Poll of the Day > Wink Martindale dead at 91

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://deadline.com/2025/04/wink-martindale-dead-1236369288/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVXC-su5CyU

I thought this was about the coach and it damn near blew my mind

I spent large swaths of my early childhood watching tons of game shows with my grandparents. I always feel a little bit sad when one of the big name hosts dies, because they were such a significant presence in my formative years. Not helped by the fact that pretty much all of them are either dying or dead at this point.

It also doesn't help that quality game show hosts are kind of a dying breed as a whole, because the genre really isn't what it used to be. When you can find them at all, most of them are closer to panel shows at this point, and they're usually hosted by out-of-work comedians rather than "presenters".

Damn, not many left. Bob Eubanks is still around.

jsb0714 posted...

Damn, not many left. Bob Eubanks is still around.

That astonishes me.

I thought we were pretty much at it just being Pat Sajak left as the last of the old-time gunslingers. Especially with Chuck Woolery going late last year.

I suppose I might include Marc Summers in my mental High Council of game show hosts, but he'd definitely have been the youngest one, and even he's nearly 75 now.

But in my head, it's more guys like Trebek, Barker, Woolery, Eubanks, Wink, Monty Hall, Richard Dawson, Jim Perry, Jack Barry, Jim Lang, and Bill Cullen. And guys like Bert Convey, Ray Combs, and Peter Tomarken who went way too young.

I remember him from the game show Debt. Rest in peace.

I loved Tic Tac Dough back in the day. Me and my sister would have lots of fun guessing which square the Dragon was hiding in the bonus round.

And I also remember Debt - it was quite entertaining.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/e/e56723fd.jpg

Krow_Incarnate posted...

I thought this was about the coach and it damn near blew my mind

It really is mind shattering that there are (were i guess) two people named wink martindale

wait marc summers is 73?

fuck

So much co-incidence in this topic since I was too young (or poor for cable) to catch the original Tic-tac dough, but the woman hosting the remake will likely be one of my game host legends whenever she becomes ancient.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

And guys like Bert Convey, Ray Combs, and Peter Tomarken who went way too young.

Ray Combs was my era of 'Family Feud', in which I watched it every day after school. I didn't know Peter Tomarken went that early, since he did guest host my favorite version of 'Press your luck' where it was just called Whammy.

Nade_Duck posted...

wait marc summers is 73?

fuck

Welcome to being old!



Roachmeat posted...

Ray Combs was my era of 'Family Feud', in which I watched it every day after school. I didn't know Peter Tomarken went that early, since he did guest host my favorite version of 'Press your luck' where it was just called Whammy.

Ray Combs will always be my favorite Feud host. I just found him more genial than Dawson, and more charming that any of the ones that came after him. And it's just kind of sad how he went, because it's that whole traditional "smiling on the outside, dying on the inside" sort of story you hear way too often.

With Peter Tomarken, it was just a freak accident. Though you're always taking a risk flying a private plane, and he wasn't THAT young at the time. He was still alive when they did Whammy, they just decided they wanted someone else to host. And he was semi-retired at that point. But we'll never know if he would have done anything else after.