Celebrity
The “Price Is Right” Host, Bob Barker, Has Died at 99
Bob Barker, the durable, suave game show presenter who became a national figure throughout a half-century hosting “Truth or Consequences” and “The Price Is Right,” has died. He was 99.
According to publicist Roger Neal, Barker, a veteran animal rights campaigner, died Saturday morning at his Los Angeles home.
“I am so proud of the trailblazing work Barker and I did together to expose animal cruelty in the entertainment industry, including working to improve the plight of abused and exploited animals in the United States and internationally,” said Nancy Burnet, his long-time friend and co-executor of his estate.
Barker announced his retirement in June 2007: “I thank you, thank you, thank you for inviting me into your home for more than 50 years.”
In 1956, Barker was working in radio when producer Ralph Edwards invited him to audition for the new host of “Truth or Consequences,” a game show in which audience members had to do wacky stunts — the “consequence” — if they failed to answer a question — the “truth,” which was always the silly punchline to a riddle no one was ever meant to supply. (Q: What did one eye tell the other? A: Something smells between us.)
Barker told The Associated Press in 1996, “I know exactly where I was, I know exactly how I felt: I hung up the phone and said to my wife, ‘Dorothy Jo, I got it!'”
Bob Barker was with “Truth or Consequences” for 18 years, including several years in syndication.
Meanwhile, in 1972, he began hosting a “The Price Is Right” revival on CBS. (Bill Cullen was the original host in the 1950s and 1960s.) It would become TV’s longest-running game show and the last on a broadcast network of what had once been dozens.
“I have grown old in your service,” the silver-haired, always-tanned Barker remarked during a mid-’90s prime-time television retrospective.
In a statement, CBS noted that one of its “most iconic stars” has died.
“We lost a beloved member of the CBS family today with the passing of Bob Barker,” the network announced, adding that he “made countless people’s dreams come true and everyone feel like a winner when they were called to ‘come on down.'”
Throughout his tenure, he taped almost 5,000 shows. He announced his retirement: “I’m just getting to the age where the constant effort to be there and do the show physically is too much for me.” It’s better to leave a year early than a year late.” Drew Carey, a comedian, was picked to take his place.
Barker reunited with Carey for one episode in April 2009. He was in town to promote the release of his memoir, “Priceless Memories,” in which he described his enjoyment of presenting the event as the opportunity “to watch people reveal themselves and to watch the excitement and humour unfold.”
“There hasn’t been a single day on set that I haven’t thought of Bob Barker and thanked him.” “I will cherish his memory for the rest of my life,” Carey wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Bob Barker understood the appeal of “The Price Is Right,” in which audience members — asked to “Come on down!” to the stage — competed for prizes by attempting to guess their retail value.
“Everyone, including the president of the United States, can identify with prices.” “Because everyone has an opinion on the bids, viewers at home become involved,” Barker once said. Barker played it straight — friendly, cordial, and humorous — refusing to make fun of the game show structure or his participants.
“I want the contestants to feel as though they’re guests in my home,” he declared in 1996. “Perhaps my respect for them comes across to viewers, which could be one of the reasons I’ve lasted.”
As a TV personality, Barker kept things old school — no cordless microphones for him, for example. Like the mic itself, the mic wire served him well as a prop, insouciantly flicked and finessed.
He attributed his job longevity to being content. “I had the opportunity to do this type of event and found out I liked it… People that do something they love and started doing it when they were young, I don’t think they want to stop.”
Barker also hosted the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants for 20 years. A long-time animal rights activist who regularly advised his viewers to “have your pets spayed or neutered” and successfully pushed to prohibit fur coats as prizes on “The Price Is Right,” he left the Miss USA Pageant in 1987 in protest of the winners receiving fur coats.
Among his animal-related efforts was a $250,000 donation to Save the Chimps, according to an emailed statement from the Fort Pierce, Florida-based organization on Saturday.
“Bob Barker’s kind spirit lives on at Save the Chimps, where we walk every day on the road named for him after his game-changing contribution,” said Ana Paula Tavares, CEO of Save the Chimps. Barker stated at the time of the contribution that he hoped chimps abused “physically and mentally” for years while employed in laboratory studies would discover “the first peace, contentment, and love they have ever known at Save the Chimps.”
