Legendary Game Show Host Chuck Woolery Dies at Age 83 — What Happened?
The self-proclaimed Hollywood conservative's death has fans conflicted.
Published Nov. 24 2024, 10:04 a.m. ET
The game show world has lost a legend.
The original Wheel of Fortune host, and longtime Game Show Network personality Chuck Woolery has died at the age of 83.
Chuck's podcast co-host Mark Young confirmed the sad news on November 24 and shared that he died in his Texas home with his wife Kristen by his side.
"Chuck was a dear friend and brother and a tremendous man of faith, life will not be the same without him,” Mark told the Associated Press.
What happened to Chuck Woolery? His cause of death has yet to be reported.
Chuck and Mark had a podcast called Blunt Force Truth together, and Mark also took to X (formerly Twitter) to share more about his friend.
"It is with a broken heart that I tell you that my dear brother @chuckwoolery has just passed away," he tweeted. "Life will not be the same without him. RIP brother."
While a cause of death has yet to be reported, according to TMZ, Mark told the outlet that Chuck "said he wasn't feeling well and went to lie down," and shortly after, "he was having trouble breathing." Despite calling 9-1-1, Chuck did not make it.
Fans are conflicted about Chuck's death.
Chuck is best remembered for hosting iconic game shows such as The Wheel of Fortune, Love Connection, and Lingo. However, in his later years, Chuck was a self-proclaimed "Hollywood conservative" and shared many conspiracy theories regarding the coronavirus and vaccines before his death.
"The most outrageous lies are the ones about Covid 19. Everyone is lying. The CDC, Media, Democrats, our Doctors, not all but most, that we are told to trust," he wrote in a since-deleted tweet, per NBC News. "I think it’s all about the election and keeping the economy from coming back, which is about the election. I’m sick of it."
Fans took to social media to share their memories about Chuck.
"On one hand, Chuck Woolery was a hate-spewing, Trump-loving, idiot ... On the other hand, I have fond childhood memories of him as a game show host, and I'm sure his family loved him and will miss him dearly. It's tough to separate the art from the artist sometimes," one person wrote.
Another added, "Despite his Right-wing politics, Chuck Woolery was a good game show host & SCRABBLE was my favorite of the game shows he hosted. I remember watching it on NBC and then the reruns on the USA Network when they had their afternoon game show block back in the day."
Chuck is survived by his wife Kristen, sons Michael and Sean, and daughter Melissa.