| Bert Convy | |
|---|---|
Convy sub-hosting on To Tell the Truth, 1968 |
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| Born | Bernard Whalen Convy July 23, 1933 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | July 15, 1991 (aged 57) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Brain tumor |
| Occupation | Actor, game show host, singer |
| Years active | 1958–1990 |
| Spouse | Anne Anderson (m. 1959–1987) Catherine Hills (m. 1991–1991) |
Bernard Whalen "Bert" Convy (July 23, 1933 – July 15, 1991) was an Emmy Award winning American actor, singer, game show host and panelist known for his tenure as the host for Tattletales, Super Password, and Win, Lose or Draw.
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Convy was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Monica (née Whalen) and Bert Fleming Convy.[1] Convy was a member of the 1950s vocal band, The Cheers, who had a Top 10 hit in 1955 with "Black Denim Trousers And Motorcycle Boots". He was also a minor league baseball player, within the Philadelphia Phillies organization.
Convy started his career in the entertainment business as a featured performer and singer in the Billy Barnes Revues of the 1950s and 1960s. He appeared in the 1961 Warner Brothers drama Susan Slade, playing Troy Donahue's rival for the affections of Connie Stevens. Convy went on to became a Broadway actor, starring in Fiddler on the Roof (1964), The Impossible Years (1965), and Cabaret (1966). He also appeared in the Roger Corman film A Bucket of Blood, playing Lou Raby; and the soap opera Love of Life, playing Glenn Hamilton, a rapist.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Convy was a popular semi-regular panelist on several game shows, including What's My Line?, To Tell the Truth, The Match Game and Password. He soon took the podium himself as host of several game shows, including the fourth edition of Password, Super Password (1984–1989), but he remains best known for his first television game show, Tattletales (1974–1978, 1982–1984), for which he was awarded an Emmy for Best Game Show Host in 1977.
He also hosted the first two seasons of the syndicated version of Win, Lose or Draw (1987–1989), which he co-produced with Burt Reynolds (under the firm Burt and Bert Productions). The third and final season (1989-1990) of Win, Lose or Draw was hosted by Robb Weller, freeing up Convy to host his last game show (which he also produced), 3rd Degree, a syndicated program that ran during the 1989–90 TV season. He was going to host the 1990 revival of Match Game, but he was too ill to do so; comedian and Love Me, Love Me Not host Ross Shafer took the role instead.
In the 1960-1961 season, Convy guest starred on Pat O'Brien's short-lived ABC sitcom, Harrigan and Son as well as guest-starring on the ABC private detective show 77 Sunset Strip in the role of David Todd. He guest starred on Mary Tyler Moore as Jack Foster, a friend of Mary's, alongside future Alice co-star, Beth Howland.
He attempted to parlay his fame in a short-lived variety series, The Late Summer Early Fall Bert Convy Show in 1976. In 1979, he appeared with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders in a movie of the same name.
Convy also starred in several movies, most memorably in the film Semi-Tough (1977) where he played a caricature of Werner Erhard named "Friedrich Bismark." He starred in French director Philippe de Broca's Les Caprices de Marie (Give Her the Moon, 1970). In 1979, he starred in the movie Racquet, as a tennis star. He also made a fine appearance in Help Wanted: Male (1982). In addition, he directed the 1986 comedy Weekend Warriors. In 1980, Convy produced and directed the Goodspeed Opera House premiere of the musical Zapata, music and lyrics by Harry Nilsson and Perry Botkin, Jr., libretto by Allan Katz. Convy's final feature film was the 1981 movie Cannonball Run, in which he played a character named Bradford Compton. He also appeared in episodes of three CBS series, Perry Mason starring Raymond Burr, Hawaii Five-O starring Jack Lord, and The New Phil Silvers Show, with comedian Phil Silvers, and starred in the premiere episode of Fantasy Island with Ricardo Montalban, and had a supporting role in the pilot episode of "Murder, She Wrote" with Angela Lansbury.
Convy was married twice: to Anne Anderson, with whom he had three children; and to Catherine Hills, whom he wed five months prior to his death. Bert's daughter Jennifer also has been involved in television, moderating shows on Home and Garden Television (HGTV). His youngest son, Jonah Convy, is also involved in show business. His eldest son, Joshua Convy, is an accountant.
In April 1990, Convy was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after collapsing while visiting his mother. It was there that he was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and was given a short time to live, resulting in the relinquishing of his planned Match Game 90 role. After seeking many treatments from several hospitals, Convy died from the tumor on July 15, 1991, 8 days before what would have been his 58th birthday.[2] His remains are buried in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery.
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Tom Kennedy on Password Plus |
Host of Super Password September 24, 1984– March 24, 1989 |
Succeeded by Regis Philbin on "Million Dollar Password" in 2008 |
| Preceded by None |
Host of Win, Lose or Draw syndicated nighttime edition 1987–1989 |
Succeeded by Robb Weller |
| Awards | ||
| Preceded by Allen Ludden |
Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host 1977 |
Succeeded by Richard Dawson |