999 West Sunshine
Springfield, MO  65807
417-268-3000

Administrative Office Hours
8:00am-5:00pm Monday-Friday
 

For over 56 years, KY3 has considered it a privilege and honor that you turn on your television set and welcome us into your home.  Whether it's for news, weather, sports or entertainment, we take seriously the trust you place in us. 

Although you don't see all of us on the air, there are 167 staff members at KY3, Inc.  Each and every day we work to bring you the very best in television programming and news coverage.  We cover 32 counties in southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas. 

Owner 

KY3, Inc. is owned by Schurz Communications, Inc. Based in Mishawaka, IN, Schurz Communications, Inc. is a diversified privately-owned, nationwide communications company.  Schurz began in 1872 with the founding of The South Bend Tribune newspaper.  The company emerged as a broadcast pioneer in 1922.  SCI consists of six business segments:  Broadcasting Radio, Broadcasting Television, Cable TV, Newspaper Publishing, Shoppers and Commercial Printing.  Each business is operated as a separate entity and has an independent management team.

 First day of broadcasting 

KYTV signed on the air October 1, 1953 at 4:47pm and concluded the broadcast day at 10:30pm.  The first day's programming included not only KYTV's first ever 6pmnd 10pm newscasts, but also a short patriotic program, the western Adventures of Kit Carson and Groucho Marx starring in You Bet Your Life.

 Some of the early programming on KYTV included such local programs as Teen Time, The Wrangler, Championship Wrestling, The Children's Hour and The Ozarks Jubilee.

The Children's Hour

The Children's Hour aired on KY3 from 1953 until 1987, and was the longest running locally produced program in the Springfield market.
 

"Aunt" Rene Handley was the host from 1953 until spring of 1957.  "Aunt" Norma Champion was the host from 1957 until the last broadcast in 1987.  Norma Champion later went into the political spotlight as a Missouri State Senator.

 
Fred Raines was the man behind the puppets.    He was the voice of the puppets Floyd Flotsan (the whale), Rusty Rooster, Pistol-Packin' Pete Peterson, Professor Doolite and Skinny McGinnis. Fred retired from KYTV after 32 years of extraordinary years at KYTV.  Fred passed away on October 8^th of 2010 at the age of 91.   The puppets and other Chidren's Hour memorabilia can be seen in the KY3, Inc. museum located at the station.

 
The Ozark Jubilee

KYTV brought The Ozark Jubilee, a live country and western program starring Red Foley, to television in 1954.  In 1955 the name was changed to Jubilee USA and changed again in 1961 to Five Star Jubilee.  The Five Star Jubilee was the first color program broadcast that originated outside of New York or Hollywood.  It aired to the entire nation from the Jewell Theater right here in Springfield, Missouri by KYTV.  The show's guest included new performers as well as big name country and western stars.  This show remained on the air until 1961.

 
Technology

KYTV has been known for innovations from the beginning.  Our first remote broadcast was in 1954 from the Ozark Empire Fair.  The remote gear allowed us to broadcast from the Plaza Bowl, featuring area bowling teams, the annual Springfield Christmas parades, Man with a Mike from the Tower Theater on the Plaza and area sporting events. 

In March of 1959 we purchased one of the nation's first mobile video tape units.  This new equipment allowed us to travel throughout our viewing area to bring taped programming to the Ozarks from our own backyard.  We videotaped the dedication of Table Rock Dam in 1959, produced Harold Bell Wright's well know and beloved Shepherd of The Hills on location at the Shepherd of The Hills Farm in Branson, MO.  For this program, we were awarded the TV/Radio Mirror award for most original program in the Midwest.

 

Our first SNG (satellite news gathering) truck was purchased in 1986, allowing us to broadcast from anywhere in the United State. The SNG works like this:  A signal is sent to satellite from the truck; satellite sends the signal to KY3; KY3 sends the signal to our Fordland transmitting tower; from there it goes to our viewers.  Total time for signal travel is an amazing 1.5 seconds!  This truck allowed us to start the well known "Celebrate the Ozarks" series.  Anchors, reporters and crews hit the road to highlight towns and people around the Ozarks.  Each night for an entire week the crew broadcast from a different location.  The beauty of the Ozarks and her people were brought into the living rooms of our viewers each evening in a special program and during the newscasts all in real time.

