The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia

The following story about Bill Fox was supplied and written by Bill Fox's family. Enjoy!

As a young man raising his family, William L. Fox talked fondly to his wife and young children about his days as Managing Editor of the Temple Owls radio station, WRTI. Recalling those conversations, his family knew with some certainty that Bill’s idea of capturing the magic of radio and turning it from a device for college students into a pioneering center for adult listening had a real chance for success.

Radio of course was not new when Bill got his start. So his advisers found an embryonic FM frequency for sale for the (all-important) reasonable price. In those days, AM was the dominant frequency despite its second-class, scratchy sound and marginal availability. Philadelphia’s hill-and-valley topography meant that Bill’s new FM signal also left some areas out of reach. But a new, higher radio tower was identified as the solution.

So WIBF FM, 103.9, was on the air. Conveniently, the call letters recalled Bill’s family beginning with himself, followed by his brother Irwin and his father Benjamin, with Fox at the end. And with that, a family joke began. WIBG AM was the dominant Philadelphia station featuring rock and roll music. Its call letters were very close to WIBF but, in fact, were believed to reflect “I believe in God,” resulting in our everlasting family tribute to Bill: “I believe in Fox.”

Bill was a born and bred real estate man. But his real delight was to be in broadcasting, and to have this business emanate from the spot where the family real estate business was centered. One key WIBF antenna was planted firmly on the roof of a family apartment building, the Benson East. This well-considered blending of Bill's twin passions and economic interests also served as a way for Bill to keep his eye on things.

Once WIBF was up and running, Bill became the radio personality of his dreams, starting with his weekly interview show he called “Conversation,” the same program title he had used in his Temple days.

And there is a story here. At social events, Bill tended to find the most interesting person in the room and give that individual his laser focus the entire evening, rather than flitting from one person to another. No one left a conversation with Bill without developing some level of intimacy. So Bill was perfect for the Conversation job.

Every week, Bill would arrange a 30-minute interview with local officials, well-known politicians, authors, athletes, actors and unknown but interesting people who had done interesting things.

Bill’s imagination and curiosity lead the way. Always keen to understand his audience, Bill lead with simplicity in his interviewing style, something he had perfected in his Temple days.

Embracing his industry, Bill joined trade groups, attended broadcaster conventions, subscribed to the regular trade magazines and otherwise jumped into his new career. Following one Chicago Radio and Television Convention, the one always held at McCormick Place, Bill became inspired by the idea of UHF Television.

The broadcasting landscape at that time consisted of the 3 networks and public television – a weak diet for the consuming public. A television receiver had room for only twelve channels and those channels had been allocated so that no city usually had more than four. The big “revolution” that was about to occur was the addition of many more stations and many more broadcasting services.

Since these stations were UHF, the public had to either purchase of a set-top box for their existing TV to receive the UHF signal, or purchase a newfangled television that had the “second” UHF dial.

In today’s world, with the availability of thousands of stations from broadcasters world-wide, it is hard to imagine that everybody was worried about how they would find programming for six stations or even seven stations. But Bill calculated that in a few years, enough people would be able to receive the signal, that programing (which was “king”) would become developed, and that his new UHF station would become a viable enterprise.

With expert advice, Bill assembled all the necessary requirements to have a UHF station, WIBF-TV, Channel 29. The Benson East antenna would never reach the predicted coverage areas. Bill’s early hires had to find the needed programming and this was a necessary but daunting task, even if all of the stations at that time went off the air between midnight and 2 am. Most critically, Bill soon grasped that his signal would need a better tower. WIBF ended up owning a 1,000 ft. tower in Philadelphia’s high-elevation Manayunk section.

Around this time, two other UHF stations were on air in Philadelphia. As an “independent” and a local pioneer, Bill had carefully budgeted how the station could be an economic success and was fully prepared to endure several years of losses to achieve his goal. But the competition had that tantalizing “color” broadcast.

So now it was crunch time. Invest extraordinary additional cost just to keep up, or stick with the plan. Fearlessly and without question putting his other interests at some level of financial risk, Bill spent for color and WIBF-TV became the third UHF color station. Soon, the moniker “Wild Bill” was heard around town. And Fox Broadcasting was born.

Attracting meaningful rates for advertising eluded all three of the new stations. But joy came to its viewers. Children had morning access to their favorite cartoons, children’s shows and sitcoms in rerun format. Adults could watch evening movies and other favorite reruns. Most importantly, the public now had alternatives, and sooner or later, the big three took notice.

Bill gave employment to a wonderful staff, many of whom had long careers at Channel 29 and have been honored by Broadcast Pioneers. But ultimately, Bill sold Channel 29 to Taft Broadcasting – but not before he managed to attend the Academy Awards ceremony in Beverly Hills, California, gamely presenting his press credentials, and getting access to the stars and the events. Clearly local boy had made good.

And after selling Channel 29, he kept the radio station for years, finding a then innovative niche in religious broadcasting while at the same time, giving voice to a truly diverse series of radio personalities, people who could never find their way onto other platforms, even in those post-1960’s days.

Bill loved his role as a pioneering broadcaster and protected his turf well into old age. When Rupert Murdoch went into the broadcasting business and bought Twentieth Century Fox studios, he then launched Fox Broadcasting. Offended at Rupert’s cheek at taking the name Fox Broadcasting, Wild Bill sued. This David and Goliath story did not produce a favorable result for Bill, the courts having determined that there would be no true “confusion” to the public. Perhaps. But this like so many other things Bill did demonstrates clearly the tenacity, the vigor, the determination and the vision of a man who in the end, will always be remembered for giving so much human connection to so many widespread groups of people.

The e-mail address of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia is pioneers@broadcastpioneers.com