The New WKRP in Cincinnati

The New WKRP in Cincinnati
Created by	Hugh Wilson
Based on	WKRP in Cincinnati by Hugh Wilson
Starring	Gordon Jump Richard Sanders Frank Bonner Mykelti Williamson Tawny Kitaen French Stewart
Music by	Steve Tyrell Tom Wells Jim Ellis (closing)
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	47 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	22 minutes
Production company(s)	MTM Enterprises
Distributor	MTM Television Distribution Group
Release
Original network	Syndication
Original release	September 7, 1991 (1991-09-07) – May 22, 1993 (1993-05-22)
Chronology
Preceded by	WKRP in Cincinnati
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

The New WKRP in Cincinnati is an American sitcom television series that aired in first-run syndication from September 7, 1991, to May 22, 1993, as a sequel to the original CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–82). As with the original WKRP, MTM Enterprises produced the show.

Gordon Jump (Arthur Carlson), Frank Bonner (Herb Tarlek), and Richard Sanders (Les Nessman) reprised their roles from the original show, while Howard Hesseman reprised the role of Dr. Johnny Fever on a recurring basis (four episodes in the first season, then five in season two). Other original cast members came in for guest spots, with Loni Anderson (Jennifer Marlowe) returning for two episodes and Tim Reid (D.J. Gordon Sims/Venus Flytrap) for one episode. Other recurring players from the original series who appeared as guests on this sequel show included Carol Bruce (Lillian "Mama" Carlson), Edie McClurg (Lucille Tarlek), Allyn Ann McLerie (Carmen Carlson) and Bill Dial (Bucky Dornster).

The week before the show's premiere, many stations carrying the program aired the hour-long WKRP in Cincinnati 50th Anniversary Special, centered on a newspaper reporter interviewing Arthur Carlson about the fictitious station's golden anniversary, which served as a setup to show clips of memorable moments from the original series.

Synopsis

The New WKRP in Cincinnati revisits radio station WKRP, a station that had slowly climbed from near-last in the ratings to a top-10 station over the course of the original series under program director Andy Travis (unseen in this series), who was last seen drunk and collapsed on the floor of owner Lillian "Mama" Carlson (Carol Bruce) about to tell her off at the previous series end. With Travis gone, the station soon lapses into a dysfunctional, poorly performing laughingstock (one of Travis’ successors, the also unseen Steve "The Savage" DeMarco, committed a major FCC violation immediately before the new series began) under Carlson's son, the indecisive general manager Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump). Almost all of the staff at the station has left, with only two longtime employees, boorish sales manager Herb Tarlek (Frank Bonner) and comically inept news director Les Nessman (Richard Sanders), remaining.

Nine years after the original series ended, with the station's 50th anniversary approaching, Mr. Carlson hires new program director Donovan Aderhold (Mykelti Williamson) to help turn the station around. Already at the station when Donovan arrives are DJs "the Morning Maniacs" Jack Allen (Michael Des Barres) and Dana Burns (Kathleen Garrett), a couple in the throes of divorce who nevertheless work as a team on-air. Donovan soon also hires sexy night-time DJ Mona Loveland (Tawny Kitaen). Off the air, other staff members initially included traffic/continuity co-ordinator Claire Hartline (Hope Alexander-Willis); sporadically seen engineer Buddy Dornster (John Chapell); receptionist Ronnie Lee (Wendy Davis); and, after a few episodes, assistant sales manager Arthur Carlson, Jr. (Lightfield Lewis).

The show underwent many cast changes during its run, eventually dropping or replacing most of the initial "new" cast. Partway through the first season, the characters of Dana Burns and Ronnie Lee were written out. Ronnie's replacement as receptionist was spacey blonde Nancy Braithwaite (Marla Rubinoff). Dana's character was not replaced.

After the first season, more characters were dropped: Claire Hartline, Jack Allen and Arthur Carlson, Jr. all disappeared. French Stewart joined the cast in the second season as morning DJ Razor D.

