LOS ANGELES (AP) — Loni Anderson, who played a struggling radio station’s empowered receptionist on the hit TV comedy “WKRP in Cincinnati,” died Sunday, just days before her 80th birthday. Anderson died at a Los Angeles hospital following a prolonged illness, said her longtime publicist, Cheryl J. Kagan.

Loni Anderson rose to fame for refusing to portray the stereotypical "dumb blonde" character on the sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati."

Loni Anderson, best known for her role as receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on '70s and '80s sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati," has died at age 79.