"How important is love?" "The more drawn into the Hollywood trappings he . Griffin was not shy about tackling controversial subjects, especially the Vietnam War. A talk show host for nearly 25 . The "Sunday Morning" interviewer wanted to know where Marlo got the idea. ", The book reveals he was a virgin before marriage, a lousy lover afterward, and avoided the draft through fatherhood. CBS also pressured Griffin into sacking his long-term sidekick Arthur Treacher, who had been his television mentor, because he was too old. The actress's stance made sense as she was one of the leaders in the women's movement. COPYRIGHT 2020 By TheLifeandTimesofHollywood.com, Stories From The Life and Times of Hollywood. ", Donahue can conceive of absolutely no topic that could hurt his career. In 1991, he was sued by TV host Deney Terrio alleging sexual harassment. He also filled in for a week for the vacationing Bill Cullen on The Price Is Right, and for Bud Collyer on To Tell the Truth. It gained traction in 1991 when he was targeted in a pair of lawsuits: by Dance Fever host Denny Terrio, alleging sexual harassment; and by assistant Brent Plott seeking $200 million in palimony. "It's not important to me when we are on that I win. He didn't need CBS, NBC or ABC. And sometimes he's slapped down. Arms wave. NBC-owned and -operated stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and Dallas carried it, with many stations airing two episodes per day. A typical example is the cancellation of a Masters and Johnson broadcast in Medford, Ore., because they "tantalized the audience by talking about homosexuality. Griffin ventured into real estate, purchasing the Beverly Hilton Hotel in 1987. The kiss was a first in Hollywood film history since the introduction of the Production Code in 1934. LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Merv Griffin was gay. He eventually started his own show The Merv Griffin Show in 1962 which proved to be a huge success. I keep it to his A-list dates like Rock Hudson, whom he met through Henry Wilson, Rocks agent, and who advised him to keep his sexuality quiet. In a December 1977 article, the actress recalled how Phil was a modern man and a single parent when they met. 24K views, 950 likes, 99 loves, 117 comments, 155 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Marlo Thomas: #TBT to this scene from That Girl. He once said, "If they found Hitler, I'd be the first in line to interview him. Plus Judy Garlands Meet Me in St. Louis boy next door, Tom Drake, who, by the way, ended up a used car salesman. His first crush was Errol Flynn, whom he saw passed out naked on a couch. But in 1978 New York's WNBC bought "Donahue" for the second time and he began to capture the nation's attention. [7], During World War II, Griffin was declared 4F after failing several military physical examinations due to a slight heart murmur. One of Merv Griffins most important works was his talk show The Merv Griffin Show. The audience quickly picks up his rhythm. This. CBS gave Griffin a late-night show opposite Carson in 1969. Griffin, who died of prostate cancer Sunday at 82, stayed in the closet throughout his life. Wheel barely escaped cancellation in 1980, when NBC replaced three of its other game shows with a daytime talk show starring David Letterman. His best years, he fears, may already be behind him: "The most creative, innovative ideas come from people with the least power and the least to lose." [15] He also had an uncredited role as a radio announcer in the horror/science fiction film The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953). But he should also be held up as man who, like Malcolm Forbes before him, was hugely influential and powerful and yet still allowed the closet and homophobia to manipulate his life, and to cause him to do harm to his own people. [52], Some of the songs Griffin recorded were:[citation needed]. As a result, this literally wiped out or greatly reduced the investments of the bondholders, so that Mr. Griffin could sue Trump and yet still retain a significant portion for himself. In 2021, Marlo gave some advice on how to make a marriage last. The star had spent decades covering up his sexuality and even married comedienne Julann Wright, who gave him a son. It was a good question. The well-attended service included Nancy Reagan; Arnold Schwarzenegger, who gave the eulogy with Tony Griffin; Maria Shriver; and various actors, television stars, employees, and friends, including Pat Sajak, Vanna White, Alex Trebek, Dick Van