KPLR-TV
Encyclopedia
KPLR-TV, channel 11, is a television station in St. Louis, Missouri
. KPLR is owned by the Tribune Company
, and is an affiliate of The CW Television Network
. The station's studios are located in Maryland Heights, Missouri
, in Northwest St. Louis County
(though with a St. Louis address), and its transmitter is located in Lemay, Missouri
.
KPLR's digital signal on UHF 26 is multiplexed:>
Channel
Video
Aspect
Programming
11.1
1080i
16:9
Main KPLR programming / The CW
11.2
480i
4:3
This TV
, digital television receivers display KPLR-TV's virtual channel
as 11.
in Missouri. The station's call letters were derived from the name of its founding owner, St. Louis real-estate developer and hotelier Harold Koplar
. Despite losing in his quest to build the station from the ground-up, Koplar acquired the station's license in 1958 through controversial circumstances.
CBS
was originally granted a construction permit by the Federal Communications Commission
to build channel 11 in 1955, prevailing over four other locally-based competitors. But two years later, in 1957, CBS decided instead to purchase its existing affiliate, KWK-TV (channel 4). As a condition of the channel 4 purchase, the FCC required CBS to relinquish the channel 11 construction permit. CBS did so by transferring it to the Koplar group, known as 220 Television, Incorporated, in a money-less transaction. Almost immediately, the three-way deal was held up after the St. Louis Amusement Company, one of the applicants for channel 11, protested to the United States Court of Appeals
in January 1958. The appeal was dropped in November 1958, and the deal was consummated shortly thereafter. CBS renamed its new channel 4 station KMOX-TV—the call letters intended for channel 11—and operated it for 28 years (it is now Belo Corporation
-owned KMOV
). Meanwhile, Koplar went to work building channel 11 on its own, no longer in the face of opposition.
KPLR's first studios were located within the Koplar-owned Chase Park Plaza Hotel
, located on Maryland Plaza in St. Louis' Central West End
district. Channel 11 would move into a separate facility adjacent to the hotel several years later. Starting in the mid-1960s Harold's son, Edward J. "Ted" Koplar, began working behind the scenes at KPLR, producing sports programming and developing the station's first regular newscast. Ted Koplar became president and chief executive officer of channel 11 in 1979, and gained complete control of the station upon his father's death in 1985.
For most of its existence, KPLR was a traditional independent with cartoons, sitcoms, movies, dramas, and news. The station was also available on many cable systems in Missouri, Illinois
and Arkansas
until the late 1980s. Locally, channel 11's first—and only—competitor came in 1969, when local interests put KDNL-TV
(channel 30) on the air. KPLR turned down an offer to affiliate with the upstart Fox
network in 1986, instead choosing to remain an independent station (the affiliation went to KDNL).
In 1995, KPLR decided to affiliate with the newly created The WB Television Network
, but later that same year, KPLR also was offered the ABC
affiliation after that network's longtime St. Louis station, KTVI
(channel 2) switched to Fox through a group deal with incoming owner New World Communications
. Channel 11 turned ABC down, effectively sending them to the former Fox affiliate, KDNL. Beginning in 1999 KPLR also carried a secondary UPN
affiliation, running cartoons from UPN's "Disney Block" and select other UPN shows. UPN programming had been previously run on KDNL during overnight and weekend hours, as St. Louis was one of the few large markets that did not have a full-time UPN affiliate, though it finally gained a St. Louis station in WRBU
(channel 46), in 2002.
Koplar Communications sold KPLR to ACME Communications
in 1997, ending 38 years of local, family ownership. In the sale agreement, Ted Koplar signed a three-year contract to stay with KPLR-TV as its CEO, along with serving as a consultant to ACME. However, Koplar resigned only a year later, citing an irreconcilable rift. http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/1999/10/18/story4.html.
For many years, even after joining The WB, KPLR was known as "St. Louis 11." It often used a logo with the "O" in "St. Louis" (which had a resemblance to the Gateway Arch
) converted into its "circle 11" numeric logo. KPLR changed its branding and became known as "WB 11" in 1998.
