WKRP in Cincinnati: These 9 Jennifer Marlowe moments from WKRP in Cincinnati will always remain in the hearts of Loni Anderson fans

The late veteran actress, Loni Anderson, has left an indelible mark on the industry with her work across film and television. The actress passed away on August 3, 2025, in a Los Angeles hospital due to prolonged illness.

The 79-year-old actress had been part of the Hollywood industry since 1966, and during her long career gave us several characters that made us fall in love with her. Loni Anderson is still celebrated for her role in WKRP in Cincinnati. She appeared as Jennifer Marlowe, the station’s sassy receptionist who is aware that her looks grab attention, but is also a competent employee of the station.

Loni Anderson portrays the character beautifully as a blonde who knows how she is perceived by the older men in the industry, but is a smart and intelligent woman who works and has set boundaries around what kind of work she will commit to. Numerous moments in WKRP in Cincinnati are the reason why Loni Anderson’s character is among the most loved on the series.

Here’s a list of 9 such moments from WKRP in Cincinnati where Loni Anderson shines as Jennifer Marlowe.

Disclaimer: This article contains the writer's opinion and spoilers. Reader's discretion is advised.

These 9 Jennifer Marlowe moments from WKRP in Cincinnati will always remain in the hearts of Loni Anderson fans

9) Jennifer agrees to go on a date with Les (Season 1, Episode 10)

Loni Anderson in WKRP in Cincinnati | Image via MTM Enterprises

A funny and cute moment from WKRP in Cincinnati Season 1 is from Episode 10. In the episode, Jennifer is impressed by Les’s efforts to ask her to accompany him to a banquet. The episode also has one of the rare moments where Jennifer is turned down for a date by Les, but later they eventually go to the banquet.

Loni Anderson, while being savage to Herb’s attempts at asking her out to show Les, also depicted the kindheartedness by agreeing to go with Les, not out of pity, but because she was genuinely impressed. This is one of the early moments from the show where we get familiar with Jennifer’s compassionate personality.

8) Jennifer refers to Mr. Carlson as a jerk (Season 1, Episode 1)

Gordon Jump and Loni Anderson in WKRP in Cincinnati | Image via MTM Enterprises

The caring attitude of Loni Anderson’s character, Jennifer toward her boss was not always like this. As we saw in the premiere episode of WKRP in Cincinnati, Jennifer refers to Carlson as a jerk who runs the place, but later refers to it as a slang term that is used to address the boss.

This was the introduction that we got of the blonde receptionist and depicted her street-smart personality and quick thinking that later on helped her in rising through the ranks and become one of the fan-favorite characters.

7) Jennifer goes on a date with Herb (Season 2, Episode 16)

Herb happens to be one of the only people at the radio station who could make Jennifer’s mood better when she is low. In episode 16 titled "Put Up or Shut Up", of WKRP in Cincinnati Season 2, the duo agree to go on a date with a little push from Carlson.

With feelings of guilt about hiding this from his wife and hyperventilating about the date, Herb appears to be nervous about it. And Jennifer, being Jennifer, in her own kind way, makes him feel at ease and tells him how he is one of her closest friends. The date has numerous laughable moments due to Herb’s nervousness around Jennifer, who appears to be as confident as Loni Anderson portrayed her from the start.

6) Jennifer uses her charisma to win against WPIG (Season 3, Episode 4)

With not many taking the baseball game seriously in Episode 4 of Season 3, the WKRP employees change their strategy while playing against WPIG. From the beginning, it was Les who assigned himself the most important position and was also eager to play the game.

However, Jennifer, without doing much, became the reason for the station’s win. She appeared in the field wearing her new red shorts, and by standing next to Carlson, she became a distraction for hitters, who failed to concentrate, resulting in WKRP’s win.

Time and again, Loni Anderson did not shy away from portraying Jennifer as the self-aware woman who knows the value of her beauty when it comes to sleazy men and uses it, hilariously, to her and her friends' benefit.

5) Jennifer hosts her own show (Season 3 Episode 15)

There are numerous moments in the sitcom where Loni Anderson was definitely the star of the show. For instance, in Season 3 Episode 15, Anderson’s Marlowe got a chance to host her own show called Ask Jennifer.

It is not just the actress's presence that makes the episode one of her best, but also the one-liner that she delivers to the callers. The episode also showcases a moment where Jennifer is filled with guilt due to her advice to one of the callers, depicting another side of the character who has to self-reflect before handing out advice.

4) Jennifer plays into the stereotypes (Season 4, Episode 10)

When an old friend of Andy visits as a radio consultant and also threatens the station with a bad review, the employees of WKRP get into acting mode and decide to portray themselves as the stereotypical versions of themselves. WKRP in Cincinnati is known for portraying characters that do not fit into the stereotypical molds of society, but this episode depicts an interesting turn of events when they had to play according to stereotypes.

That puts Loni Anderson’s Jennifer to hide her smartness and appear as the airheaded blonde that she is often perceived to be. The episode was delightful to watch, not just because of the performances of the cast but also due to the social and industrial tropes it showed. Whether a smart and sophisticated woman or the other way around, Anderson does her job eccentrically, leaving us all to admire her screen presence.

3) Jennifer’s vulnerable moments (Season 4, Episode 8)

In this episode of WKRP in Cincinnati, it is revealed that, Jennifer has become the caretaker of her long-time partner Colonel H. Buchanan's multimillion-dollar business according to his will. From the press to the Buchanan family, Jennifer finds herself in the crosshairs of the situation, as she had no idea about the will.

It is one of those episodes where we encounter the vulnerable side of the savvy receptionist, who is made to feel better by her colleague, Herb, and might be the only one who was really sad about the Colonel's passing away. In this episode, Loni Anderson introduces a rare side to Jennifer that we fell in love with.

2) Jennifer deals with a complicated client (Season 4, Episode 21)

The penultimate episode of WKRP in Cincinnati showed Loni Anderson’s Jennifer fix another of the problems created by Herb. But this time it wasn’t as easy. She meets the businessman named Tom and finds out that he is blind, meaning she won’t be able to impress the party with her looks.

But that’s not all Jennifer has, as through their conversations, Jennifer quickly finds a common ground when Tom tells her that he has to work harder to prove himself. This gave Jennifer a way in and she agreed to him, telling him that she is often perceived as just a dumb blonde, and this makes her work harder to counter the stereotype.

Showing her vulnerable side and also fixing another big problem for the station, Jennifer depicts how resourceful she is and also cares about her friends, as she saves Herb from getting fired.

1) Jennifer’s Christmas with her co-workers (Season 2, Episode 11)

Across four seasons of WKRP in Cincinnati, Loni Anderson displayed numerous facets of Jennifer Marlowe. From her being smart at everything to her kindheartedness. However, if you want to enjoy the range of Anderson’s acting, you should definitely check out Episode 11 of Season 2, where we almost get our favorite character to spend her Christmas alone, but she is later accompanied by her beloved colleagues.

From getting angry at the screw ups, laughing at Carlson’s jokes, to showing her emotional side when her friends don’t let her be alone on Christmas, this episode is a jackpot for Anderson fans.

What other Jennifer Marlowe moments from WKRP in Cincinnati will always remain in the hearts of Loni Anderson fans? Do let us know in the comments below!