Happy birthday, KALW! Regular broadcasts began Sept. 1, 1941 from the studios of Samuel Gompers Trade School in San Francisco.
Why a school? After demonstrating its experimental “frequency modulation” radio technology at the 1939-40 San Francisco International Exposition on Treasure Island, RCA sold its equipment and transmitter to the San Francisco public schools. The FCC licensed KALW to go on the air as the first FM station west of the Mississippi in March of 1941. Read more KALW history here.
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Click the player at the top of the post to hear Bay Area celebrities sing "Happy Birthday."
Listen below for more birthday messages from author Daniel Handler, NPR's Kelly McEvers and Youth Radio.