DVD Review: WKRP In Cincinnati: The Complete Series

WKRP In Cincinnati was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid. It was one of those rare shows that my parents loved just as much as I did, and so we’d watch it together. For years I’d been hoping that it would be released on DVD. The first season was released on DVD several years ago, but without the appropriate music, and with scenes cut out, so I didn’t bother with it. Now Shout! Factory has released with complete series, with most of the original music intact. It contains all four seasons on twelve discs, plus a thirteenth disc of bonus material.

For those who are unfamiliar with the show, it is about a poorly rated radio station that hires a new program director who then changes the format to rock and roll. It stars Gary Sandy as Andy Travis, the program director who makes the change, and Gordon Jump as Arthur Carlson, the manager of the station. Joining them are Loni Anderson as Jennifer Marlowe, the gorgeous and wise receptionist; Richard Sanders as Les Nessman, the less-than-competent news director of the station who has an affection for hogs; Frank Bonner as Herb Tarlek, the less-than-competent sales manager with a distinct fashion sense; Jan Smithers as Bailey Quarters, the gung-ho and intelligent newcomer; Tim Reid as Venus Flytrap, the new night-time DJ hired by Travis; and Howard Hesseman as Dr. Johnny Fever, the DJ who has been fired from every other station and has trouble staying awake.

The two-part pilot has the entire radio dial introduction before the opening credits start (which was cut when the show was in re-runs). Andy Travis, the new program director, arrives to help the station, but Arthur Carlson at first doesn’t remember hiring him, then worries about his mother’s wrath upon learning that Andy is planning to change the stations format to rock and roll. (By the way, Mrs. Carlson is played by Sylvia Sidney in the pilot; she’d later be played by Carol Bruce.) Johnny Fever is bloody hilarious, and has us all shouting, “Give it to me straight, doctor, I can take it!” Johnny often has the best lines, as in the second part of the pilot he says: “I try not to have any ideas. They only lead to complications.” The writing is one of this show’s many strengths. A listener (played by Richard Stahl) complains about the new format: “We’re a determined fringe element that cannot be counted upon to do the sensible thing.” He demands an on-air apology to Lawrence Welk. (The DVD includes the little promo spot before the ad break.)

There is a lot of great humor in this series. Like the moment in “I Want To Keep My Baby” when Johnny Fever plays a record at the wrong speed. He quickly catches it, and starts the record over at the correct speed, saying, “And now, the long version.” The series’ goofy episode “Fish Story” has some seriously funny moments, and Venus Flytrap is particularly funny, as when, after several drinks, he says: “On the air? I am the air.” Some lines just really stand out, like when Johnny says to Herb, “Aren’t you ashamed having the ethics of a fungus?” Or in “Three Days Of The Condo,” when he says: “You know, I’m touched. I always have been.” And of course in “Up And Down The Dial,” when, upon looking at the ratings book, Johnny exclaims, “Wow, look what I’m doing with teenage boys!” There is also some funny drug humor, like in “Baseball” when Johnny Fever tests the first baseline to see if it’s cocaine.

The show is terribly funny, but also touches on some serious issues, and does so with intelligence and heart, and even guts. On “Les On A Ledge,” the show addresses prejudice and homophobia. Johnny tells Herb that Jennifer is a transsexual in an effort to get him to stop hitting on her. Meanwhile Les is barred from the locker room after a player believes he’s gay. It’s handled well, especially considering this was the 1970s. (This episode also includes the promo spot before the commercial, in which Jennifer says, “This is Jennifer, reminding you not to touch that dial…or anything else.”) And in “Who Is Gordon Sims,” Venus tells the story behind his desertion of the army during the Vietnam war. The show touches on sexism in the episode “Bailey’s Big Break,” and shady photographers in the hour-long “Filthy Pictures.” And of course there is that excellent episode about that Who concert where kids lost their lives. I also appreciate the episode against automated radio programming, as well as the episode on Armistice Day (specifically about calling it Armistice Day rather than Veterans Day).

But of course this show is about the music. You’ll hear music by Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, The Doors, Supertramp, Bob Marley, and the Grateful Dead. In the episode “A Date With Jennifer,” Johnny plays “Shakedown Street,” introducing it by saying, “Here’s some more good news from an always-reliable source; it’s the Grateful Dead.” And you can see Johnny holding the record cover. Grateful Dead fans, if you have a quick eye, you’ll also catch Johnny Fever holding a copy of “Steal Your Face” in the episode “Les On A Ledge.” That record is also in “Turkeys Away” and “The Airplane Show,” and in the fourth season a Steal Your Face logo is attached to the microphone arm. In the episode “Never Leave Me, Lucille,” Andy holds a copy of “Skeletons From The Closet.” It’s also fun looking at all the posters that decorate the offices and DJ booth in the background. They change from episode to episode, but include Devo, Emmylou Harris, ELO, Blondie, The Pretenders, Queen, The Clash and Oingo Boingo.

A few episodes worth mentioning:

“Turkeys Away” – Mr. Carlson wants to be more involved in the day-to-day activities of the station, and comes up with a Thanksgiving promotion that involves tossing live turkeys out of a helicopter. Les is bloody hilarious as he reports the carnage. “The turkeys are hitting the ground like sacks of wet cement.”

