4/10/88-The Oasis goes dry at KEZX

VICTOR STREDICKE April 10, 1988 -This month, KEZX-FM swallowed up “The Oasis,” a new-age instrumental blend that had been introduced a year ago on KEZX-AM. KEZX-AM-FM continues with the FM station’s “Soft Rock and Jazz” format. The frequencies are 98.1 mHz. and 1150 kHz.

Carol Handley, spokesperson for KEZX said the AM audience was tenacious. “Sixteen hours a week they listened, according to Arbitron trends,” Handley said. “The highest number of hours spent listening in the market.”

“We’d like to thank our AM audience for being so faithful,” she said.

But after a year of The Oasis, the AM station did not generate enough listeners to ensure a long life. This must have been particularly frustrating to the staff after witnessing a competing FM station enter the marketplace with a “new-age” format and wave in respectable ratings.

Concurrently, Dave Littrell, who has managed KEZX-FM for the past eight years _ that’s a lifetime in dog years _ has resigned as general manager. No replacement has been named.

East bureau begun

A full-service Eastside bureau is open in Bellevue for the combined stations KIRO-TV, KIRO-AM and KSEA. The bureau will be headquarters for a news and sales team to cover the Eastside.

In “Eastside Profiles,” KIRO Newsradio’s Rick Van Cise will detail the people, businesses and lifestyles of the East Side, at 7:23 a.m. and 5:23 p.m. weekdays. Van Cise has been specializing in Eastside stories since 1983.

Friday’s “Midday” program with Jim French will originate from Woodinville, 9:30 a.m. to noon on 710 kHz., including features and interviews that tell the Eastside story.

Twisting the dial

— “Worldtalk,” being billed as the first national radio call-in talk program linking listeners in the United States with the people of the Soviet Union, will air from 7 to 9 a.m. April 24, on a number of stations, including KOMO, 1000 kHz. Seattle, and KWYZ, 1230 kHz. Everett.

— “Weekend Edition,” the Sunday-morning NPR program on KUOW, 94.9 kHz., and KPLU, 88.5 mHz., begins another mystery chain novel next Sunday. Each week a well-known mystery writer adds a chapter to “The Prufrock Affair.” Jane Langton, author of “Murder at the Gardner,” is the initial author.

— Final Metropolitan Opera broadcast of the season will be “Werther,” by Jules Massenet, at 10:30 a.m Saturday on KING-FM, 98.1 mHz. The series will resume in December.

— “Mort Sahl, In Spite of the News,” is a brief news feature at 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. weekdays on KWYZ, 1230 kHz.

— Michael Cook has joined Mason Dixon for a 6-10 morning team on KJUN, 1450 kHz., Puyallup’s country-music station.