Loni Anderson, best known for playing a struggling radio station’s vibrant receptionist on the hit TV comedy WKRP in Cincinnati, died Sunday. The end came just days before her 80th birthday and now the cause of death has been revealed.
Anderson, a two-time Emmy nominee, died at a Los Angeles hospital following an unspecified prolonged illness, said her longtime publicist, Cheryl J. Kagan, according to a report by AP.
“We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our dear wife, mother and grandmother,” Anderson’s family said in a statement.
The Hollywood Reporter called the illness “acute” and “prolonged” and reported that Anderson “died at noon in Los Angeles.”
According to THR, the family has requested that contributions be made in her memory to the National Lung Health Education Program and/or the American Cancer Society.
Kagan told Daily Beast: “While facing her diagnosis with determination she continued working.”
Having witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) on her parents — both addicted smokers — Anderson volunteered as an active spokesperson for COPD awareness in 1999.
She is survived by her two children and husband, musician Bob Flick.
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