KUVI-DT: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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==History==

A total of six applicants filed for channel 45 in Bakersfield in 1985. The remaining five—Harold L. Mullican, Lash Communications, Liberty Broadcasting, Crown City TV, and Dorothy J. Owens—entered in October 1986 into a settlement agreement, under which Owens won the channel.<ref>{{cite news|work=Broadcasting|page=124|title=In Contest|id={{pq|1014717420}}|date=October 27, 1986}}</ref> The other applicants were reimbursed a total of $642,500.{{r|Bake891110}} Dorothy Owens considered starting KDOB-TV as a Spanish-language station and desired affiliation with [[Univision]], but Univision would not grant the affiliation because it was contractually bound to [[KFTV]] in [[Fresno, California|Fresno]], which had a translator in Bakersfield. Dorothy Owens ruled out [[Telemundo]], finding its program mix too Caribbean for Bakersfield's Hispanic community.<ref name="Bake881216">{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-16-1988-4413062/|first=Connie|last=Swart|title=Declaring independence: New station takes to air; KDOB vies for ad dollar|pages=F1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-16-1988-4413063/ F10]|date=December 16, 1988|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-25-1989-4413069/|title=Cable firms woo Hispanics: Market share growing rapidly|first=Rick|last=Bentley|pages==F1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-25-1989-4413068/ F13]|date=August 25, 1989|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> KDOB-TV began broadcasting on December 18, 1988.<ref>{{Cite news|pages=E1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-30-1988-4413051/ E2]|title=Party ushers in KDOB's premiere|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-30-1988-4413047/|date=December 30, 1988|first=Diana|last=Campbell-Rice|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> It was an [[independent station]] with a family-friendly mix of programs, including syndicated movies and children's series and [[Los Angeles Lakers]] road games. The studios were on Chester Avenue in [[Oildale, California|Oildale]], in a building owned by Dorothy's brother, country music artist [[Buck Owens]]; it had previously housed the River Theater and Buck Owens's recording studio, and Dorothy had previously worked for Buck.{{r|Bake881216}}

Less than a year after signing on the air, in October 1989, Dorothy Owens Broadcasting filed for [[Chapter 11]] bankruptcy reorganization to protect it from its creditors.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-oct-31-1989-4413071/|date=October 31, 1989|title=Strapped station to maintain schedule: Chapter 11 filing won’t affect family-style programming format|page=A10|first=Rick|last=Bentley|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> The largest secured creditors were two banks, but a group of six program suppliers headlined the list of unsecured creditors.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-14-1989-4413077/|title=Station's fate still up in air after hearing|pages=A1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-dec-14-1989-4413080/ A2]|date=December 14, 1989|first=Rick|last=Bentley|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> Buck Owens then filed a $4.5 million bid to purchase KDOB-TV and pay its creditors. Because of his ownership of [[KUZZ]]-AM-FM, he was normally not eligible to buy the station.<ref name="Bake891110">{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-nov-10-1989-4413073/|date=November 10, 1989|title=Owens buys financially ailing KDOB from sister: FCC regulations change now allows ownership of radio and TV station|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-nov-10-1989-4413076/ B2]|first=Rick|last=Bentley|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> However, in bankruptcy, the FCC was more predisposed to waive its one-to-a-market rule for stations at risk of leaving the air. The licensees of Bakersfield's three other TV stations—[[KGET-TV]], [[KERO-TV]], and [[KBAK-TV]]—and [[KMPH-TV]] in [[Visalia, California|Visalia]] all objected to the deal. They pointed to Buck Owens guaranteeing a $1.5 million loan to Dorothy before the station went on the air; called the financing action deliberate to allow use of the so-called "failed station" waiver; and went on to declare the bankruptcy proceeding a "sham" devised to allow Buck Owens to take control of channel 45.<ref name="BC900108">{{Cite news|page=58|title=Bakersfield brouhaha|id={{pq|1016932534}}|work=Broadcasting|date=January 8, 1990}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=January 11, 1990|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jan-11-1990-4413085/|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jan-11-1990-4413086/ B2]|first=Steve E.|last=Swenson|title=TV stations act to halt sale of KDOB in bankruptcy case |work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> A second bidder, Riklis Broadcasting (owner of [[KBEH|KADY-TV]] in [[Oxnard, California|Oxnard]]), presented an offer, but it was far lower than the Owens bid, which would repay creditors in full.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-feb-01-1990-4413095/|first=Steve E.|last=Swenson|title=Owens faces competition in TV sale|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-feb-01-1990-4413096/ B2]|work=The Bakersfield Californian|date=February 1, 1990}}</ref>

