CINCINNATI (AP) — The legendary WKRP call letters have made their way from television fiction to radio reality in Cincinnati as of this Monday.
Co-owner Jeff Ziesmann reports that listeners are thrilled about the station’s adoption of the famous call letters from the beloved CBS comedy series, just in time for Monday’s morning commute programming.
“Our phones have been mobbed this morning, as I’m sure you can imagine,” Ziesmann said.
The WKRP identifier now covers three broadcasting locations across Cincinnati, northern Kentucky and Dayton, Ohio, which all share the same programming through simulcasting. These stations will maintain their existing adult-hits music format featuring songs from the 1960s through 1980s with a special focus on 1970s hits, previously known under “The Oasis” branding.
Station ownership secured these call letters through a charitable contribution to a North Carolina nonprofit organization that had held the WKRP designation since 2014 for their low-power radio operation. According to Ziesmann, federal broadcasting rules allow his full-power station to use identical call letters because the North Carolina WKRP-LP operates under different regulatory classifications.
Ziesmann clarified that the nonprofit contribution wasn’t a direct transaction for the call letters themselves, but rather purchased the opportunity to petition the FCC for those call letters with the North Carolina organization’s support.
The original “WKRP in Cincinnati” television series aired from 1978 through 1982, featuring stars like Loni Anderson, Howard Hesseman, Tim Reid and Richard Sanders, who portrayed the hapless news reporter Les Nessman.
Sanders responded to the news in character, writing via email: “I have spoken with Les Nessman regarding the resurrection of WKRP in Cincinnati. After the failure of his dream to replace Walter Cronkite on the CBS evening news, he is hopeful that he can resume his duties as the News, Sports, Weather, Traffic, and Farm Report Director at WKRP.”
“I think we can all hope that WKRP will return to the airwaves with more music and Les Nessman,” Sanders added, referencing a beloved catchphrase from the comedy series.
