programming. Media Central chairman Morton Kent called the fine "outrageous" and declared to Dennis McDougal of the Los Angeles Times that he would not pay. However, the commission rescinded the fine in 1989 after a court ruling overturned changes to its "safe harbor" for indecent programming. By the time of the indecency investigation, Media Central had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization; in July 1987, the parent company and its eight stations—KZKC initially the lone exception—presented petitions for reorganization. The firm had $68 million in assets but owed $50 million to creditors, including program suppliers; KZKC's reorganization plan stated that paying off its debts could take 10 years. The station's front office urged general manager Friedheim to barter advertising for goods and services wherever possible to save money, The disposition of the company's stations lasted three years. Only in March 1989 did a Chattanooga bankruptcy court begin considering plans to sell some of the Media Central stations, eventually approving a purchase of KZKC by one of Media Central's creditors, First American National Bank of Nashville, Tennessee. First American then contracted Act III Broadcasting, an Atlanta-based company with significant operations in Nashville, to run the station. This was heavily delayed by appeals in federal court. While that went on, Steve Engles—who then left when his bid to purchase Media Central-owned KBSI in Cape Girardeau was approved—improved KZKC's programming, signal, and on-air look. KSMO-TV: The independent rebuild On February 7, 1990, a subsidiary of First American National Bank received KZKC's license, with Act III taking over management duties. This was a short-term solution; Act III's contract precluded it from buying KZKC, and Act III president Bert Ellis noted that the bank was interested in selling. Two and a half months later, the bank filed to sell the station to ABRY Communications. ABRY, which owned two independent stations in Baltimore and Cincinnati, promised to spend millions of dollars to replace the transmitting facility and purchase new movies for air on the station. Additionally, the company announced it would move the station to new studios. Even before the sale closed, the station aimed to prepare for a major overhaul and to capitalize on KSHB-TV, its primary competitor, having an increasing obligation to Fox programs. It lured a series of college basketball broadcasts from channel 41 in part by having time to air Kansas and Kansas State coaches' shows. Many major changes and a large