Under the leadership of Col. Robert R. McCormick, The Chicago Tribune leases enough time on the Zenith Edgewater Beach Hotel station, WJAZ, to assure program dominance. The Tribune obtains the call letters WGN (World's Greatest Newspaper) from Great Lakes skipper Carl D. Bradley.
That was on March 24th, 1924. On June 1st of that year, the radio station known as WDAP became known as WGN. You can hear WGN today from a good portion of the country at 720 on your radio dial.
WLS stood for World's Largest Store. Sears.
WMBD in Peoria stood for World's Most Beautiful Drive, which is what Teddy Roosevelt called Grand View Drive in Peoria.
Posted by: William Polley | March 07, 2006 at 10:53 AM
WCCO in the Cities stands for Washburn Crosby Company.
Posted by: Phil | March 07, 2006 at 11:42 AM
I don't know; I have trouble getting a good signal from WGN. Thankfully, the Internet is expanding the reach of radio stations. Ever listen to Extension 720?
Posted by: PolicyGuy | March 07, 2006 at 02:19 PM
Carl D. Bradley, the person, has something in common with insurance executive Edmund Fitzgerald. Completion left to the reader as an exercise.
Posted by: Stephen Karlson | March 09, 2006 at 09:29 PM