First Host Of Family Feud4/11/2021
Ron GalellaWireImage Dionne Warwick, Ray Combs, Vanessa Williams during Taping of Grammy Family Feud at CBS TV City in Hollywood.The sight that greeted them was a man hanging dead in a closet from a noose made from bedsheets.Of course, while the reasons behind suicides are, tragically, often unknown, the identity of the dead man was not.
First Host Of Family Feud Free Wit ThatFor six years, he had greeted contestants and the viewers at home with a carefree wit that spoke to his background as a popular stand-up comedian. As the new Family Feud began to slip in ratings, Combs life fell apart. The show was in a tailspin, with many stations dropping it from their schedules. The hope was that Dawsons popularity could reverse the decline. He left with a revealing joke after a contestant failed to get any points in the final round. ![]() As soon as shooting wrapped, he walked off the set and drove home without even a goodbye, leaving the contestants celebrating on stage without him. Its not unusual for a comedian to go through dry spells in their careers, but it was especially hard for Combs because he was totally broke. Shortly after being fired from the show, two of the comedy clubs he owned in his home state of Ohio went bankrupt and had to close. Because he could no longer afford to pay his mortgage, his house then went into foreclosure. The crash shattered one of the discs in his spine, leaving Combs temporarily paralyzed. Though he was eventually able to walk again, the injury meant he was in constant pain. He shot a pilot for a talk show, but no network wanted to pick it up. ![]() Then in June 1996, police responded to a call about a disturbance at Combs home in Glendale. Inside, they found that Combs had smashed up the furniture and was repeatedly banging his head against the walls hard enough to draw blood. Combs was taken into protective custody and committed to the Glendale Adventist Medical Center for psychiatric evaluation. He owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans and back taxes, with no assets to help pay them off. Combs wife was forced to sell what little Combs still had to cover some of the debt. And its a reminder that sometimes the people that seem to be doing well are the ones suffering the most. Then, read about Rod Ansell, the real life Crocodile Dundee.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |