launch. For the first 18 months of the network's existence, residents in the Kansas City market were only able to view programming from The WB through the superstation feed of the network's Chicago affiliate WGN-TV, now standalone cable channel NewsNation, on local cable and satellite providers. The station originally operated from KMBC's studio facilities in the underground floors of the Lyric Theatre at the intersection of East 18th Street and Central Avenue in Downtown Kansas City. Alongside WB prime time programming and a blend of cartoons from both the network's children's program block, Kids' WB, and those acquired via syndication, KCWB initially carried recent off-network sitcoms and drama series, and some first-run syndicated scripted programs, talk shows, court shows and reality-based lifestyle and documentary series, including some series that had not been able to receive clearance in the market previously due to the lack of available time slot clearances on Kansas City's four major network affiliates—KMBC, WDAF-TV, CBS affiliate KCTV (channel 5) and NBC affiliate KSHB-TV (channel 41)—as well as Home Shopping Network affiliate/part-time independent station KMCI-TV (channel 38, now a full-time independent) and UPN affiliate KSMO-TV (channel 62). As was typical of WB-affiliated stations of the period, KCWB filled the 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. time slot with feature films and first-run syndicated programs as The WB had only maintained a lineup of prime time programs on Sunday and Wednesday nights and, around the time the station launched, had also just debuted an evening block on Mondays; this would become less of an issue as The WB launched additional nights of programming over the next four years, adopting a six-night weekly schedule in September 1999 (running Sunday through Fridays). In the spring of 1997, after Argyle Television Holdings II merged with the Hearst Corporation's broadcasting division, Hearst transferred KCWB's operations to its broadcasting division, Hearst-Argyle Television (now Hearst Television). For most of its tenure as a WB affiliate, KCWB's logo under the initial "WB29" branding was similar in style to the "WB32" logo used by Tampa, Florida sister station WWWB-TV. As a UPN affiliate On July 21, 1997, the Sinclair Broadcast Group signed a long-term affiliation agreement with WB co-parent Time Warner, under which the group committed five of its UPN-affiliated stations and three independent stations to become affiliates of The WB, an agreement that came as Sinclair had entered into a programming dispute with the network (ironically, Sinclair would