Merv Griffin, who was producing up until his final weeks of life, died today of prostate cancer. Griffin was one of Hollywood’s most boundless executives. He began his career as a singer, hosted “The Merv Griffin Show” for more than 20 years, created the hit game shows Wheel Of Fortune and Jeopardy! and, later in life, became a real estate magnate.
“My father was a visionary,” Griffin’s son, Tony Griffin, said in a statement issued today. “He loved business and continued his many projects and holdings even while hospitalized.” Griffin’s latest project Merv Griffin’s Crosswords premieres in syndication next month.
Griffin was a guest on FOX & Friends just last month. In what would be his last interview, Brian Kilmeade asked Griffin about his legacy and how his television show impacted politics: “The Kennedy White House would call my producer,” Griffin said, “so they became aware of how valuable the talk shows were to a candidate.” “The 23 years I did my show, nobody knew what my political affiliations were.” Merv Griffin was 82.