Burt Reynolds’ ex-wife and 80s actress Loni Anderson dies aged 79 after ‘prolonged’ illness
The WRKP in Cincinnati actress Loni Anderson has died aged 79 after an illness, her family has confirmed in a statement.
The 80s TV star played shrewd radio station receptionist Jennifer Marlowe in the popular sitcom, which ran from 1978 to 1982.
The two-time Emmy nominee died on Sunday, just days before the 80th birthday, in a Los Angeles hospital following an ‘acute prolonged illness’, her longtime publicist Cheryl J Kagan has said.
‘We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our dear wife, mother and grandmother,’ Anderson’s family said in a statement.
Anderson starred in the CBS show WRKP in Cincinnati, which focuses on a lagging Ohio radio station hoping to reinvent itself with rock music, alongside Gary Sandy, Tim Reid, Howard Hesseman, Frank Bonner and Jan Smithers.
Anderson’s character Jennifer was often the only thing holding the place together, as her efficiency combated the inefficiency from other corners of WRKP.
Anderson also teamed up with Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter in the television series Partners in Crime. As well as WKRP in Cincinnati, Anderson also appeared in S.W.A.T., Police Woman and Barnaby Jones and Phyllis.
The 80s star, who earned three Golden Globe nominations for her sitcom role, also made headlines for her fairytale marriage to Burt Reynolds in 1988, when she was 41 and he was 52.
During the ceremony, Reynolds presented Anderson with a seven-carat ring he had designed, which People magazine featured in its cover story of the wedding and described as a ‘canary yellow diamond surrounded by smaller white diamonds’.
The pair grew close while filming the 1983 comedy Stroker Ace, in which Anderson played the Sunday school teacher Pembrook Feeny, while Reynolds was a Nascar driver. However, the romance ended in an acrimonious divorce in 1994.
Anderson was married four times in total, to Bruce Hasselberg, Ross Bickell, Reynolds and then to Bob Flick, who she married in 2008.
The late actress is survived by Flick, as well as her daughter Deidra, son Quinton Anderson Reynolds and stepson Adam Flick, as well as two grandchildren and two step-grandchildren.
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