NEW YORK (AP) 鈥 Chuck Woolery, the affable, smooth-talking game show host of 鈥淲heel of Fortune,鈥 鈥淟ove Connection鈥 and 鈥淪crabble鈥 who later became a right-wing podcaster, skewering liberals and accusing the government of lying about COVID-19, has died. He was 83.
Mark Young, Woolery's podcast co-host and friend, said in an email early Sunday that Woolery died at his home in Texas with his wife, Kristen, present. 鈥淐huck was a dear friend and brother and a tremendous man of faith, life will not be the same without him,鈥 Young wrote.
Woolery, with his matinee idol looks, coiffed hair and ease with witty banter, was inducted into the American TV Game Show Hall of Fame in 2007 and earned a daytime Emmy nomination in 1978.
In 1983, Woolery began an 11-year run as host of TVB次元官网网址 鈥淟ove Connection,鈥 for which he coined the phrase, 鈥淲e鈥檒l be back in two minutes and two seconds,鈥 a two-fingered signature dubbed the 鈥2 and 2.鈥 In 1984, he hosted TVB次元官网网址 鈥淪crabble,鈥 simultaneously hosting two game shows on TV until 1990.
鈥淟ove Connection,鈥 which aired long before the dawn of dating apps, had a premise that featured either a single man or single woman who would watch audition tapes of three potential mates and then pick one for a date.
A couple of weeks after the date, the guest would sit with Woolery in front of a studio audience and tell everybody about the date. The audience would vote on the three contestants, and if the audience agreed with the guestB次元官网网址 choice, 鈥淟ove Connection鈥 would offer to pay for a second date.
Woolery told The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2003 that his favorite set of lovebirds was a man aged 91 and a woman aged 87. "She had so much eye makeup on, she looked like a stolen Corvette. He was so old he said, 鈥業 remember wagon trains.鈥 The poor guy. She took him on a balloon ride.鈥
Other career highlights included hosting the shows 鈥淟ingo," 鈥淕reed鈥 and 鈥淭he Chuck Woolery Show,鈥 as well as hosting the short-lived syndicated revival of 鈥淭he Dating Game鈥 from 1998 to 2000 and an ill-fated 1991 talk show. In 1992, he played himself in two episodes of TVB次元官网网址 鈥淢elrose Place.鈥
Woolery became the subject of the Game Show NetworkB次元官网网址 first attempt at a reality show, 鈥淐huck Woolery: Naturally Stoned,鈥 which premiered in 2003. It shared the title of the pop song in 1968 by Woolery and his rock group, the Avant-Garde. It lasted six episode and was panned by critics.
Woolery began his TV career at a show that has become a mainstay. Although most associated with Pat Sajak and Vanna White, 鈥淲heel of Fortune鈥 debuted Jan. 6, 1975, on NBC with Woolery welcoming contestants and the audience. Woolery, then 33, was trying to make it in Nashville as a singer.
鈥淲heel of Fortune鈥 started life as 鈥淪hopperB次元官网网址 Bazaar,鈥 incorporating Hangman-style puzzles and a roulette wheel. After Woolery appeared on 鈥淭he Merv Griffin Show鈥 singing 鈥淒elta Dawn,鈥 Merv Griffin asked him to host the new show with Susan Stafford.
鈥淚 had an interview that stretched to 15, 20 minutes,鈥 Woolery told The New York Times in 2003. 鈥淎fter the show, when Merv asked if I wanted to do a game show, I thought, 鈥楪reat, a guy with a bad jacket and an equally bad mustache who doesn鈥檛 care what you have to say 鈥 thatB次元官网网址 the guy I want to be.鈥欌
NBC initially passed, but they retooled it as 鈥淲heel of Fortune鈥 and got the green light. After a few years, Woolery demanded a raise to $500,000 a year, or what host Peter Marshall was making on 鈥淗ollywood Squares.鈥 Griffin balked and replaced Woolery with weather reporter Pat Sajak.
