King Of The Game Shows Merv Griffin Dies
Posted August 12, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Merv Griffin, the entertainer turned producer who played “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune” into a million-dollar empire, has died at age 82.
Griffin began his career as a big-band frontman and later moved into television. In 1965, he launched a syndicated talk show called The Merv Griffin Show.
He created Jeopardy! , although it went through various networks before finding a home with Alex Trebek. Griffin was allowed to produce the show’s successor, Wheel of Fortune .
When he retired, he sold his production company, Merv Griffin Enterprises, to Columbia Pictures Television for $250 million, which was the largest acquisition of an entertainment company owned by a single individual at that time. Following the sale, Forbes named him the richest Hollywood performer in history.
In July of 2007, it was announced that Griffin’s prostate cancer, treated originally in 1996, had returned and that he was admitted to Cedars Sinai Hospital. He died three days later on Sunday.
Photo Credit: Charley Gallay/Getty Images
