For those of us who grew up in Minnesota, or ‘CCO Land, as it was called, an important winter morning ritual was tuning to WCCO to listen for school closing announcements. Thousands of schoolchildren would listen intently for their town to be named, perhaps for the announcement of “buses and school two hours late.” Of course, the grand prize was simply to hear the word “cancelled,” meaning that there would be a carefree day of play in the snow.

This was a longstanding tradition, as shown in this ad in the July 5, 1943, issue of Broadcasting.

In addition to the morning closing announcements, the station reminded advertisers that listeners throughout the state would stay tuned in, perhaps so that mothers could be told that children from a stalled bus were safe and warm at some wayside farmhouse.”

Can you spot the typo in this ad? It’s not a minor error. And yes, if you’re wondering, this ad was printed in 1943. If you find the typo, comment on our Facebook page.