Tales of KC's founding lead to lively 'Crossroads'

Would there have been a Kansas City had an unlucky frontiersman not gotten himself killed in a bar fight in 1831, forcing his wife to auction off their 250-acre estate at river's bend? Would Congress have authorized the Hannibal Bridge in 1866 - the railroad link that made Kansas City possible - if a certain legislator from Leavenworth had not been using the washroom? These are some of the livelier questions raised by a special prime-time edition of "Kansas City Crossroads," Channel 41's illuminating vignette series on the history of our area, airing at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The half-hour program, narrated by Bill Kalahurka, looks at several turns of fate in Kansas City's history and how residents made the most of those opportunities. There was adversity as well: the 1900 fire that destroyed the city's first auditorium, the 1951 flood and the departure of the Athletics baseball team. But people also responded to these turns of fate with an indomitable "Kansas City spirit" that kept the town moving ahead. Three local historians do much of the talking during the program: author Dory DeAngelo, The Star's Monroe Dodd and Bill Worley of the Kansas City Regional History Institute at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Tuesday night's program includes segments on boss Tom Pendergast and on Harry Truman's 1948 election surprise (featuring the Trumans' friend and longtime Independence Examiner columnist Sue Gentry). But these political stories seem out of place; there is nothing accidental about them. That, however, is the only blemish in this program, which is executed with the usual polish that has come to define this Emmy-winning series. KMBC off cable? Some of you have noticed that Time Warner Cable is running an announcement on its Channel 5 bulletin board about a "retransmission consent agreement" with KMBC, Channel 9. By federal law, cable operators must obtain permission from the broadcasters in their areas to carry their over-the-air signals on cable. In exchange, the cable operator compensates the broadcaster. The KMBC agreement with Time Warner expires next Friday, and renewal talks have reportedly bogged down. That's why you're seeing that message on your screen; the law requires it whenever a retransmission deal is about to expire. The negotiations aren't taking place here, but on the East Coast, where both Hearst-Argyle (owner of KMBC) and Time Warner Cable's corporate office have their headquarters. According to one of several frustrated executives in Kansas City, the latest word is that both sides are "waiting for the other one to blink." Public TV notes Maybe it was just a coincidence, but the program that was airing on KCPT, Channel 19, when lightning knocked the station's audio off the air last month was a "Frontline" special titled "Apocalypse." The two-hour program fell silent for about 20 minutes until the station could get sound restored. So to make up for it, PBS is feeding the whole program again, and KCPT will air it in two parts, 9 p.m. Tuesday and 9 p.m. Jan. 4. Congratulations to Warrensburg PBS station KMOS, Channel 6, which celebrated its 20th anniversary Dec. 22. Last month's on-air auctions yielded $115,000 for KCPT and $54,000 for Topeka's KTWU, Channel 11. Country marathon They're calling it the "Millennium of Country" at WDAF-AM (610) - a round-the-clock marathon of 3,000 of the most popular and influential songs in country music history. The marathon, expected to last at least two weeks, is said to be the only one of its kind. WDAF won this year's Marconi Award as the top country station from the National Association of Broadcasters. To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit TV Barn at www.tvbarn.com