鈥淏oth Chuck and Susie did a fine job, and 鈥榃heel鈥 did well enough on NBC, although it never approached the kind of ratings success that 鈥楯eopardy!鈥 achieved in its heyday,鈥 Griffin said in 鈥淢erv: Making the Good Life Last,鈥 an autobiography from the 2000s co-written by David Bender. Woolery earned an Emmy nod as host.
Born in Ashland, Kentucky, Woolery served in the U.S. Navy before attending college. He played double bass in a folk trio, then formed the psychedelic rock duo The Avant-Garde in 1967 while working as a truck driver to support himself as a musician.
The Avant-Garde, which tourbed in a refitted Cadillac hearse, had the Top 40 hit 鈥淣aturally Stoned,鈥 with Woolery singing, 鈥淲hen I put my mind on you alone/I can get a good sensation/Feel like I鈥檓 naturally stoned.鈥
After The Avant-Garde broke up, Woolery released his debut solo single 鈥淚鈥檝e Been Wrong鈥 in 1969 and several more singles with Columbia before transitioning to country music by the 1970s. He released two solo singles, 鈥淔orgive My Heart鈥 and 鈥淟ove Me, Love Me.鈥
Woolery wrote or co-wrote songs for himself and everyone from Pat Boone to Tammy Wynette. On WynetteB次元官网网址 1971 album 鈥淲e Sure Can Love Each Other,鈥 Woolery wrote 鈥淭he Joys of Being a Woman鈥 with lyrics including 鈥淪ee our baby on the swing/Hear her laugh, hear her scream.鈥
After his TV career ended, Woolery went into podcasting. In an interview with The New York Times, he called himself a gun-rights activist and described himself as a conservative libertarian and constitutionalist. He said he hadn鈥檛 revealed his politics in liberal Hollywood for fear of retribution.
He teamed up with Mark Young in 2014 for the podcast 鈥淏lunt Force Truth鈥 and soon became a full supporter of Donald Trump while arguing minorities don鈥檛 need civil rights and causing a firestorm by tweeting an antisemitic comment linking Soviet Communists to Judaism.
鈥淧resident ObamaB次元官网网址 popularity is a fantasy only held by him and his dwindling legion of juice-box-drinking, anxiety-dog-hugging, safe-space-hiding snowflakes,鈥 he said.
Woolery also was active online, retweeting articles from Conservative Brief, insisting Democrats were trying to install a system of Marxism and spreading headlines such as 鈥淚mpeach him! Devastating photo of Joe Biden leaks.鈥
During the early stages of the pandemic, Woolery initially accused medical professionals and Democrats of lying about the virus in an effort to hurt the economy and TrumpB次元官网网址 chances for reelection to the presidency.
鈥淭he most outrageous lies are the ones about COVID-19. Everyone is lying. The CDC, media, Democrats, our doctors, not all but most, that we are told to trust. I think itB次元官网网址 all about the election and keeping the economy from coming back, which is about the election. I鈥檓 sick of it,鈥 Woolery wrote in July 2020.
Trump retweeted that post to his 83 million followers. By the end of the month, nearly 4.5 million Americans had been infected with COVID-19 and more than 150,000 had died.
Just days later, Woolery changed his stance, announcing his son had contracted COVID-19. 鈥淭o further clarify and add perspective, COVID-19 is real and it is here. My son tested positive for the virus, and I feel for of those suffering and especially for those who have lost loved ones,鈥 Woolery posted before his account was deleted.
Woolery later explained on his podcast that he never called COVID-19 鈥渁 hoax鈥 or said 鈥渋tB次元官网网址 not real,鈥 just that 鈥渨e鈥檝e been lied to.鈥 Woolery also said it was 鈥渁n honor to have your president retweet what your thoughts are and think itB次元官网网址 important enough to do that.鈥
In addition to his wife, Woolery is survived by his sons Michael and Sean and his daughter Melissa, Young said.
___
Mark Kennedy is at .
