23 Facts About Arthur Carlson

Arthur Carlson, aka "The Big Guy" is a fictional character on the television situation comedy WKRP in Cincinnati, the general manager of the low-rated Cincinnati radio station WKRP.

Arthur Carlson was played by Gordon Jump in both shows.

Arthur Carlson keeps his job as general manager of WKRP only because his mother, Lillian Carlson, better known as "Mama Carlson", owns the station.

Flashbacks in the episode "Bah, Humbug" reveal that Arthur Carlson joined WKRP as sales manager in the early 1950s.

When his mother fired the previous station manager for being too generous to the employees, Arthur Carlson got his job.

Arthur Carlson has trouble dealing with people, especially with saying "no"; he will buy anything from a salesman and tends to whimper when someone yells at him.

Jennifer and Arthur Carlson have an agreement: she doesn't take memos, and she doesn't serve coffee.

Some episodes, particularly in the first season, show Arthur Carlson feeling left out at the station and wanting to prove that he, too, can come up with good ideas to make WKRP more successful.

The most famous such attempt is chronicled in "Turkeys Away," where Arthur Carlson tries to become actively involved in every aspect of running the station, driving the employees crazy with incessant suggestions.

Arthur Carlson then comes up with what he describes as a brilliant idea for a Thanksgiving promotion, but, distrustful of Andy and the other "casually dressed" employees, he won't tell anyone what the promotion is, except the obsequious Herb.

Arthur Carlson was said to be 48 in a 1979 episode; this would give him a birth year of 1930 or '31.

Arthur Carlson comes from a successful family of Cincinnati business people.

Arthur Carlson left it to Arthur's father, Hank, a sweet-natured man who was more interested in having a good time than running the business.

Arthur Carlson was an officer in the Marine Corps; he has mentioned being at Guadalcanal as well having learned some Japanese.

Arthur Carlson is married to Carmen, a sweet-natured woman who is almost as shy as he is: though they are happily married, their main problem is that they are so anxious to avoid hurting each other's feelings that they rarely tell each other what they really think.

Arthur Carlson maintains a professional relationship with Jennifer, an attractive employee with the highest pay.

Arthur Carlson provides the support that his mother did not.

Arthur Carlson knows that Jennifer, despite her apparent self-reliance, really cares about him and, in her own way, depends on him too; "You need me to need you," he tells Jennifer in one episode.

Arthur Carlson is tempted once in the course of the series, by his first receptionist, Joyce Armour.

Arthur Carlson replied that she didn't, it was merely his usual misinterpreting of a situation.

Arthur Carlson is a Republican; he belongs to the local Kiwanis Club as well as the Rotary Club, attends church every Sunday, and teaches Sunday School.

The turkey drop, in particular, was a much-exaggerated version of one of Blum's real stunts, when he attempted to drop turkeys off the back of a truck and caused a melee of people looking for a free turkey; Arthur Carlson's postmortem was lifted, with only slight alteration, from Blum's own reaction to his stunt.

Whereas Arthur Carlson was weak and indecisive, Blum was in many ways the opposite, a brash and in-your-face personality frequently seen in oversized sunglasses and a buttoned-down leisure suit.