WKRP in Cincinnati - General Discussion

[Aethera]

This topic replaces the old WKRP in Cincinnati forum which has been vaulted at the location below:

http://forums.previously.tv/forum/687-wkrp-in-cincinnati-v/

[Driad]

Article about the real world inspiration for the turkey drop.

[Driad]

"The Airplane Show"
Bailey: [about a WKRP stunt to help save Les's life] I bet all the other stations could help.
Herb: Why should they?
Bailey: Well, if you were in competition with us, would you want us to lose Les?

[ottoDbusdriver]

Interesting tidbit I never knew -- that there were 2 endings filmed for the Season 1 episode "The Contest Nobody Could Ever Win"

The episode that I originally saw on TV was the one where Johnny retrieved the briefcase full of money from the fake Donald Pasola, and then the second ending in which the fake Donald Pasola (played by a completely different actor) got away with the money.  In the second ending there's also a completely different end scene where Johnny created a commercial that he plays between songs for the Donald Pasola repayment fund.

[Driad]

Les Nessman, is that you?  https://oddstuffmagazine.com/funny-pictures-april-7-2019.html/lizzard-warning

[AriAu]

Quote

Les Nessman, is that you?  https://oddstuffmagazine.com/funny-pictures-april-7-2019.html/lizzard-warning

"More News and Les Nessman"

[annzeepark914]

Jennifer to Venus as he walks in the door for a job interview at WKRP:  "Are you Earth, Wind or Fire"?

[FormerMod-a1]

Turkey's Away is airing on MeTV today!  at 6:30 central

[catlover79]

The perfect hilarious Thanksgiving episode, along with Bob Newhart's "Over the River and Through the Woods"!!! 😂🦃

[my tiffany]

Saw Turkey's Away again yesterday.   It never gets old.   So many great moments (besides the most famous) -'get in line', 'casually dressed people', 'would you like me to get you a cup of coffee?'  Classic, classic television.

[DXD526]

I saw it again yesterday, too, and it really does stand the test of time. I can't count the number of times I've seen it over the years, and I still laugh. 

"The crowd is...curious..."

"The turkeys are hitting the ground like sacks of wet cement!" 

[FormerMod-a1]

It is such a classic and it's only their 7th episode - ever!  They came out of the gate running, apparently.  The episode never gets old, imo.  From the reactions in the booth as Les is reporting, to the Big Guy and Herb coming in all ruffled, to just...  everything.  

[Annber03]

2 hours ago, aquarian1 said:

From the reactions in the booth as Les is reporting

I love the moment when Les is reading out the banner ("Happy...Thanks...giving...from...") and they're all gesturing like, "Come on....". And then Johnny sarcastically pumping his fists in the air when Les finally reads out the whole thing :D. 

[Moose135]

As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Edited November 26, 2020 by Moose135

[readster]

On 11/24/2020 at 2:00 PM, aquarian1 said:

It is such a classic and it's only their 7th episode - ever!  They came out of the gate running, apparently.  The episode never gets old, imo.  From the reactions in the booth as Les is reporting, to the Big Guy and Herb coming in all ruffled, to just...  everything.  

I know, I saw the episode when I was little in early syndication, but WKRP was one of the shows where they got it right from the start. The cast gelled perfectly, the writing was there. It's stood the test of time. 

[Annber03]

Another great moment in the turkey episode is when Johnny's telling Venus about that story with Carlson sending those blonde wigs to the earthquake victims in Guatemala XD. 

[giovannif7]

R.I.P. Frank Bonner 😥😥😥

 

[possibilities]

I just finally am watching this show for the first time. I love it. I'm laughing so hard, so often! I'm not 100% sure why I find it so funny, but at least part of it is the acting the team does with just their faces. It doesn't look ridiculous (like Jim Carrey's stretchy facial expressions)but it's somehow just the right degree of expressive to make the moment. 

[annzeepark914]

I loved the Xmas dinner party which Herb's wife attends. I loved all the episodes. Herb Tarlek was my favorite. But I also loved Les forever "opening" the invisible door to his longed for office. And how Jennifer greeted Venus Flytrap when he showed up for his interview. I guess all the great TV show writers retired because there doesn't seem to be quality writing of scripts any more, at least IMO.

[SanDiegoInExile]

A good hour-long interview with the creator:

https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/interviews/hugh-wilson

WKRP begins at 0:30 minutes.

Edited December 29, 2022 by SanDiegoInExile

[possibilities]

That's an interesting interview. The problems with music rights explains why it's so hard to find these days, compared to other shows of equal age and popularity.

I'm noticing that Les often has a bandage on his hand, finger, head, arm. It's a different one each episode, and the injury is rarely explained. It's small things like this which make the show extra funny to me. They are filling the show with sight gags and other things that they don't draw attention to, but if you're watching, it draws you in. 

[Moose135]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

I'm noticing that Les often has a bandage on his hand, finger, head, arm. It's a different one each episode, and the injury is rarely explained.

If I remember, when they filmed the pilot, Richard Sanders had some small injury covered with a bandage, and forgot to take it off before shooting. He (or they) decided to make it a Les thing, and he usually had a bandage on some body part in every episode.