Dyke, Jack Klugman, Dick Van Patten, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi, Ryan Seacrest, Johnny Mathis, Catherine Oxenberg and Casper Van Dien. I was mulling over game show ideas, when she noted that there had not been a successful 'question and answer' game on the air since the quiz show scandals. In his book Merv, written with David Bender in 2003, he stated that it would be "Stay Tuned".). [17] He landed a job as the host of a new television show, CBS-TV's Summer Holiday, a summer replacement for Jane Froman's U.S.A. Canteen and Jo Stafford's The Jo Stafford Show, which he co-hosted with Betty Ann Grove. . His charges are ridiculous and untrue. In an Associated Press profile released before it premiered, he discussed the show's origins:[1]. Robert (Bob) Murphy, Griffin's best friend since sixth grade, was the producer of The Merv Griffin Show, and eventually became president of Merv Griffin Enterprises. Why not do a switch, and give the answers to the contestant and let them come up with the question. Of course, Porter has one thing working for him: almost no threat of litigation. [17][20] Griffin needed a place to stay and moved-in with Buzzell as his new roommate. [16] He decided to spend the summer of 1954 in New York City. Griffin's first daytime talk show began on the same day Carson first hosted The Tonight Show (1962). Griffin later claimed in interviews that he was best man at their wedding, but was in fact one of the four ushers. And he seems without shame: "I would be afraid I'm going to die if someone told me I had leukemia. On November 21, 2022, Marlo Thomas celebrated her birthday by turning 85! . We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. [8] He wrote years later in his autobiography that there was a deliberate effort to keep the public from finding out how he looked. I began to realize that not much in the way we were raised encouraged that.". after moving it twice on its daytime schedule, despite having an additional year on its network contract. [35] He had used $325 million in junk bond financing at nearly 14% from Drexel Burnham Lambert's Michael Milken, but suspended interest payments in early 1989. "We read a lot of magazines. He did it for Katharine Hepburn. He married Julann Griffin, whom he divorced after some time. Being born on 6 July 1925, Merv Griffin was 82 years old at the time of his death. He had dedicated two of his shows to the topics of Transcendental Meditation and Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Mervyn Edward Merv Griffin Jr. was born on July 6, 1925, in San Mateo, California. An avid fan of puzzles since childhood, Griffin first produced a successful game show in 1964, Jeopardy! He could duck it for a while, but it would always find him. She returned to her native New Mexico, remarried and disappeared from public view -- until now, with publication of a "family" picture in Donahue's book. On May 14, 2003, Griffin was honored with the Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) President's Award at its annual Film and Television Awards ceremony, for creating some of America's best-known game show melodies.[28]. Griffin was introduced to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1974. All through his lifespan, he was renowned as an entertainment business mogul. Phil's wife said in marriage; you have to know the other person has your back and that her union was the safest place she could be, and the talk show host was her everything and life cushion. Griffin was a well-known TV personality who died on 12 August 2007 due to prostate cancer. Griffin's three-year run at CBS was contentious; the network was uncomfortable with the guests he wanted, who often spoke out against the Vietnam War and on other sensitive topics. In 1991, Deney Terrio, host of the Griffin-created Dance Fever, sued Griffin, alleging sexual harassment, but the suit was dismissed. That's one of the nice things about being hot. Merv Griffin was a singer and band leader, movie actor, television personality and media mogul who in his time hosting The Merv Griffin Show (1962) was second in fame and influence as a talk show host only to Johnny Carson. The show, originally titled What's the Question?, premiered on NBC on March 30, 1964, hosted by Art Fleming, and ran for 11 years. Two revivals of Jeopardy! The "Today" show signed him, as rumors spread that he'd soon jump to the networks. He considers many fellow journalists "professional gapers" who pursue rat-pack "me-too-ism." Griffins gay brothers his