Prolific and award-winning television personality Merv Griffin succumbed to prostate cancer on Sunday. He passed away at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at the age of 82 and is survived by son Anthony and two grandchildren.
While his storied career includes stints as pop-music star, pianist, real-estate mogul, Eva-Gabor consort, and game-show host, Mr. Griffin is best known for hosting an eponymous talk show and creating Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, both of which can still be seen today and without which we may have never gotten to know Vanna White.
Jeopardy! debuted on NBC Networks - now owned by General Electric (NYSE: GE) - in 1964 and ran 11 years before resurrecting in 1984 with Alex Trebek taking over hosting duties. Griffin also composed the familiar Jeopardy theme song, the royalties to which earned him "close to $70-80 million," he said in 2005.
Wheel of Fortune premiered in 1975, also on NBC, but became syndicated in 1983 and is currently the longest-running game show on syndicated television.
In 2005, Griffin was given a lifetime achievement award at the Daytime Emmys and earned accolades from the Museum of Television and Radio.
Griffin's latest project, Crosswords, is still being produced and is expected to premiere on September 10.
Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.
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