September 30, 2018 marked the 70th anniversary of the TV Freeze, when the FCC put a hold on all new TV licenses. In 1948, Denver was on the cusp of having TV. Only 108 stations were on the air nationwide, with over 700 licenses pending. In an effort to sort out some techincal issues the FCC put what was expected to be a six month hold on new license.

The freeze wasn’t lifted until July 1, 1952 (announced April 14, 1952). Denver was among the first markets in the country to get TV after the freeze. July 18, 1952 KFEL TV, Channel 2 signed on, only a week after being granted a license to broadcast. Within 2 years, 3 more stations in Denver had signed on (KBTV, KLZ and KOA) . Significant pressure to end the freeze came from Colorado Senator Edwin Johnson, as Denver was then the largest city in the country without TV service.

It would be the mid 1980s before a major network-affiliated television station signed-on when KDVR, soon to be Denver’s Fox affiliate, became Denver’s first major UHF station on Channel 31.