How was it before WKRP? "Dumb blonde" advice from Steve Allen? How did it feel to ride WKRP's success wave? Is celebrity sometimes too much? What about Burt Reynolds? Decribe your role as Kiki Spelling ... Is Kiki based on Candy Spelling? What's NoTORIous been like so far? Tell us about your charitable work ... What's next for you?

By Brian Bellmont

Loni Anderson is a lot of things, but she's no dumb blonde. An actor, author, mother and grandmother, Anderson skyrocketed to fame in the late '70s as Jennifer Marlowe, the receptionist -- and smartest person on the radio station's payroll -- on WKRP in Cincinnati.

Before she accepted the job, Anderson took a gutsy stand, insisting that the character be fleshed out as more than the stereotypical "blonde receptionist." "It was a tough conversation because I thought I lost the part," Anderson says. "I thought when I said that that they'd say, 'Thank you for coming in, and hopefully we'll consider you for something else next time.' But he went with it."

FIRST QUESTION »

Since making a splash as the bright and sexy Jennifer, Anderson has lived her life in the spotlight, most notably during her highly public marriage -- and divorce -- to Burt Reynolds. Today, the 60-year-old Anderson is back on the small screen, playing Kiki Spelling, a fictionalized version of Tori Spelling's real-life mom, on VH1's new comedy So NoTORIous.

Anderson recently talked with Take 3 about the show, her work to help raise awareness of the disease that led to the death of both her parents, and the invaluable advice she received from two show-biz legends.

TAKE 3: Before WKRP, you guest-starred on a lot of iconic, '70s-era TV shows. What stands out in your mind about those experiences?
Loni:I was a brunette actress for so long. Everybody kept saying that my hair was so dark, that it absorbed all the light, and could I put some streaks in it. And that was the beginning of the hair change. It was kind of gradual, so if you're watching any reruns of Barnaby Jones or S.W.A.T. or Harry O or Police Woman, or all of that stuff that I did, my hair is forever changing until it actually became blonde.

Steve Allen gave you some advice early on. How did that impact your career?
I did lots of radio and many, many roles with the "dumb blonde" voice. And I used it and it was very popular, and I worked a lot because of it. I did a Love Boat and I did that voice. And the crew was cracking up, and I always knew it was a winner, and everybody thought I was so funny. And Steve Allen took me aside and said, "You are so good at that, you must stop." And I said, "Why?" And he said, "Because you'll never do anything else." And he was exactly right.

WKRP was a smash hit. What was it like to ride that wave?
It was incredible. It seemed like it was overnight, even though I'd always worked. Celebrity is totally different from acting. It's just not the same thing at all. It's something you can't get if you want it, and you can't get rid of it if you want to. NEXT »

Have you wanted to get rid of it on occasion?
There have been times for my family's sake, not so much for mine. It just kind of goes with the territory. This is a profession like politics and so few other professions that your family gets sucked into it, and they have to deal with the ramifications of celebrity. And it can be very difficult.

It's not really who you are, and it really isn't real. Who you are is most important, and who the tabloids and the media make you out to be should be another entity that has nothing to do with you.

You certainly saw your share of that when you were married to Burt Reynolds.
Because, of course, when you marry another celebrity, it doesn't just double. It seems to be 10 times as big. And we've seen that happen over and over with celebrities married to one another. It really is a whole different animal.

Tell us about your role as Kiki Spelling.
You get to a point in your career when you have nothing left to prove, and you just want to go and have a good time. You look for a role that's going to be fun and challenging -- for me, comedy's the best. And I also don't want to be responsible for a show anymore. I want to come in and be dazzling and then go off and live my life. It really is the best of all worlds. So I've been looking for that for a while. I read the script, and I told my manager, "This is it. This is my part."

Did you base Kiki on any aspect at all of Candy Spelling, or is this completely an original character?
Only that she's blonde and that she is married to a powerful television producer, and that she lives in a mansion, and that's about as far as it goes. You must know I'm not playing Candy. Kiki is the mother you love to hate. She is the problem for Tori her whole life. But Candy was just too nice, and we all know nice isn't so funny.

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What's the experience been like so far?
Fantastic. Tori Spelling is the cutest, most talented, great, funny -- all unexpected as far as I was concerned. I'd never seen her be so funny. She's smart, together, and seems to be very unaffected by the life she's been raised in. I admire her very much. I've known Tori since she was little, so this seems like coming full circle to me. So NoTORIous is my dream job.

You've been working with some charitable organizations that have a real personal meaning for you.
Recently I've been really involved with COPD, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, caused by smoking, primarily. And both my parents were four-pack-a-day smokers and died before they were 60. There was a whole generation, like my parents' generation of smokers, who didn't know that smoking was bad for you. There a lot of people, the baby boomers especially, coming into chronic bronchitis, emphysema and lung cancer.

You want to be there for your grandchildren, and you want to influence their behavior. So if you stop smoking, it's the kindest thing you can do for yourself - and everybody else.

What's next for you?
I have a 17-year-old who I'm going to be getting into college. That's a big, big deal. My charity work. My kids, my grandkids, and work -- I seem to never have a second, and I like it that way. I learned from Bob Hope early on when I used to do all of his specials, never retire. Always keep busy and do what you love.