WKRP in Cincinnati

Background:

American highly attention-getting actress who emerged as television sex symbol during the late 1970s and early 1980s Loni Anderson became famous and received recognition as sexy receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on the popular comedy series “WKRP in Cincinnati,” which ran on CBS from 1978 to 1982. For her bright work, she was handed two Emmy nominations and three Golden Globe nominations. The stylish performer acquired additional attention for starring in a number of TV movies, most notably as Jayne Mansfield on 1980's “The Jayne Mansfield Story” and Thelma Todd on 1991's “White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd,” but her subsequent TV series gigs mostly had short lives, including “Partners in Crime” (1984), “Easy Street” (1986-1987), “Nurses” (1993-1994) and “The Mullets” (2003-2004). In 2006, she played the worldly-minded mom on the sitcom “So noTORIous,” starring Tori Spelling as her daughter. As a movie actress, Anderson netted two Razzie nominations for her work in her debut, “Stroker Ace” (1983), with upcoming husband Burt Reynolds. She also acted in Sean McNamara's “3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain” (1998), opposite Hulk Hogan, and “A Night at the Roxbury” (1998), a comedy starring Will Ferrell.

Anderson has published an autobiography called “My Life in High Heels,” in which she describes she was originally going to be named “Leiloni” by her father, but he then changed it to “Loni” after considering her daughter might be taunted “Lay Loni” in her teenagers. Anderson collects a lot of Snow White miniatures and other Disney memorabilia in her home.

“When I was fourteen, my measurements were 37D-20-32. Now I feel more in proportion at 36-24-36 instead of outrageous.” Loni Anderson

The dyed blonde-headed actress has undergone breast reduction surgeries two times. In her first operation, she got the measurement of 38C-25-36 from the previous 38E-25-36. Now, she is a 36-24-36.

Married and divorced before her 21st birthday, Anderson's personal life has been filled with three failed marriages. She married first husband Bruce Hasselbeck in 1964, but divorced in 1966 after producing a daughter, Deidra Hoffman. Her next marriage to actor Ross Bickell lasted for eight years from 1973 to 1981, but it was her third marriage to Oscar nominee Burt Reynolds (together from 1988 to 1995) that shared the sturdy beauty major notoriety. Anderson and the film superstar have an adopted son named Quinton. On her marriage to Burt, she said, “I tried to save my marriage to Burt, I really gave it my all. But you know what I was competing with? A handful of pills and a bottle of booze. I can't win, and I certainly don't take last place, so I hung it all out to dry.”

Now engaged to ex-flame, Bob Flick, who she first met at age 17, Anderson and her fiancé planned to wed later in 2008. The mother of two was once romantically involved with Geoffrey Brown (dated in late 1993).

Miss Roseville

Childhood and Family:

Daughter of Carl K. Anderson and Maxine H. Kallin, Loni Kaye Anderson was born on August 5, 1945, in St. Paul, Minnesota. As a senior in high school, she was named Valentine Queen of her school's winter formal, and later became the winner of the Miss Roseville beauty pageant contest (1963) which allowed her to represent her hometown at the Miss Minnesota competition. She also crowned several other less noted titles, including Miss Thermo-Jac Clothing, Miss County Style Ford and Queen of the Hole-In-One.

At age 19, Loni was married to Bruce Hasselbeck and had a daughter named Deidra Hoffman.The marriage, however, ended after two years. Around that same period, she was an art and drama major at the University of Minnesota and in order to make end meets, the young single mother took a job as a teacher. Also an aspiring actress, she did local commercials and appeared in several theatrical productions during the early 1970s. Loni remarried in 1973, to second husband actor Ross Bickell, and they headed to Los Angeles two years later to try more acting opportunities. The naturally born-brunette eventually found fame on the TV sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati,” but the success was not without cost. In 1981, after having together for eight years, she divorced from her second husband.

On April 1988, Loni enjoyed a degree of prominent with her high-profile marriage to actor Burt Reynold (born on February 11, 1936), which resulted in an adopted son named Quinton Reynolds. The couple, however, divorced on March 7, 1995, a hateful separation that caused the reputations of both stars felt down.

Loni is expected to marry her old companion Bob Flick later in 2008. They first met in 1962, when Loni was 17.

