WYNY-FM

**WYNY** (107.1 MHz), branded as **Rumba 107.1**, is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Briarcliff Manor, New York, and serves the New York metropolitan area. It is owned by Big City Radio and broadcasts a Spanish CHR radio format. The radio studios are in White Plains, New York and the transmitter is on New Jersey Route 120 in Carlstadt, New Jersey.

## History

### Former callsigns

WRNW (1960–1982)WZFM (1982–1991)

WXPS (1991–1994)

WRGX (1994–1997)

WWXY (1997–1998)

### **History**

#### **WRNW**

On April 8, 1960, **WRNW** got its start at 454 Main Street in Mount Kisco playing a mixture of light classical music and easy listening songs. It began broadcasting in FM stereo in 1964. Founder and broadcast engineer Richard Burden was instrumental in the development of FM stereo broadcasting. By 1967, the station had moved to the second floor at 78 Lexington Avenue, and in June of that year, program director Don Bayley adopted an album rock format making WRNW one of the first FM stations in the New York City area to play rock music full time. (New York's WOR-FM went rock in 1966, but was hampered by an AFTRA strike; WNEW-FM started its progressive rock format in October 1967.) In 1969, WRNW was sold to Lake Champlain Broadcasting Company, which also owned 105.9 WHBI in Newark. WRNW then played big band music during the day and sold brokered programming from 10 p.m.–2 a.m. weekdays and all day weekends to clients shared with WHBI. According to WRNW's founder, the call letters stood for "Wonderful Radio Northern Westchester."

In 1971, WRNW changed to an easy listening format, and then to Top 40. In 1972, the station transitioned to a progressive rock format. On Monday, July 9, 1973, WRNW inaugurated transmissions from its new Briarcliff Manor studio on the second floor of a small house at 55 Woodside Avenue. The new transmitter was in Irvington, covering White Plains, Yonkers and other parts of Westchester and Rockland Counties.

It was there, in 1976 that Howard Stern obtained his first full time paying radio job as a disc jockey and program director. Meg Griffin, later of WNEW-FM, WPIX-FM, WXRK and Sirius Satellite Radio, was also music director of the station during the mid-70s. Ted Utz also began his professional career at the station in 1976 and went on to program and manage pioneering stations like WMMR in Philadelphia and WNEW-FM. Earle Bailey (WLIR, WNEW-FM, WMMR, Sirius XM Radio's *Deep Tracks*) hosted a shift at the station during the progressive rock era as did Doug Berman, now producer of National Public Radio programs *Car Talk* and *Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!*.

#### **Magic and Z-107**

In 1982, the station flipped to an adult contemporary (AC) format, first known as *Magic 107*. It soon adopted the **WZFM** call letters and became known on-air as *Z-107*. The AC format was in place until 1991.

WZFM was perhaps best known as the home of "The Saturday Night Special," a freewheeling five-hour request 'n' contest good time oldies/comedy series which, over a nine-year run, became the station's highest-rated program. Co-hosts Gary Theroux and Kerin McCue also developed spinoff specials which were syndicated to other outlets, such as "The Halloween Spooktacular" and the 12-hour "Christmas Through The Years." A three CD adaptation of the latter was released by Reader's Digest Records and ultimately sold over six million box sets.

#### **X-107**

"The Saturday Night Special" remained on the air through a call letter change to **WXPS** *The Express* until the station was sold to new owners. In the early 1990s, the new owners flipped the station to an alternative rock format as *Today's Rock: X-107* with the **WRGX** call letters.

#### Country as Y-107, and Spanish CHR as Rumba 107.1

On December 5, 1996, the station became part of the Big City Radio trimulcast (and eventual "quadcast") with other 107.1 stations on Long Island, in northern New Jersey and, later, the Allentown/Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania area. WRGX and the other two multicast stations switched formats to country music as "New Country Y-107"; the station originated from Big City Radio's headquarters in Hawthorne. WRGX became known as WWXY and later adopted the call letters of former New York City country station WYNY.

On May 7, 2002, WYNY began stunting with construction noises, parent company, Big City Radio, shut down the licenses of WWZY, WWXY, and WWYY on this date to increase the power of the main station, WYNY.

On May 8, 2002, at 11:00am, after a day of stunting with construction noises, WYNY adopted a Spanish CHR music format branded *Rumba 107.1*. The first song was "Cuando La Vi" by Darlyn y Los Herederos. The format was a success, reaching tons of listeners throughout the Tri-state area.