Cause of death Cardiac arrest Name Bob Clayton | Role Game Show Host | |
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Born August 17, 1922 ( 1922-08-17 ) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Occupation Announcer, Game show host Died November 1, 1979, New York City, New York, United States Movies and TV shows The Bellboy, Concentration, Pyramid, Blankety Blanks, Make a Face Similar People Bob Stewart, Jack Barry, Jerry Lewis, Dan Enright | ||
My first Classic Game Show is Concentration Bob Clayton
Bob Clayton (August 17, 1922 in Atlanta, Georgia – November 1, 1979 in New York City) was an American television game show announcer and host of several shows. He spent his early television career hosting shows in Miami, Florida before moving to New York in the 1960s.
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Career
After his first national hosting job on the game Make a Face (ABC, 1961–1962), Clayton assumed announcing duties on the long-running NBC game Concentration in 1963, and took over hosting duties on the show in January 1969 as successor from original emcee Hugh Downs. He was suddenly replaced in March 1969 by Ed McMahon, but later returned in September 1969 after viewer outrage and declining audience ratings. Wayne Howell replaced Clayton in the announcer's booth; Clayton remained on the show until its 1973 cancellation.
Clayton also had a brief flirtation with the movies when he played the bell captain in Jerry Lewis' 1960 film, The Bellboy, which was shot on location in Miami.
Later work
After the cancellation of Concentration, Clayton served as announcer on several shows created by Bob Stewart, including the Pyramid series of games, beginning with CBS' The $10,000 Pyramid in 1973. Pyramid began airing the Monday after the final episode of Concentration aired, in the same time slot, though on another network. Other Stewart shows he did included Blankety Blanks, Shoot for the Stars and Pass the Buck.
Personal life
He was married to Tahitian dancer Mireille of the Mai-Kai Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale.
Death
Clayton died of cardiac arrest in 1979. Steve O'Brien, a New York disc jockey, took over Pyramid, and he and Alan Kalter announced the show for the remainder of its days in New York.