Loni Anderson Bio, Career, Net Worth
Who is Loni Anderson?
Loni Anderson is a renowned American actress. Known for her portrayal of Jennifer Marlowe on the CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, Loni Anderson made her acting debut in the 1966 film Nevada Smith. Anderson is a three-time Golden Globe Awards-nominated and a two-time Emmy Award-nominated actress.
Quick Facts
| Full Name | Loni Kaye Anderson |
| Also Known As | Loni Anderson |
| Birthday | August 5, 1945 |
| Sun sign | Leo |
| Age | 78 years old |
| Traits | Positive – Ambitious, generous, and creative Negative- Arrogant, lazy, and stubborn |
| Birthplace | Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Religion | Christian |
| Ethnicity | Swedish, Norwegian, German, English, and Scottish |
| Gender | Female |
| Sexual Orientation | Straight |
| Height | 5 feet 6 inches |
| Eyes | Hazel |
| Measurements | 37-25-35 inches |
| Hair | Blonde |
| University | University of Minnesota |
| Parents | Klaydon Carl “Andy” Anderson (father) Maxine Hazel (mother) |
| Siblings | Andrea Sams (sister) |
| Marital status | Married |
| Husband’s Name | Bob Flick |
| Children | Deidra Hoffman (daughter) Quinton Anderson Reynolds (son) |
| Profession | Actress |
| Net Worth | USD 12 million |
| Currently living in | Los Angeles, California, USA |
Fun Facts
- Loni Anderson, who is known for her signature blonde hair, was actually born with jet black hair. She later dyed her hair blonde after relocating to Los Angeles in order to become an actress.
- Anderson has been married four times. The actress is currently married to musician Bob Flick.
- Loni Anderson got married to Hollywood actor Burt Reynolds in 1988. The couple divorced in 1994 and their lengthy divorce battle gained the focus of the American media. Their divorce is considered one of the nastiest divorces in Hollywood.
- In 2014, Loni auctioned off everything that her ex-husband Burt Reynolds had given her including a risqué nude portrait of herself named ‘Loni In The Sky With Diamonds.’
- Originally, Loni’s father had considered naming her Leiloni but he decided to simply name her Loni after realizing that her friends would probably twist the name into “Lay Loni” in her teenage years.
- Her autobiography, My Life in High Heels, was published in 1997.
Loni Anderson Bio/wiki
Birthday and Personality Traits
Loni Anderson was born on August 5, 1945. She was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
Since Loni was born on August 5, her sun sign is Leo. People having this sign are known for their ambitious, generous, and creative nature. However, they also tend to be arrogant, stubborn, and lazy.
Loni Anderson Nationality, Religion, and Ethnicity
Loni Anderson is an American. However, she has Swedish, Norwegian, German, English, and Scottish roots. Likewise, when it comes to religion, Loni is a Christian.
Loni Anderson Height, Measurements, and Appearance
Loni Anderson stands tall at the height of 5 feet and 6 inches. The Hollywood diva is known for her hazel-colored eyes and signature blonde hair.
Her measurements are 37-25-35 inches. Likewise, her shoe size is 8 (US), and her dress size is 2 (US).
Educational Background
Loni Anderson attended Alexander Ramsey Senior High School, located in Roseville, Minnesota. She was pretty popular in school. Loni was voted the Valentine Queen of the Valentine’s Day Winter Formal of 1963 during her senior year of high school.
Following her high school graduation, Loni joined the University of Minnesota, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree. During this time, she participated in several beauty contests, which she also won.
Loni Anderson Early Life and Parents
Loni Anderson was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. Her full name is Loni Kaye Anderson. She is the daughter of Klaydon Carl “Andy” Anderson and Maxine Hazel.
Loni’s father Klaydon Carl “Andy” Anderson, was an environmental chemist. Her mother, Maxine Hazel, was a model. Loni has a sister named Andrea Sams when it comes to siblings.
Andy and Maxine raised Loni in suburban Roseville, Minnesota. Even though Anderson is known for her blonde locks, she was born with jet black hair.
Likewise, her father initially considered naming her Leiloni. However, upon realizing that in her teen years, her peers would probably twist the name into “Lay Loni,” he decided to name her Loni simply.
Loni Anderson Relationships and Dating History
Loni Anderson is not only famous for her successful acting career and her Hollywood femme fatale image, but the actress is also equally famous for her colorful personal life and romantic relationships.
Bruce Donald Hasselberg
Before stepping into the world of glitz and glam, Loni got married to a Californian school administrator named Bruce Donald Hasselberg.
