Host of ‘tic-tac-de-de-de-de-de-de-de-Dead’ and ‘Gambit’ was 91
Wink Martindale, a pioneer of Game Showfrontmen and the host of “Tic-Tac-Dough”, “Gambit” and “High Rollers”, died Tuesday. He was 91.
The news was confirmed by his official Facebook page. In a message that shares a death advertisement for Martindale, the page wrote: “It is with a very sad and heavy heart that we have to report here at Wink Martindale games the death of the legendary wink Martindale. Wink was great, funny and talented. Really a legend! More to come soon.”
Martindale spent 74 years in the radio and television company and started his career at the age of 17 as a DJ before he made a name for himself on the WHBQ station located in Memphis. Famosuly, in 1954, DJ Dewey Phillips broadcast the debut record of Elvis Presley, “that’s good” for the first time. When he heard the job, Martindale called Presley’s mother to see if he could come to his station for a chat. The conversation is considered an important role in launching the career of a young presley.
Martindale itself has released a number of successful records, including the spoken word track ‘Deck of Cards’, which peaked on the seventh on the Billboard Hot 100 hit lists and sold more than a million copies.
In the early 60s, Martindale moved to Los Angeles and became host for KHJ. He would continue to work for various stations in the Greater LA-Area, including KRLA, KFBW, KGIL-AM and KMPC.
In 1964 he landed his first performance as a host of a game show on “What is this song?” He would later continue to shows such as “Gambit”, “Words and Music” and “Tic-Tac-Dough.” His other hosting credits are “The Last Word”, “The Great Getaway Game”, “Trivial Pursuit”, “Headline Chasers” and more.
