FAITH BROADCASTING NETWORK
FBN was a Christian television and radio network owned and operated by Faith Center in Glendale, California. Until the mid 1980s, FBN owned and operated WHCT channel 18 in Hartford, Connecticut, KVOF-TV 38 in San Francisco, KHOF-TV channel 30 in San Bernardino, California and a TV Production Center in Glendale, California. During the same era Faith Center also owned and operated KHOF-FM which was licensed to the city of Los Angeles and KIFM radio licensed to Bakersfield, California. The following are the broadcast properties owned by Faith Center in a chronological order as they were acquired. Also included are pictures and links to stories told by former FBN staff members.
An FM radio station was the first broadcast property owned by Faith Center and was constructed around 1955. The transmitter site was located on a hill south of the junction of the Ventura and Glendale Freeways. Radio studios were originally located in a rented store-front on the bottom west side of the transmitter hill. Studios were ultimately located at Faith Center when the church relocated to 1615 S. Glendale Ave. in Glendale. The station operated on FM frequency 99.5 MHz. The call letters of KHOF stood for the King’s Herald Of Faith.
Ron Myers
Marcus Lehman (upper)
Rod Henke (lower)
Tim Schoch and Pastor Ray Schoch
Thanksgiving Praise-a-Thon 1970 for radio and television
One of the early Christian television stations on the west coast was KHOF-TV. Faith Center constructed the station from ground up and signed it on the air in October 1969. The transmission facilities were located on Sunset Ridge which is about 20 miles east of Mt. Wilson where the major television stations for Los Angeles are located. The station was licensed to the city of San Bernardino and broadcast on UHF television channel 30. Programming originated at the transmitter facility. Video tape and film programming were transported daily up the mountain for broadcast. A 30 mile microwave radio link was constructed from Faith Center in Glendale to Sunset Ridge which allowed for live programming such as church services, telethons and festivals to be broadcast.
Click this link to see station information and a coverage map from a 1976 industry directory
STORIES AND EXPERIENCES ABOUT KHOF-TV – CLICK ON THE LINKS BELOW TO READ
Bernie Marston, FBN Chief Engineer, writes about the construction of the KHOF-TV transmitter site
Former KHOF-TV producer/director/talent, Rick Quintana, shares in the beginning of the station
Former General Manager, Program & Production Director, Paul Calentine, reflects back on FBN
Read about a special and famous “furry” guest that visits the station
EXPERIENCES ON SUNSET RIDGE
Here is a story about heavy snow on Sunset Ridge
Read another story about unexpected snow on Sunset Ridge
Clearing the road with sledge hammers, shovels and hard work
Read about when the KHOF-TV truck went off the mountain
Lightning strikes the KHOF-TV tower
”High” atop Sunset Ridge - An unexpected visitor at the KHOF-TV tower
In 1998 former FBN staff revisited the KHOF-TV transmitter site and documented their expedition
Read about the 1973 Master Control Make Over on Sunset Ridge
Here is a photo gallery of miscellaneous photos associated with the KHOF-TV transmitter and studio
The official KHOF-TV FCC Program Log for a typical day at Sunset Ridge
KHOF-TV atop Sunset Ridge
Director Rick Eisleben seated at the video switcher
Audio mixer & tape deck shown in the foreground
The Other 6 Days with host Jim Elliott at far left and guests
Around late 1971 Faith Center acquired an FM radio station in Bakersfield, California. The station operated on FM frequency 96.5 MHz with the call sign of KIFM. The call sign was passed along from the previous ownership and the meaning is assumed to have been Kings Inspirational FM. The KIFM studios in Bakersfield were located in a renovated residence. While KIFM had a small staff to program the station there was a radio link established where the programming from KHOF-FM was sent to the KIFM studios. This allowed for some KHOF-FM programming including live church services to be broadcast on the Bakersfield station.
Click this link for the background on KIFM
On February 16, 1972 Faith Center further expanded its ministries with the addition of WHCT in Hartford, Connecticut. WHCT was acquired from RKO General and broadcast on UHF television channel 18. RKO donated the station to Faith Center. The call letters were passed along from the RKO ownership. The “W” in the call sign is the typical first letter of the FCC call sign for stations located east of the Mississippi River. While “HCT” stood for Hartford, Connecticut (CT) there was a dual meaning of Hartford Christian Television. Studios were located at 555 Asylum St., Hartford, CT. Due to WHCT being across country there was no economical means the station could be connected to Faith Center for live programming. Christian programming in the form of videotape and film was shipped from Faith Center to WHCT for broadcast.
