WKRP in Cincinnati (TV)
I wrote about the ways in which Jennifer and Bailey are developed throughout the show over at In Their Own League here.
While my childhood did involve watching Saturday morning cartoons and things like “The Muppets” and “Fraggle Rock,” I did watch TV with my parents a lot. Mostly it was sitcoms, whether it was “Cheers” and “Night Court” and “Family Ties,” or even something like “Moonlighting.” The one I’ve always had the most affection for, however, was “WKRP in Cincinnati.” It wasn’t just the Thanksgiving episode. For four seasons, Hugh Wilson’s radio station comedy features a wide variety of comic stylings, a diverse cast of characters, and some great music. Well, that’s complicated story, but “WKRP” remains a winner.
When I watch shows like “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Game of Thrones” and “Bones,” I watch them to get engaged with the stories they tell. Sitcoms are comfort watching, the type of shows where I feel like I don’t have to think about the stories, and enjoy the humor of things like “The Big Bang Theory,” “Community” and “3rd Rock From the Sun.” (“Mystery Science Theater 3000” is in a weird middle area between the two.) “WKRP” has always been a nostalgic favorite of mine, and when Howard Hesseman and Loni Anderson were at DragonCon in my early years of going, I definitely had to meet both of them, and go to their panels.
For a long time, syndication was a complicated affair with this show. Because the show takes place at a radio station, music was always an important part of the show, and there were some fantastic cuts. One of my all-time favorite moments was from “Turkeys Away,” and station manager Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump) is trying to find something to do around the station. He walks into the control booth, where Dr. Johnny Fever (Hesseman) is on the air; he’s also resting his eyes. The song on the radio in Pink Floyd’s “Dogs,” which confuses Carlson, but captures the uncertainty of the moment on both ends. In syndication, however, we got a generic track that had the feeling of the Floyd track, but not everything that the Floyd track entails. That’s because the show only licensed the tracks for the initial program; for reruns, they would have had to get new terms which would have been prohibitively expensive. The humor was still there, but a lot of the personality of the show came from the music.
Several years ago, Shout! Factory was able to do what many thought impossible- release all four seasons of Hugh Wilson’s series, and getting the rights to the majority of the licensing rights to the original music. There are still times, even within the same episode, when actual songs and the muzak of syndication are next to one another, but when Johnny Fever accidentally reads the wrong prize for a contest, and he and Venus Flytrap (Tim Reid) have to splice together an “impossible to guess” compilation of tracks, the musical beats in that mashup are defining to the comedy of the situation; the syndicated version can’t use it, unfortunately, and it doesn’t have the same impact. When Herb Tarlek (Frank Bonner) and Les Nessman (Richard Sanders) give the wrong person the prize money, however, the punchline to the entire episode works like a charm.
Before “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation” and “30 Rock” updated the formula for the 2000s, shows like “WKRP” and “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” really nailed the office comedy genre, and in the case of “WKRP” in particular, we were rewarded with a treasure trove of great ideas, all jumpstarted by the initial premise of a successful Program Director (Andy Travis, played by Gary Sandy) being brought in to try and turn Carlson’s goofball radio station into a success. How an AM station transitions to a rock n’ roll stadium I have no idea, but how Andy and Arthur have to navigate the problems KRP has is frequently hilarious.
A great office sitcom is only as good as both the quality of its writing, and the way it grows its ensemble cast. I love so many things in this series. Johnny and Venus partaking in a drunk driving experiment that perplexes the officer administering the test. Bailey Quarters’s (Jan Smithers) first attempt at producing a show going off the rails. Jennifer Marlowe’s (Anderson) ridiculously outrageous apartment. Les preparing for a date with the bombshell receptionist Jennifer. Herb always trying to suck up to Arthur while continually being a terrible sales manager. Andy trying to talk reason with an evangelist radio preacher hawking steak knives. Mr. Carlson trying to navigate the line between censorship and good taste. The station’s morbidly hilarious funeral home jingle. The frustration that arises when the station doesn’t win Most Improved in Cincinnati. The sadness when the show tackled the tragic deaths of 11 people at a Who concert in Cincinnati in 1979. And of course, the time Arthur Carlson thought turkeys could fly. I could list so many more favorite moments in this series, but the show’s 90 episodes is chock full of them.
Watching it now, after a lifetime of appreciating music, and figuring out my comedic preferences, it makes sense that “WKRP” connected with my in my youth, and continues to engage me now. I recognize why I had crushes on both Jennifer and Bailey, and love how either answer is warranted beyond their physical appearance. I love hearing tracks I would love later in life, like “Layla” or “Dogs” or “Hungry Heart.” There’s a part of me that would have loved to be Johnny early in life, but is grateful for being as soulful as Venus is. The dynamic idiot duo of Herb and Les is not to be underestimated, especially when they have poignant moments. And I love the way Arthur and Andy compliment each other perfectly. Its “Shout! Factory” release (albeit only on DVD) is one of the strongest cases for supporting physical media I can think of. Rewatching this show makes me feel like I’m with an old friend, familiar with the stories they shared with me, but happy to hear them again all the same.
