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Monty Hall Dead At 96: ‘Let’s Make A Deal’ Legendary Host Dies Of Heart Failure

By Louise Bonquin
Published on: 16:34 PST, Sep 30, 2017

Monty Hall, the famous TV personality who is best known for his hosting stint on the game show Let’s Make a Deal, has died on Saturday, Sept. 30. He was 96.

Joanna Gleason, Monty Hall’s daughter, confirmed the news to New York Times and shared that her father died of heart failure. The host passed away in his home in Beverly Hills, California.

The iconic show Let’s Make a Deal first aired on NBC as a daytime program in 1963. Although it was moved to ABC Network in 1968, Monty Hall continued to host the show and it became popular all over the world. The long-running show is now on CBS and it has been that way since 2009.

Let’s Make a Deal became one of the most popular daytime programs because it is unique in some ways. The contestants made the show more fun to watch because they wear odd costumes as they compete to win a big prize.

Originally, the participants’ attire was formal, but somehow, along the way, it changed. In his 2002 interview that was conducted by Fred Wostbrock, Monty Hall explained how the contestants in his game show started to wear outlandish outfits.

“When we did our first show, people showed up in business suits and dresses, nice looking people in the studio audience,” Hall said.

He went on to explain that he picked a woman due to the sign she was holding up. “By about the second week or so, a woman showed up with a sign. One side said, ‘roses are red, violets are blue, I came here to deal with you.’ I stopped, read the poem, and picked her.”

Monty Hall further shared that the following week, all the contestants had a sign and someone even put on a funny hat. Since then, many came to the studio in bizarre costumes to draw more attention, so they can be chosen to participate in the game.

Monty Hall was born Monte Halparin in Canada. He was raised in Winnipeg and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree.

The Canadian-American host and producer began his hosting career through CHUM radio station in Toronto. This hosting job was soon followed by a series of game shows on TV such as Bingo at Home, CBS’ Strike It Rich, and NBC’s Twenty-One.

Monty Hall is survived by his three equally well-known children: Sharon Hall, a producer at Endemol Shine Group; Richard Hall, The Amazing Race producer; and theater and TV actress Joanna Gleason. His wife, Marilyn Hall, died in June 2016.

[Featured Image by Jordan Strauss/AP Images]

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