WKRP in Cincinnati only ran for four seasons on CBS, but the radio station sitcom left a lasting mark. The cult classic ran from 1978 to 1982 and starred Gary Sandy,Gordon Jump,Howard Hesseman, and Loni Anderson.
Despite not airing in over four decades, those famous call letters are still nostalgic for fans today, and now they’re getting a real-life spin-off of the sitcom that put Anderson on the map.
To this day, no Cincinnati broadcaster has used the WKRP call letters for a real radio station, but that is about to change after a low-power Raleigh, North Carolina station put the famous letters on sale and someone in the Cincinnati market purchased them.
Details on the sale are still being kept under wraps.
D.P. McIntire, who runs the media nonprofit behind the auction, told The Associated Press, “I cannot, by contract, tell you when. I cannot tell you who. But I can tell you, direct to the camera, WKRP, after 48 years, is coming to Cincinnati.”
He continued, “Book it! It’s done!”
We’ll have to wait and see what the upcoming real-life WKRP radio station plays, but the fictional version famously converted from “elevator music” to hits of the ’70s and ’80s, including The Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, Foreigner, Steely Dan, Styx, Elvis Presley, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bruce Springsteen, Blondie, and Stevie Wonder.
Unfortunately, many WKRP in Cincinnati stars are not alive to see this.
Jump, who played the Maytag repairman, died on Sep. 22, 2003, at the age of 71 from complications of pulmonary fibrosis. Hesseman, who played Dr. Johnny Fever, died on January 29, 2022, at 81, due to complications from colon surgery. Anderson died on Aug. 3, 2025, at age 79 due to metastatic uterine leiomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer.
This story was originally published by Parade on Apr 5, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.