Autry Changes Tune, Buys FM Station KUTE

Gene Autry’s Golden West Broadcasters, which has been selling off most of its broadcast properties in recent years, reversed that trend Wednesday with the purchase of Los Angeles station KUTE-FM from Inner City Broadcasting.

The purchase price was undisclosed by mutual agreement of both parties, but industry observers estimated that Autry paid between $10 million and $16 million for the FM station.

With the purchase of KUTE, the owner of the California Angels baseball team joins nine other broadcast companies that own both an AM and FM station in the Los Angeles market. Autry bought his first station in 1952: Hollywood’s venerable big band station, KMPC-AM. His new 680-watt pop/jazz FM outlet has a transmitter on Mt. Wilson but is licensed to operate in Glendale.

Empire Ballooned

Over the past 30 years, Autry’s broadcast empire ballooned to eight radio and two television stations. But Autry sold KTLA Channel 5 in 1983 to raise $245 million for a buy-out of minority interests in his Angels baseball organization.

The KTLA sale triggered a divestiture clause in Autry’s late wife’s will giving the 77-year-old singing cowboy five years to sell off all Golden West broadcast properties that the couple had jointly owned. According to Ina Mae Autry’s will, all proceeds from the sales are to go into a nonprofit charitable foundation named for her.

Only three stations were not jointly owned. To date, Golden West Broadcasters is down to KMPC, two Seattle radio stations and two Detroit stations that Autry and his wife jointly owned.

With the purchase of KUTE, the Golden West empire is once again expanding, according to Golden West Executive Vice President Bill Ward.

He said there are no immediate plans to change KUTE’s call letters, staff or format.

He said Golden West does intend to step up promotion efforts and will be consolidating spot advertising so that advertisers can reach both an AM and FM audience.

Autry’s company joins nine other media conglomerates that own “combos”--both an AM and FM radio station in the Los Angeles market. It is a trend that has been growing steadily since the Federal Communications Commission relaxed chain ownership rules last year, allowing a single owner to acquire up to 12 AM, 12 FM and 12 television stations.

Until then, a single company could own no more than seven of each broadcast property.

In addition to Golden West, other “combo” owners in Los Angeles include Gannett Broadcasting (KIIS-AM & FM), CBS (KNX-AM & KKHR-FM), ABC (KABC-AM & KLOS-FM), Cox Communications (KFI-AM & KOST-FM), Heftel Broadcasting (KTNQ-AM & KLVE-FM), Greater Media (KRLA-AM & KHTZ-FM), Malrite Communications Group (KLAC-AM & KZLA-FM), ASI Communications(KFAC-AM & FM) and RKO (KHJ-AM & KRTH-FM).