Ralph D. Foster
Ralph D. Foster | |
|---|---|
 Foster c. 1956 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ralph David Foster |
| Born | April 25, 1893 |
| Origin | St. Joseph, Missouri, US |
| Died | August 11, 1984 (aged 91) |
| Genres | country music |
| Occupation(s) | radio station owner radio and TV program creator-producer |
| Website | Ralph Foster biography |
Ralph David Foster (April 25, 1893 – August 11, 1984) was an American
Biography
Foster was born April 25, 1893, in St. Joseph, Missouri. In 1924, at age 31, he set up a low-power AM radio station with his partner, Jerry Hall, in a corner of their Firestone dealership, Foster-Hall Tire Co., in St. Joseph. It began as a hobby, but as local businesses increasingly sought to advertise on the station, it became a full-time occupation. He increased its power and on June 30, 1926, it was licensed as KGBX on 1040 kHz.[1] Foster built a new service station and glassed-in studios for the radio station a few blocks north. A singer himself, he and Hall performed on the station as The Radio Rubber Twins.[2]
"Keep Watching the Ozarks"
In 1932 Hall moved to California, and Foster and his brother-in-law, Art Johnson, relocated the station to Springfield (KGBX-AM was licensed for 1310 kHz on November 3). Unable to get its transmitting power increased, the next year he bought the license of a station in
Foster began to realize radio's full potential after World War II. The
Live broadcasts, however, dominated KWTO's programming. Many country music stars either got their start or performed on the station, including Porter Wagoner, Chet Atkins, the Carter Family, The Browns, Wynn Stewart, Les Paul, Homer and Jethro, and Slim Wilson. Korn’s-A-Krackin’, a weekly “hillbilly variety” program, was carried nationally by the Mutual radio network.
Crossroads of country music
Foster believed Springfield might overtake
In April 1954, Siman lured
Crossroads TV also produced the show's spin-off, NBC-TV's Five Star Jubilee (1961); as well as The Eddy Arnold Show (1956) and Talent Varieties (1955), both ABC. From 1960–1961, the company produced Today on the Farm for NBC from Chicago.
The networks, however, passed on two other efforts to expand programming from Springfield: early in 1957, Crossroads produced a pilot for a proposed ABC-TV series called Pig 'N Poke, a quiz show (popular at the time) with a country theme hosted by Smiley Burnette;[7] and in January 1960, Crossroads videotaped a pilot for a pop-variety TV series, Snooky Lanson Time. Guests were Brenda Lee, the Anita Kerr Singers, Betty Ann Grove and Paul Mitchell's instrumental combo.[8]
To represent the regular performers on KWTO and the Jubilee, Foster established Top Talent, Inc. (under general manager W.E. "Lucky" Moeller); and to publish their compositions, he founded Earl Barton Music, Inc. in partnership with Si Siman, John Mahaffey and Lester Cox, originally headed by C.R. "Lou" Black, KWTO's program director, who was succeeded after his death in 1956 by Moeller.
Later years
In 1963, Foster, Siman and Mahaffey formed Tele-Color, Inc., which in 1964 filmed color segments for ABC's
Foster was a member of the board of directors for the Ozark Empire Fair in Springfield for more than 20 years and was involved in many other civic activities. He died August 11, 1984, in Springfield and was buried in St. Joseph Memorial Park Cemetery. His widow, Harriett, died December 5, 1986.
Ralph Foster Museum
Foster was an avid hunter and fisherman and a strong conservationist. He collected
The museum's focus is the history and culture of the Ozarks region. Exhibits include the original vehicle used in the television series The Beverly Hillbillies, antiques, weapons, dolls, circus toys and miniature model circus, metal banks and toys, furniture and household items, glassware, natural history, mounted animal displays, personal hobby collections and a display on Ozark music personalities.
Notes
- ^ a b Ralph Foster Museum, Who Was Ralph Foster, archived from the original on 2009-02-01, retrieved 2009-01-06
- ^ Dessauer, Phil "Springfield, Mo.-Radio City of Country Music" (April 1957), Coronet, p. 152
- Kansas City Star, p. C1
- ^ Sachs, Bill "Folk Talent and Tunes" (August 3, 1959), The Billboard, p. 45
- ^ International News Service "Rural Music Rocks, Too" (April 29, 1956), Springfield News & Leader, p. A16
- ISBN 0-9638648-0-7.
- ^ Billings, Jim "Comes Long Way From Dwarf Role," (January 20, 1957), Springfield News & Leader, p. D2
- ^ "Plan New TV Series for Lanson" (January 25, 1960), The Billboard, p. 12
- ^ "Rites for Black, of Top Talent, in Springfield" (November 24, 1956), The Billboard, p. 17
- New York Journal American, p. 9
References
- "Tin Pan Alley in the Ozarks" (January 3, 1955), Broadcasting/Telecasting, p. 35
- Ozark Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album (first edition, 1955)
- Misurrell, Ed "How a Local Boy's Hobby Brought TV to the Ozarks" (October 2, 1955), "Pictorial TView," New York Journal American, p. 9
- Turtle, Howard "Ozarks Folk Tunes and Comedy Make Springfield a TV Center" (January 29, 1956), Kansas City Star, p. C1
- Terry, Dickson "Hillbilly Music Center" (February 5, 1956), St. Louis Post-Dispatch "The Everyday Magazine", p. 1
- "They Love Mountain Music" (May 7, 1956), Time
- The Ozark Jubilee starring Red Foley (1956), RadiOzark Enterprises, Inc.
- "Hillbilly TV Show Hits the Big Time" (March 10, 1956), Business Week, p. 30
- International News Service "Rural Music Rocks, Too" (April 29, 1956), Springfield News & Leader, p. A16
- Ozark Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album (second edition, 1956), © Ozark Jubilee's Crossroads Store
- Country Music Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album (third edition, 1957)
- Dessauer, Phil "Springfield, Mo.-Radio City of Country Music" (April 1957), Coronet, p. 152
- Spears-Stewart, Rita (1993), Remembering the Ozark Jubilee, Stewart, Dillbeck & White Productions, ISBN 0-9638648-0-7.
- Ralph Foster Museum, Ralph Foster, archived from the original on 2009-02-01, retrieved 2009-01-06