Hasselberg and Anderson got married on July 10, 1964. However, their relationship could not last very long. The couple also welcomed their daughter Deidre. However, even the birth of their little one could not solidify their marriage.
In 1966, Loni Anderson separated from Bruce Donald Hasselberg, and the same year, the former couple settled the issue of their daughter’s custody.
Ross Bickell
After her divorce from Hasselberg, Loni exchanged wedding vows with actor Ross Bickell.
Ross Bickell and Loni Anderson walked down the aisle on January 28, 1974. After their wedding, the couple relocated to Los Angeles, California, to actively pursue film and television work.
Unfortunately, Anderson and Bickell’s union did not last very long. The duo called it quit on August 20, 1981.
Burt Reynolds
Following her bitter separation from Ross Bickell, Loni Anderson found love again with actor Burt Reynolds. Anderson and Reynolds’ relationship became the talk of the town, and the pair was considered one of the hottest Hollywood couples at the time.
After dating each other for six years, Anderson and Reynolds exchanged wedding vows on April 29, 1988. The couple separated in 1993.
Bob Flick
It took some time for Anderson to overcome the trauma of her failed marriage with Burt Reynolds. Eventually, the blonde beauty settled down with one of the founding members of the folk band The Brothers Four, Bob Flick.
Flick and Anderson had initially met at a movie premiere in Minneapolis in 1963. Many years later, they fell in love and tied the knot on May 17, 2008.
Burt Reynolds and Loni Anderson relationship
Loni Anderson and Burt Reynolds started dating each other in 1981 shortly after meeting each other for the first time on The Merv Griffin Show sets. Their relationship grabbed a lot of media attention. After dating each other for six years, the happy couple tied the knot in an intimate 20-minute-long ceremony held on Reynolds’ Florida ranch.
Since the couple had been a glamourous fixture in Hollywood managing to remain at the center of the American media, five helicopters flew overhead their wedding venue along with the curious media patiently waiting outside Reynolds’ ranch.
Reynolds and Anderson’s marriage seemed to be perfect from the outside. However, the reality was something else entirely.
In 1993, Burt Reynolds announced his separation from Loni Anderson. Following his announcement, a rep for Burt Reynolds divulged the intimate details of Reynolds and Anderson’s marriage and said their relationship was “irretrievably broken.”
After Reynolds’ divorce announcement, the already sour relationship between the former couple turned even sourer. Reynolds publicly bashed Loni and revealed that the couple was no longer having sex which caused a strain in their marriage.
The Navajo Joe actor said during an appearance on “Good Morning America: Evening Edition,”
“I don’t see how she can be in total shock when you have not … if your husband has not touched you in the biblical sense … in almost three years. How can you be surprised?”
Furthermore, he publicly attacked Anderson by calling her a bad mother and an underemployed actress with low self-esteem. He accused her of being unfaithful towards him and claimed he had caught her cheating on him.
It was later revealed that even Reynolds wasn’t faithful towards Anderson. However, the actor cheated on her after discovering her extramarital affairs.
While Loni Anderson initially told the press that she would not engage in a media war with her former husband for the sake of her son’s well-being, she later revealed that “there was pain” and “abuse” in their marriage due to Reynolds’ drug use.
Despite the media circus surrounding their divorce, the former lovebirds left the divorce court in 1994 hand-in-hand and smiled at the cameras. After that, however, their separation was anything but amicable.
The lengthy divorce battle cost Reynolds more than $2 million, according to LA Times. The Golden Globe Award-nominated actor paid about $47,000 a month in divorce-related expenses and had to buy Loni Anderson a house while also paying $15,000 in monthly child support.
However, this wasn’t the end of their nasty divorce. Reynolds sometimes failed to pay the $9,000 mortgage on the house he bought for Loni Anderson. Likewise, he could not pay the $15,000 monthly child support times. Finally, in 1995, the actor declared bankruptcy before fully paying Anderson the money he owed her.
Decades after their divorce, lawyers were still working on their case. Then, in September 2015, Burt Reynolds finally wrote Anderson a $154,520 check which finally ended the lengthy and nasty divorce battle. Even after this, Reynolds managed to bash Anderson one last time before his death and called his decision to marry her a “dumb move.”
Loni Anderson Children
Loni Anderson is an accomplished actress and is also a doting mother to her two children. Anderson has a daughter named Deidra Hoffman, who she welcomed shares with her former husband, Bruce Hasselberg. Deidra Hoffman was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2009.
