Chuck Woolery, former host of ‘Wheel of Fortune’ and more, dies

NEW YORK (AP) — Chuck Woolery, the affable, smooth-talking recreation present host of “Wheel of Fortune,” “Love Connection” and “Scrabble” who later grew to become a right-wing podcaster, skewering liberals and accusing the federal government of mendacity about COVID-19, has died. He was 83.

Mark Younger, Woolery’s podcast co-host and buddy, mentioned in an e mail early Sunday that Woolery died at his dwelling in Texas together with his spouse, Kristen, current. “Chuck was an expensive buddy and brother and an amazing man of religion, life won’t be the identical with out him,” Younger wrote.

Woolery, together with his matinee idol appears, coiffed hair and ease with witty banter, was inducted into the American TV Recreation Present Corridor of Fame in 2007 and earned a daytime Emmy nomination in 1978.

In 1983, Woolery started an 11-year run as host of TV’s “Love Connection,” for which he coined the phrase, “We’ll be again in two minutes and two seconds,” a two-fingered signature dubbed the “2 and a pair of.” In 1984, he hosted TV’s “Scrabble,” concurrently internet hosting two recreation reveals on TV till 1990.

“Love Connection,” which aired lengthy earlier than the daybreak of courting apps, had a premise that featured both a single man or single girl who would watch audition tapes of three potential mates after which decide one for a date.

A few weeks after the date, the visitor would sit with Woolery in entrance of a studio viewers and inform all people in regards to the date. The viewers would vote on the three contestants, and if the viewers agreed with the visitor’s alternative, “Love Connection” would provide to pay for a second date.

Woolery informed The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2003 that his favourite set of lovebirds was a person aged 91 and a lady aged 87. “She had a lot eye make-up on, she seemed like a stolen Corvette. He was so previous he mentioned, ‘I bear in mind wagon trains.’ The poor man. She took him on a balloon journey.”

Different profession highlights included internet hosting the reveals “Lingo,” “Greed” and “The Chuck Woolery Present,” in addition to internet hosting the short-lived syndicated revival of “The Courting Recreation” from 1998 to 2000 and an ill-fated 1991 speak present. In 1992, he performed himself in two episodes of TV’s “Melrose Place.”

Woolery grew to become the topic of the Recreation Present Community’s first try at a actuality present, “Chuck Woolery: Naturally Stoned,” which premiered in 2003. It shared the title of the pop track in 1968 by Woolery and his rock group, the Avant-Garde. It lasted six episode and was panned by critics.

Woolery started his TV profession at a present that has change into a mainstay. Though most related to Pat Sajak and Vanna White, “Wheel of Fortune” debuted Jan. 6, 1975, on NBC with Woolery welcoming contestants and the viewers. Woolery, then 33, was making an attempt to make it in Nashville as a singer.

“Wheel of Fortune” began life as “Shopper’s Bazaar,” incorporating Hangman-style puzzles and a roulette wheel. After Woolery appeared on “The Merv Griffin Present” singing “Delta Daybreak,” Merv Griffin requested him to host the brand new present with Susan Stafford.

“I had an interview that stretched to fifteen, 20 minutes,” Woolery informed The New York Instances in 2003. “After the present, when Merv requested if I wished to do a recreation present, I believed, ‘Nice, a man with a nasty jacket and an equally unhealthy mustache who doesn’t care what you need to say — that’s the man I need to be.’”

NBC initially handed, however they retooled it as “Wheel of Fortune” and obtained the inexperienced gentle. After a couple of years, Woolery demanded a increase to $500,000 a yr, or what host Peter Marshall was making on “Hollywood Squares.” Griffin balked and changed Woolery with climate reporter Pat Sajak.

“Each Chuck and Susie did a high-quality job, and ‘Wheel’ did nicely sufficient on NBC, though it by no means approached the type of scores success that ‘Jeopardy!’ achieved in its heyday,” Griffin mentioned in “Merv: Making the Good Life Final,” an autobiography from the 2000s co-written by David Bender. Woolery earned an Emmy nod as host.

Born in Ashland, Kentucky, Woolery served within the U.S. Navy earlier than attending faculty. He performed double bass in a people trio, then fashioned the psychedelic rock duo The Avant-Garde in 1967 whereas working as a truck driver to help himself as a musician.

The Avant-Garde, which toured in a refitted Cadillac hearse, had the High 40 hit “Naturally Stoned,” with Woolery singing, “After I put my thoughts on you alone/I can get a very good sensation/Really feel like I’m naturally stoned.”

After The Avant-Garde broke up, Woolery launched his debut solo single “I’ve Been Flawed” in 1969 and a number of other extra singles with Columbia earlier than transitioning to nation music by the Nineteen Seventies. He launched two solo singles, “Forgive My Coronary heart” and “Love Me, Love Me.”

Woolery wrote or co-wrote songs for himself and everybody from Pat Boone to Tammy Wynette. On Wynette’s 1971 album “We Certain Can Love Every Different,” Woolery wrote “The Joys of Being a Lady” with lyrics together with “See our child on the swing/Hear her snicker, hear her scream.”

After his TV profession ended, Woolery went into podcasting. In an interview with The New York Instances, he referred to as himself a gun-rights activist and described himself as a conservative libertarian and constitutionalist. He mentioned he hadn’t revealed his politics in liberal Hollywood for worry of retribution.

He teamed up with Mark Younger in 2014 for the podcast “Blunt Drive Reality” and shortly grew to become a full supporter of Donald Trump whereas arguing minorities don’t want civil rights and inflicting a firestorm by tweeting an antisemitic remark linking Soviet Communists to Judaism.

“President Obama’s recognition is a fantasy solely held by him and his dwindling legion of juice-box-drinking, anxiety-dog-hugging, safe-space-hiding snowflakes,” he mentioned.

Woolery additionally was energetic on-line, retweeting articles from Conservative Transient, insisting Democrats had been making an attempt to put in a system of Marxism and spreading headlines corresponding to “Impeach him! Devastating photograph of Joe Biden leaks.”

In the course of the early levels of the pandemic, Woolery initially accused medical professionals and Democrats of mendacity in regards to the virus in an effort to harm the financial system and Trump’s possibilities for reelection to the presidency.

“Probably the most outrageous lies are those about COVID-19. Everyone seems to be mendacity. The CDC, media, Democrats, our medical doctors, not all however most, that we’re informed to belief. I feel it’s all in regards to the election and conserving the financial system from coming again, which is in regards to the election. I’m sick of it,” Woolery wrote in July 2020.

Trump retweeted that publish to his 83 million followers. By the tip of the month, practically 4.5 million Individuals had been contaminated with COVID-19 and greater than 150,000 had died.

Simply days later, Woolery modified his stance, saying his son had contracted COVID-19. “To additional make clear and add perspective, COVID-19 is actual and it’s right here. My son examined optimistic for the virus, and I really feel for of these struggling and particularly for individuals who have misplaced family members,” Woolery posted earlier than his account was deleted.

Woolery later defined on his podcast that he by no means referred to as COVID-19 “a hoax” or mentioned “it’s not actual,” simply that “we’ve been lied to.” Woolery additionally mentioned it was “an honor to have your president retweet what your ideas are and assume it’s essential sufficient to try this.”

Along with his spouse, Woolery is survived by his sons Michael and Sean and his daughter Melissa, Younger mentioned.