In March 2003, ACME Communications sold KPLR and sister station KWBP
in Portland, Oregon
to the Tribune Company
.
In September 2006, The WB and UPN
networks merged into a new network called The CW Television Network
. The new network signed a 10-year affiliation agreement with most of Tribune's The WB stations, including KPLR.
On Sunday, April 9, 2006, The Fan Show, hosted by Rich Gould, debuted. It is a live sports-related show broadcasted from The Casino Queen's Club Sevens for the first year and a half, but starting in December 2007 it is hosted at AJ's Bar and Grill, with audience-participation games and discussion. Gould remarked in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch
interview about the show that "it's live TV in its rawest form. It's essentially a time machine back to the 1950s... in fact, some of the games I stole from Beat the Clock
." The show's last episode aired on September 7, 2008.
On Wednesday, May 31, 2006 The Tube debuted on 11.2 on ATSC broadcast. The Tube began broadcasting on Charter
Cable channel 136 on August 2, 2006. The Tube suspended operations on October 1, 2007.
On September 17, 2008, Local TV
, which had recently bought KTVI, and Tribune announced that they would merge the operations of KTVI and KPLR under an local marketing agreement
. KTVI will be the senior partner in the LMA, with KTVI general manager Spencer Koch as general manager of the combined operation. However, the two stations will be housed at KPLR's studios. The move was done to allow both stations to combine news operations and share certain programming. The LMA officially took effect October 1, 2008.
On November 1, 2008, the station was rebranded as KPLR 11 as part of Tribune's shift away from the common The CW branding with its CW stations, and returned to a logo featuring the Gateway Arch. The logo is essentially a revised version of the logo used by the station when it was a WB station under Tribune ownership.
On September 8, 2008, KPLR launched a unique schedule where the station's 9 pm newscast moved to 7 pm and stretched to an hour-long show, with The CW lineup airing from 8 pm-10 pm instead of its traditional 7 pm-9 pm berth in the Central Time Zone
. The station cited an underserved younger audience in the 9 pm timeslot with the Big Three stations airing network programming meant for older viewers and KTVI
's 9pm newscast, and had acquired permission from the network itself before going forward with the experiment.
On February 16, 2009, KPLR became the fourth station in St. Louis to broadcast in 1080i High Definition a day after sister station KTVI, and behind KSDK which has been in HD since 2006 and KMOV which has been in HD since 2008.
On April 6, 2009, KPLR debuted a new newscast called "News 11 at Noon". The newscast is anchored by Christine Buck, and Chief Meteorologist John Fuller does the weather. Also, McGraw Milhaven from KTRS in St. Louis, does feature stories on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Later that month, the station announced that it was dropping its coverage of the Blues, airing their last game (a 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs
loss to the Vancouver Canucks
) on April 21.
Rumors have abounded that ABC is considering moving its affiliation to KPLR, in part because KDNL has been one of the weakest ABC affiliates in the nation in the 15 years since joining the network. However, ABC did extend its affiliation agreement with KDNL and Sinclair's other ABC affiliates for five years on March 26, 2010, which will keep KDNL affiliated with ABC until August 2015.
baseball team (two stints, 1959–1962 and 1988–2006), the NBA
's St. Louis Hawks
(1959–1968) and the NHL
's St. Louis Blues (three stints, 1967–1976, 1982–1983, and 1986–2009).
Beginning on May 23, 1959, channel 11 broadcast Wrestling at the Chase
, a professional wrestling
program produced first from Chase-Park Plaza's Khorassan Ballroom (until 1970). The show featured the most famous wrestlers in the National Wrestling Alliance
, which was controlled in part by St. Louis promoter Sam Muchnick
. Participants included Ric Flair
, Harley Race
, former NFL player Dick the Bruiser
, and Ted DiBiase
, among others, and is considered one of the pro wrestling industry's most historic programs. About 1,100 episodes were produced during the show's run, which ended on September 10, 1983.
, an after-school program for children, that introduced The Three Stooges to St. Louis area television viewers, from 1959 until 1968. Captain 11 was played by long-time radio personality Harry Fender.
