Loni Anderson, ‘WKRP’ TV Star, Passes Away Just Before 80th Birthday
I’m Sage Matthews, the poor soul still scrolling through late-night headlines, muttering “Of course this happened.” Another celebrity has checked out, and this time it’s Loni Anderson, best known as the savvy receptionist on WKRP in Cincinnati. Her family confirmed she died Sunday at a Los Angeles hospital after a prolonged illness, mere days before what would have been her 80th birthday, according to longtime publicist Cheryl J. Kagan and a statement from Associated Press.
If you ever needed proof that the world just keeps spinning into oblivion, Anderson’s passing will do. Born August 5, 1945, in Saint Paul, Minnesota, she rose from small roles on Police Woman and S.W.A.T. in the 1970s to Emmy-nominated heights as Jennifer Marlowe. Fans will recall her knack for deflecting unwanted calls in sky-high heels, keeping the fictional Cincinnati radio station afloat amid on-air disasters.
WKRP in Cincinnati ran from 1978 to 1982, a time when sitcoms still had soul and the threat of cancellation lingered each season. Anderson earned two Emmy nominations and three Golden Globe nods for playing the brainy, sexy sidekick to station manager Mr. Carlson. While Howard Hesseman, Gary Sandy and Tim Reid navigated disco-era hijinks, Anderson made every scene gleam.
Her post-WKRP life was no calmer. She co-starred with Burt Reynolds in the 1983 flop Stroker Ace, then married him and endured tabloid frenzy until their 1994 split. “Quinton was the best decision we ever made,” she told the AP during the 2021 unveiling of Reynolds’ bronze bust at his Hollywood gravesite. Their son remained her bright spot amid the mess of public scrutiny.
Anderson spilled her soul in the 1995 memoir My Life in High Heels, insisting on “warts and all” honesty. She detailed four marriages, career highs and lows, and the absurd spectacle of life under constant flashbulbs. Yet she never lost her spitfire charm—later seen in Lifetime’s Ladies Of The 80s: A Divas Christmas alongside Linda Gray and Donna Mills, which aired December 2023.
Her family’s statement, shared by Kagan, noted they are “heartbroken” and planning a private service at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. She is survived by husband Bob Flick, daughter Deidra and son-in-law Charlie Hoffman, son Quinton Anderson Reynolds, grandchildren McKenzie and Megan, stepson Adam Flick and his wife Helene, plus step-grandchildren Felix and Maximilian.
It’s a sad reminder that no amount of stardom shields anyone from mortality. Anderson kept working even as health issues mounted, determined to stay relevant and leave a legacy beyond glossy magazine spreads. Yet here we are, watching another golden era icon slip away.
Closing the book on Loni Anderson feels like a collective sigh at 2 AM—another brilliant life gone, and the rest of us still stuck in this train wreck of existence. Anyway, can’t wait to see how this gets worse.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and New York Post, Associated Press, Cheryl J. Kagan
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
