Does anybody remember Larry Blyden?

[bb]

I remember the 70s Whats My Line hosted by Larry Blyden. Always thought he was so funny.
From what I remember not only did he do a few other game shows but he was also huge on Broadway and did a movie with Barbara Streisand ( On A Clear Day YOu Can See Forever ). Blyden also died young ( in his 40s ). Anybody else remembers him?

He was killed in an auto accident on June 5, 1975. He was even set to host an ABC daytime game show, called "Show-Offs", a few weeks later, but, his death resulted in BOBBY VAN assuming the hosting duties. I once saw Blyden's birth date as June 23, 1925, which means, he was 49 when he died

[TV Guy]

Up until a few months ago, GSN was showing episodes of the syndicated 70s version of "What's My Line". They hadn't gotten to the point where Larry Blyden was hosting (the Wally Bruner episodes were running), but Larry was a frequent panelist.

Larry Blyden was one of those game show hosts who would have gone far had he lived.
Bobby Van was another one. He did Make me Laugh in the late 70s-yet he was dead by 1981.
He too died much too young.

Larry Blyden's son died recently. Saw elsewhere on the web that he did some soaps and such ( he appeared with his dad on some of the Whats My Line shows ). He was beaten up by a gang in LA ( damaged his eyes to the point that he was almost blind )and his health when into a sharp decline and died not too long afterward. I think he too was in his 40s.

Like father- like son, really sad.

[Jimbo]

Someone above mentioned Wally Bruner. If I'm not mistaken, he also died at a young age (mid 40s?). It's shame how many of these individuals left this Earth much too soon: Larry Blyden, Bobby Van, Wally Bruner, and Bert Convy just to name a few.

[PPatters]

Wally was in his mid-40s when he did the show. He died in like 1997, so he was into his sixties by the time he had died.

[Jimbo]

PPatters: Thanks for the clarification! I don't know why, but I thought Wally Bruner was much younger when he passed away (I may have been confusing him with Larry Blyden). Anyway, I appreciate the update.

Ray Combs(the second FAMILY FEUD host)comitted suicide,at the young age of 40, in 1996

[DueSouthFan]

I remember Larry....GSN showed Whats My Line with him on for a while. Now they only occasionally show the John Daly version.

[Rezny@gmail.com]

Remember the NBC 1967-1969 game show the late Larry Blyden did called "Personality"?He ALSO co-starred in 2 episodes of "The Twilight Zone"(one with the softer first season theme called 1960's"A Nice Place To Visit"in which he played Rocky Valentine,and in the third season 1962's"Showdown With Rance Mc Grew"(with the familiar theme-he played phoney--baloney TV sheriff Rance Mc Grew)and took over as host of NBC's short-lived 1969 game show "You're Putting Me On"when the original host the late Bill Leyden left.Larry Blyden would have had a very good career had he lived.

[howilu]

I remember Larry Blyden as the host of Personality, which was produced by Bob Stewart and featured a panel of three celebrities playing for members of the studio audience. He was also a regular on another Bob Stewart produced show You're Putting Me On and later took over the hosting chores from Bill Leyden after he left. Blyden also replaced Sonny Fox as host of the syndicated game show The Movie Game and when that show ended production, he became the host of What's My Line after Wally Bruner decided to leave.

Blyden was a very good host and had excellent people skills, which are important for a successful game show host. What's My Line producer Gil Fates, who wrote a book about the show described him as the second or third best emcee in the game show business. His post game interviews with the celebrity Mystery Guests were outstanding.

But unfortunately, Blyden's career came to a tragic end when he went on vacation to Morocco after taping the pilot of Showoffs in 1975 and was killed in a car accident. Showoffs did go on the air with a new host, Bobby Van and didn't have a long run. According to Fates' book, if Blyden hosted Showoffs, the show would have had a chance since he had the type of energy and drive for the show's pace unlike the inexperienced Van.

I should also point out, that Blyden also had numerous roles as an actor on Broadway, TV (including the sitcom Harry's Girls) and movies.

[BillCullen1]

Originally Posted by howilu

Blyden was a very good host and had excellent people skills, which are important for a successful game show host. What's My Line producer Gil Fates, who wrote a book about the show described him as the second or third best emcee in the game show business. His post game interviews with the celebrity Mystery Guests were outstanding.

But unfortunately, Blyden's career came to a tragic end when he went on vacation to Morocco after taping the pilot of Showoffs in 1975 and was killed in a car accident. Showoffs did go on the air with a new host, Bobby Van and didn't have a long run. According to Fates' book, if Blyden hosted Showoffs, the show would have had a chance since he had the type of energy and drive for the show's pace unlike the inexperienced Van.

Also, Blyden did not have any ID with him at the time of the fatal accident. If he had ID on him, they could have checked his medical history and possibly saved his life. Shame.

[tv star collector]

Larry Blyden was also a very funny comedic actor. He was terrific as the star
of the short-lived NBC sitcom Harry's Girls. Such a tragedy that he left
us much, much too soon.