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OAN Staff Abril Elfi
9:02 AM – Sunday, November 24, 2024
Chuck Woolery, host of “Wheel of Fortune” and “Love Connection,” has died at 83-years-old.
His friend and podcast co-host Mark Young announced his passing and told the Associated Press that Woolery died at his home in Texas in the presence of his wife, Kristen.
Susan Stafford, who was Chuck Woolery’s co-host on “Wheel of Fortune,” released a statement to Fox News regarding the passing of Woolery.
“Chuck Woolery was without doubt the Real Deal. Our 7 years as the original host and hostess on Wheel of Fortune were like magic,” Stafford said.
“Our deep friendship continued after our time on the show,” the statement continued. “He was an original. There was no one like Chuck. He had so much energy and was the same warm caring genuine person offstage as he was on. He was very spiritual and we shared a true love for God which made it even more worthwhile. So grateful to know I will see him again.”
Woolery began his TV career on “Wheel of Fortune,” which debuted January 6th, 1975, on NBC.
“Wheel of Fortune” was originally called “Shopper’s Bazaar.” When Woolery appeared on “The Merv Griffin Show” singing “Delta Dawn,” Griffin asked him to co-host the new show with Stafford.
NBC initially rejected it, but they changed it to “Wheel of Fortune” and then were approved. Woolery demanded a raise to $500,000 per year after a few years, which is what host Peter Marshall earned on “Hollywood Squares.” Griffin turned down the request and replaced Woolery with Pat Sajak, who, along with Vanna White, is most closely associated with the show.
In 1978 Woolery was nominated for an Emmy award and in 2007 he was inducted into the American TV Game Show Hall of Fame.
He began hosting “Love Connection in 1983 in which his phrase “We’ll be back in two minutes and two seconds” gained popularity. In 1984, he began hosting “Scrabble,” simultaneously hosting both game shows until 1990.
Woolery hosted other shows which include “Lingo,” “Greed” and “The Chuck Woolery Show,” as well as the short-lived syndicated revival of “The Dating Game” from 1998 to 2000.
He also played himself in two episodes of “Melrose Place” in 1992.
After his career on TV, Woolery started a podcast.
He is survived by Kiersten along with his sons Michael and Sean and his daughter Melissa.
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