Ted Koplar also diversified the Koplar family's entertainment holdings during his time at the helm of KPLR, most notably through World Events Productions
, which distributed the animated series Voltron: Defender of the Universe
and Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs
, and later developed and co-produced another, Denver, the Last Dinosaur
.
stations — in this case, at 9 pm Since KTVI moved its late evening newscast to 9 pm following its affiliation switch, it has consistently beaten KPLR in the ratings.
KPLR has in the past tried to program its news to a younger audience, with most of its anchors being under 35 and with a more fast-paced style of broadcast. However, in a city where most television personalities have been around for years and the perennial ratings winner, KSDK, does not have a main presenter who has less than ten years tenure, this has for the most part caused them to struggle, in addition to what is perceived as a "soft" approach to news. Nevertheless, KPLR has often been pointed out by Post-Dispatch
television critics as a good "sweep story" station, where during November, January and May sweeps the station will plug one or more major investigative pieces. KPLR's stories have been seen as much more broad-based and less sensationalistic.
The primetime newscast moved to 7 p.m. and was cut to airing Monday through Fridays only (on account of The CW having programmed Sunday nights at the time of the move) on September 8, 2008. On September 17, 2008 both Local and Tribune announced that they would merge the operations of both KTVI and KPLR. Both stations will be co-located at KPLR under the management of KTVI GM Spencer Koch. The move was done to allow both stations to combine news operations and share certain programming. The LMA took place on October 1, 2008.
On April 6, 2009, KPLR ventured into the midday news market with a new newscast called "News 11 at Noon". The newscast is anchored by Christine Buck who has been with the station for over 30 years, and Chief Meteorologist John Fuller.
On June 17, 2010 is was announced that KPLR will debut an hour-long weekday 4 p.m. newscast on September 20, 2010. The hour-long newscast is anchored by Patrick Clark
. The weather is done by John Fuller, and sports director Rich Gould is the sports anchor.
(which by that time had gone from a gutted complex in which the station was the only major tenant into a boutique hotel) into a new purpose-built building in Maryland Heights with a new newsroom and studio. A new WB11 logo was debuted along with new graphics and music. In late January 2006, KPLR updated its graphics. It also changed its logo from blue to red. In September 2006, the logos were redesigned with the new The CW logos and graphics. In November 2008 the logos were once again changed, returning the arch to the logo, it now goes around the silver letters that say KPLR-11. The silver letters formerly said CW11 without the arch.
In December 2008, KPLR began broadcasting from KTVI's studios as KPLR's facility began remodeling to accommodate both KPLR and KTVI's newscasts. The temporary set includes an anchor desk, green screen, and a mini-weather center.
On February 16, 2009, KPLR first began its high-definition newscasts in its newly remodeled studio located a few feet adjacent to KTVI
's studio. The new studio contains pieces from the "old" KTVI Studio B set along with a new modern news desk and a state of the art weather center.
Anchors
News 11 Weather
Sports team
Reporters
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. KPLR is owned by the Tribune Company
Tribune Company
The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...
, and is an affiliate of The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
. The station's studios are located in Maryland Heights, Missouri
Maryland Heights, Missouri
Maryland Heights is a second-ring west-central suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 27,472 at the 2010 census. The city was incorporated in 1985. Edwin L. Dirck was elected the city's first mayor. Mark M. Levin has been City Administrator...
, in Northwest St. Louis County
St. Louis County, Missouri
St. Louis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. Its county seat is Clayton. St. Louis County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area wherein the independent City of St. Louis and its suburbs in St. Louis County, as well as the surrounding counties in both Missouri and Illinois all...
(though with a St. Louis address), and its transmitter is located in Lemay, Missouri
Lemay, Missouri
Lemay is a census-designated place in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 16,645 at the 2010 census.-History:Lemay was named after Francois Lemai, who operated a ferry boat across the Mississippi River in the early nineteenth century.-Geography:Lemay is located at ...
.
Digital television
Aspect ratio
The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,...
