[QUOTE=hlanelee]
And I can’t resist calling the little dogs chi-hooa-hooas 
[/QUOTE]
And the giant lizard approaching the east coast.
“Les, that’s Blizzard, not lizard. The B key is broken on the teletype.”
Priceless.
In my top 5 to 10 along with The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Tyler Moore, The Bob Newhart Show and MASH. I’ll have to think about the others.
[QUOTE=blueserge]
IIRC, during the first season the opening credits rolled over the sound of someone moving up and down the radio dial and settling on different stations for just a few seconds. It’s a vague memory, but the schtick was pretty funny. I think the song (“Baby, if you ever wondered. . .”) came in the second year.
[/QUOTE]
It did open with sound of it going up and down the dial. One brief stop was something about “…and the senator couldn’t explain” from there I forget the rest of the words but it had something to do with being naked. After that snippet it moved on to another station playing "Baby,if you ever wondered…"sounding like it was being broadcast on AM radio. After a few notes, it transitioned to the untinny sound for the balance of the song.
Why, yes, I DID love WKRP. Why do you ask? 
[QUOTE=PastAllReason]
It did open with sound of it going up and down the dial. One brief stop was something about “…and the senator couldn’t explain” from there I forget the rest of the words but it had something to do with being naked.
[/QUOTE]
“…while insisting he was not intoxicated, the Senator could not explain his nudity…”
The show was full of little bits where the timing was absolutely perfect. I still remember the Jury Duty episode.
“Ask Dog about his musical training.”
“All right, Dog. Tell me about your musical training.”
“I have none.”
“It’s the phone cops!!”
“That’s it for him then!”
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic]
“…while insisting he was not intoxicated, the Senator could not explain his nudity…”
[/QUOTE]
Thanks for saving me from having to wake up at 3 in the morning remembering that quote was (being the time that these things usually come back to me).
[QUOTE=blueserge]
And every guitar player I know loves that closing kick-out jam that is not identified, but I think they used it throughout the show’s run.
[/QUOTE]
This site is loaded with wav files, including opening and closing themes, with info.
http://www.littleshopofvoices.com/wkrpwavs.html
Like fishbicycle I was a radio guy, and I love WKRP with the same passion I loved my first girlfirend.
That said, it’s not in my Top 10 list.
On the one hand, it had brilliant individual bits, and the “Turkeys Away” episode ranks right up with the final episode of Newhart and the “Chuckles Bites the Dust” episode of Mary Tyler Moore as a classic.
On the other hand, it could be preachy and heavy-handed, Jennifer was a caricature and Herb wasn’t much better, the original conflict between Carlson and Travis was forgotten and Johnny Fever, like Fonzie, became so popular that the show got thrown out of balance.
It never got so bad that it jumped the shark, and it’s definitely one of my Top 15 of all time. But it falls just short of great.
[QUOTE=kunilou]
Jennifer was a caricature
[/QUOTE]
Uh, no. Jennifer was almost always the smartest person in the room! Loni Anderson insisted on that, after having been informed that the character was envisioned as the stereotypical dumb blonde.
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic]
“…while insisting he was not intoxicated, the Senator could not explain his nudity…”
[/QUOTE]
And my favorite: “Genuine plastic—accept no substitutes!”
“Chiy Chiy Rod-Rih-Gwaze.”
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher]
Uh, no. Jennifer was almost always the smartest person in the room! Loni Anderson insisted on that, after having been informed that the character was envisioned as the stereotypical dumb blonde.
[/QUOTE]
“Herb I looked up executrix. It has nothing to do with leather.”
Has anyone ever ordered from here?
link removed
Just wondering…
[QUOTE=Poysyn]
Has anyone ever ordered from here?
<< Link to bootleg vendor site >>
[/QUOTE]
Unfortunately, those are bootlegs and quite illegal. I wouldn’t go around promoting them, lest The Straight Dope be accused of perpetuating a criminal act.
Me, just now. Ought to get here in a week or so. I’ll subscribe to this thread and let everybody know what I get.
[QUOTE=bup]
Welcome to a club that includes about a billion guys. Let me show you around the place.
[/QUOTE]
::sniff:: And I promised myself I wasn’t going to cry ::
My favorite episodes:
“As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly”.
The sobriety test. To the trooper’s consternation, Johnny Fever’s reaction time gets faster as he drinks. Until he walks out of the booth and sees a giant pink pig - the WPIG mascot.
A serious episode - the WHO concert disaster, which actually happened. I remember when the episode went on the air the first time, and it was right after it happened. It took a lot of guts to make a sitcom half hour out of it.
[QUOTE=JThunder]
Unfortunately, those are bootlegs and quite illegal. I wouldn’t go around promoting them, lest The Straight Dope be accused of perpetuating a criminal act.
[/QUOTE]
That’s why I asked, thanks!
[QUOTE=Sam Stone]
the WPIG mascot
[/QUOTE]
[Arthur Carlson]Those swine![/AC]
I can’t tell you how many times in my life I’ve been tempted to set up a tape-line office for myself.