“A Date With Jennifer” – Richard Sanders co-wrote this episode, in which we see for the first time the tape on the floor marking where Les Nessman’s walls should be. It also features a hilarious moment when Les gets dressed for his date while “Hot Blooded” plays.

“The Contest Nobody Could Win” – When Johnny accidentally reads a fifty dollar contest as a five thousand dollar contest, the gang decides to create a contest so difficult that no one can win it. But the second contestant wins it anyway. Mr. Carlson likens this error to the Reds losing Pete Rose. He says to Johnny at one point: “Well, nobody’s perfect. You’re not perfect, I’m not perfect. Jennifer maybe, but nobody else.” This was always one of my favorite episodes, but the ending is not as I recall it. I remember Johnny going to the car with the fake winner and returning with the money, saying that guy knew nothing about music. And it was Vincent Schiavelli in that role. The version here has a different ending, with a different actor. Where did this other ending come from?

“A Commercial Break” – This is another of my favorite episodes, in which a funeral chain store wishes to advertise on WKRP. Fred Stuthman is fantastic as Mr. Ferryman. I love the shot of him dancing to the jingle in the booth.

“The Doctor’s Daughter” – This episode is about Johnny’s 19-year-old daughter getting back in touch with him. It opens with a funny scene where Travis tries to get Johnny to play at least one song from the top 40, or at least “Play a part of one of the songs off the play list… if you want to talk more about this, I’ll be in my office playing with a loaded revolver.” Later, when Johnny pretends he intends to play a hit, but then says he’s out of time, Andy says, “I laughed so hard I dropped by gun.” Frank Bonner directed this episode.

“Clean Up Radio Everywhere” – This is an excellent episode dealing with the issue of censorship. A religious nut comes to the station to persuade Arthur Carlson to ban certain songs from airplay. Andy Travis points out: “That man did not come in and say, ‘We don’t like this music, so we’re not going to listen to your station anymore.’ What he said was, ‘We don’t like this music, we don’t want other people to listen to it anymore.’” And Les is hilarious, particularly when he says: “So as you can see, I’m a very confused man. And when I get confused, I watch TV. Television is never confusing.” This episode also features a great use of John Lennon’s “Imagine.”

“Jennifer’s Home For Christmas” – By federal law, all sitcoms have to have a Christmas episode. So WKRP has its own, but it’s a good one. The opening scene has Johnny Fever wearing ear plugs while playing a Christmas song. Perfect! And when he back-announces, he says: “Okay, babies, I don’t get it either, but somebody out there likes it. So we’ll just keep shoveling through the seasonal syrup here for a few more days. Not too much time left of this good cheer and bad music.” Johnny later touches on another of the myriad problems with the holiday when he says, “In the spirit of Christmas, we killed a tree for you.” This episode also features Venus playing Chuck Berry’s rendition of “Merry Christmas Baby” and a great guest appearance by George Gaynes as one of Jennifer’s admirers.

As good as that episode is, the following season the series sadly resorts to the more typical Christmas Carol episode, with Arthur Carlson in the role of Scrooge. The only other real misstep is “Mama’s Review.” The series was only nine episodes in at that point, and already resorted to a clips episode. However, this episode is important as it’s when Carol Bruce replaces Sylvia Sidney as Mrs. Carlson. One other issue: there is a very weird moment at the beginning of the first episode of the second season, when we hear someone else introducing himself as Venus Flytrap.

This show has some wonderful supporting players, including Edie McClurg as Herb’s wife (Most people associate her with her great performance as Grace in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off). Hoyt Axton appears as an old friend of Jennifer’s in “I Do, I Do… For Now.” And Ian Wolfe is absolutely perfect as Mrs. Carlson’s butler.

Special Features

This box set includes a DVD of bonus features. The first, Baby, If You’ve Ever Wondered: WKRP In Cincinnati Reunion, is a panel discussion of the show featuring series creator Hugh Wilson, Jay Sandrich (who directed the pilot), Asaad Kalada (series director), and cast members Loni Anderson, Tim Reid, Jan Smithers and Howard Hesseman. Cast member Gary Sandy also joins them by phone. There are a lot of wonderful anecdotes here, including one about the banner for the Scum of the Earth episode. Howard Hesseman talks about his own radio experience, and the panel discusses the episode about the Who concert. The panel is moderated by Jim Ladd. This feature is approximately forty-four minutes.

A Look Back At WKRP In Cincinnati With Gary Sandy is an interview with Gary Sandy, in which he talks about his character, his fellow cast members, series creator Hugh Wilson, and about the writing. There is some interesting information on the way the show was shot, and about Gary Sandy being a big baseball fan. This feature is approximately twenty-five minutes.

Do My Eyes Say Yes is a short feature about the character of Jennifer Marlowe, featuring interviews with series creator Hugh Wilson and cast members Loni Anderson, Frank Bonner and Tim Reid. A “Fish Story”…Story is a short feature about the episode titled “Fish Story,” and how it came about, and about the writing credit on that episode. It features interviews with the same folks interviewed for Do My Eyes Say Yes.

WKRP In Cincinnati: The Complete Series was released on October 28, 2014 through Shout! Factory.