1080i
1080i is the shorthand name for a high-definition television mode. The i means interlaced video; 1080i differs from 1080p, in which the p stands for progressive scan. The term 1080i assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a frame size of 1920×1080 pixels...
16:9
16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ...
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
This TV
This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies....
Analog-to-digital conversion
As part of the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, KPLR-TV shut down its analog transmitter on June 12, 2009, and continued to broadcast on its pre-transition digital channel 26. However, through the use of PSIPProgram and System Information Protocol
The Program and System Information Protocol is the protocol used in the ATSC digital television system for carrying metadata about each channel in the broadcast MPEG transport stream of a TV station and for publishing information about television programs so that viewers can select what to watch...
, digital television receivers display KPLR-TV's virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
as 11.
History
KPLR commenced broadcasting on April 28, 1959, as the first independent stationIndependent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
in Missouri. The station's call letters were derived from the name of its founding owner, St. Louis real-estate developer and hotelier Harold Koplar
Harold Koplar
Harold Koplar was a Russian-American hotelier and businessman in St. Louis, Missouri.-Early life and education:...
. Despite losing in his quest to build the station from the ground-up, Koplar acquired the station's license in 1958 through controversial circumstances.
CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
was originally granted a construction permit by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
to build channel 11 in 1955, prevailing over four other locally-based competitors. But two years later, in 1957, CBS decided instead to purchase its existing affiliate, KWK-TV (channel 4). As a condition of the channel 4 purchase, the FCC required CBS to relinquish the channel 11 construction permit. CBS did so by transferring it to the Koplar group, known as 220 Television, Incorporated, in a money-less transaction. Almost immediately, the three-way deal was held up after the St. Louis Amusement Company, one of the applicants for channel 11, protested to the United States Court of Appeals
United States court of appeals
The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal court system...
in January 1958. The appeal was dropped in November 1958, and the deal was consummated shortly thereafter. CBS renamed its new channel 4 station KMOX-TV—the call letters intended for channel 11—and operated it for 28 years (it is now Belo Corporation
Belo
Belo Corp. is a Dallas-based media company that owns 20 commercial broadcasting television stations and two regional 24-hour cable news television channels. The company was previously known as A.H. Belo Corp. after one of the early owners of the company, Alfred Horatio Belo, now the name of the...
-owned KMOV
KMOV
KMOV, virtual channel 4, is the CBS-affiliated television station in St. Louis, Missouri. KMOV is owned by the Dallas-based Belo Corporation, with its studio and office facilities in St...
). Meanwhile, Koplar went to work building channel 11 on its own, no longer in the face of opposition.
KPLR's first studios were located within the Koplar-owned Chase Park Plaza Hotel
Chase Park Plaza Hotel
The Chase Park Plaza, located at 212 N. Kingshighway in the Central West End, St. Louis, Missouri, is a combination of two buildings housing a condominium tower , hotel , cinema, and several restaurants and bars, all constructed between 1920 and 1930.The hotel replaced nearby Buckingham Hotel as...
, located on Maryland Plaza in St. Louis' Central West End
Central West End, St. Louis
The Central West End is an affluent neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri, stretching from Midtown's western edge to Union Boulevard and bordering on Forest Park with its outstanding array of free cultural institutions. It includes the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis on Lindell Boulevard at...
district. Channel 11 would move into a separate facility adjacent to the hotel several years later. Starting in the mid-1960s Harold's son, Edward J. "Ted" Koplar, began working behind the scenes at KPLR, producing sports programming and developing the station's first regular newscast. Ted Koplar became president and chief executive officer of channel 11 in 1979, and gained complete control of the station upon his father's death in 1985.
For most of its existence, KPLR was a traditional independent with cartoons, sitcoms, movies, dramas, and news. The station was also available on many cable systems in Missouri, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
until the late 1980s. Locally, channel 11's first—and only—competitor came in 1969, when local interests put KDNL-TV
KDNL-TV
KDNL-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for St. Louis, Missouri. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 31 from a transmitter in Shrewsbury. The station can also be seen on Charter channel 12 and in high definition on digital channel 780. Owned by the Sinclair...