Dr. Johnny Fever (Howard Hesseman) made a few appearances as a guest in season 1, and participated in a four-episode story arc as WKRP's overnight DJ in season 2, although he left the station (and the series) before the season ended. Mona Loveland was quietly written out towards the end of season 2, and does not appear in the last five episodes. Donovan Aderhold quit the station in the next-to-last episode, and was seemingly killed off in a plane crash at the episode's conclusion. Donovan does not appear and is not mentioned in the series finale.

A number of cast members from both old and new series wrote and directed episodes of the series. Howard Hesseman, in addition to appearing in nine episodes, directed two others in which he did not appear. Bill Dial wrote or co-wrote 13 episodes of the series, while Richard Sanders co-wrote three episodes with his wife. Frank Bonner directed five episodes, mostly in season 2, and Mykelti Williamson directed one episode. Non-cast members Asaad Kelada and Max Tash combined to direct most of the show's other episodes; among other notable non-cast members in the production staff included Burt Reynolds, Loni Anderson's then-husband, who directed one of Jennifer Marlowe's two appearances in the series in a stunt casting move, and Los Angeles conservative talk radio personality Doug McIntyre, who wrote two episodes. As was the case with the aforementioned Andy Travis, Bailey Quarters was completely absent from the series (in her case, her absence is explained; she had left radio many years earlier and was now a successful politician, serving as mayor of Ann Arbor, Michigan).

The show ended production in 1993 after two seasons and 47 episodes. Only the "original three" characters of Mr. Carlson, Herb Tarlek and Les Nessman remain with the program for the entire run and are seen in every episode.

For the first several episodes, the series was still identified as WKRP in Cincinnati and used a nearly identical opening sequence to the original series, except with updated cast names. The New portion was not added to the title until later, when clips of the starring actors were added to the title sequence. The familiar opening and closing themes of its parent series were also retained, and while a new arrangement/recording was used for the opening theme, the closing theme was the same version heard on the original series (although a bit faster).

The series followed up on some details left unaddressed in the original series. For example, the actual frequency of WKRP was never revealed in the original series. (Promos for the original series had noted, without specifying a frequency, that the station used the highest available frequency on the AM dial (at the time, before the AM expanded band was opened, this was 1610 AM, used only in the U.S. for noncommercial travelers' information stations.) In this version, the station is identified as being at 1530 AM, the actual home of WCKY, also licensed to Cincinnati, though the actual 1530 AM is a 50,000-watt class A clear channel frequency, while WKRP's coverage map promoted the station as a 5,000-watt Class B station (with the exception of the original series pilot, in which the station was also at 50,000 watts).

Also addressed is why the station is in the same position as the original series, which was supposed to conclude with everyone's hard work paying off and the station reaching number six.

