WKRP in Cincinnati

"WKRP" redirects here. For other uses, see WKRP (disambiguation).

WKRP in Cincinnati
GenreSitcom
Created byHugh Wilson
StarringGary Sandy
Gordon Jump
Loni Anderson
Richard Sanders
Tim Reid
Frank Bonner
Jan Smithers
Howard Hesseman
Theme music composerTom Wells
Hugh Wilson
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes90 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerHugh Wilson
ProducersRod Daniel
Bill Dial
Blake Hunter
Steven Kampmann
Peter Torokvei
Hugh Wilson
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time24–25 minutes
Production companyMTM Enterprises
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseSeptember 18, 1978 (1978-09-18) –
April 21, 1982 (1982-04-21)
Related
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)
Bailey Quarters (Jan Smithers) and Andy Travis (Gary Sandy)
Les Nessman (Richard Sanders) and Dr. Johnny Fever (Howard Hesseman) in the studio
Fever flirts with Jennifer Marlowe (Loni Anderson)

WKRP in Cincinnati is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional AM[1] radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working in advertising sales at Top 40 radio station WQXI in Atlanta, including many of the characters.[2] Wilson once told The Cincinnati Enquirer that he selected WKRP as the call sign to stand for C-R-A-P.[3]

The ensemble cast consists of Gary Sandy (as Andy Travis), Howard Hesseman (Dr. Johnny Fever), Gordon Jump (Arthur Carlson), Loni Anderson (Jennifer Marlowe), Tim Reid (Venus Flytrap), Jan Smithers (Bailey Quarters), Richard Sanders (Les Nessman) and Frank Bonner (Herb Tarlek).[4]

The series won a Humanitas Prize[5] and received 10 Emmy Award nominations, including three for Outstanding Comedy Series. Andy Ackerman won an Emmy Award for Videotape Editing in Season 3.[6]

WKRP premiered on September 18, 1978, on the CBS television network and aired for four seasons and 90 episodes, ending on April 21, 1982. Starting in the middle of the second season, CBS repeatedly moved the show around its schedule, contributing to lower ratings and its eventual cancellation. When WKRP went into syndication, it became an unexpected success. For the next decade, it was one of the most popular sitcoms in syndication, outperforming many programs that had been more successful in prime time, including all the other MTM Enterprises sitcoms.[7]

Jump, Sanders, and Bonner reprised their roles as regular characters in a sequel series, The New WKRP in Cincinnati, which ran from 1991 to 1993 in syndication. Hesseman, Reid, and Anderson also reprised their roles as guest stars.

  1. ^ NPR; December 6, 2014; “WKRP in Perpetuity” by Michaelangelo Matos; retrieved June 3, 2023.
  2. ^ Bowie, Stephen (November 21, 2012). "Turkeys Away: An Oral History". The Classic TV History Blog. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  3. ^ Kiesewetter, John (May 29, 2014). "'WKRP' reunion will be live streamed June 4". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  4. ^ Kassel, Michael B. (1993). America's Favorite Radio Station: WKRP in Cincinnati. Bowling Green State University Popular Press. ISBN 978-0-8797-2584-6. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  5. ^ "Humanitas Prize (1981)". IMDb. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  6. ^ "WKRP in Cincinnati". Television Academy. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  7. ^ King, Susan (September 1, 1991). "Retro: 'WKRP' in Los Angeles". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2017.