Loni Anderson and her third husband, Burt Reynolds, adopted a child named Quinton Anderson Reynolds, who was born on August 31, 1988. Quinton Anderson Reynolds works as an emergency medical technician (EMT).
Loni Anderson Career
Loni, who had developed an interest in acting during her college years, apprenticed in local commercials and theater shows before her big break. During this time, she was still dark-haired, and she was yet to go blonde which would eventually establish as one of the most prominent sex symbols in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
In the early 1970s, Loni Anderson was a part of many productions such as “Born Yesterday,” “Send Me No Flowers,” “Can-Can,” “The Star-Spangled Girl,” and “Fiddler on the Roof.” In 1966, Loni Anderson made her acting debut in the film “Nevada Smith” starring Steve McQueen.
Following her debut, Loni struggled with finding work. She was virtually unemployed for almost a decade. Loni worked as a teacher to support her college education and provide for her baby daughter Deidre.
Anderson decided to relocate from Minnesota to Los Angeles in 1975. She decided to go blonde after moving to Los Angeles.
Fortunately, this decision helped her secure minor but forgettable roles in TV series such as S.W.A.T., Police Woman, Barnaby Jones, The Bob Newhart Show, and Three’s Company. Through these roles, Loni was able to cement herself in the minds of the audiences as a sexy siren.
1978 was the turning point in Loni Anderson’s career. She was cast as the sexy receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on WKRP in Cincinnati in 1978.
She had also auditioned well for the role of Chrissy on the ABC sitcom Three’s Company. Although she couldn’t secure a role, in 1978, she guest-starred as Susan Walters on a season two episode of the sitcom.
Loni Anderson bagged the role of Jennifer Marlowe after the producers of WKRP in Cincinnati saw a poster of her in a red swimsuit. Since her body shape was similar to Jayne Mansfield’sand since she was innocently sexy like Marilyn Monroe, the sitcom’s creator, Hugh Wilson, gave the role to Loni.
Even though WKRP in Cincinnati didn’t fare well in the Nielsen ratings throughout its run, the sitcom gathered a strong fan following, especially among American teenagers, young adults, and disc jockeys. Loni Anderson, in particular, became a pop culture phenomenon. She was even named as the series’ “main attraction.”
However, in 1980, Loni temporarily quit the sitcom after requesting a substantial salary increase. During the contract renegotiations, she bagged the starring role in the CBS made-for-television film The Jayne Mansfield Story, released in 1980.
Anderson eventually returned to the series after the network agreed to her salary increase requests. However, the popular sitcom was canceled in 1982.
In 1983, Loni Anderson starred in Stroker Ace alongside actor Burt Reynolds. However, the film was a critical and box office failure. After that, she appeared in The Lonely Guy and voiced Flo in the animated movie All Dogs Go to Heaven.
Loni worked alongside Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter in Partners in Crime’s TV series. During the mid-to-late 1980s, Anderson appeared in many television adaptations of classic Hollywood films, including A Letter to Three Wives and Sorry, Wrong Number.
Anderson played the role of comedian actress Thelma Todd in the television movie White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd, for which she received great praise from the audience and excellent critical review. Although Anderson had attempted to co-star with her husband Burt Reynolds on his new CBS sitcom Evening Shade, the network decided to replace Anderson with Marilu Henner.
The actress was also offered to play the role of Delta Burke’s replacement in the CBS sitcom Designing Women. Still, since the network refused to agree with Anderson’s salary requests, the casting decision never came to fruition.
Loni Anderson also reprised her role of Jennifer Marlowe on two episodes of The New WKRP in Cincinnati, which was a sequel to the original series. In 1993, Anderson played the role of Casey MacAffee in the NBC sitcom Nurses. In addition, she guest-starred on many television series, including Sabrina the Teenage Witch and VIP.
