If you ever wondered ...

Wondered, whatever became of me
I'm livin' on the air in Cincinnati
Cincinnati WKRP ...

A special treat came in the mail this week: the first season of WKRP in Cincinnati, one of the best TV comedies ever. It was supposed to be a Mother's Day present, but I think now it's more of an early birthday present. But that's fine. It's been fun to watch this week and see how well it's held up over almost 30 years. There are references you'll miss if you don't remember the 70s, but most of the humor is related to the characters and the situation and it's still funny to see Les Nessman broadcast live as the Pinedale Shopping Mall is bombed with live turkeys, or get ready for his date with Jennifer, or any of the other great moments from that season. The cast truly was an ensemble and it's fun to watch.


And here's a bit of trivia for you: Gordon Jump, who played Arthur Carlson, was a K-State grad and worked on the campus radio station in the late 1950s.

In the fall of 1999 (I think), Mr. Jump spoke at the Kansas Association of Broadcasters meeting when it was in Manhattan (home of K-State), so he visited the school of journalism and had lunch with some of the faculty and students in the Bluemont Room. (I was working in the school of journalism at the time.) Mr. Jump is on the front row, on the left and I'm the woman in the blue dress in front. He was a very interesting and nice man and seemed to feel he'd been blessed to have the life he did. At the time, he was still doing the Maytag commercials and enjoyed it. He died a few years ago, so it's neat to have had the chance to meet him.