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| Birth Name(s) : Robert William Barker |
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Full Bob Barker Biography
Robert William "Bob" Barker (born December 12, 1923) is a nineteen-time Emmy Award-winning former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right since September 4, 1972, making it the longest-running daytime game show in television history. After holding the job for nearly 35 years and having been in television for 50 years, Barker retired in June 2007.
Barker left Springfield and worked at a radio station in Florida before landing another radio job in California. He was hosting an audience-participation radio show on KNX (AM) in Los Angeles when game show producer Ralph Edwards happened to be listening and liked Barker's voice and style. On December 31, 1956 Barker took over hosting of the game show Truth or Consequences. The show made him a star--he clearly was a natural whose charisma and charm connected with contestants and viewers. Bob would host the show for eighteen years.
Bob Barker is well known for his work in animal rights. He became a vegetarian in 1979. That same year, he began promoting animal rights. Barker began ending each episode of The Price Is Right with the phrase: "Help control the pet population; have your pet spayed or neutered" in 1985, and was named national spokesman for "Be Kind to Animals Week" in May of that year. On A&E's Biography program, Bob credited his wife, Dorothy Jo, with him becoming more aware of animal rights and becoming a vegetarian because she had done so. Bob took up animal rights in order to keep doing something that his recently deceased wife had done. Fellow game show hosts Jack Barry and Bert Convy eventually followed Barker's lead in promoting animal rights on the air.
In many broadcasts, the stunts on Truth or Consequences included a popular, but emotional, heart-rending surprise for a contestant, that being the reunion with a long-lost relative or with an enlisted son or daughter returning from military duty overseas, particularly Vietnam.
It was on Truth Or Consequences that the salute became his trademark sign-off; he ended each episode with "Bob Barker saying good-bye, hoping all your consequences are happy ones!"
In 1967, Barker hosted the short-lived game show The Family Game for Chuck Barris, where he would ask children contestants questions about their families' lives, and the parents had to guess how they answered in a Newlywed Game-esque fashion.
In 2006 The Price Is Right celebrated 35 consecutive years on the air. It is the longest-running game show of all time in North America. Overall, in daytime programming (excluding Saturday and Sunday), The Price Is Right is ranked sixth among the longest-continuing television programs (NBC's Today ranks the longest, followed by four daytime soap operas: Guiding Light, As the World Turns, General Hospital, and Days of our Lives). It has won its time slot (11:00 a.m. Eastern) for the past 25 years with its closest competitor (currently ABC's The View) normally getting about half of TPIR's ratings.Wikinews has related news:Bob Barker to retire as host of U.S. gameshow The Price Is Right
On October 31 2006, after 35 years as M.C. of U.S. television's longest-running game show, Bob made his announcement that he would retire from The Price Is Right in June 2007. He taped his final episode on June 6 2007, with the show airing on June 15, 2007.
On March 11, 1998, on the occasion of the ceremonial five thousandth episode of The Price Is Right, CBS dedicated the sound stage where the show has been produced since 1972 in honor of Barker.
Barker's health problems started in 1991 after he complained of having vision problems while exercising. After a visit to the doctors, they sent him to see a neurologist, where the doctors told Barker he had a mild stroke. He soon recovered and went back to work.
On September 16, 1999, Barker was in Washington, D.C., to speak about HR 2929, the proposed legislation that would ban elephants from traveling shows. While preparing for the presentation, Barker experienced what he called "clumsiness" in his right hand. He was admitted to George Washington University Hospital and diagnosed with a partially blocked left carotid artery. Barker underwent carotid endarterectomy to remove the blockage, and the procedure went well enough that he was able to return to work within the month.
Three years later, Barker also had two health crises after taping the season finale on The Price Is Right. While lying out on the sun, he was hospitalized again with a stroke on May 31, 2002; and six weeks later, on July 11, 2002, he underwent prostate surgery, both at George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C. Both surgeries were successful.
In October 2007, Deborah Curling, a long-time employee of The Price Is Right, filed a lawsuit against Bob Barker and The Price Is Right producers, claiming that she was forced to quit her job after testifying against Barker in a wrongful termination lawsuit brought on by a previous show producer. Curling claimed that she was demoted to "intolerable work environment" on the back stage of the show which caused her to leave the job. Curling, who is black, also alleged that The Price Is Right producers (including Barker himself) created a hostile work environment in which black employees and contestants were constantly discriminated against. |
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