Loni Anderson was born on August 5 1945 in St. Paul, Minnesota. She grew up in Roseville Minnesota. She graduated from Alexander Ramsey Senior High School there in 1963. She was studying art at the University of Minnesota when she was a runner-up in the Miss Minnesota pageant.
In Minneapolis she appeared on stage as Billie in Born Yesterday, wearing a blonde wig to do so (Miss Anderson was naturally dark haired). It was the legendary Pat O'Brien, who appeared with her ain another play, who told her she should go to Hollywood. It was then in 1975 that she moved to Hollywood. She also dyed her hair platinum blonde.
Loni Anderson made her television debut in an episode of S.W.A.T. in 1975. In 1975 she made her movie debut in Vigilante Force. It was in 1978 that she was cast as Jennifer Marlowe, the receptionist of the title radio station on WKRP in Cincinnati. Jennifer was a sharp contrast to most blondes on television at the time. She was easily the smartest person at the station and it could not possibly be run without her. In the Seventies, Loni Anderson also guest starred on the shows The Invisible Man, Harry O, Phyllis, Police Woman, Barnaby Jones, The McLean Stevenson Show, The Bob Newhart Show, The Love Boat, The Incredible Hulk, Three's Company, and Fantasy Island. She starred on Jayne Mansfield in the TV movie The Jayne Mansfield Story.
In the Eighties, she continued to appear on WKRP in Cincinnati. She starred on the shows Partners in Crime (with Lynda Carter) and Easy Street. She guest starred on Amazing Stories and B.L. Stryker. She appeared in several TV movies, including remakes of A Letter to Three Wives; Sorry, Wrong Number; and Three Coins in a Fountain (as Coins in a Fountain). She was the voice of Blondie Bumstead in two TV specials based on the comic strip, Blondie & Dagwood and Blondie & Dagwood: Second Wedding Workout. She appeared in the movies Stroker Ace (1983) and The Lonely Guy (1984), She was the voice of Flo in the animated movie All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989).
In the Nineties, Loni Anderson starred on the final season of the sitcom Nurses. She reprised her role as Jennifer Marlowe on two episodes of The New WKRP in Cincinnati. She guest starred o the sitcoms Empty Nest, Burke's Law, Women of the House, Melrose Place, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Clueless, Movie Stars, and V.I.P. She starred in a few TV movies, including White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd. She appeared in the movies Munchie (1992), 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998), and A Night at the Roxbury (1998).
In the Naughts, she starred on the short-lived sitcoms The Mullets and So Notorious. She guest starred on the show Three Sisters. In the Teens, she was a regular on the sitcom My Sister is So Gay. She guest starred on the show Baby Daddy. In 2023 she made her last appearance on screen in the TV movie Ladies of the '80s: A Divas Christmas.
Loni Anderson was an enormous talent. There can be no doubt that they she will always be best remembered as Jennifer on WKRP in Cincinnati. She was so good in the role and there can be no doubt that she, along with much of the rest of the cast, was responsible for much of its success. Of course, she also played other roles. Given her looks, it was perhaps no surprise she would be cast as blonde bombshells Jayne Mansfield and Thelma Todd, but she was also very convincing in the roles. She was also great as self-absorbed hospital administrator Casey McAfee. Loni Anderson's talent was obvious even early in her career, as shown in the Incredible Hulk episode "Of Guilt, Models and Murder." In addition to being a talented actress, Loni Anderson was also a kind, gracious woman. My dearest Vanessa Marquez got to work with her on the Nurses episode "The One After the Earthquake" and had fond memories of the experience. Loni Anderson was a remarkable woman who will always be remembered.
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