The Journey of the KFRC "Sturgeon" Mobile Studio

The Journey of the Sturgeon Mobile Studio: From KFRC to the Graveyard and Back Birth and Early Days at KFRC (San Francisco)

The Sturgeon was KFRC’s one-of-a-kind mobile studio, designed to be both functional and visually appealing. It was built to make KFRC visible and larger-than-life. Program Director Gerry Cagle famously refused to let the sales department monetize it, no matter how hard they lobbied to sell remotes. The Sturgeon wasn’t designed for profit—it was a pure promotional tool used to cement the station's "Big 610" image. (A full technical history is preserved in Appendix A).

Exile to Los Angeles: The KHJ/K-EARTH Olympics

By the early 1980s, RKO was facing growing corporate pressure. KHJ’s management in Los Angeles argued they could generate revenue with a mobile studio, and corporate brass decided not to fund a new build. Instead, the Sturgeon was purchased by its sister stations and sent south around 1984, just in time for the Summer Olympics.

In LA, it was painted with interchangeable signage for both 93KHJ and K-EARTH 101. It was outfitted for AM stereo with Tomcat cart machines—industry standards known for their reliability and superior audio quality. Some staff in San Francisco saw the move as a loss of a prized icon; a few even staged a joking “funeral” before driving it down I-5. While some called its stay in LA uninspired, the vehicle was eventually sent back to San Francisco after a couple of years, where most agreed it truly “belonged.”

The Decline: Family Radio and the Monterey Years

Legally, the Sturgeon was registered under KFRC‑AM (610) by RKO, not the FM side. That detail proved significant decades later. When CBS sold 610 KFRC to Family Radio in 2005, the Sturgeon was included in the transaction. Family Radio, a nonprofit Christian broadcaster, eventually donated the vehicle to an NPR affiliate in Monterey.

There, the Sturgeon was stripped of its proud KFRC identity and repainted plain white. For several years, it served as a live remote booth at the Monterey Jazz Festival, with only a simple station banner draped across its side. As lighter, more affordable digital alternatives emerged, the Sturgeon was eventually parked and effectively abandoned—its glory days fading into memory.

Rediscovery and Restoration

Years later, former KFRC employee Bill Shakespeare (not the one you’re thinking of) rediscovered the abandoned vehicle and launched an extensive $10,000 restoration project, reviving it inside and out. Once restored, it was sold to Chris Sharp, a former KFRC intern.

Today, Sharp preserves this piece of radio history and proudly showcases the mobile studio at events such as Reno’s Hot August Nights, Bay Area Radio Museum & Hall of Fame events, and Modesto’s American Graffiti celebrations. Though the Sturgeon’s journey carried it from prominence to obscurity and back again, its restoration ensures that the legacy of KFRC’s mobile studio endures.

Personal Reflection Whatever controversy surrounded the Sturgeon's stint in LA or its years in the graveyard, none of that mattered when I was working inside it. My own memories created within that legendary space remain vivid—moments that represent the very best of my broadcasting experience, surviving long after the Sturgeon's original broadcast glory days passed.

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