For the kids of today, Merv Griffin is probably just another old guy who did stuff on television. But to someone my age or older, Merv Griffin is a television icon. While Michele reported that the doctors were hoping to upgrade his condition, Merv passed away today at the age of 82 of prostate cancer.
Over the years, Mervyn Edward “Merv” Griffin was a talk show host, an entertainer, a pianist, television personality, and television executive. He began his career as a singer (at one point, he formed his own record label, Panda Records) and also appeared in movies and on Broadway. He was truly a renaissance man.
Griffin accidentally met up with Jack Paar one day on the set of Play Your Hunch, which Griffin hosted. He persuaded Parr to stay for an interview. Later on, Griffin would be asked to substitute for Paar on The Tonight Show and that lead to NBC offering him his own talk show. It failed, but lead to more opportunities in television. In 1964, Griffin’s long running game show, Jeopardy!, made its debut. Oh yeah, he was also involved in the development of another little game show you may have heard of – Wheel of Fortune. Wheel of Fortune made its television debut in 1975 and it is still going strong today – thirty-two years later!
Griffin’s talk show, The Merv Griffin Show, would run on television off and on for twenty-four years. Griffin served up an eclectic mixture of guests. He often chatted with his guests (you thought Rosie O’Donnell invented that move?) and never shied away from controversial topics. He would even sing a song or two.
Griffin also dabbled in real estate, purchasing the Beverly Hills Hotel and the Resorts Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City among other properties. He married to Julann Griffin fron 1958 until 1976. After their divorce, he never married again. Griffin was also a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity (had to throw that in because I was a little sister when I was in college).
Merv certainly helped make television enjoyable for many of us and he will be sorely missed.