In August 1966, more than two years after planning began,[3] Julian F. Myers filed for authority to build a new television station on channel 16 in Ventura.
[5] The station was approved by the Federal Communications Commission that December; Myers expected to be able to put it on the air by May 1967 with an all-local, evenings-only program schedule.
[8] Originally referred to as KSUN-TV,[7] the station adopted the call sign of KKOG-TV ("Kalifornia's Koast of Gold", pronounced "cog") in February 1968.
[14] In October, construction began to refit an old post office and glass factory[3] at 133 S. California Street into the station's studios.
[18] This was the last day of the construction permit; the opening broadcast was marred by technical issues, including a 15-minute loss of video and multiple audio failures.
In a feature article for Broadcasting, Morris Gelman wrote, "No other television station in the country, no network, probably has ever before attempted to rely totally on live programming.
It headed into a market with heavy competition: seven Los Angeles TV stations plus KEYT in Santa Barbara, plus multiple cable systems.
[3] Some areas could not receive an adequate picture from channel 16; in one advertisement, the station advised, "Reception is poor in East Ventura so please move".
The original staff of 40 had dwindled within months to four full-time employees plus volunteers, and the only telephone left was a pay phone in the station's lobby.
[24] Of the shutdown, Bob Holt of the Ventura County Star-Free Press newspaper wrote, "The last hour of the station's life represented the only sustained viewing that I ever did of Channel 16.