Click this link to see station information and a coverage map from a 1976 industry directory
Faith Center acquired a television station in San Francisco, California and signed it on the air on August 4, 1974. The call sign of KVOF which stood for King’s Voice Of Faith was assigned and the station transmitted on UHF channel 38. Office facilities were located at 601 Tarval Dr., San Francisco, CA. The transmitter and tower were located atop San Bruno Mountain in Daly City. For several years Christian programming was shipped to KVOF from Faith Center by ground carrier similar to how programming was being sent to WHCT in Hartford. In 1978 a microwave radio link was leased that interconnected Faith Center to KVOF. Programming could now originate in Glendale and be broadcast live on KVOF.
Bernie Marston placing KVOF on-the–air for the first time
FBN Chief Engineer Bernie Marston and Assistant Chief Engineer Joe Snelson installing the KVOF transmitter atop San Bruno Mountain
The demand of increased Christian programming for the five broadcast stations owned by Faith Center was met through the construction of a television production center. Production in the church auditorium was becoming very labor intensive as it required setting up lights and sets for productions but then having to tear everything down for Wednesday and Sunday church services. This also required the disassembling and reassembly of the rows of folding chairs to accommodate the attendees of the church services. In circa 1973 Faith Center acquired the former Glendale Hardware store located in Glendale. The building was refurbished and converted into a three studio production facility. A microwave link was installed between the production center and Faith Center which allowed live broadcasts to originate from there.
While the season for the Glendale based Faith Broadcasting Network may have passed the life changing effects of the gospel of Jesus Christ conveyed through the programs produced and aired by FBN continues in the lives of believers that watched. The good news of salvation through Christ never changes or goes out of date. Many of the FBN team have moved on and continue to play active parts in media ministry and broadcasting across the country and around the world.
Click here to read a message from the family of Pastor Ray Schoch
Thank you for visiting this site and reading about FBN
Paul Crouch, General Manager, breaking ground during the ceremony as Pastor Schoch watches
Dr. Willard Peirce, Bernie Marston, Rev. Doug Clark and Dr. David du Plessis look on as Pastor Schoch breaks ground for a new FBN production center
The main auditorium at Faith Center was used to produce TV programs prior to constructing the production center. Chairs were moved back in place for church services.
Here is a link to some of the programs produced at FBN Some good stories are included.
View a sales brochure handed out to prospective clients for production and air time on FBN stations
Remembering Phil Bonk a talented engineer at FBN
Read some background on videotape and view clips of the FBN tape room, past and present
Bringing closure to the FBN Production Center. Read about its conversion in the year 2023
Animated FBN logo
Click logo to play wmv file
Click to read the miracle of how KHOF-FM came about in an article printed in These Times
Click here to read an article about KHOF-FM from the April 20, 1957 edition of TV-RADIO LIFE
Click to see a KHOF-FM promotional brochure
See an article published in the Pentecostal Evangel regarding the building of KHOF-FM
Moody Monthly also published an article in 1959 titled Faith via FM
View a 1970 sales brochure showing a coverage map and air time rates for KHOF-FM
Bernie Marston talks about the early technical challenges at KHOF-FM
Byron Mobus - From Criminal Investigator to KHOF-FM Chief Engineer
Meet some of the staff of KHOF-FM-TV in 1972 and see some photos of the radio station
Read about Uncle Richard and Rags, a kids program aired on KHOF-FM, and listen to a program
Read an early newspaper article published in 1958 about KHOF-FM
The front of the FBN production center in Glendale, California. The building was formerly the home of Glendale Hardware
Jim Bakker at WHCT telethon
Pastor Schoch third from left
WHCT studios at 555 Asylum St., Hartford, CT This photo was taken prior to the transfer of the station from RKO General to Faith Center
Video Tape room with 3 Ampex VR-1200C 2” VTRs
FBN Producer/Director Bruce Braun and engineer Phil Bonk
Joe Snelson taking measurements for equipment installation
Tape Room at Faith Center
Engineers Steve Pair (standing) & Tim Rote (seated)
Engineer Bruce Braun at KHOF-TV Master Control
Director/Engineer Bruce Braun preparing to tape a program
Click this link to see station information and a coverage map from a 1976 industry directory
Read about the construction of the KVOF-TV transmitter
Read Bernie’s detailed journal on the construction of the KVOF-TV transmitter
Joe Snelson writes about some of the travel adventures to KVOF, San Francisco
See the letter to Pastor Schoch from RKO regarding WHCT being available to acquire
Read about the World’s Longest Altar Call
Photos of the original WHCT transmitter/tower site
Photos of the original WHCT studio on 555 Asylum Street in Hartford
Larry Teffeteller seated at the audio console
Up until the late 1970’s KHOF-TV ran a limited on-air schedule. KHOF-TV would sign-on around 3 PM in the afternoon and sign-off at 11 PM. Click the TV set at the right to view the KHOF-TV sign-off. You will see clips of the transmitter site, video tape machines at the production center and more. This clip was recorded in a Windows Media File format and will require a player for a WMV file.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Content has been provided for the specific purpose of posting on this website and remains the property of the content owner who reserves all rights. Unauthorized reproduction or use of any content, or portion thereof, may be in violation of copyright laws and is prohibited without the consent of the content owner.