Main characters

Regulars

Actor	Character	Seasons	Notes
Gordon Jump	Arthur Carlson ("Big Guy")	1–2	The middle-aged general manager, whose main qualification for the job is that his business tycoon mother is the owner. His bumbling, indecisive management is one of the main reasons the station is unprofitable, although he is a decent man and something of a father-figure to his employees.
Frank Bonner	Herb Tarlek	1–2	Boorish, tasteless advertising sales manager, who wears loud plaid suits, with his belt matching his white shoes. While Herb is portrayed as buffoonish most of the time, he does occasionally show a sympathetic side, particularly towards Art Jr., whom he feels he needs to protect though there's no love lost between the two.
Richard Sanders	Les Nessman	1–2	Fastidious, bow-tied news reporter, who approaches his job with absurd seriousness. In between the original series and the revival, Les married and divorced a woman named Demi, an unseen character who still looms large in his life. Les is also now an eight-time winner of the "Buckeye Newshawk Award", up from five during the original series.
Mykelti Williamson	Donovan Aderhold	1–2	The station's new program director, Aderhold fills the same position held by Andy Travis, who had left the station some time after the end of the original series. He has also worked with former WKRP morning DJ Dr. Johnny Fever at a radio station in Pittsburgh. Near the end of the series, he falls in love and, pursuing his new flame, leaves the station; when he attempts to return in the penultimate episode, his plane disappears, with his fate never resolved.
Hope Alexander-Willis	Claire Hartline	1	The station's traffic and continuity director, who is kind and levelheaded, and one of the few competent employees at the station. Claire disappears without comment or explanation at the end of season 1, and the character is never referenced again (and her job position at the station is not replaced)
Howard Hesseman	Dr. Johnny Fever (ne Johnny Caravella)	1–2 (recurring)	Former WKRP morning man who often drops by the station between jobs in various cities. (As Herb complains, "He only shows up here when he's broke!") Partway through the second season, the station's never-seen overnight jock (Moss Steiger, carrying over from the original series) dies, and Johnny is hired to take over the WKRP night shift, billing himself as "The Night Doctor". After a run of several episodes, he leaves the station to pursue a sitcom opportunity in LA. Though it doesn't pan out, Johnny decides to stay in LA, and the character exits the series.
John Chappell	Buddy Dornster	1–2 (recurring)	The station's hopelessly lazy chief engineer. Buddy is the brother of Bucky Dornster (Bill Dial), who held the same job on the original WKRP, and who appears in a cameo on the revival. John Chappell appeared as Reverend Drinkwater in the "Preacher" episode of the original WKRP.
Carol Bruce	Lillian "Mama" Carlson	1–2 (recurring)	Arthur Carlson's ruthless, domineering mother and the owner of WKRP.
Michael Des Barres	Jack Allen	1	One-half of WKRP's morning team, "Burns & Allen, the Morning Maniacs". Jack's marriage to broadcasting partner Dana Burns is extremely volatile; the two are perpetually on the brink of divorce and constantly spar verbally both on the air and off. Dana does in fact leave Jack partway through season one, and Jack continues at the station as a solo DJ. However, the character stops appearing after the end of season one, and is never referenced again. Des Barres appeared in one episode of the original series as "Dog" of the band "Scum Of The Earth".
Kathleen Garrett	Dana Burns	1	The other half of the "Burns & Allen" morning team, who is both sharp-tongued and feisty. Garret left the series about half-way through the first season, and her character was written out—but she still appeared in the opening credits of every first-season episode.
Wendy Davis	Ronnie Lee	1 (recurring)	The quiet-but-friendly, and efficient receptionist. A fairly minor character, she leaves partway through season 1 to get her master's degree.
Tawny Kitaen	Mona Loveland	1–2	The station's new nighttime DJ, hired by Aderhold, she joins the cast a few episodes in. Beautiful and talented, Mona is also exceptionally intelligent, much like Jennifer Marlowe in the original series. Kitaen left the series before the end of season 2, but is credited in the final five episodes despite her character having been written out.
Katherine Moffatt	Edna Grinbody	1–2 (recurring)	Head of the Cincinnati League Of Decency (CLOD), and an occasional complainant about the station's on-air practices. Often manipulated into serving the station's interests, due to her infatuation with Johnny.
Lightfield Lewis	Arthur Carlson, Jr.	1	Obnoxious, spoiled, proto-yuppie who is brought into WKRP as the new assistant sales manager working under Herb. (Although as he reminds everybody, his grandmother owns the station, so he expects to be moving up the ladder quickly.) Brought in a few episodes into the run, Art Jr. was written out after season 1, though still occasionally referenced. The character was played—as a child—in one episode of the original WKRP by Sparky Marcus.
Marla Jeanette Rubinoff	Nancy Braithwaite	1–2	Nancy is initially seen in a single episode as an attractive, though somewhat ditzy ad rep who is unaccountably lustful for Herb Tarlek. After Ronnie leaves WKRP, Nancy successfully schemes to get Ronnie's old job, mostly so she can continue to try seducing "Herbie". Although initially a recurring player, actress Rubinoff quickly worked her way up to a co-starring role in the opening credits.
French Stewart	Razor D	2	The new morning DJ as of season 2. An eccentric former monk, Razor has almost no radio experience to speak of, but has strong natural talent.

Episodes

Main article: List of The New WKRP in Cincinnati episodes

This is a list of episodes for the television series The New WKRP in Cincinnati.

Series overview

As of this writing, this series has not been released on home media.

