The program began on July 8, 1991 as The KTLA Morning News,[2][3] anchored by Carlos Amezcua and Barbara Beck, with weathercaster Mark Kriski, and Eric Spillman and Michele Ruiz reporting from remote locations.
The critical moment for the Morning News came in February 1992, when a series of rain storms hit the Southland, causing severe flooding in the San Fernando Valley.
Another critical moment for the Morning News occurred on January 17, 1994, when the Northridge earthquake rocked the area, causing widespread damage, collapsing freeways, sparked power outages, ruptured water and gas lines, prompted the stoppage of television and film production, and altered public events and flight schedules due to precaution closures in Hollywood and Los Angeles International Airport.
The program continued to succeed even as the newscast saw new competition with the debut of Good Day L.A. on Fox-owned KTTV (channel 11) in July 1993.
The addition made KTLA the fourth Tribune-owned station to carry a weekend morning newscast (the others being fellow CW affiliate WGN-TV in Chicago – which twice ran weekend morning newscasts, first from 1992 to 1998 (the Saturday edition of that program having only remained by the time of its cancellation) and again since 2010, and Fox affiliates WXIN in Indianapolis and WTIC-TV in Hartford).
[13] Weatherman Mark Kriski and reporter Eric Spillman are the only remaining personalities currently appearing on the program who have been with the KTLA Morning News since its 1991 debut.