Ralph D. Foster (April 25, 1893 – August 11, 1984) was an American broadcasting executive and philanthropist. His radio station KWTO was a stepping stone for many top country artists and lead to the creation of Ozark Jubilee, the first U. S. network television program to feature country’s top stars.

In 1924, at age 31, Foster set up a low power AM radio station with his partner Jerry Hall, in a corner of their Firestone dealership, Foster-Hall tire company in St. Joseph. It began as a hobby, but the local businesses increasingly wanted to advertise on the station. It became a full time occupation. He increased the power in 1926 and bought a new service station that included glassed in studios for the radio station. A singer himself, he and Hall preformed on the station as The Radio Rubber Twins.

In 1932 Hall moved to California, and Foster and his brother-in-law, Art Johnson, relocated the station to Springfield, MO. In 1933 he increased the power and requested and received the call letters KWTO, Keep Watching the Ozark’s. Foster made KWTO- AM the dominant station of the region.

Foster began to realize radios full potential after WW ll. The Assembly of God, with national headquarters in Springfield, sponsored a 30 minute program on KWTO called Sermons in Song. Eventually 200 stations carried the program. He expanded his business into country music and live broadcasts began to dominate the programming. Many country music stars either got their start or preformed on the station, including, Chet Atkins, the Carter Family, Les Paul , Slim Wilson and many more.

Foster believed that Springfield might become the “crossroads of country music,” so he created the Ozark Jubilee and on January 22, 1955, Ozark Jubilee debuted on ABC-TV, the first network television series featuring national country music stars, which ran for almost 6 years.

Foster later produced spin off’s of the show and in 1963 he formed Tele-Color, Inc. which filmed color segments for ABC’s Wild World of Sports and other programs.

Foster was a strong conservationist and also a collector of Native American and Western artifacts. In 1960 he donated a large collection to the College of the Ozark’s in Lookout Point, Missouri near Branson. In 1969, Fosters financial donations created a new wing and was named the Ralph Foster Museum. The museum’s focus is the history and culture of the Ozark’s region.