Got a question about KISN AM? When the FCC yanked there license around 1976. What happened to there studio/building and antenna farm that they had. Did another local broadcaster take it over? Or did there property sit idle until KISN returned to the air around 1981.

The studio space KISN occupied on 10th and Burnside was later leased to the state of Oregon. A welfare office I think.

I seem to remember it was an unemployment office briefly, or is that just a strange sense of irony kicking in? I've always thought, seriously, that the "KISN Corner" symbolized the best of that time in radio....the station being right in the midst of the community..up close and personal... In Astoria, KAST used to have a car horn effect in the studio and actually honked back at "KAST Happy Horn Honkers..." now that's radio!

The former owners daughters, own the transmitter and tower site. they want to sell it someday. Prime land for development.

It'll be available for development early 2010.
Hopefully the economy will be more healthy then!

But, the original question remains unanswered: what happened to the transmitter site after KISN went off the air in 1976?

It sat there until they returned to the air in 1980.

is ther any film or video tspe of the last few moments before 1976fcc shut-off??

no but there is audio tape of it. ask craig adams, possible source.

??think we allprobably have heard the audio tape of it!!!unless there is also a behind the sceans audio recording of what the by-standers wewere saying??

This was posted by Musicman on another thread. 45 seconds into the K2 News report, you see Stoner intro "Someday We'll be Together" and say what you've heard on audio tapes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6eQcMtRVIM

Per Ernie Hopseker's account, all three television networks had cameras rolling that night. On the video linked above, you can get a glimpse at some of the other camera men.

I seem to remember it was an unemployment office briefly

You could be very well correct about this. It was a state office for sure.

I was listening to KISN that night. We all had a "Death of KISN' party at a broadcast radio Buddie's house that night.

Seems to me they stayed on the air past 12 midnight , and that surprised me a bunch ! Last hour they played ' Shes gone" a bunch of times, and Someday' more than once as well.

Death of KISN Party? That is so cool! I doubt that anybody commemorates the passing of radio stations today like that, since radio has become such a low value commodity in most people's lives.

At KAST, the transmitter was in the air booth, with the only window to the outside right next to it. Summers on the coast don't get as warm as in the valley, but it would still get hot enough in there for that window to be open during the summer and many other times. Anyone who honked while passing the station while the mike was open would easily be heard, and the return "happy honker" was on a 5-second cart.

At the end of tape is Lars .

"Per Ernie Hopseker's account, all three television networks had cameras rolling that night."

I seriously doubt that. More likely, three local stations had cameras rolling that night.

I think the Portland Business Journal was in the building part of the time, also.

the "Burnside Bums" must have gotten really confused with nothing going on in the window!!???

Hey guys, I have the tape of the last 50 minutes or so. It was given to me by Dirty Dave and the Stoner. I am proud to say that I was in a band at that time and our song was played in that last hour!! Here's the playlist starting at approx 11:15..

Hey Jude
Play That Funky Music
Disco Duck
Rainy Day Woman 12 + 35
Rock N Roll Ladies (ME!!)
I Can't Get Next To You
Shake Your Booty
Lonely Days
This Masquerade
Someday We'll Be Together
Midnight Blue
Devil Woman
Homeward Bound
I'd Really Love to See You Tonight
She's Gone
Someday We'll Be Together...cuts off to static

I was listening at the time and it was a very sad and eerie feeling.

Were there other Top-40 radio station at that time besides KISN?

By that time, KISN was #3 in the format behind KGW and KPAM FM-AM.

The last show was broadcast from the tower not the Kisn Corner.
FCC demanded we played it out to the end off Marine Drive.
There was a crush of news people in that studio...Sol Rosinsky the GM stood to the right of me...as the last record rolled I looked at him and he was crying. I went home and sobbed as well. The FCC stood by our engineer like NAZIS so they could pull the plug. Total pricks they were that night. F- them.

It occurred to me that my post might be misinterpreted. As I recall, KISN was #3 in the format but #8 overall, which is still a top performer! This is all 12+, of course. KPAM had only recently begun to make that kind of inroads.

KISN DOMINATED TEENS AT A TIME WHEN TEENS WERE A BIG SELL TO NATIONALS.

I'm with the stoner and I cried when KISN went silent. Sat in my car and stared at the 4 towers and said to myself it will never be the same. FCC could did a different ruling forcing Star Stations to sell but no they just had to take off the air one of the greatest radio stations that Portland had.

Has anyone run into airchecks or stories of the forced signoff of Star Stations' other radio stations, KOIL Omaha and WIFE Indianapolis?

Here's the tribute website for KOIL: http://nebradio.tripod.com/koil.html. I don't know if there's a final aircheck or not but the similarities with KISN are quite interesting.

There IS a short aircheck of the KOIL sign-off. Not quite as dramatic as what was heard on the Mighty 91, but interesting nonetheless...

I believe both KOIL and WIFE had interim operators, enabling them to return to the air more quickly than KISN. No one applied for that honor in Portland. I think it was 14 years that KRLA had an interim operator!

besides the Stoner, who was at the tramamitter bldg. for the shutoff?any refreshments/snacks served?

Oh by the way... I was through Omaha and Neb. I did listen for a few minutes to KOIL 1020 and it's Radio Disney. Thanks semoochie for the web site.