As most of you know Ray Combes was the second host of Family Fued, who was on the show for several years and then was fired.

Before he was the host of Family Fued, he was a comedian and performer and guest starred on TV shows and did other things and was an up and comer. Then he was hired for Family Fued.

After he was fired from Fued, he tries to host other shows which were failures, his marriage to his wife of his six children filed for divorce and his comedy club back home in Ohio went bankrupt. Seems to me he couldn’t find any other work since he was seen as a game show host and not anymore a comedian/performer/actor and he was fired from being a game show host and went from being a career climber to a has been.

Seems Combes went “off the deep end” in a psychotic episode and killed himself. I wonder if he was never hired for Fued, would he still be alive now? Impossible to say, but it seems the show gave him some fame and then took it all away from him.

Combes was a tragic figure and deserved better in life and I think his circumstances just consumed him. I have said that Judy Garland would have been better off a farmer’s wife in Minnesota, and Ray Combes would have been better off selling cars in Hamilton, Ohio. Hollywood just consumes some people whole.

Opinions?

When you look at the general picture when you look at Family Feud I think Family Feud has a curse because starting with Ray Combs's death when they get a new host the new host stars on Family Feud for years then something happens to the new host and once the new host is gone another host replaces him. Look at Louie Anderson when he began hosting Family Feud he was a huge star and then he got fired and replaced by Richard Karn and then this year Louie Anderson passed away and Richard Karn was alright but then replaced by John O'Hurley then once John O'Hurley left Steve Harvey has been the current host of Family Feud ever since and now that Richard Karn John O'Hurley and Steve Harvey are the only surviving Family Feud hosts I wonder how the show is still surviving with Steve Harvey? But what I think truly happened with Ray Combs is that I think Ray simply took the offer of Family Feud as a way to expand his career and he wanted to try being a game show host to make easy money to support his family. And when he debuted on Family Feud in 1988 Ray Combs knew that he could be a game show superstar and by the time his version ended in 1995 Ray Combs knew that he was tailor-made for game shows but like David Ruprecht on Supermarket Sweep who is a one-hit wonder game show host Ray was afraid that once Family Feud ended in 1995 he would become a one-hit wonder in game shows. But once Family Challenge debuted on The Family Channel in 1996 Ray Combs became a Comeback Kid but I think the stress of Family Challenge became too much and he should've asked for a better salary for it but when he passed away after Family Challenge filmed it's first season it left a mystery to fans why a game show host who was just beginning to be a superstar quickly faded too soon. But when Family Challenge began it's second season as The All-New Family Challenge with Michael Berger replacing Ray it just wasn't the same. But I think had Ray Combs gotten some help with his life he would be as big of a star in the game show world if he were still alive today
Bestie

Interesting question. You may be right about Ray Combs being alive if he'd never gotten the hosting job on Family Feud but of course the real answer to the question is we'll never know.

Ed.

Somebody on YouTube made a very interesting alternative observation (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdfRwn71RHc&lc=UgxUoPWK9MgNFNC4NTd4AaABAg). Ray Combs was too fresh and new to host Family Feud when he did. While appearing on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show did boost his star power somewhat, he was still mostly considered a nobody to the public eye. This is likely a big reason why the show’s ratings declined over the years.

Ray probably would've been better off spending 2-5 more years boosting his star power. That would’ve opened more opportunities for him in the world of comedy, which was something he ultimately wanted more than hosting Family Feud as he stated himself.

I think he was in a very TOXIC family environment that was going to get him one way or another. I hold the strong opinion (from what I have read) that his wife (and her family) was a horrible narcissist. The rest of her family ambushed him demanding money for every kind of investment.