Bill Cullen

William Lawrence Frances Cullen (February 18, 1920 – July 7, 1990) spent five decades in American radio and television, primarily as a game show host. He helmed 23 different programs, which earned him the nickname "Dean of Game Show Hosts." He also frequently appeared as a panelist or celebrity guest on shows like *I've Got a Secret* and *To Tell the Truth*.

Cullen was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the only child of a Ford dealer and his wife. He survived polio as a child, which left him with lasting physical limitations. He studied pre-med at the University of Pittsburgh but had to leave due to financial trouble; after finding success in radio, he returned to earn his bachelor's degree.

His broadcasting career began in 1939 at Pittsburgh's WWSW radio, where he worked as a disc jockey and called play-by-play for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Pittsburgh Hornets hockey team. In 1943, he moved briefly to rival station KDKA, then left Pittsburgh for New York a year later. Within a week, CBS hired him as a staff announcer. To supplement his income, he freelanced as a joke writer for Arthur Godfrey, Danny Kaye, and Jack Benny, and worked as a staff writer for *Easy Aces*. His first game show work came in 1945 as announcer for the radio quiz *Give And Take*. In summer 1950, he was quizmaster on *Hit the Jackpot*, a summer replacement for *Amos 'n' Andy* on CBS. After a short stint at WNEW in 1951, he hosted a popular morning show on WNBC radio from 1955 to 1961.

During World War II, Cullen served in the Civil Air Patrol as an instructor and patrol aircraft pilot in Pennsylvania. He failed to qualify for combat duty due to his physical disabilities. He was also interested in mechanics.

His first television game show was the TV version of *Winner Take All*, which premiered on NBC in 1952. In 1953, he had *The Bill Cullen Show*, a weekly morning variety program on CBS. He hosted *Bank on the Stars* in 1954. From 1954 to 1955, he hosted NBC's *Place the Face* and simultaneously hosted CBS's *Name That Tune*. From 1956 to 1965, he hosted the initial daytime and primetime versions of *The Price Is Right*. He was a panelist on *I've Got a Secret* from 1952 to 1967 and on *To Tell the Truth* from 1969 to 1978, occasionally guest-hosting the latter. After moving to Southern California, he guest-hosted *Password Plus* for four weeks in April 1980 while Allen Ludden was treated for stomach cancer.

Cullen was considered to host the 1972 revival of *The Price Is Right* but chose to stay in New York. Bob Barker took the daytime version, and Dennis James hosted the syndicated nighttime version. Current host Drew Carey has made occasional references to Cullen on the show. Other game shows Cullen hosted include *Eye Guess*, *Three on a Match*, *Blankety Blanks*, *The Love Experts*, *How Do You Like Your Eggs?*, and the syndicated *The $25,000 Pyramid* in the 1970s, as well as *Chain Reaction*, *Blockbusters*, *Child's Play*, *Hot Potato*, and *The Joker's Wild* (his final hosting job, from 1984 to 1986, after Jack Barry's death).

In a 1984 *TV Guide* article, Cullen described how he seemed to land hosting jobs: a packager and network would struggle to find a host, and at the last minute, they'd settle on him. He said this was almost exactly how NBC picked the host of *Hot Potato*. He appeared as a celebrity guest on many shows, including *What's My Line?*, *Password*, *Match Game*, *Tattletales* (with his wife Ann), and all versions of *Pyramid* except the $50,000 and $100,000 editions. He hosted several pilots for producer Bob Stewart, and was the only person to host *The Price Is Right*, *Truth*, *Password*, and *Pyramid* on a full- or part-time basis. He also appeared as a panelist on shows hosted by Bob Eubanks, including *Trivia Trap*, *Rhyme and Reason*, and *All Star Secrets*, and made guest appearances with Eubanks on *Family Feud*. In 1982, he appeared on *The Price Is Right* to promote his new show, *Child's Play*.