Loni Anderson, who played a struggling radio station's empowered receptionist on the hit TV comedy , 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.

"We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our dear wife, mother and grandmother," Anderson's family said in a statement.

, which aired from 1978-82, was set in a lagging Ohio radio station trying to reinvent itself with rock music. The cast included Howard Hesseman, Frank Bonner, Tim Reid, Gordon Jump, Jan Smithers and Gary Sandy, alongside Anderson as the sexy and smart Jennifer Marlowe.

As the station's receptionist, the blond and high-heeled Jennifer used her sex appeal to deflect unwanted business calls for her b

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