 

Our first production truck, Studio 3, was delivered to KY3 in 1989.  It is a literal television studio on wheels. Studio 3 is used for remote broadcasts, sporting events and remote production and is frequently hired by major networks, including ESPN, Fox Sports, Sports Channel and Prime Sports.  Studio 3 is used to bring Springfield Cardinals baseball games, and MSU Bears and Lady Bears basketball games to our viewers on KY3 and The Ozarks CW.

 

The Towers

The original KYTV transmitting tower was erected at Fordland, Missouri in 1961.  It was 1609 feet tall, missed being the tallest structure on earth by 61 feet.  Later construction of a new tower increased its height to 2000 feet.  Three St. Louis Gateway Arches stacked on top of each other would still be 110 feet shorter.  In the summer/fall of 2001 a new tower was built to accommodate digital television.  This tower is also 2000 feet tall.  The previous tower was donated to KSMU.   The Fordland towers transmit for all KY3, Inc. properties (KY3, KSPR, The Ozarks CW and KY3 24/7 weather channel).

 

KY3 goes Digital and HD

The new tower allowed KY3 to go digital on January 8, 2002.  On January 28, 2010 KY3 began airing its newscasts in high definition (HD) with the 5pm newscast.

 

Doppler Radar

Storm Tracker 3 Doppler radar has been operating 24/7 since the fall of 2000.  Storm Tracker 3 is an Enterprise Doppler Radar with a 14 foot dish and 250,000 watts of power.  It has an effective radius of 125 miles and is centrally located to our viewing area.  Since the radar is located in Fordland, it has an advantage over NWS radar in that we have a better view of hazardous weather over the city of Springfield.  In 2006 a tornado made the closest approach to an Enterprise radar on record, one quarter mile, and was able to see several bands within the tornado itself.  We have been able to pinpoint the exact track of many tornadoes over the last ten years.  Because of this, the Ozarks has come to rely on the accuracy of the radar.

 

The Building

The construction of the original facility started in the spring of 1953 and was the first station this side of the Mississippi to have a building built as a television station.  The facility had six additions before being razed in September 1997.  At that time, we moved into the new 34,000 square foot facility located immediately behind the site of the original building.  On September 8, 2008 we broke ground for the addition of 22,000 square feet to accommodate additional office space and the new state of the art KSPR studio and newsroom.  The addition was completed in November 2009.  This new building contains over 55 miles of video, audio, phone and computer wire. 

 

The building is home to five stations - KYTV, KSPR, The Ozarks CW, KY3 24/7, and Branson Visitor TV. 

 

Websites

The building is also home to our websites:  www.KY3.com; www.KSPR.com; www.AskTheOzarks.com; www.HalfPriceOzarks.com; www.OzarksRemembers.com; www.KeysAndWheels.com; www.HalfPriceGolf.com; and www.OzarksHomeHunter.com.  KY3.com is the most visited site in our viewing area and received the award for Best Local Website by the Missouri Broadcasters Association in 2009.

 

 

Miscellaneous

KY3 currently produces 24 hours of news a week.  News specials are also produced periodically, along with special programming of community interest.  Viewers recognize the strength of KY3 News, making us #1 with all newscasts (according to Nielsen, the national ratings service.)

 

The Ozarks CW

The CW Television Network (The CW) is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network (UPN), and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB Television Network. The "CW" name is derived from the first letter of the names of these corporations (CBS and Warner Bros.). The network features a lineup of shows that, according to its President of Entertainment Dawn Ostroff, "appeal to people 18 to 34-years-old".^[1] The network currently airs programming 6 days a week: Monday through Friday afternoons and evenings (in prime time), and Saturday morning children's programming.

The network debuted programming after its two predecessors, UPN and The WB, ceased independent operations on, respectively, September 15 and September 17, 2006. The CW's first two nights of programming--Monday and Tuesday, September 18 and September 19, 2006--consisted of reruns and launch-related specials. The CW marked its formal launch date on Wednesday, September 20, 2006, with a 2-hour season premiere of America's Next Top Model.

The CW lineup has featured on a mixture of programming that originated on both UPN and The WB along with its own original programs.