(channel 30) on the air. KPLR turned down an offer to affiliate with the upstart Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
network in 1986, instead choosing to remain an independent station (the affiliation went to KDNL).
In 1995, KPLR decided to affiliate with the newly created The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
, but later that same year, KPLR also was offered the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliation after that network's longtime St. Louis station, KTVI
KTVI
KTVI, virtual channel 2, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the St. Louis, Missouri, designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, under a local marketing agreement with Tribune-owned CW affiliate KPLR...
(channel 2) switched to Fox through a group deal with incoming owner New World Communications
New World Communications
New World Pictures was an independent motion picture and television production company, and later television station owner in the United States from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s...
. Channel 11 turned ABC down, effectively sending them to the former Fox affiliate, KDNL. Beginning in 1999 KPLR also carried a secondary UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
affiliation, running cartoons from UPN's "Disney Block" and select other UPN shows. UPN programming had been previously run on KDNL during overnight and weekend hours, as St. Louis was one of the few large markets that did not have a full-time UPN affiliate, though it finally gained a St. Louis station in WRBU
WRBU
WRBU is the MyNetworkTV television affiliate for the St. Louis, Missouri area. The station is licensed to East St. Louis, Illinois, and is the flagship station of Roberts Broadcasting. It is the only major St. Louis station that is licensed on the Illinois side of the market, though its studios...
(channel 46), in 2002.
Koplar Communications sold KPLR to ACME Communications
ACME Communications
ACME Communications is a United States-based television broadcasting company. The company was co-founded by current Chairman and former CEO Jamie Kellner, who previously served as a Fox Television Network executive and was founding CEO of The WB Television Network. Kellner used the name Acme as a...
in 1997, ending 38 years of local, family ownership. In the sale agreement, Ted Koplar signed a three-year contract to stay with KPLR-TV as its CEO, along with serving as a consultant to ACME. However, Koplar resigned only a year later, citing an irreconcilable rift. http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/1999/10/18/story4.html.
For many years, even after joining The WB, KPLR was known as "St. Louis 11." It often used a logo with the "O" in "St. Louis" (which had a resemblance to the Gateway Arch
Gateway Arch
The Gateway Arch, or Gateway to the West, is an arch that is the centerpiece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, Missouri. It was built as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States...
) converted into its "circle 11" numeric logo. KPLR changed its branding and became known as "WB 11" in 1998.
In March 2003, ACME Communications sold KPLR and sister station KWBP
KRCW-TV
KRCW-TV is the CW-affiliated television station for Portland, Oregon that is licensed to Salem. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 33 from a transmitter in the Sylvan-Highlands section of Portland. Owned by the Tribune Company, KRCW has studios on Southwest Arctic Drive...
in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
to the Tribune Company
Tribune Company
The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...
.
In September 2006, The WB and UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
networks merged into a new network called The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
. The new network signed a 10-year affiliation agreement with most of Tribune's The WB stations, including KPLR.
On Sunday, April 9, 2006, The Fan Show, hosted by Rich Gould, debuted. It is a live sports-related show broadcasted from The Casino Queen's Club Sevens for the first year and a half, but starting in December 2007 it is hosted at AJ's Bar and Grill, with audience-participation games and discussion. Gould remarked in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
interview about the show that "it's live TV in its rawest form. It's essentially a time machine back to the 1950s... in fact, some of the games I stole from Beat the Clock
Beat the Clock
Beat the Clock is a Goodson-Todman game show which has aired on American television in several versions since 1950.The original show, hosted by Bud Collyer, ran on CBS from 1950–1958 and ABC from 1958–1961. The show was revived in syndication as The New Beat the Clock from 1969–1974, with Jack Narz...
." The show's last episode aired on September 7, 2008.
Charter Communications
Charter Communications is an American company providing cable television, high-speed Internet, and telephone services to more than 4.7 million customers in 25 states. By revenues, it is the fourth-largest cable operator in the United States, behind Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Cox Communications...
Cable channel 136 on August 2, 2006. The Tube suspended operations on October 1, 2007.
