Bernard King (television)

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Bernard King (March 1934 – 20 December 2002) was an Australian stage actor and television personality.

His role as the ascerbic judge of Australian television daytime talent shows Pot of Gold and New Faces was when he first gained national notoriety with his brutally honest judgements that rarely spared the feelings of the contestants. He would frequently give a contentant very low scores, such as 2 out of 10, and would at times simply give them zero.

He was also Australia's first homegrown celebrity chef.

At his peak in 1982 he had become an industry, earning five million dollars from lucrative sponsorship deals, licensing arrangements, a signature range of herbs and spices and wide-ranging media commitments.^{[citation needed]}. During the late 1990's he made public appearances in shopping centres, television programs and other public locations to host cooking demonstrations. These appearances were made with 2 well built and scantilly clad male assistants dubbed "The Bernardetes".

[edit] Personal life

King was gay and had many lovers.^[1] His biographer, Stephanie Clifford-Smith, says "Fidelity wasn't top of his list". His partner of thirteen years was Alan Marshall.^[1] One of his best known platonic friendships was with song and dance man, Sammy Davis Junior.^{[citation needed]}

In later years, King struggled with his finances. He died penniless in the garden of a Gold Coast house where he was living rent-free in exchange for gardening duties.^[1]