Chuck Woolery, the original emcee of Wheel of Fortune, has passed away at the age of 83.
On Saturday, November 23, Woolery’s friend and podcast co-host, Mark Young, shared the news of his death on X, formerly Twitter.
“It is with a broken heart that I tell you my dear brother @chuckwoolery has just passed away,” Young wrote. “Life will not be the same without him, RIP, brother.”
While Young has not confirmed the cause of death, TMZ reported that Woolery died at his Texas home on Saturday after experiencing difficulty breathing.
Woolery, who won a Daytime Emmy Award in 1978 for his role on Wheel of Fortune, became a beloved figure in the world of game shows.
After more than a decade as the host of Wheel, he went on to host Love Connection, where he became known for his role as a matchmaker.
“This is really the one show I do that I’ll watch at home,” Woolery told People in an interview. “I really like its unpredictability.”
In addition to his game show career, Woolery hosted the nationally syndicated radio commentary show Save Us Chuck Woolery and co-hosted the podcast Blunt Force Truth with Young.
He also had his own CBS daytime morning show, though it was short-lived in the face of competition from Live With Regis and Kathie Lee.
Other hosting roles included Home and Family on the Family Channel, Lingo on the Game Show Network, Greed on Fox and a reboot of The Dating Game for syndication.