On September 17, 2008, Local TV
Local TV
Local TV LLC is a limited liability corporation, owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners , which operates 18 local network-affiliated television stations in the United States.-History:...
, which had recently bought KTVI, and Tribune announced that they would merge the operations of KTVI and KPLR under an local marketing agreement
Local marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
. KTVI will be the senior partner in the LMA, with KTVI general manager Spencer Koch as general manager of the combined operation. However, the two stations will be housed at KPLR's studios. The move was done to allow both stations to combine news operations and share certain programming. The LMA officially took effect October 1, 2008.
On November 1, 2008, the station was rebranded as KPLR 11 as part of Tribune's shift away from the common The CW branding with its CW stations, and returned to a logo featuring the Gateway Arch. The logo is essentially a revised version of the logo used by the station when it was a WB station under Tribune ownership.
On September 8, 2008, KPLR launched a unique schedule where the station's 9 pm newscast moved to 7 pm and stretched to an hour-long show, with The CW lineup airing from 8 pm-10 pm instead of its traditional 7 pm-9 pm berth in the Central Time Zone
Central Time zone
In North America, the Central Time Zone refers to national time zones which observe standard time by subtracting six hours from UTC , and daylight saving, or summer time by subtracting five hours...
. The station cited an underserved younger audience in the 9 pm timeslot with the Big Three stations airing network programming meant for older viewers and KTVI
KTVI
KTVI, virtual channel 2, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the St. Louis, Missouri, designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, under a local marketing agreement with Tribune-owned CW affiliate KPLR...
's 9pm newscast, and had acquired permission from the network itself before going forward with the experiment.
On February 16, 2009, KPLR became the fourth station in St. Louis to broadcast in 1080i High Definition a day after sister station KTVI, and behind KSDK which has been in HD since 2006 and KMOV which has been in HD since 2008.
On April 6, 2009, KPLR debuted a new newscast called "News 11 at Noon". The newscast is anchored by Christine Buck, and Chief Meteorologist John Fuller does the weather. Also, McGraw Milhaven from KTRS in St. Louis, does feature stories on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Later that month, the station announced that it was dropping its coverage of the Blues, airing their last game (a 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs
2009 Stanley Cup playoffs
The 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs of the National Hockey League began on April 15, 2009, after the 2008–09 regular season. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference , play a best-of-seven series for the conference quarterfinals, semifinals and championships, and...
loss to the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...
) on April 21.
Rumors have abounded that ABC is considering moving its affiliation to KPLR, in part because KDNL has been one of the weakest ABC affiliates in the nation in the 15 years since joining the network. However, ABC did extend its affiliation agreement with KDNL and Sinclair's other ABC affiliates for five years on March 26, 2010, which will keep KDNL affiliated with ABC until August 2015.
Sports programming
KPLR-TV has served as the home broadcaster of the St. Louis CardinalsSt. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
baseball team (two stints, 1959–1962 and 1988–2006), the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
's St. Louis Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...
(1959–1968) and the NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
's St. Louis Blues (three stints, 1967–1976, 1982–1983, and 1986–2009).
Beginning on May 23, 1959, channel 11 broadcast Wrestling at the Chase
Wrestling at the Chase
Wrestling at the Chase was a professional wrestling television series that aired in St. Louis, Missouri, the matches were taped live on Saturday nights as well as televised. It was repeated traditionally on Sunday mornings. It was promoted by the St...
, a professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
program produced first from Chase-Park Plaza's Khorassan Ballroom (until 1970). The show featured the most famous wrestlers in the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
, which was controlled in part by St. Louis promoter Sam Muchnick
Sam Muchnick
Sam Muchnick was an American professional wrestling promoter from St. Louis, Missouri. He is often deemed as wrestling’s equivalent of Pete Rozelle , and he was instrumental in establishing the National Wrestling Alliance, which became the industry’s top governing body, in 1948...
. Participants included Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
, Harley Race
Harley Race
Harley Leland Race is a retired American professional wrestler and current promoter and trainer. During his career as a wrestler, he held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship 7 times...
, former NFL player Dick the Bruiser
William Afflis
William Fritz Afflis , best known as Dick the Bruiser, was an American football player and professional wrestler.-Early life:...