Season		Episodes	Premiered:	Ended:
	1	24	September 7, 1991 (1991-09-07)	May 16, 1992 (1992-05-16)
	2	23	September 5, 1992 (1992-09-05)	May 22, 1993 (1993-05-22)

Episodes

• Nº = Overall episode number
• Ep = Episode number by season

Season 1: 1991–92

Nº	Ep	Title	Directed by:	Written by:	Air date
1	1	"How Did We Get Here?"	*	*	September 7, 1991 (1991-09-07)
A clip show of the original WKRP in Cincinnati sets the stage for this new series.
2	2	"Where Are We?: Part 1"	Max Tash	Bill Dial	September 14, 1991 (1991-09-14)
Mr. Carlson gets arrested after the program director swears on the air. He hires a new program director following his release, and learns his mother plans to sell the station.
3	3	"Where Are We Going?: Part 2"	Max Tash	Bill Dial	September 21, 1991 (1991-09-21)
Johnny Fever and Jennifer Marlowe help save the station from threats from the FCC and the Cincinnati League of Decency.
4	4	"Every Move a Work of Art"	Max Tash	Bill Dial	September 28, 1991 (1991-09-28)
Mr. Carlson's son — Arthur Carlson Jr., a.k.a. "Little Big Guy" — comes to work for the station, very much a yuppie. His first deal is with a so-called circus.
5	5	"Then Came Nessman"	Asaad Kelada	Steve Stoliar	October 5, 1991 (1991-10-05)
After a dog bite convinces Les Nessman his death is imminent, he makes a pledge to live each day as if it were his last.
6	6	"Lotto Fever"	Peter Baldwin	Bob Wilcox	October 12, 1991 (1991-10-12)
Herb Tarlek buys a lottery ticket based on numbers that came to him in a dream, but his wife forces him to sell the ticket to "Little Big Guy."
7	7	"The Cincinnati Kids"	Peter Baldwin	Stephen A. Miller	October 19, 1991 (1991-10-19)
Mr. Carlson agrees to a charity poker match with the general manager of WPIG. The only problem: he doesn't know how to play, leaving the staff to school him before the match.
8	8	"Cincinnati's Favorite Couple"	Art Dielhenn	Max Tash	October 26, 1991 (1991-10-26)
When marital problems between Jack and Dana escalate into a food fight at an upscale restaurant, it leaves the staffers to find a way to positively spin the events before they ruin the station.
9	9	"Here Comes Everybody: Part 1"	Asaad Kelada	Richard Chapman, Bill Dial	November 2, 1991 (1991-11-02)
On his way to Chicago, Johnny Fever stops by the station. When word of his visit gets out, it seems a lot of people are looking for him.
10	10	"Here Comes Everybody: Part 2"	Asaad Kelada	Richard Chapman, Bill Dial	November 9, 1991 (1991-11-09)
Johnny has a number of people meet him at the station, and takes money from some to pay off debts to others.
11	11	"The Real Thing"	Frank Bonner	George Geiger	November 16, 1991 (1991-11-16)
A wire report makes Les thinks Cincinnati has come under nuclear attack. While he's not believed, staffers still take pause to reflect on their lives.
12	12	"Good Ole Radio Days"	Max Tash	Craig Nelson	November 23, 1991 (1991-11-23)
After a ratings dip, the station puts on an old-fashioned radio drama to drum up publicity. Meanwhile, Herb is mistaken for a space alien while out on a sales call.
