Chuck Woolery
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| Chuck Woolery | |
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| Born | Charles Herbert Woolery March 16, 1941 Ashland, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Occupation | Game show host |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse(s) | Jo Ann Pflug (1971-1981) Kim Barnes (2006-present) |
| Children | 6 (5 living) |
| Website http://www.chuckwoolery.com/ |
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Charles Herbert "Chuck" Woolery (born March 16, 1941) is an American game show host. He has had long-running tenures hosting several different game shows. He was the original host of Wheel of Fortune from 1975-1981, the original incarnation of Love Connection from 1983-1994, and Scrabble from 1984-1990 (and during a brief revival in 1993). He also hosted Lingo on GSN from 2002-2007, and most recently hosted Think Like a Cat, which premiered on GSN on November 15, 2008. Woolery started out as a singer and has occasionally dabbled in other entertainment roles including acting and talk show hosting.
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[edit] Background
Woolery is a devout born again Christian and spends a great deal of time involved in volunteering in ministry.[1]
[edit] Career
Woolery served two years in the U.S. Navy after graduating from high school. In 1963, Woolery worked for Wasserstrom Wine & Import Company in Columbus, Ohio as a wine consultant. He was also a sales rep for Pillsbury. In the 1960s, Woolery and Elkin "Bubba" Fowler recorded as the musical duo The Avant-Garde which had one-hit wonder success in 1968 with the top 40 pop hit "Naturally Stoned".[2] Also during this time, he sidelined as a truck driver to supplement his income. Between 1977 and 1980, Woolery recorded for Warner Bros. Records and Epic Records as a solo artist.[3]
While co-starring as Mr. Dingle on the hit children's series New Zoo Revue, Woolery's first appearance on a game show was on a 1974 episode of Tattletales alongside his wife Jo Ann Pflug, who was sitting next to Bill Cullen (Woolery's favorite game-show host). Starting as an enterprising folk/pop singer, Woolery was also seen on a 1974 episode of Your Hit Parade. At the urging of television host and producer Merv Griffin, he accepted hosting duties for newly created game show Wheel of Fortune in 1975. Woolery was fired from Wheel of Fortune during a 1981 salary dispute with show producers. According to an interview with Woolery after Griffin's death, he demanded a raise from $65,000 per year to $500,000. Griffin was willing to pay only $400,000.[4] Woolery was replaced by former weatherman Pat Sajak.
Woolery has made references to his termination from Wheel on some of his later programs, most notably the 1990 finale of Scrabble[5] and two episodes of Greed.[6][7] Nearly all of Woolery's Wheel episodes are believed to be lost forever, due to NBC's common practice of erasing and reusing videotapes to save money.
Woolery has hosted Wheel of Fortune (1975-1981), Love Connection (1983-1994), The Big Spin (1985), Scrabble (1984-1990, 1993), The Home and Family Show (1996-1998, co-host), The Dating Game (1997-1999), Greed (1999-2000) and Lingo (2002-2007). In addition, he was the subject of a reality show, Chuck Woolery: Naturally Stoned, and has been seen on television infomercials as a national spokesman for National Recreational Properties, promoting developing real-estate developments such as Holiday Island in Arkansas. He also hosted had his own talk show, The Chuck Woolery Show, which lasted for only a few months in 1991. He has also hosted The Price Is Right Live! at Harrah's casinos, and appeared in the live stage show "$250,000 Game Show Spectacular" at the Las Vegas Hilton until the show ended in April 2008.[8]
Woolery often speaks enthusiastically about bass fishing and sells his own line of fishing products, including "MotoLure", a motorized lure that simulates the motions of a small fish. Woolery's passion for the outdoors has also enabled him to become the official outdoor spokesman on QVC where Woolery promotes many other signature products. Woolery has also played on the World Poker Tour Hollywood Home Game for the charity Safe Passage.
[edit] "Two and two"
He is known for his trademark commercial outro of "We'll be back in two and two" along with a two-finger hand gesture, which he first started using on Love Connection. Woolery has explained that "two and two" means the amount of time a commercial break lasts (two minutes for the commercials, plus one second out and one second in).[9]
[edit] Discography
| Year | Song | Peak chart positions[3] |
|---|---|---|
| US Country | ||
| 1977 | "Painted Lady" | 78 |
| 1980 | "The Greatest Love Affair" | 94 |
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Chuck Woolery...still making love connections". AskMen.com. http://www.askmen.com/toys/interview_100/131_chuck_woolery_interview.html. Retrieved 2007-10-20.
- ^ Ankeny, Jason. "The Avant-Garde biography". Allmusic. http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:jnfrxqwgldfe~T1. Retrieved 2009-08-01.
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc.. pp. 474. ISBN 0-89820-177-2.
- ^ "Woolery Reveals 25-Year Rift With Merv Griffin on "The Strip"". eMediaWire. 2007-11-25. http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2007/11/emw571557.htm. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
- ^ First segment of the "Scrabble" 1990 Finale (reference begins at 4:45)
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvZZJbnOsuQ
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHOge-2ysuY
- ^ "R.I.P. $250,000 Game Show Spectacular". http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/04/rip-250000-game-show-spectacular.html. Retrieved 2009-01-01.
- ^ "Chuck Woolery Trivia". http://www.tv.com/chuck-woolery/person/54747/trivia.html. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
[edit] External links
- The Official Website of Chuck Woolery
- Internet Movie Database Biography
- Chuck Woolery at the Internet Movie Database
| Preceded by Edd Byrnes (1974 pilot) |
Host of Wheel of Fortune (daytime) January 6, 1975 – December 25, 1981 |
Succeeded by Pat Sajak (1981-1989) |
| Preceded by First host |
Host of Love Connection September 19, 1983 – June 30, 1995 |
Succeeded by Pat Bullard |
| Preceded by Ralph Andrews in 1988 |
Host of Lingo August 5, 2002 – June 6, 2007 |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by First host |
Host of The Big Spin September 14, 1985 – June 7, 1986 |
Succeeded by Geoff Edwards |
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