[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 6, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E991]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       RECOGNIZING 50 YEARS OF KTXR 101.3 FM ``THE GENTLE GIANT''

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                            HON. BILLY LONG

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 6, 2012

  Mr. LONG. Mr. Speaker, it was June 13, 1962, when KTXR 101.3 FM ``The 
Gentle Giant'' began informing and entertaining the Ozarks audience 
with great music and special programming.
  Under the guidance of local owners Ken and Jane Meyer, what started 
in the 60s as a 6,000 watt station by 1970 became a 100,000 watt 
``Class C'' FM operation. In 2001, when a bad ice storm brought the 
KTXR tower down, the Meyers received FCC permission to build the only 
``Class C-0'' tower in the state of Missouri. Soaring 1488 feet above 
ground, it is Missouri's tallest radio tower with the state's largest 
coverage, heard throughout mid and southern Missouri, northern 
Arkansas, parts of Oklahoma, and Kansas.
  KTXR is a rarity in Springfield. It is one of the only locally owned 
and operated FMs in the market. When it signed on the air, KTXR became 
not only the second FM station in the city but also the second in the 
state to broadcast in stereo. Jane Meyer was the first woman in 
Springfield to sell radio advertising and was the first woman in the 
state to be a radio station general manager.
  While the music on KTXR may have changed over the decades from 
classical to easy listening to light hits to today's Greatest Hits, 
there have always been several constants. Jane Meyer decided early on 
to add ``special programs with special appeal.'' Knowing the volatility 
and importance of weather in the Ozarks, she hired her own resident 
meteorologist rather than be dependent on the National Weather Service. 
Then, 35 years ago Wayne Glenn, ``The Old Record Collector,'' became 
part of KTXR special programming and has not missed an air shift in all 
that time.
  Possibly the most unique programming decision the Meyers made was to 
put sports on a music station. While most in the radio broadcast 
industry would tell you a music/sports format would never work, KTXR 
has proved them wrong. It started with the Kansas City Royals in the 
1970s, and a few years later KTXR became the exclusive radio home of 
the St. Louis Cardinals in the Ozarks and remains so today. Drury 
University and Evangel University were two of the local colleges sports 
programs aired on KTXR in the 70s. In the 80s the station picked up the 
Missouri State University Bears and KTXR remains the flagship station 
of the Bears Radio Network. After carrying the Bears for several years 
it was Jane Meyer's decision to broadcast the Lady Bear basketball 
games that helped propel them to a nation-high attendance record and in 
turn she received an invitation to address the NCAA national meeting 
about marketing women's sports.
  Though Jane Meyer passed away in 2001 her influence is still felt not 
only in the halls of KTXR but throughout the Ozarks. She and Ken Meyer 
have always served on numerous boards and foundations giving of their 
time and finances to support the community that has always been 
supportive of Meyer Communications.
  Over the past 50 years Meyer Communications has grown from the humble 
beginnings of one station to, at any one time, owning several radio and 
television stations, an outdoor signage company, and an advertising 
agency. But, it has always been KTXR ``The Gentle Giant'' that is the 
heartbeat of the company.
  Ken Meyer has stated unequivocally ``in my opinion Jane Meyer made 
KTXR the class station of Springfield. Any way you look at it Jane was 
the Gentle Giant.''

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