[PhoneCop]

On 12/28/2022 at 4:05 PM, annzeepark914 said:

I loved the Xmas dinner party which Herb's wife attends. I loved all the episodes. Herb Tarlek was my favorite. But I also loved Les forever "opening" the invisible door to his longed for office. And how Jennifer greeted Venus Flytrap when he showed up for his interview. I guess all the great TV show writers retired because there doesn't seem to be quality writing of scripts any more, at least IMO.

Lucille left such an impression that it's kind of crazy that in four seasons, Edie McClurg only made three appearances—Johnny's goodbye party, the one where Lucille and Herb separate ("I had impure thoughts at the kiln!"), and Real Families. The show burning an episode on Sparky Anderson instead of bringing back Lucille for another go-around was certainly a choice.

Speaking of supporting players, I love Carol Bruce as Mama Carlson. Lillian was so smart, formidable, and ruthless, yet not wholly unlikable, which is a tough line to walk but Bruce did it well. The show really lucked out with Sylvia Sydney not continuing in the role after the pilot.

[annzeepark914]

One of my favorite memories is of Dr. Johnny Fever quitting...and then coming back to the station, needing a job. The only slot available was at the crack of dawn (or earlier). His new (self created) name was Heavy Early and he could barely keep his eyes open.  I often think of that episode with Johnny trying to stay awake, and experience an inner chuckle 😊.

[giovannif7]

I remember absolutely loving the final epsiode of Season 4 as it aired, when Johnny (of all people) figures out Mother Carlson's scam of changing the format just as WKRP was starting to make money, in order to keep the station operating at a loss for tax purposes. Having Fever hold that revelation over Mother Carlson's head in front of a clueless Big Guy, forcing her to back down and maintain the rock format, was a genius move that shifted the power dynamics between the characters. I was gutted when I later heard the show had been cancelled, as it meant we'd never get to see how Johnny might further use that leverage to benefit the station.

 

Edited December 30, 2022 by giovannif7

[possibilities]

17 hours ago, Moose135 said:

If I remember, when they filmed the pilot, Richard Sanders had some small injury covered with a bandage, and forgot to take it off before shooting. He (or they) decided to make it a Les thing, and he usually had a bandage on some body part in every episode.

There's one episode where they've put a taped X on his bald spot.

[suprfrog]

"Before the first day of shooting, Richard Sanders bumped his head and cut himself. Because it was right before shooting, he had to wear a bandage for the show. It was decided that the bandage would be a running gag with the character that he would have a visible bandage on some part of his body."

Not sure where I found the "cut his finger" info that I put on the back of the card. <shrug>

[PhoneCop]

17 hours ago, giovannif7 said:

I remember absolutely loving the final epsiode of Season 4 as it aired, when Johnny (of all people) figures out Mother Carlson's scam of changing the format just as WKRP was starting to make money, in order to keep the station operating at a loss for tax purposes. Having Fever hold that revelation over Mother Carlson's head in front of a clueless Big Guy, forcing her to back down and maintain the rock format, was a genius move that shifted the power dynamics between the characters. I was gutted when I later heard the show had been cancelled, as it meant we'd never get to see how Johnny might further use that leverage to benefit the station.

 

I guess they knew it might be the end of the road, so they wrote a season finale that could also function as a series finale. Which I think it does well. But yeah, I've always wondered what a fifth season might've been like. Would the station's ratings trajectory have changed? Would Les' McCarthy-era Commie paranoia have evolved into Reagan-era Evil Empire rhetoric? Would Herb finally update his wardr...okay, not that one. 

Besides another round of Lucille, they could've brought back Michael Pataki and Michael Fairman, each playing their third character on the show. And Sam Anderson as his fifth. 

[Rose Quartz]

4 hours ago, PhoneCop said:

I guess they knew it might be the end of the road, so they wrote a season finale that could also function as a series finale. Which I think it does well. But yeah, I've always wondered what a fifth season might've been like. Would the station's ratings trajectory have changed?

I really liked how the station's ratings gradually improved over the show's four seasons.  I especially liked Johnny's arc and how he went from thinking he was too old and washed up to ever be a rock and roll DJ again in the pilot to becoming the station's most popular DJ and then the top morning DJ in the city by the final episode.  Since there was an earlier storyline where Johnny left the station due to his new-found popularity, it would have been interesting to see what he did next, especially since as @giovannif7 pointed out, he was instrumental in forcing Mrs. Carlson to continue the rock and roll format.

[Mrs. Stanwyck]

My post-college niece is visiting and I made some comment about the Thanksgiving episode and she looked puzzled and I found out she had never even heard of WKRP.  We promptly pulled out the DVDs and watched the Pilot Parts 1 &2 and then the Thanksgiving episode.  She was hooked and we've been watching other episodes.  We just watched The Contest Nobody Could Win and I was shocked to find out that episode has an alternate ending.  I always remember it ending with Johnny walking into the lobby with the stolen briefcase but the DVD ended with Johnny borrowing money from Venus and talking about his wages being garnished to pay back the money.  I think I like the alternate ended better. 

Edited to add:  after I posted, I just scrolled up and read some of the older posts and I see someone mentioned the alternate ending in 2019.

I'm having so much fun re-watching with someone who hasn't seen the show before!

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by Mrs. Stanwyck

[Driad]

The turkey drop episode was based on a real incident.  (Scroll down to number 6 or search for WKRP.)

[mammaM]

As god is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly

Happy turkey all everyone 😂💗😎