, and Ted DiBiase
Ted DiBiase
Theodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase, Sr. is a retired professional wrestler, manager, ordained minister and color commentator. DiBiase achieved championship success in a number of wrestling promotions, holding thirty titles during his professional wrestling career...
, among others, and is considered one of the pro wrestling industry's most historic programs. About 1,100 episodes were produced during the show's run, which ended on September 10, 1983.
Children's programming
KPLR aired and produced Captain 11's ShowboatCaptain 11's Showboat
Captain 11's Showboat was a locally produced children's program, based in St. Louis, Missouri, airing on KPLR-TV, Channel 11 during the late-afternoon hours, starting in May of 1959, and ending in August of 1968. Captain 11, named after the channel, was portrayed by longtime St. Louis radio...
, an after-school program for children, that introduced The Three Stooges to St. Louis area television viewers, from 1959 until 1968. Captain 11 was played by long-time radio personality Harry Fender.
Ted Koplar also diversified the Koplar family's entertainment holdings during his time at the helm of KPLR, most notably through World Events Productions
World Events Productions
World Events Productions is an American-based animation and distribution company in St. Louis, Missouri, best known for releasing the anime titles Voltron, Defender of the Universe and Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs, as well as producing the original animated series Denver, the Last...
, which distributed the animated series Voltron: Defender of the Universe
Voltron
Voltron is the titular super robot of an anime series that features a team of young pilots, known as the Voltron Force. The team’s individual vehicles join together to form the giant super robot, with which they defend the galaxy from evil...
and Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs
Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs
Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs is a 1987 animated space western following a similar theme as Galaxy Rangers and Bravestarr. Originally a 1984 anime series known as created by Studio Pierrot, it achieved moderate success in Japan...
, and later developed and co-produced another, Denver, the Last Dinosaur
Denver, the Last Dinosaur
Denver, the Last Dinosaur is a U.S.-French cartoon for children originally released in 1988 by World Events Productions . It was nationally syndicated throughout the United States in 1988 with reruns airing until 1990...
.
News operations
Traditionally, like most non-"Big Three" stations, KPLR has aired a newscast an hour behind the Big ThreeBig three
Big Three is a term used colloquially to refer to the three most prominent entities in any given grouping or subject.It may refer to:- People :* The leaders of the three major Allies of World War I: David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, and Woodrow Wilson...
stations — in this case, at 9 pm Since KTVI moved its late evening newscast to 9 pm following its affiliation switch, it has consistently beaten KPLR in the ratings.
KPLR has in the past tried to program its news to a younger audience, with most of its anchors being under 35 and with a more fast-paced style of broadcast. However, in a city where most television personalities have been around for years and the perennial ratings winner, KSDK, does not have a main presenter who has less than ten years tenure, this has for the most part caused them to struggle, in addition to what is perceived as a "soft" approach to news. Nevertheless, KPLR has often been pointed out by Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
television critics as a good "sweep story" station, where during November, January and May sweeps the station will plug one or more major investigative pieces. KPLR's stories have been seen as much more broad-based and less sensationalistic.
The primetime newscast moved to 7 p.m. and was cut to airing Monday through Fridays only (on account of The CW having programmed Sunday nights at the time of the move) on September 8, 2008. On September 17, 2008 both Local and Tribune announced that they would merge the operations of both KTVI and KPLR. Both stations will be co-located at KPLR under the management of KTVI GM Spencer Koch. The move was done to allow both stations to combine news operations and share certain programming. The LMA took place on October 1, 2008.
On April 6, 2009, KPLR ventured into the midday news market with a new newscast called "News 11 at Noon". The newscast is anchored by Christine Buck who has been with the station for over 30 years, and Chief Meteorologist John Fuller.
On June 17, 2010 is was announced that KPLR will debut an hour-long weekday 4 p.m. newscast on September 20, 2010. The hour-long newscast is anchored by Patrick Clark
Patrick Clark
Patrick Clark is an Emmy and Telly Award-winning host. He has been featured on the Home & Garden Network , G4, ABC Family Channel, All News Channel and served as a correspondent for Cartoon Network.-Biography:...
