(Cushing, Okla.) KUSH was paid a surprise visit by radio broadcasting notable Bill Payne on Tuesday. Payne is the son of William Howard Payne, founder of KWHP radio in Cushing. For those who don’t know, KWHP were the original call letters for what is now known as KUSH radio.
Payne was thrilled to see the poster that hangs on the wall at KUSH recalling the Grand Opening and official dedication, Sunday, February 22, 1953.
“That’s me,” Payne said pointing to the photo of three children on the poster. “Wasn’t I cute?” The other two children in the photo were his sister Jo Anne Payne and cousin Barbara Baggerley.
As Payne toured the building and property, he reflected on the time he and his family spent at the station, noting while many things were different, a few remained the same.
“You still get a good wind up here on the hill,” he said with a laugh.
While the Payne “radio roots” may have started in Cushing, through the years they continued to branch out. Currently the Payne family owns and operates 12 radio stations in Eastern Oklahoma.
Bill Payne has earned many accolades throughout his years in broadcasting including being inducted into the Country Radio Hall of Fame in 2011. And in March of 2014, he was inducted into the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame March 28, 2014.
A “complete broadcaster,” Payne still has the same enthusiasm for radio he had at his first job at KWHP in Cushing.
“I love it,” he said.
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