Three Ohio-area radio stations rebranded as "WKRP in Cincinnati" on Monday.
Key Points
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Formerly known as "The Oasis," the radio network has now taken on the name of the beloved CBS sitcom about a group of broadcasters.
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"The presentation will be a tribute to the TV show — not a parody," network owner Jeff Ziesmann told 91.7 WVXU in Cincinnati.
Life really does imitate art — sometimes it just takes half a century.
A three-station radio network based in Ohio has rebranded from "The Oasis" to "WKRP in Cincinnati," after the beloved sitcom of the same name.
The voice ofWKRP in Cincinnatistar Gary Sandy welcomed morning commuters to the newly rebranded broadcast on Monday, per a report from John Kiesewetter of Cincinnati's NPR affiliate,91.7 WVXU. But first, listeners to the Georgetown, KY.-area 106.7 FM, Cincinnati-area 97.7 FM, and Dayton and Sidney, Ohio-area 94.5 (a 160-mile span) were treated to an hours-long teaser when the stations continuously aired theWKRPtheme song from midnight to the first broadcast of the morning.
Jeff Ziesmann, who owns the station group formerly known as The Oasis, explained to WVXU that his stations "play essentially the same music that they played onWKRP.It made more sense for us to do this than any other station in town."
The new WKRP will focus on rock and pop songs from 1960s through the 1980s, featuring artists whose songs electrifiedWKRPviewers during the series run from 1978-1982 when they were played weeks after first being released.
"This is just a rebranding. We don't want to spook those people who might think we threw out their favorite radio station," Ziesmann clarified.
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The move comes just two years shy of the 50th anniversary of theWKRP in Cincinnatipremiere on CBS. The sitcom starred Sandy as the straight-and-narrow program director Andy Travis, Loni Anderson as the bubbly yet dedicated receptionist Jennifer Marlowe, and Richard Sanders as the meticulous news reporter Les Nessman.
Sanders jokingly provided comment from his own character tothe APon Monday, writing via email, "I have spoken with Les Nessman regarding the resurrection of WKRP in Cincinnati. After the failure of his dream to replace Walter Cronkite on the CBS evening news, he is hopeful that he can resume his duties as the News, Sports, Weather, Traffic, and Farm Report Director at WKRP."
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The news no doubt comes as a relief forWKRPfans, who have endured a string of cast deaths in the past few years. Andersondied in 2025at 79, Emmy nominee Howard Hessemandied in 2022at 81, and Frank Bonnerdied in 2021at 79.
Ziesman noted that the switch was meant to honor the show's legacy, telling WVXU, "The presentation will be a tribute to the TV show — not a parody of a 40-year-old TV show that aired for only four years... For us, WKRP is more of an attitude."
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