New York J 162: Congratulating Mr. and Mrs. Ronald J. Toper upon the occasion of celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary

Bill Text

Bill Search and Legislative Information | New York State Assembly 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

 Skip to main content 

 New York State Assembly

 Speaker Carl E. Heastie

 --> 
 --> 

 --> 

• 
 Assembly Members 

• 
 Legislative Info 

• 
 Public Hearings 

• 
 Speaker's Press 

• 
 Assembly Reports 

• 
 Committees & More 

• Bill Search Home
• Laws
• Legislative Calendar
• Public Hearing Schedule
• Assembly Calendars
• Assembly Committee Agenda 

 Javascript must be enabled to properly view this page. 

 - This bill is not active in this session.

 Bill No.: 

• Summary 
• Actions 
• Committee&nbspVotes 
• Floor&nbspVotes 
• Memo 
• Text 
• LFIN 
• Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript 
J00162 Summary:

BILL NOJ00162 

&nbsp

SAME ASNo Same As

&nbsp

SPONSORGRIFFO

&nbsp

COSPNSR

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

&nbsp

Go to top J00162 Actions:

BILL NOJ00162 

&nbsp

01/10/2025REFERRED TO FINANCE

01/14/2025REPORTED TO CALENDAR FOR CONSIDERATION

01/14/2025ADOPTED

Go to topJ00162 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topJ00162 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topJ00162 Text:

Senate Resolution No. 162

BY: Senator GRIFFO

 COMMEMORATING the 75th Anniversary of WKTV on
 December 1, 2024

 WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that the quality
and character of life in this great Empire State is indelibly enriched
by the faithful and untiring efforts of those individuals who have
helped shape the history of broadcasting in their area; and

 WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to
commemorate the 30th Anniversary of WKTV on Sunday, December 1, 2024;
and

 WHEREAS, Myron Kallet was in the movie business in the 1930s before
he pivoted to radio, noticing the changes in technology and shifts in
patronage to his movie showings; he applied for and was granted a
license for a radio station in Rome, New York, and WKAL was subsequently
built and put on the air soon after; and

 WHEREAS, After Myron Kallet's venture into the world of radio, one
of his friends who worked in the FCC in Washington gave him a call and
invited him to explore the new medium of television; Myron Kallet
submitted the proper application and was granted channel 13; and

 WHEREAS, The new television studio, business offices, and broadcast
tower were constructed on top of Smith Hill in Deerfield, overlooking
the City of Utica on the northern ridge of the Mohawk Valley; and

 WHEREAS, On December 1, 1949, WKTV went on the air and was the 93rd
television station in the country to sign on; it remains one of the
oldest members of the NBC network; and

 WHEREAS, The program schedule began as a jumbled mix of news,
variety shows, and commercials, beginning late in the afternoon and
ending before midnight; most shows were 15 or 30 minutes in duration and
were done live; most of the local on-air personalities were former radio
announcers; the station later participated in hosting early versions of
telethons and then broadcasted useful public service information, such
as local news and weather; and

 WHEREAS, WKTV was also host to a variety of unique programs such as
a cooking show, a "HIGH SCHOOL QUIZ" show, and an after-school show
featuring a clown named Bozo; and

 WHEREAS, In the mid-1950s, a local radio announcer joined the staff
of announcers at WKTV and quickly gained a following; this new talent
was Dick Clark, world-renowned television and radio personality and
television producer; and

 WHEREAS, A decade later, the station's ownership transferred to Paul
Harron of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; under his direction and under the
advice of the FCC, a new broadcast tower was constructed further east,
ultimately moving WKTV to channel 2 from channel 13; and

 WHEREAS, Ownership remained the same and the station continued to
prosper through the 1970s and '80s; in the mid-'80s, the FCC came down
with several rulings concerning cross ownership of broadcast, cable, and
print media in the same communities; and

 WHEREAS, Harron Communication owned both WKTV and Harron Cable TV in
Utica; it was required that they must divest themselves of one or the
other; in 1992, an agreement was reached between Harron Communications
and Smith Broadcasting of New York, Inc. and for only the third time in
its long history, WKTV's license changed hands; and

 WHEREAS, In March of 2014, WKTV and its cable channel sister station
WBU were purchased by Heartland Media; WKTV became the first station in
the newly formed Heartland television group; and

 WHEREAS, WKTV has a rich and proud history; that history has been a
catalyst to today's successful performance by the station and the
foundation for the future of television in the Mohawk Valley; and

 WHEREAS, Throughout the past 75 years, WKTV has flourished and
broadened its programming, becoming more popular with increasing support
from the community; and

 WHEREAS, The success of W