History
When KQRS - formerly a sleepy classic rock station with a reputation for "stoner" music - was acquired by ABC Radio Network in 1985, it decided to bring in a high-performance team to better utilize the station's 100,000 watts of power. It enlisted program director Dave Hamilton, an industry whiz kid, to turn the programming around. Hamilton in turn hired Barnard, a journeyman disc jockey and highly successful voice-over artist, and Dan Culhane, another veteran local jock, to anchor the vital morning show.
The show quickly generated huge numbers with its mix of irreverent and sometimes tasteless humor and, usually, very little music. The show dropped Dan Culhane in 1987, and over the years accreted a collection of other characters, with Mike "Stretch" Gelfand and Terri Traen joining in the early 1990s to anchor the rest of the cast.
In 1997, competing station WBOB (100.3FM) picked up the syndicated version of the Howard Stern show, giving Barnard his sternest test yet. After a year and a half, Barnard became one of the few local morning shows in the country to best Stern in the local ratings; WBOB changed formats and dropped Stern.
At around this time, Barnard and the Morning Show were recognized as the top-rated morning show in the country, in terms of audience share; the show had a higher percentage of local radio listenership than any other major-market morning show in the US.
Read more about this topic: 92 KQRS Morning Show
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