13	13	"Venus, We Hardly Knew Ya"	Max Tash	Max Tash	January 11, 1992 (1992-01-11)
Gordon Simms, now CEO of a large communications company, visits the station, and takes a little piece of his Venus Flytrap alter ego when he leaves.
14	14	"Hip Hop Krp"	Buzz Sapien	Bill Dial	January 18, 1992 (1992-01-18)
Donovan hires some inner city kids as interns. When Claire's computer soon goes missing, suspicion immediately falls upon them.
15	15	"You Are My Sunshine, My Only Sunshine"	Frank Bonner	Gail Honigberg	January 25, 1992 (1992-01-25)
Claire moves in with Mona after a cooking accident, and Claire's boyfriend's eye soon wanders. Mona and Dana conspire to find out just where Gus' heart is.
16	16	"Razor D Rules"	Max Tash	Stephen Nathan	February 1, 1992 (1992-02-01)
With revenue down, Arthur and Donavan have to let go of a DJ — the afternoon's Phil Spindle. He does not take the news well, and barricades himself in the booth for a farewell to the city.
17	17	"Jennifer and the Prince"	Burt Reynolds	Ron Friedman	February 8, 1992 (1992-02-08)
Jennifer Marlowe returns to announce her engagement to a prince, and invites the staff to the party. However, a coup by her fiancé's brother and the suspicions of Herb and Les give her a lot to deal with.
18	18	"Long Live the King"	Max Tash	Marilyn Marko-Sanders, Richard Sanders	February 15, 1992 (1992-02-15)
Les gets a surprise phone call after editorializing against rival WPIG's Elvis lookalike contest: a caller claiming to be Elvis himself, and offering an exclusive interview.
19	19	"Mamma Was a Rolling Stone"	Frank Bonner	Richard Chapman, Bill Dial	February 22, 1992 (1992-02-22)
Trouble follows Johnny Fever on another visit to WKRP, as he deals with his mother and the station deals with a naked DJ and a surprise FCC visit.
20	20	"Number One Fan"	Stephen Rothman	Mark Roberts	February 29, 1992 (1992-02-29)
A woman claiming to be Les' "number one fan" kidnaps him, while Herb unknowingly sells stolen karaoke machines to an undercover cop and gets arrested.
21	21	"Herb's Got a Guy"	Ginger Grigg	Gail Honigberg	April 25, 1992 (1992-04-25)
Mama Carlson sets up a meeting between Herb and Carter Kimball, the owner of 30something Lodges, in an effort to start landing national ad business. However, business isn't the only thing about Herb that interests Mr. Kimball.
22	22	"Chicken a La Russe"	Max Tash	Doug McIntyre	May 2, 1992 (1992-05-02)
A hypnotist accidentally leaves Big Guy thinking he's a chicken upon hearing the word "colonel." A visiting Russian colonel, there to learn of American broadcasting, creates obvious complications.
23	23	"Where's Jack"	Ron Sossi	Bill Dial	May 9, 1992 (1992-05-09)
Mona, alone for her birthday, and Jack, just dumped by Dana, make a connection at surprise party organized by Claire.
24	24	"Spies Like Us"	Jay Broad	Jay Broad	May 16, 1992 (1992-05-16)
The president appoints Donovan to a broadcasting commission, but the FBI must clear him before he can go to Washington.