friends, his lovers, his people across America, around the world suffered and met horrific deaths. He retained the title of creator of both his game shows. It aired in a variety of time slots throughout North America; many stations ran it in the daytime, others aired it in primetime, and a few broadcast it opposite Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show. Many well known and highly identifiable actresses have tried and failed to make the arduous crossover from fizzy TV sitcom star to mature, dramatic artist. After 13 seasons as a daytime talk show host, Griffin retired from his talk show in 1986 to devote himself to producing his highly profitable game shows.Jeopardy! Griffin's approach to television talk was influenced by two New York shows, David Susskind's The David Susskind Show (1958) and Mike Wallace's Probe and Night Beat (1956), and like Susskind and Wallace, he openly embraced controversial subjects. As rewrds, he dispenses liberal "God bless you's" and "I love you's." Family. He started his professional life by joining the radio as well as by singing in collaboration with a big band. Marlo Thomas and her husband Phil Donahue in New York, circa 1970 | Source: Getty Images. After Griffin's death, The Hollywood Reporter published a report stating that he had been a closeted gay man. Marlo Thomas was in a long relationship with playwright Herb Gardner, but they did not get married. Says Donahue, "Well, what does that mean? So powerful is his appeal that the "Today" show signed him as a regular contributor last May. He became a substitute host for Jack Paar on The Tonight Show Starring Jack Paar (1957) and scored some of the highest ratings in the show's history. [11] In 1947, he had a 15-minute Monday-to-Friday singing program on KFRC in San Francisco. Paul had already signed Grove for the show and was looking for a male co-host. ", Donahue loves it. He was Lifetime Honorary Festival Chairman of La Quinta Arts Festival and recently donated his Wickenburg Inn and Dude Ranch to Childhelp USA.In March 2001, the Gold Label released his new CD, "It's Like a Dream", for which he composed the title song. He started his professional life by joining the radio as well as by singing in collaboration with a big band. But how tremendously sad it is that a man of Mervs renown, of his gregarious nature and social dexterity, would feel compelled to endure such a stealthy double life even as the gay communitys clout, and its levels of acceptance and equality, rose steadily from the ashes of ignorance. On Monday, Nov. 6, 1967, his first guest was Madalyn Murray O'Hair, the woman whose lawsuit eliminated prayer from public schools. [46] He was a longtime member of the Republican Party.[47]. By 1976 he'd been canceled three times in New York, the nation's top market, and sadly decided he'd "become a candidate for a trivia contest two decades hence.". Griffin scored a coup when Tonight Show host Jack Paar accidentally emerged onto the set of Play Your Hunch during a live broadcast, and Griffin got him to stay for a spontaneous interview. There is a story in Queer in America about a man identified as The Mogul who did just that. Besides Resorts International, the holding company for casinos in Atlantic City and the Bahamas, three company affiliates also filed for Chapter 11 protection: Griffin Resorts Inc., Resorts International Financing Inc. and Griffin Resorts Holding Inc. An active desert resident, Griffin was a supporter of the La Quinta Arts Festival and the owner of the Merv Griffin Givenchy Resort & Spa in Palm Springs, now The Parker. When he eventually decided to retire, he sold his production company Merv Griffin Enterprises to Columbia Pictures Television, after which he was named by Forbes as one of the richest Hollywood performers in history. The show became a phenomenon when, on September 19, 1983, a nighttime version hit the syndication market with Pat Sajak and Vanna White as host and hostess. He bought his contract back from Warner Bros. and decided to devote his attention to a new medium: television. After eight years he quit and tried his hand as a traveling salesman. Raised as a Catholic, Griffin started singing in his church choir as a boy, and by his teens was earning extra money as a church organist. Menu. Merv Griffin reaches only 3.9 million viewers, Mike Douglas 3.7 and Dinah Shore 2.8 million. That's what I'm paid to do.". (He revealed the epitaph on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder. "They see in me a way to produce some