Les Nessman gets it on

[Dan Druff]

Episodes like this always make me nostalgic, because I met a lot of women over the phone in the '80s and early '90s, and many of them turned out to be crazy, just like Les' girlfriend in the video above.

WKRP was actually highly praised by real radio people, saying that it was a surprisingly accurate portrayal of behind the scenes at radio stations. I know some old school radio people who told me they loved this show. This is unusual, as people tend to dislike entertainment about their line of work, dismissing it as unrealistic and silly. Ask any doctor what he thinks of "Grey's Anatomy". But radio people loved WKRP.

The show itself was based upon real life radio station WQXI in Atlanta.

Can you understand the lyrics to the end song?

If you can, you'll be confused. They don't mean anything.

[Jayjami]

The Thanksgiving episode, where Les describes the Turkey Giveaway ala the Hindenburg Disaster, is one of the funniest sitcom episodes of all time.



FYI, the actor that plays Nessman also sings the opening song on the show.

[herbertstemple]

Episodes like this always make me nostalgic, because I met a lot of women over the phone in the '80s and early '90s, and many of them turned out to be crazy, just like Les' girlfriend in the video above.

WKRP was actually highly praised by real radio people, saying that it was a surprisingly accurate portrayal of behind the scenes at radio stations. I know some old school radio people who told me they loved this show. This is unusual, as people tend to dislike entertainment about their line of work, dismissing it as unrealistic and silly. Ask any doctor what he thinks of "Grey's Anatomy". But radio people loved WKRP.

The show itself was based upon real life radio station WQXI in Atlanta.

Can you understand the lyrics to the end song?

If you can, you'll be confused. They don't mean anything.

I believe in every episode of WKRP Les Nessman was wearing some type of bandage.

[Dan Druff]

Longer version of the turkeys episode (still not the full episode):

[Dan Druff]

Yes, Les Nessman had a band-aid on in every episode, on a different part of his body. It was an inside joke, having something to do with the actor initially hurting himself on set.

While the term "Asperger's Syndrome" didn't exist in the 1970s, the character of Les Nessman shows many strong Asperger's traits. I also wonder if that character influenced the much later character of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory, as they are similar in many ways.

Jan Smithers, who played Bailey Quarters, was hired specifically because she was shy in real life. The creator of the show decided that he didn't like the more experienced actresses playing shy, and wanted an actual shy woman for the part. She got her start on the cover of Newsweek in 1966, in an article about teenagers.



While Loni Anderson's "Jennifer" character was supposed to be the sex symbol, it seems like Smithers' Bailey character stood the test of time much better. Most comments on the Youtube videos gush over Bailey's beauty, while almost none mention Jennifer (other than to compare her unfavorably). I think this is partially because Loni Anderson had more of a dated 1970s/early '80s look, while Smithers' character had a more timeless, low-maintenance look which doesn't get dated nearly as easily.