Ed Hooper

Knoxville's WNOX Ed Hooper

WNOX was the eighth radio station to sign on the air in North America and the first in Tennessee. No station has left a bigger footprint on American popular music or the radio industry as WNOX. Its AM signal could be heard as far south as Daytona Beach and as far north as New York City in the day of uncluttered airwaves. It helped write the book on radio broadcasts and productions with programs like the Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round and the Tennessee Barn Dance. Its legendary programs helped pioneer an entire genre of American popular music and served as a launching pad for country music's greatest stars and some of the nation's best broadcasters. The call letters remain an iconic landmark of Knoxville and East Tennessee.