Barker refused to be a presenter at the Daytime Emmy Awards presentation 1997, claiming that it disrespected game shows by not airing awards in the category. He referred to game shows as “the pillars of daytime TV.”
In 1996, he made a famous cameo appearance on the big screen, arguing with Adam Sandler in “Happy Gilmore.” “I did ‘The Price Is Right’ for 35 years, and they’re asking me how it was to beat up Adam Sandler,” Barker quipped later.
Sandler paid tribute to Barker on Instagram on Saturday, posting photos of the two of them together. “He’s the man. The legend. The very best. He’s such a kind and entertaining guy to hang out with.” Sandler captioned the photo. “I had a great time talking to him. I had a great time laughing with him. I loved it when he kicked the snot out of me.”
Dian Parkinson, an 18-year “Price is Right” model, sued the widowed Barker for sexual harassment in 1994. Barker admitted to “hanky panky” with Parkinson from 1989 to 1991 but claimed she started the connection. Parkinson abandoned the claim in 1995, citing health concerns.
Barker became entangled in a feud with Holly Hallstrom, another former “Price Is Right” model who claimed she was sacked in 1995 because the show’s producers thought she was fat. Barker disputed the charges.
Neither outburst affected the audience’s goodwill.
Barker was born in Darrington, Washington, in 1923 and spent a portion of his boyhood on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, where his widowed mother worked as a teacher. His family eventually relocated to Springfield, Missouri, where he finished high school. During WWII, he served in the Navy.
He married his high school sweetheart, Dorothy Jo Gideon, who died in 1981 after 37 years of marriage. They didn’t have any children.
In 1999, Barker received a lifetime achievement award at the 26th annual Daytime Emmy Awards. He signed off his acceptance speech with, “Have your pets spayed or neutered.”
Celebrity
Jason Kelce Smashes Football Fan’s Phone
Retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce destroyed a Penn State football fan’s phone after the alleged heckler called his brother, Travis Kelce, a fag.
In now-viral footage published on X (previously Twitter) on Saturday, Nov. 2, the retired Philadelphia Eagles great was seen accompanied by football fans outside Beaver Stadium in State College, Pa., for the Penn State-Ohio State game.
As the individual capturing the tape lifted a fist to Jason, 36, and called his name for a fist bump, another man nearby hurled the homophobic slur at the retired Philadelphia Eagles star.
Hey, Kelce. How does it feel that your brother is a queer dating Taylor Swift?” the man questioned, referring to Travis, 34, who has been seeing Swift since 2023. Jason turned around seconds later, snatched the man’s phone, and crushed it to the ground.
“Looked like a Penn State student was getting in Kelce’s face for no reason,” the original X user who submitted the video remarked. “Wild scene in State College.”
“Kelce how does it feel that your brother is a f****t for dating Taylor Swift?”
Jason Kelce proceeded to slam this kids phone on the ground.
Looked like a Penn State student was getting in Kelce’s face for no reason. Wild scene in State College pic.twitter.com/3PEdZXWhSg
— Chives (@jarrett_daveler) November 2, 2024
Additional footage on X shows Jason smashing the phone on asphalt before picking it up and walking away. The phone’s owner, wearing a Penn State hoodie at the time of the incident, was shown in many videos strolling closely behind Jason and recording him before the conflict occurred.
Another footage published on X, which appears to have been filmed after Jason shattered the man’s phone, showed the hooded Penn State supporter trudging through a mob to pick up his phone off the ground.
“Give me my phone, bro,” he seemed to say to Jason.
The NFL alum seized the gadget first, then stood in front of the man and asked, “Who’s the fag now?” Others appeared to interfere.
The incident occurred while Jason was at Beaver Stadium for an appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay. The Ohio State Buckeyes won Saturday’s game 20-13 over the Penn State Nittany Lions.
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Celebrity
Shaun White’s Proposal To Nina Dobrev Was Romantic Gold
Shaun White, the Olympic snowboarding champion, already has an impressive medal tally, but his surprise proposal to Nina Dobrev deserves a gold medal.
On Wednesday, the couple announced their engagement on Instagram. Dobrev posted photographs of the two hugging under an arch of white roses and showing off her five-carat Lorraine Schwartz engagement ring.
“RIP boyfriend, hello fiancé,” Dobrev said in the caption.
