Saturday, September 30, 2017

Monty Hall (1921-2017)

Canadian-born Monty Hall made his name here in the US as the creator and original host of Let's Make a Deal, then developed a number of other series with business partner Stefan Hatos in a career that also included a stint as a sports announcer.

Hall began his American career as one of the hosts of Video Village and its' Saturday morning companion series, Video Village, Jr.. Deal has the distinction of having aired on ABC & NBC during its initial run, and currently on CBS. During Deal's 1st run, Hall also packaged Split Second for ABC (he'd host the short-lived syndicated revival in the 80's), and acquired the rights to two 50's games, Masquerade Party and It Pays To Be Ignorant for syndication in the 70's. It was a rare instance when Hall was asked to host a game he didn't develop, and that was CBS' revival of Beat The Clock in 1979.

Hall actually spent time as a color analyst for the NHL's New York Rangers on radio in the 60's. Not sure if any of those broadcasts are available online at the moment.

However, everyone remembers Monty Hall best for Let's Make a Deal. Here's a classic episode from 1971.



Monty Hall went to Heaven's marketplace today, having passed away at 96 from heart failure. Rest in peace, Monty. You will be missed.

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