Loni Anderson, who played the bright and beautiful receptionist on the 1970s television sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati,” has died at age 79.
Anderson’s death Sunday came after an unspecified “acute prolonged illness,” publicist Cheryl J. Kagan announced.
“We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our dear wife, mother and grandmother,” Anderson’s family said in a statement.
The actress spoke to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2011 before her appearance at the annual Dragon Con in Atlanta that Labor Day weekend.
Her friend, Barbara Eden, star of “I Dream of Jeannie,” persuaded her to come, Anderson said, because Eden had such a good time in 2010.
“WKRP” was created in 1978 by former Atlanta advertising executive Hugh Wilson, who based some of the characters and antics on 790/WQXI-AM, a powerhouse Atlanta top-40 station known as “Quixie in Dixie” in the 1960s and 1970s. (The station became sports talk but is now a Korean language station.)
“He was our mad genius,” Anderson said.
“WKRP” was a mid-level hit for CBS, airing for four seasons.
As the cool and collected secretary Jennifer Marlowe, Anderson made sure bumbling boss Arthur “Big Guy” Carlson did no harm as she fended off blowhard salesman Herb Tarlek’s relentless advances.
The role earned Anderson two Emmy Award nominations and three Golden Globe nominations.
Wilson told the AJC at the time that he picked Anderson for her looks, but she insisted her character not play a ditzy blonde, which was par for the course at the time.
“She was the oracle of the place,” Wilson said. “I never had to rewrite a line for her. She had such a definite look.”
When the show debuted, “nobody was a big star,” Anderson said.
“We all started at the same level. There was a real camaraderie and closeness, kind of like a first kiss. It was special.”
The show was always Anderson’s calling card: “I think women loved the fact I was sexy and smart. I know it sounds crazy to people today but in 1978, when we came on, not many women were doing both in comedy.”
Her first role as an actress was a small part in the 1966 film “Nevada Smith,” starring Steve McQueen. Most of her career was spent on the small screen with early guest parts in the 1970s on “S.W.A.T.” and “Police Woman.”
After “WKRP,” Anderson starred in the short-lived comedy series “Easy Street” and appeared in made-for-TV movies including “A Letter to Three Wives” and “White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd.”
In 2023, she co-starred in Lifetime’s “Ladies Of The ’80s: A Divas Christmas” with Linda Gray, Donna Mills, Morgan Fairchild and Nicollette Sheridan.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Anderson co-starred with Burt Reynolds in “Stroker Ace” in 1984. Her tumultuous marriage with with Reynolds ― a major supporter of Georgia who shot many of his biggest films in the state ― became tabloid fodder in the 1980s and 1990s.
“I think back to the beginning of our relationship, it was so, oh, gosh, tabloidy. We were just a spectacle all the time. And it was hard to have a relationship in that atmosphere. And somehow, we did it through many ups and downs,” Anderson told The Associated Press in 2021 three years after Reynolds died.
Her life was far more private after they divorced. She married musician Bob Flick, one of the founding members of the folk band The Brothers Four, in 2008.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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