LOS ANGELES, Aug 4 — Loni Anderson, best known for her role as Jennifer Marlowe on WKRP in Cincinnati, died Sunday at age 79 in Los Angeles from “an acute prolonged illness”.
Her death was confirmed by publicist Cheryl J. Kagan, according to The Hollywood Reporter (THR).
Anderson, a two-time Emmy nominee, rose to fame playing the savvy radio receptionist in the sitcom created by Hugh Wilson. Before that, she appeared in shows like S.W.A.T., Police Woman, Barnaby Jones and Phyllis, and had auditioned for the role of Chrissy Snow on Three’s Company.
THR reported that she initially turned down the WKRP role, saying in a 2020 interview, “I don’t want to play this part because she’s just here to deliver messages and is window dressing.”
Creator Hugh Wilson asked her how she’d approach it, and they reimagined the character: “Let’s make her look like Lana Turner and be the smartest person in the room.”
Anderson’s Jennifer broke the “dumb blond” mould, refusing to do secretarial tasks and standing out as sharp and self-assured. She appeared in all but one of the show’s 90 episodes from 1978 to 1982.
Born August 5, 1945, in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Anderson was the daughter of Klaydon, an environmental chemist, and Maxine, a model.
Naturally dark-haired, she once said, “I loved being a brunette… there was a mystery. When acting, I could be the bad lady.”