income. Issues that provoke censorship are almost always sexual. Her zodiac sign is Aquarius. The actress continued explaining her reasoning: "It seems like it's only a place for one-and-a-half persons, you know, the person that has the dream and the other person who supports the dream." for ABC), Griffin was one of the many guest hosts who presided over Tonight in the interim. She noted how no one wanted to be a stepmother cause they were seen as villains in children's stories. Some of his highly famous songs are Christmas City, Never Been Kissed, The Charanga, Wilhelmina, Happy To Know You, Banned in Boston, etc. Donahue inherited not only the show, but a live studio audience whom he decided not to burden with yet another song-and-dance program. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); You have entered an incorrect email address! Pallbearers included Griffin Group vice-chairman Ron Ward, President Robert Pritchard, and Vice President Michael Eyre, as well as Tony Griffin. Once, Donahue says, Walter Cronkite himself telephoned to say, "Phil, that was a goddamned good interview you sent us yesterday. There was one major difference, though. [2] He began his career as a radio and big band singer, later appearing in film and on Broadway. I noticed that my children weren't really sharing feelings with me -- and one of the reasons was I don't do a hell of a lot of sharing with them in terms of feelings. The new show featured live music with two singers while simulating a trip to various places in the world. Then another Dayton television station asked him to replace a local talk show host who had gone on to better things in Hollywood (he's now the announcer for Dinah Shore). And television, he says, provides the public with what Lenny Bruce called "plastic puke." "I like having a man in my life. He next hosted the game show Keep Talking and also temporarily The Price is Right and To Tell the Truth. [citation needed], Griffin started as a singer on radio at age 19, appearing on San Francisco Sketchbook, a nationally syndicated program based at KFRC. Donahue asked her on the air. On the other hand, Phil had been married before and welcomed five children, making his new wife a stepmother. If you get anything else you think we can use, call me personally. And if that wasnt scandalous enough: I write that friends who went to school with him in San Mateo say, when he was a young homosexual growing up, he was sexually molested by a priest. Soon after, he released his first album Songs of Merv Griffin. Donahue says that as an adolescent he considered "dates always an occasion for sin." [9], Freddy Martin heard him on the radio show and asked him to tour with his orchestra,[1] which he did for four years. He did it for Marlon Brandon. They had one son, Tony Griffin, born in 1959; who had two children of his own. "Spokeswoman: 'Jeopardy' inventor Merv Griffin dies at 82", "Daily Press: Hampton Roads News, Virginia News & Videos", "Merv Griffin, Television Innovator, Dies at 82", "Frater Merv Griffin Passes into the Chapter Eternal", "Lean Days are Better; Griffin Shed Weight and Song to Be a TV Host", "Entertainment Legend Merv Griffin Dies At 82", "(Advertisment) Thanks: The Merv Griffin Show", "Maharishi Mahesh Yogi; founded Transcendental Meditation movement", "For Merv Griffin, 14 Seconds Can Last a Lifetime", "Griffin buys Resorts; Trump to get Taj Mahal", "Merv Griffin's Outrageous Fortune: When Millionaire Griffin Took on Billionaire Trump, They Said It Was a Mismatch. The second time they went out was fine, and the duo phoned each other two or three times daily and saw each other on weekends because Phil was based in Chicago. "Not everybody who writes a book is necessarily a good television persona. ACTRESS, Marlo Thomas, has been married to former daytime talk show host, Phil Donahue, for over 40 years. He became increasingly popular with nightclub audiences and his fame soared among the general public when he struck gold in 1950 with "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts", which reached the number one spot on the Hit Parade and sold three million copies.Continuing to record hits, including "Wilhelmina" and "Never Been Kissed", Griffin made a foray into motion pictures after Doris Day saw his nightclub performance and arranged a screen test for him at Warner Bros. Studios. in 1964. (VH1, 1998) for pop-music trivia fans; Click!, a teen-oriented game that introduced Ryan Seacrest as its host; and, in association with Wink Martindale, Headline Chasers (1985).