Bandleader Kay Kyser first broadcast his musical quiz show as a sustaining feature under the title of Kay Kyser's Kampus Klass (and Dance). This early series of programs was aired during the time Kyser's band was still engaged at Chicago's Blackhawk Res-taurant. On February 1, 1938 the show made its debut over the Mutual network as a weekly hour long series sponsored by Lucky Strike Cigarettes, but on March 30, 1938 changed to the more familiar and better remembered Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge.

Kyser's musical quiz was a one-of-a-kind unique format built around a mythical college campus setting. Kay, labelled "The Old Professor," and his announcer, called "The Dean," were both garbed in cap and gown; the orchestra wore traditional freshman beanies and college sweaters; and the studio audience was referred to as "stu-dents." The program was laden with catch phrases and college jargon. Kyser would greet his audience in his North Carolinian draw! with "Evenin' folks, how y'all," he would respond to correct true or false answers with "That's wrong, you're right" and vice versa; and if no answer was forthcoming, he would elicit the correct answer from the audience by yelling;"Students?" Between the quiz segments, called "mid-terms" and final exams," there was music and comedy. Mervyn Bogue, better known as Ishkibble, provided the comedy, and included in the the long list of vocalists was Harry Babbitt, Georgia Carroll, Julie Conway, Mike Douglas, Trudy Erwin, The Kampus Kids, The King Sisters, Sully Mason, Shirley Mitchell, Jane Russell, Ginny Simms, Bill Stoker, Diane Templeton, and The Town Criers.

The announcing corps was comprised of "Deans" Martin Block, John Conte, Bill Foreman, Ben Grauer, Bud Hiestand, Dick Joy, Ken Niles, Rod O'Connor, Basil Ruysdael, Verne Smith, and Fred Uttal.

During the summer of 1944 Phil Harris subbed for Kay while he enjoyed his first vacation in six years; thereafter he often took time away from his show. Harris returned in the summer of 1945 and subsequently such personalities as Abbott and Costello, Jack Haley, and Art Linkletter guest hosted the Kollege. From 1945 to 1948 orchestra leader Carl Hoff wielded the baton in front of the Kyser aggregation.

In the fall of 1944 Colgate assumed sponsorship; at the beginning of the 1946-47 season "klasses" were reduced from an hour to thirty minutes, and on June 26, 1948 the final weekly evening version of the show was broadcast. On October 4, 1948 Kay Kyser's Kollege of Fun and Knowledge made its debut over the ABC network as a half hour Monday through Friday daytime series, sponsored in part by Pillsbury Mills. As the title suggests, this was strictly a quiz format aired without the musical segments. Jack: McCoy was the announcer.

The end of the "kollege kurriculum" came on July 29, 1949; Kay and "kompany" then left the radio airwaves forever.

A video version of the Kollege of Musical Knowledge was seen over the NBC network from December of 1949 until September of 1954.