Season 2: 1992–93

Nº	Ep	Title	Directed by:	Written by:	Air date
25	1	"Donovan, Don't Leave Us"	Asaad Kelada	*	September 5, 1992 (1992-09-05)
A one-hour retrospective to kick-off the second season.
26	2	"Razor's Edge"	Asaad Kelada	Bill Dial	September 12, 1992 (1992-09-12)
After the morning crew leave WKRP, Donovan hires a replacement, Razor D, who is not exactly as he appears.
27	3	"Retreading on Thin Ice"	Asaad Kelada	Gail Honigberg	September 19, 1992 (1992-09-19)
Herb, attempting to land the Sam Bass tires account, sets up the beautiful female sales rep with Donovan, not knowing her husband is Mr. Bass.
28	4	"Sex, Lies & Videotape"	Asaad Kelada	Bob Wilcox	September 26, 1992 (1992-09-26)
On his way to a lunch with Nancy, Herb gets into a traffic accident. The other driver feels Herb was at fault, and sues him and the station.
29	5	"Can't We Get Along?"	Frank Bonner	Bill Dial	October 3, 1992 (1992-10-03)
The station starts airing editorials from Lash Rambo (a thinly veiled fictionalization of real-life conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh), whom many DJs object to. In protest, Razor plays Ice-T's "Cop Killer", making Mr. Carlson decide just how extreme, to either side, the station should be willing to go.
30	6	"Studs of the Airwaves"	Ginger Grigg	Ron Friedman	October 10, 1992 (1992-10-10)
Looking to generate publicity, Herb has a radio version of Studs with Les, Donovan, and Buddy. The winner ends up going on a very surprising date.
31	7	"Nancy in Charge"	Buzz Sapien	Gail Honigberg	October 17, 1992 (1992-10-17)
Nancy's fib about owning WKRP backfires when the advertising executive she told it to decides to visit the station the same day Mama Carlson does.
32	8	"Play Razor for Me"	Stephen Rothman	Bob Wilcox	October 24, 1992 (1992-10-24)
Razor unknowingly dates a woman who works for rival station WPIG, and the staff race to prevent her from uncovering station secrets.
33	9	"Loveland to Look At"	Steve Rothman	Steve Stoliar	October 31, 1992 (1992-10-31)
After Mona agrees to pose nude for Playboy, Mama Carlson demands she be fired if she follows through. This leads Buddy, Razor, and Herb to protest in the lobby.
34	10	"Strange Bedfellows"	Asaad Kelada	Doug McIntyre	November 7, 1992 (1992-11-07)
After an on-air spat with his wife, Arthur temporarily moves into Donovan's place.
35	11	"Moss Dies"	Frank Bonner	Bill Dial	November 14, 1992 (1992-11-14)
After nighttime DJ Moss Steiger dies, the staff carry out his last wishes. Complicating matters is a morgue attendant who claims Moss was Chinese.
36	12	"Flimm Flam Man"	Frank Bonner	Mark Roberts	November 21, 1992 (1992-11-21)
Johnny Fever, taking over the nighttime slot, discovers a map indicating there may be treasure in the Flimm Building. When the staff find the map, a gold rush ensues.
37	13	"Nancy's Old Man"	Howard Hesseman	*	January 16, 1993 (1993-01-16)
When Nancy's salesman father visits, he's not just trying to sell weight-loss products.
38	14	"Herb's Lost Weekend"	Howard Hesseman	*	January 23, 1993 (1993-01-23)
Desperately trying to make a sale so he can vacation with Lucille, Herb's lies come back to haunt him.
39	15	"Murder by Les"	Ginger Grigg	Don Hart	January 30, 1993 (1993-01-30)
Les feels his career is over after two of his talk show guests die.
40	16	"Fever in the Morning"	Asaad Kelada	*	February 6, 1993 (1993-02-06)
Though afraid of heights, Johnny Fever vows to set a time record for broadcasting from a billboard.
41	17	"Fever All Through the Night"	Asaad Kelada	*	February 13, 1993 (1993-02-13)
With two days to go to break the record, Edna makes it difficult for Johnny to stay on the billboard.
42	18	"Johnny Goes Hollywood"	Howard Hesseman	*	February 20, 1993 (1993-02-20)
Johnny Fever sees Hollywood is not what he'd hoped after he's offered his own sitcom about his life at WKRP.
43	19	"Old Boyfriend"	Stephen Rothman	*	February 27, 1993 (1993-02-27)
Nancy believes her ex-boyfriend has returned to propose marriage, and she's right, to a degree.
44	20	"Treasure of Sierra Smith"	Ginger Grigg	*	May 1, 1993 (1993-05-01)
Donovan falls in love with a new deejay who holds him responsible for losing out on signing with an agent.
45	21	"My Fair Nun"	Mykelti Williamson	*	May 8, 1993 (1993-05-08)
Razor D gives some bad habits to a nun-to-be sampling life outside the convent.
46	22	"Chicago Story"	Frank Bonner	*	May 15, 1993 (1993-05-15)
Donovan considers leaving WKRP to follow Sierra to her new job in Chicago.
47	23	"Father of the Groom"	Buzz Sapien	*	May 22, 1993 (1993-05-22)
Herb lets his greed get the better of him when his son and an heiress fall in love.

* Unknown

External links

• The New WKRP in Cincinnati at IMDb
• The New WKRP in Cincinnati at TV.com

Critical reception

Several critics of the show railed against the thought of continuing the original series, and it premiered to a mix of positive and negative reviews. Among the negative reviews from broadcast professionals was the charge that the station, broadcasting on the AM band, was still playing Rock 'n Roll music in the early 1990s, long after FM was established as the industry's leading music band.

The series, contrary to the belief of some, was not canceled due to large monetary losses. Despite the challenges of syndication, which included varying airtimes (sometimes late at night) in various markets, the series was able to operate in the black, but not producing a profit substantial enough for investors to back it financially.

External links

• New WKRP in Cincinnati at IMDb