The bankruptcy court approved the sale to Buck Owens on February 28, 1990.<ref>{{Cite news|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-01-1990-4413098/ B2]|date=March 1, 1990|title=Judge OKs Owens' buy of TV outlet: FCC must still approve|first=Steve E.|last=Swenson|work=The Bakersfield Californian|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-01-1990-4413438/}}</ref> The FCC rejected the other stations' arguments as to the transaction, calling the deal a "last resort", and approved the sale in August.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-30-1990-4413100/|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-30-1990-4413102/ B2]|title=FCC OKs station sale to Owens: Cross-ownership rule is waived|date=August 30, 1990|first=Steve E.|last=Swenson|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> The deal closed in November, allowing Buck Owens to infuse new capital into purchasing programming.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-nov-13-1990-4413105/|pages=B1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-nov-13-1990-4413107/ B2]|title=Buck Owens now official as owner of KDOB station|first=Rick|last=Bentley|work=The Bakersfield Californian|date=November 13, 1990}}</ref> On March 18, 1991, KDOB-TV changed its call sign to KUZZ-TV to match the other Buck Owens stations.<ref name="Bake910302">{{cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-02-1991-4413118/|pages=D1, [https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-02-1991-4413120/ D4]|date=March 2, 1991|title=KUZZ-TV prepares for debut|work=The Bakersfield Californian|first=Rick|last=Bentley}}</ref> In June 1993, channel 45 left Oildale to move into the complex on Sillect Avenue that housed KUZZ radio.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jun-11-1993-4413125/|date=June 11, 1993|title=KUZZ television leaves Oildate: Station joins other Buck Owens properties on Sillect Avenue|page=E20|first=Rick|last=Bentley|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> Later that year, the station was the victim of a $1 million arson that destroyed its transmitter atop Mount Adelaide;<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-oct-02-1993-4413127/|title=KUZZ-TV gets back on air — somewhat |page=B1|first=Rick|last=Bentley|date=October 2, 1993|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref> a convicted felon was found to have likely been hired by disgruntled Buck Owens workers to carry out the crime.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jan-26-1994-4413129/|first=Rob|last=Walters|page=B2|date=January 26, 1994|title=Man to get 8 years in KUZZ arson fire|work=The Bakersfield Californian}}</ref>

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In 2006, when UPN merged with [[The WB]] to form [[The CW]], KUVI affiliated with [[MyNetworkTV]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Albiniak |first=Paige |last2=Downey |first2=Kevin |date=2007-01-13 |title=NATPE and New Shows |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/natpe-and-new-shows-81725 |access-date=2024-04-15 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |language=en}}</ref>

==History==

The station first went on the air on December 18, 1988, as KDOB-TV, an [[independent station]] originally owned by Dorothy Owens. It first operated from studios located on North Chester Avenue in Bakersfield. Dorothy would later sold the station to her brother [[Buck Owens|Buck]] (1929–2006) in 1990. and would change its [[call signs in North America|call letters]] to KUZZ-TV on March 18, 1991. The station later moved its operations to a new studio facility located on Sillect Avenue in Bakersfield. The station became a charter affiliate of [[UPN]] on January 16, 1995, and remained with that network for its entire existence. On October 17, 1997, the station once again changed its call letters, this time to KUVI. Buck Owens sold the station to current owner Univision in 1998. On [[New Year's Day|January 1]], 2004, the station chose to add the "-TV" suffix to the call letters. With the digital transition completed, the station replaced the "-TV" suffix with the "-DT" suffix on June 23, 2009 (all Univision-owned full-service television stations, regardless of whether or not they had a suffix after their call signs prior to the transition, now have a "-DT" suffix as part of their legal call signs).

[[File:Kuvi mntv.png|thumb|left|KUVI's MyNetwork TV Logo from September 5, 2006, to September 10, 2017]]

On September 11, 2017, KUVI-DT became an affiliate of the Justice Network (now [[True Crime Network]]).