Rod Roddy
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| Rod Roddy | |
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| Born | September 28, 1937 Fort Worth, Texas |
| Died | October 27, 2003 Los Angeles, California |
Rod Roddy (September 28, 1937 – October 27, 2003), born Robert Ray Roddy, was a radio and television announcer. He is best known for his long tenure as the announcer on the game show The Price Is Right.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early beginnings
He graduated from Texas Christian University and was a disc jockey and talk show host on KLIF and KNUS-FM (Dallas, Texas).
[edit] Career
He also announced the situation comedy Soap (1977–1981), where he provided the opening and closing narration ("Confused? You won't be after this week's episode of Soap!"); also, the game shows Whew! (1979–1980), Battlestars (1981–1982), Love Connection (1983–1985), Hit Man (1983) and Press Your Luck (1983–1986). He also announced the pilots for future game shows Scrabble, Jeopardy! and Dream House.
[edit] The Price Is Right
He replaced Johnny Olson as announcer on The Price Is Right after Olson's death in 1985 and continued with the show until October 2003. Roddy was known on the show for his excitement and flamboyance. He was frequently shown on-camera while he announced "the next contestant on The Price Is Right." Roddy often wore loud outfits, including particularly colorful and/or sequined sport jackets. He first encountered pastel suits on a trip to Thailand and, with Barker's encouragement, turned them into a trademark. He returned to Bangkok several times a year to have new ones custom-made. [1]
[edit] Illness and death
Roddy was diagnosed with colon and breast cancer in 2001. The diagnosis led Roddy to become a spokesperson for early detection of cancer. Roddy: "I could have prevented all this with a colonoscopy and, of course, that's the campaign I've been on since I had the first surgery...to everybody out there, 'Get a mammogram!' It can happen to men, too."
While ill with his cancer for over two years, Rod Roddy continued to do announcing for The Price Is Right as long as he could, right up to his last hospitalization two months before his death at the age of 66.
| Preceded by Johnny Olson 1972–1985 |
The Price Is Right announcer 1986–2003 |
Succeeded by Rich Fields 2004–present |