. The weather is done by John Fuller, and sports director Rich Gould is the sports anchor.
News sets, music and graphics packages
In 2003, KPLR moved out of its traditional home at the Chase Park PlazaChase Park Plaza
The Chase Hotel or The Park Plaza is a vibrant legendary hotel accommodating guests in the grand style. The Chase was built in 1922 and The Park Plaza was built in 1924, and it's all Live! on The Chase. In 1990 through 1991, The Chase was closed, But in 1999. The Chase was rebuilt and The Park...
(which by that time had gone from a gutted complex in which the station was the only major tenant into a boutique hotel) into a new purpose-built building in Maryland Heights with a new newsroom and studio. A new WB11 logo was debuted along with new graphics and music. In late January 2006, KPLR updated its graphics. It also changed its logo from blue to red. In September 2006, the logos were redesigned with the new The CW logos and graphics. In November 2008 the logos were once again changed, returning the arch to the logo, it now goes around the silver letters that say KPLR-11. The silver letters formerly said CW11 without the arch.
In December 2008, KPLR began broadcasting from KTVI's studios as KPLR's facility began remodeling to accommodate both KPLR and KTVI's newscasts. The temporary set includes an anchor desk, green screen, and a mini-weather center.
On February 16, 2009, KPLR first began its high-definition newscasts in its newly remodeled studio located a few feet adjacent to KTVI
KTVI
KTVI, virtual channel 2, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the St. Louis, Missouri, designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, under a local marketing agreement with Tribune-owned CW affiliate KPLR...
's studio. The new studio contains pieces from the "old" KTVI Studio B set along with a new modern news desk and a state of the art weather center.
Newscast titles
- Channel 11 News (1966–1972)
- KPLR-TV News Watch (1972–1977)
- News Watch 11 (1977–1990)
- St. Louis 11 News at Nine (1990–1997)
- WB 11 News at Nine (1998–2006)
- CW 11 News at Nine (2006–2008)
- CW 11 News in Prime (2008)
- News 11 (2008–present)
Station slogans
- The Ones to Watch (1977–1990 and 2009–present)
- Your Movie Station (late 1980s–1990)
- Count On Us (1990–1997)
- It's About Time (1998–2006)
- Where People Are the Story (2006–2008)
- First, Complete, Local (2008–present; news slogan)
News music packages
- Tuesday 4 (?-1984)
- KPLR News (1984–1989)
- WHAS News (1989–1991)
- Impact (1996–1998)
- Magnum (1998–2001)
- Production Music (2001–2003)
- Power News (2003–2006)
- Momentum News (2006–2008)
- Extreme (2008–present)
News team
+ denotes personnel also seen on KTVIAnchors
- + Christine Buck - weekdays at noon; also 4 p.m. reporter
- Patrick ClarkPatrick ClarkPatrick Clark is an Emmy and Telly Award-winning host. He has been featured on the Home & Garden Network , G4, ABC Family Channel, All News Channel and served as a correspondent for Cartoon Network.-Biography:...
- weekdays at 4 p.m.; also noon and 7 p.m. reporter (sometimes appears on KTVI) - Dan Gray - weeknights at 7 p.m.
- Melanie Moon - weeknights at 7 p.m.
News 11 Weather
- John Fuller - chief meteorologist; weekdays at noon and 4 p.m., and weeknights at 7 p.m. (occasionally seen on KTVIKTVIKTVI, virtual channel 2, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the St. Louis, Missouri, designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, under a local marketing agreement with Tribune-owned CW affiliate KPLR...
's 11 a.m. newscast) - + Michelle Anselmo - meteorologist/anchor; Sunday at 7 p.m.
Sports team
- Rich Gould - sports director; weekdays at 4 p.m., and weeknights at 7 p.m.
- Kurt LaBelle - sports and general assignment news reporter
Reporters
- Jeff Bernthal - lead story reporter
- + Kim Hudson - general assignment reporter
- + Shawndrea Thomas - general assignment reporter