However, the photographs only tell half the tale, as Shaun devised an elaborate plan to surprise Dobrev with his proposal.
Shaun White’s Proposal To Nina Dobrev Was Romantic Gold
According to a Vogue interview published Wednesday, Shaun said he assembled a team of people from the couple’s inner circle and Vogue personnel to trick Dobrev into thinking she had been invited to an intimate dinner party with Anna Wintour.
Dobrev accepted the invitation, joking that Shaun made it “look so legitimate.”
He even asked Dobrev’s stylist to outfit her in Chanel for the event.
Dobrev said she recognized what was happening when she entered the venue and saw White standing beneath the flowery arch.
Shaun’s Proposal To Nina Dobrev Was Romantic Gold
“I went into shock,” Dobrev admitted, later adding that White “said all the right things” before she agreed.
According to the publication, after Shaun proposed, the couple partied into the early morning hours with close friends and relatives.
“Best night of my life,” Shaun captioned his Instagram story on Wednesday.
The duo first became romantically involved in 2020, and they have since publicly recorded their relationship, globe vacations, and White’s Olympic farewell on social media.
SOURCE | CNN
Celebrity
Hollywood Actress Teri Garr Passes Away at 79
Hollywood actress Teri Garr, known for her roles in classics like “Young Frankenstein” and “Tootsie,” has passed away at 79. She died Tuesday of multiple sclerosis “surrounded by family and friends,” said publicist Heidi Schaeffer.
Admirers took to social media in her honor, with writer-director Paul Feig calling her “truly one of my comedy heroes. I couldn’t have loved her more” and screenwriter Cinco Paul saying: “Never the star, but always shining. She made everything she was in better.”
Throughout her career, the performer, often known as Terri, Terry, or Terry Ann, seemed destined for show business from a young age.
Her father was Eddie Garr, a well-known vaudeville comic, and her mother was Phyllis Lind, one of the original high-kicking Rockettes at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. Their daughter began dancing classes at six and was performing with the San Francisco and Los Angeles ballet companies by age fourteen.
She was 16 years old when she joined the road crew of “West Side Story” in Los Angeles, and she began starring in small roles in films as early as 1963.
In an interview from 1988, she described how she landed the role in “West Side Story.” After being rejected at her initial audition, she returned the following day dressed differently and was accepted.
Teri Garr, a comedian
Teri Garr then found steady work as a movie dancer, appearing in the chorus of nine Elvis Presley films, including “Viva Las Vegas,” “Roustabout,” and “Clambake.”
She has also appeared on various television shows, including “Star Trek,” “Dr. Kildare,” and “Batman,” and was a featured dancer on the rock ‘n’ roll music show “Shindig,” the rock concert performance “T.A.M.I.,” and a cast member of “The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour.”
Her breakthrough role was as Gene Hackman’s girlfriend in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1974 thriller The Conversation. This led to an interview with Mel Brooks, who offered her the Gene Wilder’s German lab assistant role in Young Frankenstein if she could speak with a German accent.
“Cher had this German woman, Renata, making wigs, so I got the accent from her,” Garr once said.
The film established her as a great comic performer, with New Yorker film writer Pauline Kael calling her “the funniest neurotic dizzy dame on screen.”
Her big smile and off-center appeal helped her land roles in “Oh, God!” with George Burns and John Denver, “Mr. Mom” (as Michael Keaton’s wife), and “Tootsie,” in which she played the girlfriend who loses Dustin Hoffman to Jessica Lange and discovers he has dressed up as a woman to revive his career.
A gift for spontaneous humor
Teri Garr, best known for comedy, has shown in films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Black Stallion, and The Escape Artist that she can also tackle drama.
She had a gift for spontaneous humor, frequently playing David Letterman’s foil during early guest appearances on N.B.C.’s “Late Night With David Letterman”.
Her appearances grew so frequent, and the pair’s good-natured bickering so convincing that rumors of romantic involvement circulated for a while. Years later, Letterman acknowledged those early appearances with helping the program become a success.
During those years, Garr began to experience “a little beeping or ticking” in her right leg. It started in 1983 and expanded to her right arm, but she thought she could handle it. By 1999, her symptoms had gotten so bad that she saw a doctor and was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
After disclosing her diagnosis, Garr became a spokesman for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, giving hilarious remarks at events in the United States and Canada.
Source: AP
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