Bill Cullen was one of the greatest American television and radio personalities who ever lived. He was best known for hosting game shows, earning him the nickname “the dean of game show hosts”. Over his 50-year career, Bill endeared himself to American audiences and became a household name, earning fame and wealth along the way. When he wasn’t hosting his own game shows, he frequently appeared on other shows as a celebrity or guest panel member, such as What’s My Line? and Break the bank.
Bill Cullen Biography
The great radio personality was born WilliamLawrence Francis Cullen on February 18, 1920 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Lillian and William Cullen. He was the only child of his parents and his father worked as a Ford car dealership.
Bill didn’t have the rosiest childhood. When he was just 19 months old he succumbed to polio and although he survived the disease left him with a physical deficit that he had to deal with throughout his life. He attended the University of Pittsburgh, but lack of funding caused him to drop out. However, he returned to complete his studies after he started earning decent money on the radio. He became interested in broadcasting and decided to make his career there in 1939, working as a DJ and play-by-play commentator for WWSW radio in his hometown. Four years later, he left to join KDKA for a short time before deciding to move to New York and seek greater opportunities.
After a week of living in the big city, Billa got a job with CBS as an announcer. He also worked as a freelancer to supplement his income, writing jokes for some of radio’s top celebrities of that time. He made his first foray into the world of game shows in 1945 as an announcer on a show called Give and Take. For the next seven years, Bill worked as an announcer on several other shows, including Winner Takes All, which became his first hosting job after he was offered the job following the exit of one of the anchors. . He has also worked as a radio host for popular shows on WRCA and NBC.
By this point, Bill Cullen had already established himself as a force to be reckoned with in the broadcast industry, so it came as no surprise to discover television and quickly claim new territory. He has hosted many shows such as Place the Face, Play on the Stars, Name That Melody, The Price Is Right, Three on a Match, The Love Experts, Chain Reaction, and Hot Potato.
Thanks to his humorous personality and charisma, Bill never had trouble finding work in television. It then hosted Blankety Blanks, How Do You Like Your Eggs?, The $25,000 Pyramid, Child’s Play, The Joker’s Wild, and Blockbusters
wife and family
Illustrious radio and television personality was not as successful in the wedding department as in her career. Bill made three trips to the altar in his lifetime. His first was to marry Ruth Elizabeth Harrington, but the marriage only lasted from 1943 to 1948. He married Carol Ames, the singer shortly after his divorce was finalized. The marriage was concluded until 1955 before ending in divorce. Later that same year, Bill recovered from the breakdown of his second marriage and tied the knot with Ann Roemheld Macomber, the former model and dancer, on December 24. The third time was definitely the charm, because this marriage was successful until its end.
Achievements and rewards
Early in his career, Bill Cullen was a color commentator for college football games, as well as an athletics reporter for NBC. He was renowned for his incredible knowledge of the sport, so much so that other game show hosts learned to avoid asking him for anything sport-related.
Bill has been praised and recognized for his work. He was nominated for Emmy Awards three times and won a Primetime Emmy for his work on Three in One Match. It went on to earn Daymy Emmy nominations for hosting Hot Potato and Blockbusters. Over his five-decade career, Bill Cullen has hosted an incredible number of television and radio shows, accounting for over 25,000 episodes.
How did he die?
In the end, it was one of Bill’s favorite habits that claimed his life. The game show host had been a religious smoker since his teenage years and was eventually diagnosed with lung cancer. After a long battle with illness, he left that land plane for another plane on July 7, 1990 at his Bel Air residence. He was 70 at the time and his wife Ann survived him, childless.