Filmography
Loni Anderson Film:
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Nevada Smith | Brunette Saloon Girl |
| 1976 | Vigilante Force | Peaches |
| 1983 | Stroker Ace | Pembrook Feeny |
| 1984 | The Lonely Guy | Herself |
| 1989 | All Dogs Go to Heaven | Flo |
| 1992 | Munchie | Cathy |
| 1998 | 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain | Medusa |
| 1998 | A Night at the Roxbury | Barbara Butabi |
Loni Anderson Television films:
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | The Magnificent Magical Magnet of Santa Mesa | Mrs. Daroon |
| 1978 | Three on a Date | Angela Ross |
| 1980 | The Jayne Mansfield Story | Jayne Mansfield |
| 1981 | Sizzle | Julie Davis |
| 1982 | Country Gold | Mollie Dean Purcell |
| 1984 | My Mother’s Secret Life | Ellen Blake |
| 1985 | A Letter to Three Wives | Lora Mae Holloway |
| 1986 | Stranded | Stacy Tweed |
| 1987 | Blondie & Dagwood | Blondie Bumstead (Voice) |
| 1988 | Necessity | Lauren LaSalle |
| 1988 | Whisper Kill | Liz Bartlett |
| 1988 | Too Good to Be True | Ellen Berent |
| 1989 | Sorry, Wrong Number | Madeleine Stevenson |
| 1989 | Blondie & Dagwood: Second Wedding Workout | Blondie Bumstead (Voice) |
| 1990 | Coins in the Fountain | Leah |
| 1990 | Blown Away | Lauren |
| 1991 | White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd | Thelma Todd |
| 1992 | The Price She Paid | Lacey |
| 1994 | Gambler V: Playing for Keeps | Fanny Porter |
| 1994 | Without Warning | Actress in the opening movie segment |
| 1995 | Deadly Family Secrets | Martha |
Television series:
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | SWAT. | Miss Texas |
| 1975 | SWAT. | Art Teacher |
| 1975 | The Invisible Man | Andrea Hanover |
| 1975 | Harry O | Linzy |
| 1975 | Phyllis | Rita |
| 1975 | Police Woman | Waitress |
| 1976 | Police Story | Waitress |
| 1976 | Barnaby Jones | Dee Dee Danvers |
| 1976 | Barnaby Jones | Joanna Morgan |
| 1976 | The McLean Stevenson Show | Mrs. Swenson |
| 1977 | The Bob Newhart Show | Leslie Greely |
| 1977 | The Love Boat | Barbie |
| 1978–82 | WKRP in Cincinnati | Jennifer Marlowe |
| 1978 | The Incredible Hulk | Sheila Cantrell |
| 1978 | Three’s Company | Susan Walters |
| 1980 | The Love Boat | Passenger |
| 1980 | Fantasy Island | Kim Holland |
| 1984 | Partners in Crime | Sydney Kovak |
| 1985 | Amazing Stories | Love |
| 1986–87 | Easy Street | LK. McGuire |
| 1990 | B.L. Stryker | Dawn St. Claire |
| 1991–92 | The New WKRP in Cincinnati | Jennifer Marlowe |
| 1993 | Empty Nest | Casey MacAfee |
| 1993–94 | Nurses | Casey MacAfee |
| 1995 | Burke’s Law | Claudia Loring |
| 1995 | Women of the House | Loni Anderson |
| 1996 | Melrose Place | Teri Carson |
| 1997 | Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Racine |
| 1998 | Clueless | Barbara Collier |
| 1999 | Movie Stars | Audrey Wyatt |
| 1999 | VIP. | Carol Irons |
| 2001 | Three Sisters | Janet |
| 2003–04 | The Mullets | Mandi Mullet-Heidecker |
| 2006 | So Notorious | Kiki Spelling |
| 2016 | Baby Daddy | Nana Lyle |
| 2016–18 | My Sister Is So Gay | Frances |
| 2017 | Love You More | Jean Carlyle-Dixon |
Loni Anderson Awards and Nominations:
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Variety or Music Series | WKRP in Cincinnati | Nominated |
| 1980 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Variety or Music Series | WKRP in Cincinnati | Nominated |
| 1982 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical | WKRP in Cincinnati | Nominated |
| 1981 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical | WKRP in Cincinnati | Nominated |
| 1980 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Television Series | WKRP in Cincinnati | Nominated |
| 1983 | Razzie Award | Worst Actress | Stroker Ace | Nominated |
| 2007 | California Independent Film Festival | Lifetime Achievement Award | Herself | Won |
| 2016 | LA Web Fest Outstanding Achievement Award | Supporting Actor: Comedy | My Sister Is So Gay | Nominated |
Loni Anderson Net Worth and Lifestyle
As of 2021, Loni Anderson’s net worth is approximately USD 12 Million. Owing to such astonishing net worth, there is no doubt that she leads quite a lavish lifestyle.
Anderson earned a jaw-dropping USD 20,000 per episode from her work on the sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati in her heyday. Currently, the blonde bombshell lives in her lavish 2,345 square feet mansion in Los Angeles, California, worth USD 2.6 Million.
