Steam whistle on your phone: KU journalism’s ad agency creates ringtone of ‘Big Tooter’

What good University of Kansas alumnus doesn’t miss the unmistakable wail of KU’s famous steam whistle signaling the end of class? Anyone miss it enough to make it the ringtone on your phone?

That’s now an option. The Agency, the KU School of Journalism’s student-run ad agency, has created a KU steam whistle ringtone in conjunction with the launch of its more edgy, nonconventional arm, Steam Whistle Creative.

You can purchase and download the new ringtone via the iTunes store for $1.29. (Under tones, search for “The Steam Whistle.”) According to a KU journalism school announcement, they are still working with Google Play and hope to have the ringtone available there soon.

Who wouldn't want to wake up to the steam whistle everyday? You can download the official "Steam Whistle" ringtone on the iTunes Store now!

Posted by Steam Whistle Creative on Friday, October 21, 2016

I downloaded the ringtone and can confirm the sound is definitely that of KU’s “Big Tooter.” I thought about making it my alarm clock tone (fun fact: prior to 1912, when it began signaling the end of classes, the power plant steam whistle was used as a 7:45 a.m. wake-up call and a nightly announcer of curfew, according to kuhistory.com). But I’m getting up at 5 a.m. these days, and the steam whistle seems a bit much for that hour. For now I’ll try it as a call ringtone and see how it goes over with my cubicle-mates.

The Agency students said Steam Whistle Creative aims to offer options for clients looking for less traditional and more “quirky” marketing and messaging campaigns, according to KU’s announcement. “We exist to be the whistle for your brand,” says the business’s website, steamwhistlecreative.org.

As for the ringtone, “It’s mostly a fun thing,” Chris Palmquist, president of The Agency, said in KU’s announcement. “No one has really branded the steam whistle on campus. We wanted to stay KU but kind of get away from the classic Jayhawk imagery.”

• Night at the museum: Party in the Panorama, a major fundraiser for KU’s Natural History Museum, is set for 7 p.m. Saturday at the museum, located in Dyche Hall. Tickets are $50, or $85 for a pair, and can be purchased at the museum or online here.

At this event, attendees who dare can pet a hissing cockroach, see various body fluids illuminated under a black light, put together a human skeleton and see some of the museum’s many reptile specimens. The evening will include jazz music, adult beverages and hors d’oeuvres. Dress is casual — no costumes required. Money raised will help the museum transform exhibits and support children’s programming.

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• I’m the Journal-World’s KU and higher ed reporter. See all the newspaper’s KU coverage here. Reach me by email at sshepherd@ljworld.com, by phone at 832-7187, on Twitter @saramarieshep or via Facebook at Facebook.com/SaraShepherdNews.