of Wichita’s Favorite DJ Contest.