©2011 - 2023 Joe Snelson
The FCC requires all television stations to identify themselves as close as possible to the top of the hour. A station identification must contain the call sign of the station and the city of license that it serves. Stating the channel number is optional, but if it is used it must be between the call sign an the city of license. Click the TV set at the left to hear the KHOF-TV station ID with an accompanying slide. The announcer is Ron Myers. This clip was recorded in a Windows Media File format and will require a player for a WMV file.
By the mid 70’s FBN was in full swing producing and airing a number of Christian television programs. Some of these were produced exclusively for airing on FBN stations while other programs were produced by Christian organizations at the the FBN studios. We have a few short clips of these programs we are making available for you to view. You can learn more about some of the programs FBN produced plus read a few stories by clicking the link above. Click the TV set on the left to see the clips we have made available.
Click the “Action Envelope” seen to the right for a larger view. This was used by those desiring to contribute to the television ministry of KHOF-TV.
Did you know the original call sign for KHOF-TV was to be KITR? We have a copy of an early brochure that was created to let people know about Faith Center’s new television station that would be going on the air. Click the icon on the left to see a PDF version. (Size = 3 MB)
Biography of founding Pastor Ray Schoch
Click here to read the history on Faith Center by Agnes Skeans
David du Plessis, Mr. Pentecost, published an article in World Pentecost about Faith Center
Pastor Ray’s Twenty-first Anniversary message for Faith Center
Profile of Bernie Marston the technical genius who helped make the FBN vision a reality
Read letters from well known ministers of God written to Pastor Schoch during his times of illness
Reflection and Rejoicing - Read reports of praise and learn about Praise-A-Thons
Hark! The Herald - Newsweek, November 17, 1969
Faith Center Outreach - A circa 1970 brochure on Faith Center Ministries (6 MB PDF Format)
Remembering Paul F. Crouch, former KHOF-FM-TV General Manager and founder of TBN
Faith Speaks 1973 - A quarterly news magazine about Faith Center Global Ministries (17 MB PDF Format)
Faith Speaks - Fall 1973 - A quarterly news magazine about Faith Center Global Ministries
Faith Speaks - Circa 1974 - More news about about Faith Center Global Ministries (2 MB PDF Format)
Faith Center was originally incorporated as Maple Chapel in 1947. Reverend Ray Schoch, an ordained minister by the Assemblies of God, was the founding Pastor. As the ministry grew radio and television stations became an integral part of the Faith Center Global Ministries.
Founding Pastor Ray Schoch
Pastor Schoch led Faith Center for over 30 years. He was a great man of faith as
shown by the miracles God performed in building this great ministry. When something
appeared to be an impossibility to accomplish he wa
s well known for saying, “…BUT
GOD!” A plaque with that inscription hung from the ceiling above his desk. In 1977
Pastor Schoch said goodbye to this corrupt world and stepped into the glorious presence
of Jesus Christ. He was succeeded by Dr. Gene Scott who was elected as Faith Center’s
Pastor.
Faith Center located at 1615 S. Glendale Avenue, Glendale, CA
This was the logo for Faith Center Global Ministries consisting of the cross, trumpet and the world. This symbolized heralding the message of the cross (i.e. the Gospel) to the world.
The logo expresses the vision of Pastor Ray Schoch to “Give the winds a mighty voice” using the airwaves.
He often referred to Revelation 14:9,”Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth–to every nation, tribe, language and people.” (NIV) and is believed to be what the logo was based on.
The different ministries of Faith Center used this same logo on letterhead with the name of the ministry shown in a Gothic typeface.
Presented here are miscellaneous stories, reunion reports and photo galleries related to FBN
Click here or the clapboard at the right to see some funny FBN video outtakes
Click this link to read about a small reunion held for FBN staff in December 2012
Bruce Braun shares his appreciation and thanks to FBN staff members
The 2007 reunion of FBN staff. Photos as well as video is presented
Miscellaneous photos of FBN productions
Getting programs to the FBN stations
Marty Meltz shares some photos from FBN. Information and stories are included.
Read about a 2016 gathering of FBN alumni and see some memorabilia that was shared
Herald of Faith - A monthly Radio Log newsletter from KHOF-FM (Adobe PDF Reader is needed)