3 Ninjas

Career:

A winner at several beauty contests, Loni Anderson was prompted to take a teaching job to support herself and her infant daughter after divorcing from her first husband. At the time, she was still working on her college degree at the University Minnesota and eventually could finish her studies. First having her first taste of performing at age 10, she began her professionally acting career by doing TV commercials and performing with Midwestern repertory companies in such productions as “The Star-

Spangled Girl,” “Born Yesterday,” “Can-Can,” “Send Me No Flowers,” “Fiddler on the Roof” (as Tzeitel) and “The Threepenny Opera.”

Arriving in Hollywood in 1975, the Minnesota native broke into the small screen with a series of guest roles, including playing Andrea Hanover in a 1975 episode of “The Invisible Man” (1975), Dee Dee Danvers in a 1976 episode of “Barnaby Jones,” Susan Walters in a 1977 episode of “Three's Company” and Leslie Greely in an episode of “The Bob Newhart Show” (also 1977). Her first break arrived in 1978 when she joined the ensemble cast of the hit CBS sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati” in the soon-to-be-popular role of Jennifer Elizabeth Marlowe. Brilliantly playing the radio receptionist, she took home two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Variety or Music Series (1980, 1981) and three Golden Globe nominations for Best TV Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Performance by an Actress in a TV-Series – Musical/Comedy (1980, 1981 and 1982) and gained an immediate success as well as sexy status.

During her four-year tenure on the series, Anderson enjoyed additional fame as the star of the TV film “The Jayne Mansfield Story” (1980), a biopic of the brassy rise and woozy fall of the last bang-up Hollywood blonde beauty, Jayne Mansfield. She acted on the Emmy nominated movie opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger, who portrayed her muscle-chained spouse Mickey Hargitay. She also appeared in Bob Hope's “Spring Fling of Glamour and Comedy” (1981) and starred as Julie Davis in the Aaron Spelling-produced TV movie “Sizzle” (also 1981), among others.

After the demise of “WKRP in Cincinnati” in 1982, Anderson made her feature by starring as Pembrook Feeney on the action film “Stroker Ace” (1983), opposite future husband Burt Reynolds. The role brought the actress two Razzie nominations for Worst Actress and Worst New Star. She returned to series TV as regular playes on the short-lived detective series “Partners in Crime” (1984), along side Lynda Carter of “Wonder Woman” fame, and the NBC failed sitcom “Easy Street” (1986-1987), as a ex-Las Vegas showgirl named L.K. McGuire. She could also be seen making several TV movies like 1984's “My Mother's Secret Life,” 1985's “A Letter to Three Wives,” 1987's “Blondie and Dagwood” (played the voice of Blondie Bumstead), 1988's “Necessity” and 1989's “Sorry, Wrong Number” (as Madeleine Stevenson).

Anderson starred as tragic 1930s Hollywood comedy actress Thelma Todd on the made-for-TV film “White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd,” directed by Paul Wendkos, and playing the lead of Cathy Dobson on the following year's independent film “Muchie,” by Jim Wynorsky. In the meantime, she reprised her famous TV role as Jennifer Marlowe on a syndicated WKRP revival called “The New WKRP in Cincinnati” (1991-1992). Next, she had recurring roles on the sitcom “Empty Nest” (1993, as Casey MacAfee) and “Melrose Place” (1996, as Teri Carson) and joined the cast of the NBC sitcom “Nurses” in the role of Casey MacAfee, which she played from 1993 to 1994. In 1998, Anderson costarred with Hulk Hogan for the motion picture action/comedy sequel “3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain,” by Sean McNamara, and landed a significant supporting role as Barbara Butabi on the comedy film “A Night at the Roxbury,” starring Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan. She closed out the decade by making a guest appearance as Pamela Anderson's mother on an episode of the syndicated series “V.I.P.”

Having been in show biz since the 1970s, the fifty-something Anderson appeared as Janet in a 2001 episode of “Three Sisters,” a short-lived comedy starring Dyan Cannon, Katherine LaNasa and Vicki Lewis. Two years later in September 2003, she started her regular role of Mandi Mullet-Heidecker on the comedy series “The Mullets,” costarring with Michael Weaver and David Hornsby, but the show only lasted for eleven episodes. More recently, in 2006, she was cast as the materialistic mother of Tori Spelling on eight episodes of the comedy show “So noTORIous.”

In 2008, Anderson made a self-appearance in “Entertainment Tonight.” It was her second appearance on the show.

Awards:
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